Experimental Norwegian jazz-rock trio Elephant9 recently returned with latest album Mythical River. The band’s co-founders, bassist Nikolai Hængsle and keyboard player Ståle Storløkken, reveal the appeal of long coffee breaks, collabs with Led Zep bassist John Paul Jones, and why three really is the magic number.
Elephant9’s keyboardist Ståle Storløkken eagerly cites French 20th century composer Olivier Messiaen’s Turangalîla Symphony, composed in the aftermath of World War Two, as his favourite piece of music of all time. “Regardless of any genre,” he emphasises. However, he reveals there’s another piece of music that exerted a very specific influence on his development as a young player.
“It’s well written, well played and has a lot of nice sonic arrangements,” he explains, adding, “it was also when listening to this record the first time that I decided I had to buy a Hammond organ!” The album in question: ELP’s Tarkus.
Formed in 2006, Elephant9 have carved a distinctive path within Norway’s vibrant music scene. Alongside Storløkken, drummer Torstein Lofthus and bassist Nikolai Hængsle complete the trio who’ve just released their 10th album. Following the same course charted on 2021’s Arrival Of The New Elders, Mythical River continues to explore a highly articulate blend of jazz sensibilities framed through the prism of driving psych-tinted rock.
Thrumming bass, explosive drumming, acid-etched organ, overdriven electric piano and dream-fever Mellotron are all channelled into a sequence of smartly assembled instrumental numbers featuring thoughtful construction and visceral grooves, which act as a platform for their charismatic, wild spontaneity.
While some bands can find it difficult to adequately distil what they do live or in the rehearsal room, this trio haven’t had to worry when it comes to nailing the right take. “It’s generally quite easy to record an album with Elephant9,” explains Lofthus, who is also a member of jazz-rock outfit Red Kite. “We have good musical and personal chemistry and mostly agree on where we’re going, so it’s just about finding the right sound and capturing nice musical moments on tape.”
Ever since 2008 debut album Dodovoodoo, the band have used a secret ingredient to help the recording process along, as Hængsle explains: “Long coffee breaks have been an important element. As soon as we’ve nailed a sound we’re happy with, usually focusing mainly on drums, and if we’ve also been good boys and practised a bit beforehand, then it’s all about performance and presence. In our case, a performance almost never gets better after two or three takes in a row; the only thing that works is some more coffee if we don’t feel like we’re completely there yet.”
Like their previous album, the trio worked on Mythical River with Swedish producer and engineer Mattias Glavå – whose credits include Dungen, Needlepoint, Greg Fort and others – at Kungsten Studios in Gothenburg. “We really like how he makes us sound,” says Storløkken. “He has some insights that are really valuable to us.”
Hængsle goes further: “He’s probably my favourite sound engineer in the world today. I get as excited as a child every time I get the opportunity to work with him at Kungsten. We felt that Mattias’ sonic contributions deserved co-producer credit once the album was finished. There’s still reserved energy in the band, but with even more bite coming out of the speakers.”
Glavå was also present on 2015’s Silver Mountain, the second album they’d made with Dungen’s Reine Fiske, following on from the success of their joint debut, 2012’s Atlantis. Augmenting the trio both in the studio and in concert, Fiske appeared with them again on 2019’s Psychedelic Backfire II, pouring copious amounts of his six-string accelerant into the already combustible mix.
John Paul Jones is the sweetest, most polite man there is… he also has this amazing playfulness
Ståle Storløkken
Fiske’s presence added a whole new dimension to the group dynamic, according to Storløkken. “When we play as a trio, the sound and the interplay is a bit quicker and open; and with Reine it’s more complex and wider since then there are two that can play melodic and harmonic stuff.”
Hængsle adds: “As a quartet we create a kaleidoscopic wall of sound where Ståle and Reine’s frequencies intertwine – really widescreen; and as a trio we become a tighter unit when it comes to dynamics and micro-rhythms.”
The collaboration came about from a desire not to simply carry on repeating what had been a successful recipe but to challenge themselves and their way of working together. “This was in the summer of 2011, and we’d already booked Atlantis, formerly Metronome Studios, in Stockholm,” Hængsle explains. “Reine is one of my favourite guitarists. I’ve always been a huge fan of Dungen; but when I nervously called him neither of us knew each other personally. It turned out he knew our band and was a fan. He joined us on four tracks – and what you hear there is literally our first meeting. An absolutely fantastic musician.”
Elephant9 belong to a musical continuum that includes groups as musically diverse as Motorpsycho, Hedvig Mollestad Trio, Dungen, Supersilent, Jaga Jazzist, Fire!, Red Kite, Bushman’s Revenge, Grand General, Møster and Splashgirl, among others. It’s not uncommon for players in these groups to share record labels and cross-pollinate each other’s work. Storløkken collaborated with Motorpsycho on 2012’s The Death Defying Unicorn and En Konsert For Folk Flest, released in 2015.
“We wrote the music together and I did the arrangements for the Trondheim Jazzorchestra,” says the keyboardist and composer. “Working with them was really nice and easy. Even though we’re on somewhat different musical turf, we all have a strong connection to the same type of music. We all share the same passion for musical experimentation and we’re not bound to specific musical parameters or genres.”
That love of open boundaries is a key part of Storløkken’s other musical venture, Supersilent. Sometimes hailed as a supergroup, in 2015 Ståle, Arve Henriksen (trumpet, electronics, drums, vocals), and Helge Sten, aka Deathprod (electronics), were joined by ex-Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, who was a great admirer not only of Supersilent but the Scandinavian jazz and improv scene as well.
“John Paul Jones is the sweetest, most polite man there is. A real gentleman,” Storløkken says. “He also has this amazing playfulness and drive to make good music happen. It was really wonderful working with him!”
I can feel 100 per cent free with two musicians I admire who also can feel 100 per cent free
Nikolai Hængsle
Despite their willingness to operate in other environments, they all see Elephant9 as a significant commitment. “For me, it’s a playground where I can be as free as in Supersilent, but with a megaton-diesel-engine-rock-fuelling groove pushing us forward,” Storløkken says. “And nothing can stop it! And also I like the free approach we have to music, even if it’s sort of rock based.” Asked to sum up the group’s adventurous ethos in just a few words, he offers: “Massive. Exploring. Space travel.”
Looking to the future, they’ve recorded a collaborative album with Swedish guitar veteran and Scandi-jazz legend Terje Rypdal, scheduled for release later in the year. “Terje is really nice. He really enjoyed playing with us and vice versa,” says Storløkken.
In addition to live dates promoting Mythical River, the band are branching out into the multimedia market. “We also have a concert film ready for release once we find the right format and channel for distribution,” adds Lofthus.
Hængsle says: “We have been playing together for almost 20 years, and the shared musical intuition we have built up – along with the fact that I can feel 100 per cent free with two musicians I admire who also can feel 100 per cent free – is quite special.
“It’s probably the only band I play in where every member is literally irreplaceable. We never play with substitutes; and if someone throws in the towel, the band is finished.”
