Karin Johansson
Two fascinating works by two very different groups
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Pianist Karin Johansson has been a friend of BA for several years now. I first heard her as part of Arter, a duo with saxophonist Lisen Rylander Löve; I reviewed their album. She’s also been a member of several other projects, including the group Ord; Quagmire, a trio with bassist Nina de Heney and drummer Henrik Wartel; a duo with bassist Finn Loxbo; and the Jonny Wartel (Henrik’s younger brother) quartet. When she released I grunda vikar är bottnarna mjuka, a collaboration with composer Rosanna Gunnarson, I interviewed her via email.
On New Year’s Day 2022, we put on the Burning Ambulance Festival, an online-only event streamed via Bandcamp, and she contributed the video below.
Karin has two new albums out, with different groups. The first is Sonic Waves, a collaboration with guitarist Nils Wohlrabe and upright bassist Hasse Westling. The second is Rörane, a meeting between Karin’s group Quagmire and Christer Bothén on bass and contrabass clarinets. Each is as unique as everything else in her fascinating catalog.
Sonic Waves came out in April on the Outerdisk label. Although the music was, I believe, improvised, it is a meticulously structured album. The tracks are simply titled “Sonic Waves” I-V, but they’re presented out of sequence: II, III, I, IV, V. “Sonic Waves III” is the longest, running more than 15 minutes; “Sonic Waves IV,” at 6:45, is the shortest.
The music is highly atmospheric, almost to the point of illusion. This is one of those records where you’re going to hear sounds you can’t identify. In addition to playing guitar through various effects, Wohlrabe adds electronically treated recordings of the ocean, which seem mixed with analog synths like something out of Klaus Schulze or early Tangerine Dream. At times, particularly when listening on headphones, the sounds he produces are like something huge breathing right behind you.
Johansson, meanwhile, scrapes and scratches at the strings of the piano, and when she strikes the keys, whatever she’s done to the instrument makes it sound wounded in some way — not just “out of tune” but somehow almost nervous about even expressing itself. Westling’s bass isn’t heard that often, and is the most unadorned and “natural” of the three instruments, which helps to ground the music at key moments. He keeps it from sounding like field recordings from inside a haunted space station.
Rörane is the second Quagmire album. The first was technically credited to its three members (Johansson on piano, Nina de Heney on bass, and Henrik Wartel on drums) and just called Quagmire; it came out on Creative Sources Recordings in 2019. This time out, they’ve adopted the collective name, and added a guest: Christer Bothén on bass and contrabass clarinets. Also, Johansson is playing piano, prepared piano and zither. Lots of zinging strings this time out.
The group has a collective language, one to which Bothén contributes ably. They make him feel welcome, and perhaps more importantly they make the listener feel welcome too, through the simple expedient of repetition. Yes, unlike many improvising musicians, they make the same noise (or pattern of noises) twice! Even more than that! The opening title piece runs nearly 19 minutes, and long stretches of it feature an identifiable bass clarinet/bass figure, repeated like a riff. The four shorter pieces that follow are less structured and more about mood, but the intensity of the performances helps to keep it all interesting. This is a short album, only about 38 minutes in all. The four players sketch their general idea quickly, then explore it together and while not every track is as good as the first, they’re all worth hearing at least once.
The variety of approaches in Karin Johansson’s music means I’m always going to listen at least once. You should be listening too.
For several years in the early 2000s, Cecil Taylor led an orchestra of 12-15 members through an annual week of performances at the New York jazz club Iridium. They performed to packed houses, but none of that music has ever been released… until now. At Iridium 2004 is a digital-only set containing 14 complete performances by the Orchestra Humane — 16 hours of music in all. The music is extraordinary, and the recordings capture it in all its glory. The official release date is July 3, but you can stream or purchase the whole thing now. Get yourself one.
Thanks for the recommendation!! Great music 🙏