Atomic

Not since the Jan Garbarek Quartet of the ’70s has a Scandinavian band generated as much excitement and acclaim. The Guardian calls Atomic “one of the most exhilarating groups on the European circuit.” A key exponent of the “new wave” of Nordic jazz currently attracting lots of press attention, Atomic was formed in 1999 by five important young musicians from the burgeoning jazz scenes of Sweden and Norway. Combining the powerful, cutting-edge Oslo rhythm section of Håvard Wiik on piano, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten on bass, and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums with the Stockholm front line of trumpeter Magnus Broo and saxophonist Fredrik Ljungkvist, the quintet is one of the hottest acoustic ensembles to have emerged at the turn of the century. Atomic plays original music that mixes grooves and modes with a distinctive approach to free playing. Think classic Miles Davis meets late-period Coltrane meets Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, and you’ll get an idea why their terrific sounds have spurred collaborations with leading contemporary jazz musicians, including Chris Potter and Ken Vandermark from the U.S., Iain Ballamy from the U.K., and the Swede Per ‘Texas’ Johansson. ... more...