V. Sjöberg New Jazz Ensemble
Do nothing 'til you hear from me
iDEAL Recordings
Viktor Sjöberg says about himself that he prefers putting pop into experimental music much more than trying it the other way around. And it's easy to hear why in his New Jazz Ensemble project's most recent release "Do nothing 'til you hear from me". Everything moves extremely slowly here in the usual experimental drone-ambient-soundscapes that we have come to expect from him. Yet so much is happening beneath and above these surfaces: Motifs appear, fade, and reappear as tiny melodies loop their way in and out of tracks -- little moments of joyful pop that can't help but draw tiny smiles on listeners' faces. And it's not because you got some hidden insider joke or reference, but just because this record, with all its cleverly-constructed yet never cerebral dramaturgy, lets you witness one of its conclusive moments where you can almost hear the musical penny drop. Still, it never actually does just that, drop. I think this lack of complete resolution, of open popness if you will, is what makes this record so interesting, engaging and charming. And maybe, just maybe, it's also the reason for the "you never will"-chanting in the closing track -- that you never will actually hear that penny drop.
- Arnulf Köhncke
