Space sailors

"Outer space and cosmic jazz have long been a match made beyond heaven. The latest act throwing their hat into Saturn's rings is the excellent Norwegian band Rymden, featuring keyboardist Bugge Wesseltoft. The trio has clearly boned up on Sun Ra and Lonnie Liston Smith, but rockier influences are present too from the likes of Hawkwind, The Doors, Soft Machine, even Throbbing Gristle, with Marc Moulin's acid jazztronics in there as well".

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""Space Sailors" is a deeply immersive experience. Its accomplished, wide-ranging dynamic shifts of mood and sonics ensure there's never a dull moment. Riveting performances from start to finish. Also, remarkably (given their combined experience), they've grown as a trio. They seem more confident; more prepared to try different things but also happier to do the simple, effective things".

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"Albummet, som her foreligger, er et netop spacy, innovativt og til tider voldsomt insisterende udspil, der - både i Svenssons og Wesseltofts ånd - er et fascinerende og stilsikkert miks af (nu)jazz og garagerock ... Space Sailors er i sandhed et atypisk jazzalbum, ikke et album der lefler for lytteren, men netop et insisterende, næsten uafrysteligt værk".

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"Vi skal på rumrejse med de tre himmelfarende globetrottere, og undervejs på sådan en tur kan man støde på lidt af hvert. Også musikalsk ... Pladen får et næsten cinematisk udtryk med et plot, der skal forløses, og musikken udvikler sig derfor i forskellige retninger og stemninger over tid ... Det kan der jo komme meget spændende ud af. Det gør der desværre ikke rigtig ... Måske netop derfor bliver udtrykket så fragmenteret, og projektet med 'pladen som en film' virker mest som en fiks idé, der ikke rigtig forløses".

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"Prog rock meets jazz rock with a side-serving of club beats: They may not have the free-wheeling daring of Esbjörn Svensson's EST but they still make involving instrumental music that builds a potent head of steam. Rymden can be breezily catchy (Terminal One), they can mine metal as Dan Berglund's fuzz bass rampages through The Final Goodbye, and while Wesseltoft is usually a polite soloist he goes full Rick Wakeman on the mighty synth splurge of Arriving At Ramajay Pt II. Rymden are a blunter instrument than EST, but there's music here to rival that band's great moments".