CATCHING FIRE WITH TERJE RYPDAL

This was my most anticipated release for 2024. The thought of the legend known as Terje Rypdal playing lead guitar with this heavy power trio had me drooling. My favourite ELEPHANT9 release is "Silver Mountain" and certainly a big reason for that is the participation of Sweden's own Reine Fiske on guitar. The liner notes are written by David Fricke, and I don't think there's a music fan out there who wouldn't buy this cd after reading his words. He was at this show. And he offers up a very long review that is almost a short story it's so long. And he relates a lot of information about this band I didn't know.

Keyboardist Stale Storlokken was a teenage fan of Jimmy Smith and WEATHER REPORT before discovering the electric Miles Davis and Keith Emerson. Stale first played with Rypdal in 1997 when he began to play on some of Rypdal's studio albums as well as going on the road with him. Rypdal in turn played with Stale in his SUPERSILENT band for a 2007 live show. Stale says this about Rypdal, "When I started playing with him that mix of rock and experimental elements with wonderful melodies really got to me. With ELEPHANT9 when the band gets crazy, Terje gets on top-not with more crazy, but these melodies. That's what's needed when we are in that mode. His melodies are contrapuntal to the integrity."

Fricke relates how Rypdal's involvement with Jan Garbarek was crucial to his career. He played on Garbarek's "Afric Pepperbird" which was only the seventh album released on the ECM label. But it was the start of a lifelong collaboration between Terje and ECM producer Manfred Eicher. ELEPHANT9 began in 2006 when drummer Torstein Lofthus in his last year at the Norwegian Academy of Music, asked Stale and bassist Nikolai Haengsle both from SUPERSILENT to play some seventies Miles Davis stuff with him. The rest is history.

Fricke describes Rypdal's playing here as being like he's firing jagged-block chords and feedback spasms across ELEPHANT9's eccentric funk in "Dodovoodoo", the opening track. "As if guitarist Pete Cosey had left the Miles of "Dark Magus" to join VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR" Frick relates. Fricke also mentions the track "Psychedelic Backfire" and how Rypdal has this howling-dog tone and spatial flourishes that recalls the Hendrix of "Red House" and "Third Stone From The Sun". He describes "Fugi Fonix" as being on the verge of combustion, like PINK FLOYD's "Meddle" crashing with the climax of THE DOORS' "The End".

And I need to mention the song "John Tinnick" which Haengsle described as "If you're in a bar, had a few and can't speak clearly, when you order a gin and tonic, it's a 'John Tinnick." One of the reasons Stale said that they wanted to release this album was because Terje turned 77 that year and has essentially retired from playing live. They wanted this live document for posterity sake. And he also related that this was the best concert that they played with Rypdal.

One last thing I'll mention from the liner notes is that Rypdal is a patient musician. There are extended periods where Terje doesn't play, he just waits for that opportunity, for his moment. Stale says it was like he would have something to say, then he would listen. We get six tracks worth around 80 minutes. Three songs from their debut "Dodovoodoo", two from their second record "Walk The Nile" and the final one from "Atlantis" where it's interesting hearing Rypdal play what Fiske had already done previously.

My favourite track on here is "Fugi Fonix". My least favourite is the opener. The 9 minutes of mellow to start the album is disappointing to me. When the organ and sound crashes in at 9 minutes I'm ready for the next song. Just my feelings. A 4 star record and an overall disappointment to be honest. Too much here though to not give this a solid 4 stars.

Social review comments

Review related links

• Send comments to Mellotron Storm
• Report this review (#3188897)
• Buy ELEPHANT9 music online with PA partners
• Show all ELEPHANT9 MP3/Stream
• Go to ELEPHANT9 page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Catching Fire with Terje Rypdal page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for ELEPHANT9 related discussions