Extra Large Unit

Featuring: Paal Nilssen-Love

«Steam Waterfall» is the second album in an expanded version of Paal Nilssen-Love's Large Unit. But this isn't the same Extra Large Unit you heard on «More Fun Please» from 2018. This is a live recording from the Oslo Jazz Festival in 2022 featuring core members of Large Unit along with a range of younger musicians Paal had met through workshops and teaching in the two years leading up to the concert. The number of musicians heard is 25—the largest Unit to date—but during the performance, there were also four dancers involved: one Norwegian contemporary dancer and three traditional Colombian dancers.

The piece lasts 75 minutes and is quite a big journey—from the opening, when we hear the audience entering the room, to the end (spoiler alert) when all the musicians throw 100 ping-pong balls around the stage, bouncing them on the floor and instruments and even knocking over a glass or two. In between, there's a whole world of different events—as Paal has structured the piece as a compilation of techniques, combining written passages with conceptual sections, graphic scores, solos, and sectioned group improvisations. It's an ambitious piece, but when listening to the recording, it never feels forced or overly conceptual—it still revolves around the music and the collective experience of both listening and playing.

The CD comes with extensive liner notes by Paal, describing the thoughts and inspirations that shaped the project. This passage gets to the core of it: «Steam Waterfall» is the result of my attempt to question what a concert is, when it begins, and when it ends. The composition is also an attempt to question what a music piece is. Do I define the music's course, and/or how much can I trust the performers to drive the music forward? What is a concert? When does a concert start? Is it when you enter the concert venue, or when the band takes the stage? When the musicians first produce sounds on their instruments? Or has it already started when you've just read about the concert and decided to go? When does it end? When the last sound fades? When the audience starts applauding? When they leave the room? Or does it continue to resonate infinitely?