Ilaria Capalbo - Karthago (January 14, 2022 Bluenord Records)

Ilaria Capalbo's first work as a leader is inspired by the story of Karthago, a powerful city founded on the southwest coast of the Mediterranean by a legendary queen and doomed by its closeness to the colliding empire of Rome. The lingering motives in this tale, part ancient history and part myth like many of the stories that the Mediterranean tells, are the courage, resiliency and vulnerability needed to grow in the light of uniqueness, to pursue a vision and to stand by it — regardless of odds — not to be forgotten.

The band is a quintet featuring Ilaria on bass alongside Thomas Backman and Fredrik Nordström on reeds, Andreas Hourdakis on guitar and Fredrik Rundqvist on drums. It occasionally grows into a septet with the addition of Tobias Wiklund on cornet and Mats Äleklint on trombone. Together, they give life to music with a narrative depth, as though outlining a story: ample room is given to the imaginative force of some among the most creative musicians on the Swedish scene, whose different personalities create a powerful and original balance under the steady guide of a leader from the rhythm section. The tunes are crafted at the intersection between free improvisation, rock riff-building and echoes of contemporary classical repertoire: the band delivers them through a cohesive and fearless sound.

1. Belóved

2. Part I: Ab radice

3. Karthago

4. Mare Nostrum

5. Scintilla

6. Moth

7. Part II: Ago Radices

8. What Remains Of Those Days

Ilaria Capalbo: bass & compositions

Thomas Backman: alto sax, clarinet

Fredrik Nordström: tenor & baritone sax

Andreas Hourdakis: guitar

Fredrik Rundqvist: drums

Tobias Wiklund: cornet (on Belóved)

Mats Äleklint: trombone (on Belóved)

Recorded at BAS Bandhagen on April 25-26, 2021 by Mats Äleklint

Mixed and mastered at Bluenord Studio by Fredrik Nordström

Artwork: Gabriele Cernagora

Photography: Klaudia Rychlik

Design: LOUP Studio

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Fredrik Nordström - Dolores: Two (November 5, 2021)

Here is the follow-up album of Swedish saxplayer Fredrik Nordström's band, Dolores! The group's first album "Dolores: One" was released in April 2021. Recorded during the same studio session, "Dolores: Two" features compositions by Fredrik, complemented by a freely improvised track. This album takes the listener on a beautiful, but sometimes also heartbreaking journey. The contemporary jazz of Dolores is grounded in responsive improvisation and personal expression.

Fredrik Nordström says:

"I composed the material for Dolores with the purpose of creating music that was bare and dynamic. At the same time, perhaps due to the band's drumless setting, I wanted it to maintain a rhythmic dimension and movement that brought it forward. I have been inspired by folk music, perhaps mainly from Scandinavia and from North America. The different musical and cultural backgrounds of the musicians in this band influenced me in the writing process and contributed greatly to the final result."

1. Mirus

2. Sun Bleached

3. Drop

4. Calling the Doves

5. Canadian Tuxedo

6. Melancholia

7. The Big Question - No. 2

8. Ground Frost

Fredrik Nordström - tenor & baritone saxophones, clarinet

Staffan Svensson - trumpet

Andreas Hourdakis - guitar

Ilaria Capalbo - double bass

All compositions by Fredrik Nordström except Drop by Capalbo/Hourdakis/Nordström/Svensson

Recorded on November 23-24 2020 at BAS in Bandhagen, Sweden by Mats Äleklint

Mixed and mastered by Fredrik Nordström at Bluenord Studio

Produced by Fredrik Nordström

Illustrations by Jenny Svenberg Bunnel

Design by LOUP Studio

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Fredrik Nordström - Dolores: One (April 23, 2021)

There is undoubtedly a very special atmosphere when Swedish saxplayer Fredrik Nordström pulls the threads in the debut album of his new band, Dolores. The personal expression and creativity of the bandmembers contribute to place the music in an original strain of contemporary jazz - beautiful and melancholic. The starting point for the many things happening in the music is in Fredrik’s compositions, complemented in the release by a freely improvised track and an interpretation of John Coltrane’s “Central Park West”.

Fredrik Nordström says:

"I composed the material for Dolores with the purpose of creating music that was bare and dynamic. At the same time, perhaps due to the band's drumless setting, I wanted it to maintain a rhythmic dimension and movement that brought it forward. I have been inspired by folk music, perhaps mainly from Scandinavia and from North America. The different musical and cultural backgrounds of the musicians in this band influenced me in the writing process and contributed greatly to the final result."

1. Algorithm Changes 05:40

2. Signpost

3. Way up North

4. Rise

5. 19 Southbound

6. Turns

7. The Big Question

8. Central Park West

Fredrik Nordström - tenor & baritone saxophones, clarinet

Staffan Svensson - trumpet

Andreas Hourdakis - guitar

Ilaria Capalbo - double bass

All compositions by Fredrik Nordström except Rise by Capalbo/Hourdakis/Nordström/Svensson and Central Park West by John Coltrane (Jowcol Music/Universal Music Publishing)

Recorded on November 23-24 2020 at BAS in Bandhagen, Sweden by Mats Äleklint

Mixed and mastered by Fredrik Nordström at Bluenord Studio

Produced by Fredrik Nordström

Illustrations by Jenny Svenberg Bunnel

Design by LOUP Studio

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