[2001] Luigi Archetti & Bo Wiget - Low Tide Digitals

This guitar/cello duo from Italy and Switzerland respectively is one of the few non-norwegian artists releasing material via Rune Grammofon, focusing on a series of three albums (so far) ranging from ambient to jazz, with a very minimalist approach to their music. This is their first one released back in 2001, very minimal and low key, setting the roots for their next releases.




Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2009] Fire! - You Liked Me Five Minutes Ago

Another Gustafsson-related project, and this time it's a mixture between psychedelic/noise rock and free jazz, full of piercing feedback and abrasive landscapes, adding up to the screaming sax. Heavily energetic, this album in particular shows a brand of jazz relying mostly in repetitive patterns, building up and collapsing with each passing minute.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC Part 1 Part 2] Updated!


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2009] Supersilent - 9

Back to the extremely low key improvisations, consisting mostly by fiddling with organs. This is definitely another album in the vein of 5 or 6 (specially 5), whose quiet, tense parts are more prominent than those with instrumentation. Dark and brooding, it still manages to retain the style of the band, despite having no percussion at all.

Downloaad it here: [V0][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2007] Supersilent - 8

Similar in vein to 7, less chaotic and with an emphasis in Helge Sten's electronic dabbling. Part of this session became part of what was later released as 11, the same free form drumming with Henriksen's slow and sultry trumpet can be heard here.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2005] Supersilent - 7

Live DVD release (only audio provided), following the continuity of their previous releases but straying away (once again) from the sound of their preceding album (heavily relying in electronic elements) in order to showcase their wide experience in free improvisation, clocking at 1h48min of live show.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2003] Supersilent - 6

Picking up where it left off, 6 retains some of the minimalistic style introduced in 5, but this time the electronic contributions of Helge Sten and Arve Henriksen's slow, sultry trumpet take over and gives the album a very melancholic, reflexive mood. It constantly toys with off-putting, bizarre synth melodies, overlapping and enhancing the dark atmosphere.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2001] Supersilent - 5

Another radical change of pace in their style, this release is very minimal in style. While there's several free jazz bursts that rise from the almost quiet delivery (in an excellent display of dynamics), this album requires a lot of attention since it keeps itself low key, consisting mostly on lengthy brass notes and short electronic bursts, even more prominent here than in 4.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC]

Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[1998] Supersilent - 4

Follow up of the 1-3 album which compiled 3 CD's into one (half live, half studio), 4 is an entirely studio album, single CD, which combines the free jazz output displayed on their first album with strong electronic elements and even vocalizations (by Henriksen), making it very different from their preceding release.

Download it here: [V0][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[1998] Supersilent - 1-3

About time I posted Supersilent over here... And I'll try to post all their discography, chronologically.
This is the first release via Rune Grammofon of the collective conformed by Arve Henriksen (Food, Christian Wallumrød Ensemble), Ståle Storløkken and Helge Sten (Deathprod, Merriwinkle). 3 CDs of their very first material, full of unpredictable structures and almost no common melodies through live improvisation; part of instrumentation used for this album (and the ones following next) can be tell apart, but mostly it's a mix of timbres barely recognizable, reminding most of what AMM did many decades ago in a similar vein.
This album alone is a classic of the band, and a perfect start in the modern conception of free improvisation.

Download it here: [V0: Part 1 Part 2][FLAC]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2008] Spunk - En Aldeles Forferdelig Sykdom

The darkest Spunk album, and pretty much in line with their preceding release Den øverste Toppen På en Blåmalt Flaggstang, it brings most of the bizarre elements of the group by straining as much as possible their instruments capabilities and delivering a somewhat offputting (yet entrancing) atmosphere. Their most cohesive work.

Download it here: [V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2009] The Low Frequency In Stereo - Futuro

Futuro is the noisiest, most daring effort of this norwegian band which has been likened to bands like Stereolab and Radiohead in the past (particularly the former), but in the reality is more than just that. Noisy riffs reminiscent of the no-wave era and heavy motorik drums akin to Neu! (along with the bold use of feedback) are the most obvious highlights here, but the combination of female and male vocals with a garage rock feel, and the campy, light sound of the trumpet (like in the song Solar System) makes this band really stand out as it deserves.

Download it here: [320][V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2007] Ultralyd - Conditions For A Piece of Music

The least accessible Ultralyd album, focusing more into free jazz and improvisation to a greater extent, compared to their latest efforts. It still has plenty of energetic moments in which the best of their noise-rock/jazz fusion is displayed, but it also focuses on their darkest aspects with guitar-oriented free improv, one half of the album. This is sort of a middle ground album, and it could please those already familiar with bands like MoHa!, since it swings that way at several parts with its dissonant noise-rock.

Download it here: [320][V0]

Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2007] Arve Henriksen - Strjon

This is the third release of the prominent norwegian musician Arve Henriksen (Food, Christian Wallumrød Ensemble), which drifts away a bit from the electronic influence of the debut and following album (Sakuteiki and Chiaroscuro respectively), and focus on the sultry trumpet sound he's known for. Very moody and spacious, it does what's expected from his regular works.

Download it here: [V0]

Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2009] Spunk - Kantarell

Latest Spunk album, is their most daring release so far, tuning down the vocal experimentation a notch and focusing on the brass instruments, straining the sounds at a vertiginous pace, and leaving a sense of tension through ever song. Sounds somewhat darker than their previous efforts, although the vocals retain a certain innocence that has become their own trademark sound.

Download it here: [320][V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2002] Food - Veggie

This is the third album of another one of the many bands Arve Henriksen (Supersilent, Christian Wallumrød Ensemble) is part of. Food combines jazz with electronic elements, and the same way lots of bands from the norwegian scene, this is a true display of talent. The reason why I decided to review and post Veggie (their third album) instead of their debut was because of the motifs present in this one (specially in songs like Mushroom, one of my favorites), and thew way the electronic bits intervene with the recurrent improvised sections, which are brought from the background after every brass motif. Excellent group to get started with the norwegian nu-jazz scene.

Download it here: [320][V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2010] Ultralyd - Inertiadrome

Latest (and among the best) release of Ultralyd, this time they went for a catchier take on their style, and while shorter than their previous albums, it makes for a great album. One of my favorites back in 2010, Inertiadrome has a cheerful tone, with a few hints of krautrock repetitiveness here and there, and definitely a perfect starter for these looking to get into this band.

Download it here: [320][V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2009] Bushman's Revenge - You Lost Me At Hello

Second album of this norwegian trio, formed by one of the members of the jazz fusion band Shining (Even Helte Hermansen) on guitar duties, Rune Nergaard on bass, and Gard Nilssen on drums. They've been described as "Black Sabbath meets Ornette Coleman", and it fits like a glove. Combining the heaviness of doom metal with the complex drumming and jazzy guitar typical of their influences, this album is a perfect display of the unique sound of this band.


Download it here: [192][V0]


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2010] Stian Westerhus - Pitch Black Star Spangled

Stian Westerhus' (Jaga Jazzist, Monolithic) second solo album and latest release is a departure from the seemingly abstract noise of Galore into a mystical realm of disjointed melodies and bursts of noise dabbling into the shadows, without ever abandoning an aura of uncanny beauty. Don't Tell Me This Is Home is the softest song in the album, before turning into the unsettling chaos that is Pitch Black Star Spangled, the longest track in the album, which is kept until the very end. Quality release.

Download it here: [320][V0]

Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.

[2002] SPUNK - Den Øverste Toppen På En Blåmalt Flaggstang

Spunk is an all-women jazz quartet from Norway, this being their second album, also released under the experimental/jazz label Rune Grammofon. Unlike most free jazz ensembles, Spunk employs vocal experimentation in an extensive way, going as far as becoming the main instrument in most of the songs. It's ensured to sound bizarre at a first listen, given as all of their output so far is quite abstract, but Den Øverste Toppen På En Blåmalt Flaggstang is one of their most accessible material, in which silence doesn't have as much predominance as Det Eneste Jeg Vet Er At Det Ikke Er En Støvsuger, or Kantarell (which I consider one of my top 20 albums of 2009), the latter being shorter and more spastic than the rest.
I have a somewhat curious history with Spunk, seeing as they were the first "out there" band I ever listened to, which in turn made me more interested in Rune Grammofon releases and a variety of genres I got into much later.

Download it here: [V2][V0] Updated!


Buy it directly from Rune Grammofon here.