Trond Kallevåg Hansen: Bedehus & Hawaii
Hubro

An unusual combination results when Bedehus, the word for a local prayer-house or chapel, is paired with Hawaii for the title of Trond Kallevåg Hansen's Hubro debut. Yet there's nothing strange about the musical effects achieved by the Oslo-based guitarist on this nine-song collection, characterized by the label as a “Polynesian gospel-swing” hybrid where West Norway meets the South Pacific; simply put, the music birthed by Hansen, violinist Adrian Løseth Waade, slide and pedal steel guitarist Geir Sundstøl, double bassist Alexander Hoholm, and drummer Ivar Myrset Asheim is wonderful. Of course, Sundstøl's presence alone promises much for any project with which he's involved, and true to form Hansen's benefits considerably from his participation.

The album material achieves a powerful impact that belies the relaxed, front-porch vibe of the recording and the humility exemplified by the musicians in their performances: laid-back Bedehus & Hawaii might be, but its tunes exert a magic that's both potent and insidious. Folk is the predominant style, but subtle flickerings of jazz, blues, and country also thread their way into Hansen's atmospheric settings. They're not experimental pieces but rather melodically resonant and effortlessly poised blends of acoustic and electric sounds that with repeated listenings burrow deep into your psyche.

Consistent with the project spirit, the opening “Flanellograf” blossoms slowly with delicate violin shadings and bell rustlings, as if awakening from slumber and reality slowly coming into focus. The album's first formal melody arrives in “Flukt,” a haunting one in this case voiced by a picking Hansen and augmented by ringing pedal steel and jazz-tinged violin flourishes; with a brushes-wielding Asheim and insistent Hoholm joining in, the music swells in animation, eventually reaching a boisterous, full-ensemble climax. Delivered at a plodding pace, “Slektstreff” exudes a slow, “cry in your beer”-styled twang sometimes heard in country tunes, the piece an ideal vehicle for Sundstøl's and Waade's outpourings. A solo Hansen introduces “Gatelys og sang” beautifully, especially when the tune's touching melodic progression echoes the plaintive one famously voiced in the American traditional “Shenandoah.” Two late-album highlights, “Kappellet” is distinguished by a gorgeous 3/4 lilt, whereas the title track's elevated by a handful of stirring folk themes.

June 2019