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Skuli Sverrisson with Bill Frisell: Strata
ByDespite more than one-hundred appearances on record, Sverrisson is not well known in the US. The Icelandic electric and acoustic bass guitarist (who also plays double bass, dobro, and charango) has worked with Allan Holdsworth, Jim Black, Chris Speed, David Sylvian, Ben Monder, Theo Bleckmann, Mark Dresser, Wadada Leo Smith and many other international artists.
If any single musician/composer represents the broad swath of American music, it is Frisell. His music defies labels even while incorporating jazz, avant-garde, free jazz, folk, western and country. Frisell's work with Arild Andersen, Joey Baron, Hank Roberts, John Zorn and Joe Lovano have earned him critical acclaim and multiple awards, including the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album for his Unspeakable (Elektra Nonesuch, 2004).
Sverrisson wrote all the music on Stratamany of the compositions tailored to Frisell, with whom the bassist had not previously worked. The ten pieces are relatively brief, only two at more than five minutes. Opening Side A are two folky numbers, "Sweet Earth" and "Instants," Frisell's electric guitar resonating warmth. "Vanishing Point" brings Sverrisson more into focus and "Ancient Affection" puts Frisell's trademark reverberation on display. The echo continues to ring through the first side closer, the ballad, "Came to Light." Side B begins with the dream-like "Cave of Swimmers" followed by another elegiac song, "Amedeo." "Afternoon Variant" finds Sverrisson and Frisell playing as a more straight-forward guitar duo, but adding some odd meters for interest. The album closes with the beautiful and sophisticated "Her Room."
Strata is a highly appealing album, and Sverrisson could have been channeling Frisell as these compositions sound so germane to the guitarist. He takes a generous approach in letting Frisell do most of the heavy lifting, including tracking a second guitar, but there are ample opportunities for the pair to complement each other. There is a symmetry that would befit a long working relationship when the two are playing in tandem. The quality of the music, the musicians and Newvelle's technology, make this an enormously rewarding album.
Track Listing
Side A: Sweet Earth; Instants; Vanishing Point; Ancient Affection; Came to Light; Side B: Cave of the Swimmers; Amedeo; Afternoon Variant; Segment; Her Room.
Personnel
Skuli Sverrisson
bass, electricBill Frisell
guitar, electricSkúli Sverrisson: acoustic bass guitar; Bill Frisell: acoustic guitar.
Album information
Title: Strata | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Newvelle Records
Comments
About Skuli Sverrisson
Instrument: Bass, electric
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