Recording a jazz album for solo bass has been a daring adventure since 1993 at the latest, when Eberhard Weber released Pendulum on ECM. He had discovered the possibilities of an echo unit for loops and overdubbing and created a multi-layered album that set new standards. A good 21 years later, Norwegian bassist Arild Andersen is following a similar path, but Landloper ultimately chooses a completely different approach.

Andersen, one of the most important European jazz bassists, has opted for a mixture of original compositions and reinterpreted pieces by other jazz greats. In doing so, he follows his own career path, integrating standards, fusion, folk and more, the characteristics of which appear prominently here and there in the album's six tracks.

The album opens with Peace Universal by Bob Moses, whose structure and acoustics are interestingly reminiscent of the sound world of Weber's Pendulum. Dreamhorse continues the series in a more melodic vein, flanked by rhythmic sprinklings from the variety of sounds of the four-string and honoured by final applause. Because that is also an element of the album: Andersen recorded all the pieces live with her digital loops - one at home and the other five at the Oslo jazz club Victoria Nasjonal Jazzscene.

Whereby ‘the pieces’ is not to be understood quite so simply, because with Ghost / Old Stev / Landloper and the final piece Lonely Woman / Song for Che, Andersen performs combined song packages whose individual titles he cleverly interweaves and utilises with impressive interjections such as the solo in the three-piece set.

In terms of sound, the recording is of the very high quality typical of ECM. The mixture of active playing, loops and effects is integrative and at no point is it overdone. The bass has body, wood and resonance. And the recording delivers width and fullness as well as the fine transients. For bass lovers, Landloper is certainly a feast for the ears. And for everyone else? Excellent entertainment at a high level. (Thomas Semmler, HighResMac)

Arild Andersen, double bass, electronics