Rypdal’s trio, completed by Audun Kleive (drums and keyboards), and Bjørn Kjellemyr (electric and acoustic bass) confirmed that it’s now OK for the jazz fan to listen to heavy metal music. The combined legacies of Jeff Beck, Hank Marvin, Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix hung heavy in the air of Logan Hall (there was plenty of it, since the house barely touched half full) but it is important not to overlook the softer, more reflective aspects of Rypdal’s new set; the aforementioned rock luminaries had these too, though their innate quietness made them less noticeable than the power chords.
If at times the music seemed a little homophonic, the paler colours of the material not always distinguishable from each other, it exerted an almost constant fascination. The set was well-paced, and even the longueurs had their place in the scheme of things. Rypdal variously caressed, picked and smote his guitar, which ran through a rich bank of effects and more than once it became apparent that a good deal of the band’s appeal was visual. Rypdal evidently enjoyed himself, and it was good to see such a sterling individualist strutting his stuff, much of it from Chaser, his latest ECM recording.
