Jordsjø is a duo from Oslo, Norway inspired by the progressive rock classics of the 1970s, old horror movies, 1970s German synthesizer music (cosmic music), Swedish progressive rock like the groundbreaking Änglagård, fantasy novels, Olivier Messiaen, German band Popol Vuh, Anthony Braxton, and Norwegian nature. Their music reflects the band’s longing for a simpler life close to nature and an imaginary past where life is centered around music.
The Norwegian outfit put out three cassettes before releasing their first “proper” album titled “Jord” in March 2018.
The 2 CD release “Jordsjø” is a collection of all the songs from these three earlier cassette releases: “Jordsjø”, “Jordsjø II” and the split release with Breidablik, “Songs from the Northern Wasteland.”
Most of the instruments on “Jordsjø” are played by talented multi-instrumentalist Håkon Oftung (Tusmørke, Black Magic) joined by drummers Kristian Frøland, Martin Nordrum Kneppen (Wobbler, Tusmørke) and Tore Flatjord. Guest artists: Håkon Knutzen on guitars and Vilde Mortensen Storesund on vocals.
Next came “Nattfiolen,” an album full of dreamy and warm sounds, filled with acoustic guitars, flutes, tape echo, analog synthesizers and Hammond organ..
In 2021, the band released the outstanding “Pastoralia,” an album with gorgeous progressive rock musical landscapes combined with folk and jazz. “Pastoralia” was recorded and produced in its entirety by Jordsjø between March and November 2020, in the basement of Bjørnerud Farm in Våler, Østfold. Thematically, the album is based on dreams, a longing for freedom and the fictional place “Pastoralia,” where every day is like tropical nights in Nothern Norway, where the forest people dance around campfires.
The band on “Pastoralia ” included Håkon Oftung and drummer Kristian Frøland, with guest appearances by Ola Mile Bruland (Actionfredag), Håkon Knutzen, Vilde Mortensen Storesund, Mats Lemjan, Christian Meaas Svendsen and Åsa Ree (MEER, Tusmørke, Wobbler).
While working on “Nattfiolen,” Jordsjø recorded more material than necessary, and they decided to not include the title track because of how long it was. After a while, though, it was released as a stand-alone track on Bandcamp and the demand for a physical release grew, so it was released on vinyl in 2022.
In 2022, Jordsjø released a new mix of “Jord” titled “Jord Sessions.”
Discography:
Jord (Karisma Records, 2018)
Jordsjø (Karisma Records, 2018)
Nattfiolen (Karisma Records 24 May 2019)
Pastoralia (Karisma Records 7 May 2021)
Jord Sessions (Karisma Records, 2022)
Nattfiolen Suite (Karisma Records, 2022)