FOCUS

Sophomore album from this talented Norwegian quartet, formed by two members of Krokofant, the recent 'enfant terrible' of the Norse scene, guitarist extraordinaire Tom Hasslan aka Zappa Finger and Axel Skalstad aka Pheel the Collins on the drum kit. They are complemented by Wizrd keyboardist Vegard Lien Bjerkan aka Wake(up the)man and finally from the band Red Kite, Trond Frones aka Geezer Jeezus playing the bass only on the sabbath. And who dares to say that Scandinavians have no sense of humour, have you not heard of the Finn funny man Ismo? Their eponymous 2022 debut caused a stir, but this latest release has a distinguishing inclination veering towards a Focus influence that shows up between all four players at times, as well as collectively. This band lets loose in intense jam mode, a yearning to have fun in the studio and let the chips fall where they may. The gorgeous cover art certainly satisfies the visual senses.

Hinting humbly at the legendary British band led by Andy Latimer "Camel" certainly underlines the melodic spirit behind that band, the pearly keys and bustling rhythm section settling into a robust groove, the idyllic platform for the electric guitar to begin soaring across the sonic dunes. Whereas the master was famous for long sustained emotional notes, here Hasslan lets it rip with a blistering array of rapid-fire salvos, leaning towards the more focused (sic) standard that will make up the album. The e-piano section is a glittering oasis of sun-drenched streaks, a mirror in the desert showing the way to liquid salvation.

Channeling his innermost Jan Akkerman fantasy on "Pocus", Hasslan goes properly berserk on his 6-string implement with a tour de force homage (two French words creeping into the verbiage-another Gallicism!), though Bjerkan chooses a decidedly jazzier piano and e-piano route on his ivories, while the rhythm section perfectly salutes the Ruiter-Van der Linden attack. Starting out in a breezy lilt with a clavinet introduction, the build-up gradually goes tornado (Happy Birthday Bill Bruford) with a blizzard of peaks and valleys, playfully gathering steam with some patented flurries that recall the finer moments of the Focus 3 album.

"Focus" keeps the foot on the cyclist pedal with a gentler foray into more bucolic workings, that swoon unashamedly into Metheny territory, the finger technique is bewilderingly accurate, mastering both leads, riffs, and flicks of the wrist, just like Jan did and still does today in his golden years. The comprehensive synth solo is quite the skidding workout, with enough shape and bend to thrill the most passive listener. It becomes apparent that the main underlying attribute of this quartet is plain old fun, jamming like there is no care in the world.

Written like this "Oh Jimi", it can only refer to Hendrix , as the spelling 'Jimi' has been permanently retired to the rafters, after he died on September 18, 1970. Kicking into a medieval tinged Jon Lord sounding organ surely ruffles the feathers, injecting the electric guitar with bluesy dexterity, as the pace slows to a grind, and the steady groove is set as the ideal gliding platform on which Hasslan can stretch, steal and borrow those characteristic moaning lines that made Jimi such a legend. A ten-minute rocking roller coaster ride is set in motion with just enough personality to dismiss any overt copycat urges, the keyboard spotlight doing wonders for the atmosphere as well as transitioning into varied mood swings that augur well for the explosive finale, where a Mahavishnu Orchestra - like feel shatters all the illusions.

I enjoyed the debut, but this is a much higher raised bar, easily reached without steroid enhancers or blood packing, just a more focused (oops!) approach that had the courage to add another iconic figure as a final coup de grace. Well played and totally unpretentious.

4.5 concentrations

The side project of four up-and-coming Norwegian musicians, this is their sophomore studio album release, their first since their self-titled 2022 debut.

1. "Camel" (9:11) yes there is some similarity in the guitar tones used by Tom Hasslan's two lead guitar tracks to those of Andy Latimer--and some similarity to the style and sounds on display to Camel, (as one would predict based on the title) but there are also some elements of FOCUS and even some of the other classic Canterbury bands to be heard. We are definitely on a guitar instrumental trajectory, sounding more and more like a tribute to Jan Akkerman the further into the song we go. Tom can really jam! And his band is right there with him (especially impressive is the drumming of Axel Skalstad). Vegard Lien Bjerkan gets a solo in the sixth, seventh, and eighth minutes on his electric piano. It's nice but it's almost drowned out by the rhythm section (with the delightful play of bassist Trond Frønes really standing out here), then it's back to Tom and his guitar to lead us out of the desert. Nice tune. (18/20)

2. "Pocus" (8:30) a nice four-chord semi-Reggae syncopated Jazz-Rock Fusion jam is established over the first 1:50 before a stop and keyboard chord progression washes out the previous motif making way for the some Camel-esque guitar and bass grooving over which Tom Hasslan solos using a double-sounding Smooth Jazz sound à la Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, John Abercrombie, or Eef Albers. Nice solo with some bluesy roots (which is augmented by Vegard's organ play beneath). There really is a lot of Jan Akkerman/Focus in this motif! At 5:10 a proggy bridge segues back to that four-chord semi-Reggae motif over which Vegard Lien Bjerkan solos on his clavinet quite beautifully while drummer Axel Skalstad really impresses in the rhythm section. Great passage! And then they close it out! Darn! (18.75/20)

3. "Focus" (8:40) a light, melodic Jazz-Rock Fusion touristic joy ride down some of the roads suburban and country roads of Scandanavia (or anywhere joy and Nature can be enjoyed with the wind whisking through your hair). Guitarist Tom Hasslan is in the driver's seat most of the time with this chorused and MIDIed double channeled Jeff "Skunk" Baxter-like lead guitar being duplicated and/or MIDI-ed with Vegard Lien Bjerkan's keyboard's right hand. (I think it more Tom's double tracks.) Very pleasant, enjoyable, entertaining, and interesting. When Vegard takes over the lead in the sixth minute it sounds as if we're now listening to an EARTH, WIND & FIRE song ("That's the Way of the World"), that's how melodic, laid back, and funky the base groove is. I love drummer Axel Skalstad's interplay just beneath Vegard's amazing synth solo in the eighth minute. Awesome song! It has some of the joyful energy of AIR's famous music from Moon Safari. (19/20)

4. "Oh Jimi" (10:19) definitely closer to the school of STEVIE RAY VAUGHN than that of JIMI HENDIRX--though the structure of the composition and sound palette choices do strongly evoke the music of Jimi. The second half of the song, with keyboard in the lead, sees the rhythm section take on a heavy ponderousness that feels and sounds a lot like SEVEN IMPALE. (17.875/20)

Total Time 36:40

I was right! This band--these musicians--could get better! And they did! Both in terms of skill diversity and compositional maturity, and--bonus!--sound engineering choices. The music is still very heavily-founded in blues-rock music but the musicianship is better, the cohesiveness better, the sound production (and choices) vastly improved. It seems to me that these guys--with this project--see it as their mission to revive the heavy blues-rock music traditions of Jimi, Cream, Rush, Stevie Ray, Here they give it a little of the massive gravity of fellow Norwegians, SEVEN IMPALE infused with a little of the serious happiness of more recent JAGA JAZZIST. However, where their debut album consisted of four loosely-organized jam songs, giving them a SAMSARA BLUES PROJECT kind of sound, this one shows more sophistication and complexity in both musicianship and composition.

A-/five stars; a wonderfully-refreshing upbeat minor masterpiece of modern Jazz-Rock Fusion. So glad to have targeted these guys for "future/follow" when they released their debut back in 2022.