Tord Gustavsen Trio

The third release from the Norwegian trio—which, with their first two, can be taken as a kind of trilogy—continues their penchant for making chillingly precise instrumental compositions that hover in the air, shifting ever so slightly. The perfectly melded exchanges of piano, bass and drums are layered sounds, abstract, posing questions more than answering them, and deeply impressionistic—a graceful unfolding of pensive ruminations. The music is enigmatic and sublime, equally suited for watching clouds drift by on a summer day or the embers glow in a winter fire. Like pebbles thrown in a pond, the ripples of piano and rhythm arc outward over and into one another in ever expanding circles yet still leave plenty of space for the fourth member of the trio: silence.