Daylight and darkness carry a unique weight in Scandinavia, where nature’s moods swing with heavier momentum. Copenhagen-based improviser Anne Efternøler’s debut album as bandleader echoes that precarious balance by exploring a quartet formation with her trumpet alongside three double basses. Its lighter melodic passages have a thin-ice feeling. The darker moments tread with heavy footsteps.
Nutid begins with a scratchy, clawing noise. As bass notes rumble, there are stifled screams and cries from trumpet and bow. The creeping pace never really rises, instead lurking as if hiding from view. Five shorter pieces on the record further showcase Efternøler’s range of extended techniques. Fluen I Flasken offers a frenetic moment of trapped energy, squeaking and fluttering.
P For Poet is one of the more traditionally structured tracks. A lullaby-ish melodic figure waltzes sleepily, nudged along by plucked basses. Even in this serene setting, Efternøler’s saw-toothed and out-of-breath trumpet tone still carries a hint of menace. Like a sweet child in a horror film, it raises an anxious feeling that a disconcerting twist is not far away. The listener can never truly settle.
Anne Efternøler & Lige Børn embraces its unconventional instrumentation as a challenge and an opportunity. It’s an ambitious experiment that opens up intriguing tonal passages and richly expressive melodic shapes – with an underlying sense that the whole thing could crack and collapse at any moment.
You might wonder where Lige Børn is in the lineup. However, it appears Lige Børn is not a person but perhaps a band name, as it translates from Danish as “Just Children”. The album cover seems to relate.
Discography
Forlæns Introduktion; Lys Ned; Første Udånding; Nutid; Forskudt; Fluen I Flasken; Før Vi Fortsætter; P For Poet; Intet Ondt; Hvis Mine Fødder Kan Nå; Anden Udånding; Tempo & Tennissko; Står Vi Så Stille Her (42.40)
Efternøler (t); Richard Andersson (b); Anders Christensen (b); Thomas Morgan (b). Probably Denmark, 2022.
Hobby Horse Records HH16
