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LP
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BTR 135LP
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$29.50
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 6/5/2026
Kronstad 23 return with Dødehavet, the Norwegian quartet's third album and first release on Batov Records. Continuing their instinctive, analogue-led approach, the record sits between cinematic jazz and psychedelic rock, threaded with Scandinavian folk and wider global influences. Recorded live to tape with minimal preparation and no modern studio intervention, Dødehavet captures a band working on feel, interaction and momentum rather than polish or precision. Despite living at opposite ends of Norway, old friends Øyvind Arnodd Vie Berg (keys), Alexander Tøsdal Tveit (guitar, sitar), Eirik Rømcke (bass) and Hans Christian Dalgaard (drums, percussion) conceived the album almost casually, sketching the idea of a reunion over a drink before committing quickly to writing and recording. Sessions took place at Berg's home studio in Bergen, with the quartet working fast, relying on intuition and shared musical language rather than extensive rehearsal or postproduction. On Dødehavet, Kronstad 23 lean more decisively towards groove and collective propulsion, expanding their palette without sacrificing the immediacy that defines their sound. While still largely recorded in single takes, the album is given added heat by contributions from saxophonists Håvar Skaugen and Inge Weatherhead Breistein. Recorded with all four core musicians playing together in the same room, Dødehavet avoids sterile production in favor of a raw, direct sound. Most pieces were captured in one or two takes using a 50-year-old mixing console and tape recorder, deliberately resisting contemporary studio techniques to preserve a timeless, lived-in character. Influences surface organically rather than through rigid composition. Kronstad 23 operate with a deliberately low-pressure dynamic. The quartet meets only a handful of times each year and rarely rehearses in a conventional sense, instead trusting shared instincts and keeping structures loose. The project's name nods to Afrobeat-era band naming conventions, with "23" marking the year the project came into focus and Kronstad referencing the Bergen neighborhood where the group's first sessions took place. While Afrobeat is only one strand in their sound, the name reflects openness rather than fixed identity. At its core, Dødehavet is about process rather than statement -- music shaped by listening, restraint and collective momentum. Jazz, soul, folk, Afrobeat, rock and raga merge into a single, unforced language, captured in real time and left largely untouched. FFO: Gábor Szabó, Amancio D'Silva, Mulatu Astatke, Soft Machine, Surprise Chef, Menahan Street Band, Ikebe Shakedown, El Michels Affair, The Sorcerers, Sababa 5, Ill Considered, Tommy Guerrero, Glass Beams.
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LP
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EPR 082LP
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LP version. Something is brewing in the state of Norway! Kronstad 23 are the latest trailblazers from northern Scandinavia: a creative force exploring the boundaries of musical genres, including but not limited to: psych rock, jazz, post-rock and Scandinavian folk music. The group of young players follows the footsteps of Motorpsycho, Elephant9 and El Paraiso's own Lotus, Fra Det Onde and Kanaan, carving out their path through the musical landscape in seemingly effortless ways! One minute you're floating on cosmic Pharoah Sanders waters, the next you're ascending on electrified if-Tortoise-played-Allman Brothers-style jamming. The band describes their approach as: "Sommermørket is an escape from inhumane technology and politics in search of something that feels authentic. The music breathes in the little that is left of old air and rises slowly into the hazy summer twilight like brittle thoughts that try to connect and fade away." Kronstad 23 was formed in Kronstad, Bergen, Norway in the Autumn of 2023. As old friends and musical collaborators, they rekindled a creative spark that had been dormant for over 10 years. Rarely rehearsed and often caught on first take, Sommermørket was recorded live on tape in the studio of Keyboardist Øyvind Vie Berg in Bergen, Norway. The record captures three sessions across one year, from spring and late summer in 2024 to winter of 2025.
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CD
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EPR 082CD
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Something is brewing in the state of Norway! Kronstad 23 are the latest trailblazers from northern Scandinavia: a creative force exploring the boundaries of musical genres, including but not limited to: psych rock, jazz, post-rock and Scandinavian folk music. The group of young players follows the footsteps of Motorpsycho, Elephant9 and El Paraiso's own Lotus, Fra Det Onde and Kanaan, carving out their path through the musical landscape in seemingly effortless ways! One minute you're floating on cosmic Pharoah Sanders waters, the next you're ascending on electrified if-Tortoise-played-Allman Brothers-style jamming. The band describes their approach as: "Sommermørket is an escape from inhumane technology and politics in search of something that feels authentic. The music breathes in the little that is left of old air and rises slowly into the hazy summer twilight like brittle thoughts that try to connect and fade away." Kronstad 23 was formed in Kronstad, Bergen, Norway in the Autumn of 2023. As old friends and musical collaborators, they rekindled a creative spark that had been dormant for over 10 years. Rarely rehearsed and often caught on first take, Sommermørket was recorded live on tape in the studio of Keyboardist Øyvind Vie Berg in Bergen, Norway. The record captures three sessions across one year, from spring and late summer in 2024 to winter of 2025.
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