Thomas Bergsten - 2022 - Thomas Bergsten's Kosmos

(38:09; Apollon Records)

Track list:
1. Drive Pt. 1 6:40
2. Drive Pt. 2 7:29   
3. Alybt 5:19
4. Sun 18:41

Line-up:
Thomas Bergsten - guitars, harp, percussion, lap-steel, sound manipulation
Tore Ljökelsöy - drums, percussion, fiddle
Arnfinn Langesaeter - saxophone, flute, percussion
Jakob Eri Myhre - trumpet, piano, effects, percussion
Simen Wie - bass, percussion
Öyvind Heilo – piano, percussion
with:
Björn Klakegg – guitars


Prolusion.
Norwegian composer and musician Thomas Bergsten have been nurturing a solo career for a bit over a decade, with his first solo production released back in 2011 from what I can see. His latest album is called "Thomas Bergsten's Kosmos", and was released through Norwegian label Apollon Records in the summer of 2022.

Analysis.
While the music on this production revolves around a couple of different orientations, with psychedelic tendencies being the red thread throughout, my impression is that as a total album experience this production actually resides in a slightly different department. Namely avant-oriented progressive rock. It is a call open to discussion though, as I can see a small handful of different designations that this production can be sorted under, and none of them would be incorrect.

I guess the central aspect of this album is that the material comes across as improvised. While certain elements may or may not have been planned in advance, the compositions here are loose and often have a similar feel and flow to them as bands that explore a more free form type of jazz, and the liberal use of reeds and brass throughout kind of emphasize that aspect of the album experience too.

That being said, the guitar is such a central instrument throughout and the use of psychedelic and cosmic sounds and moods is such a constant presence throughout that in sum this is more of a rock oriented production to my ears at least, even if there are some jazz sensibilities present. And a piece such as 'Alybt', with it's multiple broken, abrupt and chaotic soundscapes, might even be described as a meeting of jazz and noise rock sensibilities.

This latter creation is an outlier on this album however, with the opening cut possibly being the cut here with more of an improvised jazz meets psychedelic and progressive rock kind of creation while the following 'Drive Pt. 2' is an excursion into more dampened and subdued cosmic landscapes with a longing and otherworldly atmosphere. The concluding, epic length 'Sun' is a quite different beast again, with the majority of the song given over to searching, gently surging and floating sounds and textures that concludes on a more aggressive noise explosion, both similar and vastly different from the chaotic sounds we encounter on the previous cut 'Alybt'.

But no matter how one will choose to categorize the music on this production, the word challenging is one that needs to be dropped. Not for everything present, as some of the landscapes here are tender as well as fairly accessible, but this is a production that is very much challenging on occasion, and to the point that I find the word avant to be one that fits the more challenging aspects of this production.

Conclusion.
As the album name implies, cosmic sounds and landscapes are very much a presence on this production and arguably something of a mainstay throughout. Just as important are the at times highly challenging and demanding landscapes that appear on a regular basis, that the material is instrumental and with an improvised flair, and that at least in my perception that certain patterns and movements from improvised jazz have found it's way into at least some parts of this album. In my view this is a bit more of a niche production all in all, and those who enjoy cosmic sounds just as much as more challenging and adventurous material combining elements of improvised jazz and rock inside more of a progressive rock framework  should have a good chance of finding this to be quite the rewarding album experience.

Olav "Progmessor" Björnsen, August 2022

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/bergstenskosmos
https://www.apollonrecords.no/