First of all, an announcement. This record has gone from farm to table, from reed to tape, from string to harp, in a very short time. An intense day in the studio in Gröndal, Stockholm, a couple of days for after-work and then release 1st of may.
But don’t be fooled!

On Sol Tors Taverna Vol.1, you will hear seven musicians that follow the celebrated words of Eric Dolphy: “When you hear music, after it’s over, it’s gone in the air; you can never capture it again!” Every contribution is made from the bottom of the heart, from the explosive in “Emotions” to the thoughtful in “Ballad till gårdagen (Ballad for yesterday)”. The fact that all of the tracks have been recorded in one take, after each other without pausing, hopefully confirms this claim.

On the album, we will hear some of the friendliest improvisers you knew, all of them with their unmistakable and personal expression.

In the reed section we hear:
Gustav Rådström on alto saxophone, a voice as clear as the high coast-mountains he springs from.

Oskar Carls on tenor saxophone, always surprising and raw, with one foot in the blues and the other in punk.

Pelle Westlin on tenor saxophone, restrained but explosive, and something of the group’s storyteller.

Isak Hedtjärn on clarinets, as more fearless than anyone on his instrument throws himself in, in any music, without throwing in the towel.

Milton Öhrström, with an unruly geniality but always with his tongue in cheek, hammering on the keys like possessed.

Vilhelm Bromander, always with the best of the music in mind, always with wood and strings in a lovely symbiosis, always indispensable

Tor Sjödén, the tavern owner, the giant, the very feeling and decisive pulse of the group, in the buzz at Sol Tors Tavern.

 
 
A couple of words about the music:
 
Emotions – Written by Ornette Coleman. First performed by the group New York Contemporary Five, and in this particular take, the septet hopes to bring out the inner energy of the song.

En sång för vänsterhänta – Written by Pelle Westlin. The composition was written back in 2013, but sees new light and a mystic feeling on this album, dedicated to all the left-handed people out there. Notice Öhrström as piano soloist, and especially his left hand.

Hambo – Another Westlin composition. Hambo is a Swedish “gammeldans”, old dance, but this particular composition is in fact not a hambo. A little melody, written with the summer sun in the eyes.

Wine glass up your ass – One of three compositions by Isak Hedtjärn on this album. A roar in jazz, notes that you can’t escape from. Especially notice the magnificent solos by Rådström and Carls.

Hej Haden – Another Hedtjärn-composition. Mysticism, music for a late evening or an early morning, but must of all, music for serious reflection.

Mot kung och fosterland – Vilhelm Bromander isn’t only an excellent bassist, he is also a prominent composer, here in an anthem against royalism and for free jazz.

D dur – Bromander’s second composition on the album. A discharge in a sad or cheerful mood, you decide! But it makes you feel!

Sänkt blues - After a concert with the septet at Glenn Miller Café in Stockholm, composer Linus Hillborg decided to write a song for the group. Here is the result, a liquor-drenched blues with leaps in many melodic worlds.

Ballad till gårdagen – Isak Hedtjärn’s third composition finishes the album, with a stark contrast to how it started, but also as an excellent border on the frame; Time to go home, but don’t forget today, and don’t forget yesterday.
 
With pleasure, and hope for pleasant listening,
Sol Tors Taverna