2001 · Album
New Conception of Jazz: Moving
Recorded 2001 · Jazzland · Produced by Bugge Wesseltoft
Electric Groove Reimagined in Real Time
Wesseltoft strips jazz down to its rhythmic core, letting electricity and momentum drive the conversation forward.
By 2001, Bugge Wesseltoft had already carved out a distinct voice in European jazz—one deeply rooted in electronic textures and forward-thinking arrangements. New Conception of Jazz: Moving (2001) represents him consolidating that vision, but with a crucial shift: this time, the focus tightens around the interplay between acoustic and electric sound, all in real time. There's no studio trickery here, just a working band pushing against each other.
The band—featuring Håkon Kornstad on tenor saxophone, Marius Reksjø and Ingebrigt Håker Flaten sharing bass duties, Anders Engen on drums, and Paolo Vinaccia on percussion alongside Jonas Lönnå's drum machine—operates as a machine calibrated for groove. Wesseltoft's electric piano doesn't dominate; it anchors. The drum machine threads through the mix like a second heartbeat, a deliberate choice that keeps things taut and modern without losing the warmth of live players. Kornstad's tenor work has real bite here, conversational rather than flashy.
This is a solid mid-career statement, not a reinvention but a refinement. It matters mainly to listeners already attuned to Wesseltoft's aesthetic—those who hear jazz as something that breathes in the present tense rather than genuflects to the past. For newcomers, start instead with Bugge Wesseltoft's earlier solo work. But for those tracking his evolution, this album shows a musician confident enough to let restraint do the heavy lifting.
Who's playing
Marius Reksjødouble bass
Ingebrigt Håker Flatendouble bass
Bugge Wesseltoftelectric piano
Håkon Kornstadtenor saxophone
Anders Engendrums
Paolo Vinacciapercussion
Jonas Lönnådrum machine
Where next?
More by Bugge Wesseltoft
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