Jazz

Kristin Asbjornsen - Wayfaring Stranger: A Spiritual Songbook (2006)

2016-05-24T15:58:46Z

Kristin Asbjornsen - Wayfaring Stranger: A Spiritual Songbook (2006)


1 	Trying To Get Home 	
2 	I'm On My Way 	
3 	Ride Up In The Chariot 	
4 	Now We Take This Feeble Body 	
5 	In That Morning 	
6 	Come Go With Me 	
7 	Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down 	
8 	Going Up 	
9 	Don't Be Weary Traveller 	
10 	I Am A Poor Wayfaring Stranger / Going Over Jordan 	
11 	Oh Glory

Bass, Guitar, Vocals – Jarle Bernhoft
Lap Steel Guitar, Vocals – Jostein Asnes
Percussion, Piano – Anders Engen
Vocals – Kristin Asbjørnsen

Norwegian vocalist Kristin Asbjørnsen is gifted with a voice that sounds quite southern: deep and lustrous, with some hoarseness, lots of passion and a wide range. Her spiritual songbook Wayfaring Stranger demonstrates these qualities beautifully, as well as her impressive control of tone, color and phrasing.

Asbjørnsen began her recording career a decade ago with the all-female vocal quartet Kvitretten, together with Solveig Slettahjell, Eldbjørg Raknes and Tone Åse. All four have pursued different routes since then, but they all have emphasized a highly original choice of texts. Asbjørnsen moved on to form the ensembles Dadafon and Krøyt, covering poems by Walt Whitman and Charles Bukowski, as well as Norwegian poets such as Anne Bøe, Ragnhild Lund Ansens and Tale Nøss. Asbjørnsen contributed vocals to pianist Ketil Bjørnstad's politically charged Seafarer's Song (Universal, 2004) and wrote the score to Norwegian director Bent Hamer's film Factotum (Milan Records, 2006), which portrays Bukowski's hard times.

Wayfaring Stranger is a collection of Afro-American spirituals that Asbjørnsen studied with singer Ruth Reese, a Chicagoan who relocated to Norway in 1960 and lived there till her death in 1990. Asbjørnsen describes these songs as existential expressions of life: songs of longing, mourning, struggling, loneliness, hopefulness and joyful traveling. "Just as the spirituals were originally used to transcend the narrow limits of slavery, I experience over and over again that the songs touch upon our struggles of modern life, our own quests for personal freedom, movement and protection."

The spare production of Wayfaring Stranger by percussionist Andres Engen, once a member of Bugge Wesseltoft's New Conception of Jazz, features Dadafon's guitarist, Justin Ansnes, and bassist Jarle Bernhoft, who contributes backing vocals. The three keep embracing Asbjørnsen's warm vocals, maintaining a direct and simple atmosphere. This humble attitude gracefully serves the repetitive lyrics, and the leisurely playing highlights the message of hope in these songs.

All eleven interpretations of these old spirituals are impressive, but, still, Ansnes' guitar playing on "Now We Take This Feeble Body," a duo with Asbjørnsen, sounds both rootsy and very modern in the atmospheric overtones that engulf Asbjørnsen's vocals. "In That Morning" gains passionate momentum, but still keeps a restrained elegance. The vocal choir plus percussion interpretation of "Going Up" retains the traditional, devotional aspects of similar Afro-American spirituals.

The interpretation of the almost standard spiritual "I Am a Poor Wayfaring Stranger," with its call-and-response vocal arrangements, Ansnes' bluesy guitar riffs, and the tight, interlocking playing of Bernhoft and Engen, is the highlight of this release. The hushed down version of "Oh Glory" is a masterful conclusion to this collection of life-affirming songs. Norwegian vocalist Kristin Asbjørnsen is gifted with a voice that sounds quite southern: deep and lustrous, with some hoarseness, lots of passion and a wide range. Her spiritual songbook Wayfaring Stranger demonstrates these qualities beautifully, as well as her impressive control of tone, color and phrasing.

Asbjørnsen began her recording career a decade ago with the all-female vocal quartet Kvitretten, together with Solveig Slettahjell, Eldbjørg Raknes and Tone Åse. All four have pursued different routes since then, but they all have emphasized a highly original choice of texts. Asbjørnsen moved on to form the ensembles Dadafon and Krøyt, covering poems by Walt Whitman and Charles Bukowski, as well as Norwegian poets such as Anne Bøe, Ragnhild Lund Ansens and Tale Naƒ¦ss. Asbjørnsen contributed vocals to pianist Ketil Bjørnstad's politically charged Seafarer's Song (Universal, 2004) and wrote the score to Norwegian director Bent Hamer's film Factotum (Milan Records, 2006), which portrays Bukowski's hard times.

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Kristin Asbjornsen – The Night Shines Like The Day (2010)

2016-05-17T15:52:02Z

Kristin Asbjornsen – The Night Shines Like The Day (2010)


01 - Green is everywhere
02 - If this is the ending
03 - Snowflake
04 - Don't hide your face from me
05 - Afloat
06 - And I long to see you again
07 - I'm too heavy now
08 - Walk around me
09 - Moment
10 - Rain, oh Lord
11 - One day my heart will break
12 - Someday I'll carry you home
13 – Lose

Kristin Asbjørnsen – vocals
Tord Gustavsen – piano and fender rhodes
Olav Torget – konting and guitars
Svante Henryson – cello and electric bass
Knut Aalefjær – percussion
Jostein Ansnes – vocals, lap steel and additional guitars
Sizwe Magwaza – vocals
+
Nils Petter Molvaer – Trumpet on “Moment”

2009/2010 saw the release of Kristin’s new enchanting solo album: “The night shines like the day”. This is the first album totally based on Kristin’s own lyrics and music.

The music is a powerful, mesmerizing beautiful exploration; quiet and intense, with an incredibly strong awareness in the way Kristin is approaching the songs. It’s soulful music that flows, touchingly grounded in Kristin’s unique voice.

Kristin says: “I invited some of the musicians that have been very important to me during the past years. I feel humble and I am touched by the way they have approached my songs, with such powerful musical performances and with so much beauty.”

These arrangements are so finely tuned and rich in texture, with an exceptional playful interaction between the musicians. Still the music – tender and somber expressions – maintains the simplicity and the warm intimacy from where the songs were born.

“The night shines like the day” carries strong imprints of love. The longing to embrace and being embraced.

“It has been a long journey since these songs started to grow in me. Working with the music has been both comforting and challenging. When everything falls apart and there seems to be no way out, we sometimes experience a glimpse of hope entering the darkness, that creates contours of a new view and new directions – expressed in the title of the album: “The night shines like the day”. Creating these songs has been a process gradually grounded in a strong hope and belief that something broken can be turned into beauty.” --- kristinasbjornsen.com

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Kristin Asbjørnsen - Traces Of You (2018)

2019-01-10T15:42:14Z

Kristin Asbjørnsen - Traces Of You (2018)


1 	By Your Side 	3:34
2 	You Hold Me While Leaving Me 	3:56
3 	She Holds My Hand 	3:20
4 	Promise 	4:06
5 	We Haven't Found Our Way Back Home 	3:15
6 	Goodbye 	3:19
7 	Finally 	3:12
8 	I Won't Leave The Room 	3:35
9 	Spring Reappears 	4:36
10 	Traces Of You 	2:24
11 	Vil Du Være Her Bestandig 	3:13

Guitars, Xalam [Konting], Bass, Percussion, Vocals – Olav Torget
Kora, Vocals – Suntou Susso
Percussion, Vocals, Dobro – Anders Engen
Vocals – Kristin Asbjørnsen, Monika Ifejilika

Singer and songwriter Kristin Asbjørnsen is one of the most distinguished artists on the vibrating extended music scene in Europe. Over the last decade, she has received overwhelming international response from critics and the public alike for her personal and unique musical expression.

Spring 2018 sees the international release of Kristin’s long awaited solo album Traces Of You (via Global Sonics/Øra Fonogram/Rough Trade), followed by release concerts in Europe. The music is met with outstanding response.

Kristin has written all music and lyrics, and her enchanting songs are based on Kristin’s commissioned work Traces of You for Global Oslo Music in 2016.

The Norwegian singer has featured on a number of album releases, as well as a series of tours and festival performances in Europe. She has won several national Music Awards.

Kristin’s critically acclaimed solo-album “I’ll meet you in the morning” (Emarcy/Universal Music 2013/2014) was followed by an extended release tour and festival concerts in Europe with Kristin Asbjørnsen Ensemble. The music affectionately revealed her enduring passion for African American spirituals, as well as her own compositions. During the last year, Kristin has been performing in Europe, in different duo, trio and quartet formats. She has been combining songs from «I’ll meet you in the morning” with her earlier work “The night shines like the day” and “Wayfaring stranger”, as well as introducing her new songs. ---kristinasbjornsen.com

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Kristin Asbjørnsen ‎– Factotum (2006)

2019-01-27T14:00:12Z

Kristin Asbjørnsen ‎– Factotum (2006)


1 	On The Bus 		1:20
2 	Reunion 	2:50
3 	I Wish To Weep		2:31
4 	Farewell I 		1:48
5 	Slow Day	3:41
6 	Ice Plant Overture 	1:26
7 	Pickles 	2:40
8 	Still Awake 	2:11
9 	Quirky Waltz 	1:29
10 	Dreamland II	4:18
11 	Slow Day Fragments	2:12
12 	My Garden	2:02
13 	In The Kitchen 	2:31
14 	Beside You 	1:43
15 	Drunk Driving 	1:54
16 	Remembering 	1:44
17 	Shoes 	1:40
18 	If You're Going To Try	3:42
19 	Horse Race Groove 	1:32
20 	Farewell II 	1:49
21 	Slow Day II		5:36

Kristin Asbjørnsen 	Vocals
Jostein Asnes 	Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin, Vocals
Jarle Bernhoft 	Bass, Drums, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin, Percussion, Vocals
Øyvind Brandtsegg 	Vibraphone
Trygve Brøske 	String Arrangements
Dadafon 	Krøyt
Thomas Dahl 	Guitar, Sampling
Kenneth Ekornes 	Percussion
Øyvind Engen 	Cello, Vocals
Tord Gustavsen 	Piano
Svante Henryson 	Cello
Kenneth Kapstad 	Drums
Krøyt 		Performer
Martin Langlie 	Drums
Anders Larsen 	Violin
Eirik Øien 	Bass
Sigrid Stang 	Violin

In 2005 Kristin made her international debut as a film score composer for the American movie “Factotum”, based on a novel by Charles Bukowski. Factotum is a US/Norwegian co-production by Director Bent Hamer and producer Jim Stark, and is starring Matt Dillon, Marisa Tomei and Lili Taylor.

The film and the soundtrack received a lot of international acclaim and Factotum was selected for the Cannes Film Festival. Kristin’s soundtrack album is released on the French/American label Milan Records and her music won the Norwegian Film Award: “Best Norwegian Film Music” (Kanon prisen). ---kristinasbjornsen.com

It may seem odd that a notable Norwegian director (Ben Hamer) would be the one to make a movie about a tortured, against-the-grain cult writer and poet (Charles Bukowski, played by Matt Dillon) who spent all but two years of his life in Los Angeles. But the good news for music fans is the important larger discovery of the incredibly diverse and captivating Scandinavian jazz composer and vocalist Kristin Asbjørnsen. Even without images, the soundtrack to Factotum functions quite well by itself as a haunting, complex, atmospheric work with varied moods and instrumentation. The opener "On the Bus" is just over a minute but brings back magnificent creepy memories of Twin Peaks. After "Reunion," a subtle and graceful solo piano piece, is the chamber music-flavored "I Wish to Weep," featuring the composer's smoky, emotional vocals toiling sweetly over a simple Bukowski poem/lyric that gives the words a scorching urgency. There are other similarly flavored lead vocals (most notably, the classical/folk-tinged "Slow Day,") but Asbjørnsen proves herself equally adept at creating moods with wordless vocals ("Farewell I," "Beside You"). Amidst the largely melancholy vibe of most of these tracks is the rumbling and percussive acoustic jazz magic of the quirkily titled "Pickles." Asbjørnsen, making her composing debut, performs these pieces with her band Dadafon, drawing inspiration not only from her formal jazz education nbut also her love for West African griot singers. A fascinating work. ---Jonathan Widran, AllMusic Review

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