Kalle Moberg — The Tokyo Sessions Vol 2: Twist

Here we have another selection of wonky ‘n’ waving accordion playing from Norwegian Kalle Moberg, and unlike the first Vol in this series, he's not flying solo. He’s joined by Marty Holoubek on double bass, and Joe Talia drums on four of the five tracks, and Tatsuhisa Yamamoto also drums on one of the tracks. The sound this time around is a bit more formally avant/ free jazz focused.

Just like the first Vol in this series the release appears in form of a CD on KAMO Records. It’s presented in dull laminated four-panel digipak, this features on its front cover a cartoon of the four players- with Moberg’s face all twisted up longways. The release takes in six tracks in all, with a total CD runtime of thirty-eight minutes.

As with the first CD, everything is recorded live and acoustic, with zero overdubs.  I was rather taken by the first vol in this series last years Unheard Of. So when  I saw this was coming out I had to check it out, and on the whole, I’ll have to say I was slightly underwhelmed by what I found. What was so appealing/ distinct about the first Vol was that Moberg creative and one off take on the accordion was left to its own devices, and through this, he felt loose, unpredictable, and more than a little dangerous. With this new release, he’s having to contend/ consider the other plays, and while no ones playing is sloppy or dull, more often than not the structure of the tracks seems unsatisfying wondering and shapeless- though there are moments of worth/ wonder here, it’s just they are a little thinly spread, and as a whole, the album drags somewhat.

The album opener is entitled “Twisting” and this just shy of twelve-minute track starts with Moberg unfolding seasick runs and darts, over a backdrop of snaking and snapping percussion, and taut bass runs. As we move on the initial bounding and even pace lessens, and we get some nice interplays between bass and accordion- with Moberg nicely bending the notes- unfortunately, the drums, when they reappear, are a little cliched and predictable in their flow.

By track number three we’ve come to the just sly of four minutes of“Slanting” here Moberg flows out runs of off-kilter Persian like melody, seesawing note weaves, and almost horn-like honks. The drums on this track are more varied and creative, and also the bass seems more well placed- on the whole, I’d say this track stands as the most wholly rewarding thing here. Also not bad is the final track “Crash And Burn” which finds manically cascading accordion keys, skitting-to-rolling drums, and tight bobbing bass. The only issue is that in the middle it seems to lose its way somewhat, becoming wayward and bland in the trio's interplay.

It was certainly great to hear Moberg one-off/ distinctive playing once again on Twist, and there are certainly moments of worth and reward peppered throughout the album- it’s just a pity it’s not a wholly consistent ride. So in conclusion, if you enjoyed the first Vol and fancy hearing Moberg in a slightly more controlled/ more formal free jazz setting, then I’d give Twist a go.