Frode Gjerstad

Frode Gjerstad’s name can be legendary in Norway and all the European continent, due to the fact that he was practically the only one to contrast himself, from the beginning, to the saxophone style which defined the Scandinavian approach to jazz for 40 years, the one defined by Jan Garbarek, but his trio with Jon Rune Strom and Paal Nilssen-Love is relatively new on the scene.

The energy level is very high, but the delivery isn’t always on the red: lots of dynamics and sudden contrasts keep the group interactions interesting and unpredictable. Frode Gjerstad’s approach to improvisation is distinctive in itself: he’s a melodic player, even if asymetrical, and he prefers the “old school” jazz phrasing to «reed-fueled bric-a-brac», as a music critic once wrote, managing to present it as if it’s a novelty.

PERSONNEL:

FRODE GJERSTAD, alto sax
STEVE SWELL, trombone
JON RUNE STROM, double bass
PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE, drums, percusion

Recorded live on the 17th of September 2017 At The Bop Stop, Cleveland, USA.

TRACKS:

01. Bop Stop