Pianist Tord Gustavsen is a typical exponent of the school of Norwegian jazz musicians who draw as readily from the history of jazz and blues as from modern composed music and Norwegian folk music. With his trio he made three albums for ECM in which silence and musical tension play more important roles than virtuosity and groove. On the album Restored, Returned (2010) vocals played an important role
… next to Tore Brunborg's saxophone playing. The latter stayed with the group that thus grew into a quartet. The Well again sounds quiet and solemn, but also always melodic. Gustavsen therefore calls his compositions 'wordless hymns'. But no matter how small and disciplined this quartet works and no matter how clever that is, sometimes you start to wish that they break out and dare to let themselves go. With Brunborg in particular, you occasionally get the idea that he is consciously holding back and that he wants to let go but is not allowed. As a result, The Well sounds a bit too over-styled here and there, at the expense of the tension. (MR)more