Jo Berger Myhre / Ólafur Björn Ólafsson: Lanzarote - Lanzarote

2019 CD release.

Jo Berger Myhre: double bass, electronics, Simmons SDS8, Prophet 6
Ólafur Björn Ólafsson: upright piano, Farfisa organ, Moog, drums & percussion

Tracks #2, #3 and #6 features
Eiríkur Orri Ólafsson – trumpet
Ingi Garðar Garðarsson – trombone, tuba
 
Following on from the Norway/Iceland duo’s startlingly assured debut, ‘The Third Script’ (Hubro, 2017), Jo Berger Myhre and Ólafur Björn Ólafsson’s new album, ‘Lanzarote’, represents a quantum leap forward. By the end of the relatively modest but incident-packed 32-minute duration, the listener may require substantial time for reflection. As good as the debut recording is, ‘Lanzarote’ goes much, much deeper, with an emotional reach to the music that is immensely affecting.
 
Recorded once again between Reykjavik and Oslo, and mastered, like ’The Third Script’, by Helge Sten at Audio Virus, ‘Lanzarote’ builds upon the experimental, super-saturated sound and grainy resolution of the ambiently-inclined debut with fully-formed yet fragile ear-worm melodies played on piano and double bass, augmented on three tracks by melancholy brass fanfares from trumpeter Eiríkur Orri Ólafsson with Ingi Garðar Erlendsson on trombone and tuba. Otherwise, the two principals do everything themselves, with all seven tracks credited as ”written, performed and produced by Jo Berger Myhre and Ólafur Björn Ólafsson.” Myhre covers double bass and electronics/keyboards; Ólafsson, piano/organ/Moog and drums/percussion. “The album was recorded over a longer period than our first one, a year or so, with recordings made both in Oslo and Reykjavik throughout several sessions”, says Ólafsson. “As before, our songs are improvised and then sonically nurtured throughout the editing process, often with overdubs.”