PIXEL
Ellen Andrea Wang - Harald Lassen - Jonas Kilmork Vemoy - Jon Audun Baar

The award-winning Norwegian jazz quartet Pixel has attained preternatural cohesion after five years together, moving seamlessly from composed passages to group improvisation marked by conversational interplay. The band is in the vanguard of a jazz scene brimming with exceptional young musicians, charting an exhilarating, improvisation-steeped path infused with the cathartic energy of rock. This is an exciting time in jazz’s evolution, as it expands to embrace other popular musics worldwide. Pixel stands out in this phenomenon, as no one else is melding jazz with the song structure and accessibility of pop and indie rock as they do.

All four Pixels are ubiquitous on the fiercely creative Scandinavian jazz scene, which has embraced the quartet as an exemplar of Norway’s populist cutting edge. Slated for a series of major festivals and showcases across the Europe, Pixel is poised to take the jazz world by storm. Like similarly forward thinking groups such as The Bad Plus and Rob Mazurek's Chicago Underground, this is definitely jazz, but it's jazz that rock audiences can relate to.


GOLDEN YEARS



RUNE 412

" Must admit to being captivated by this, the third album by Norwegian jazz combo Pixel, not only for the near-perfection of their playing, but by their highly skilled approach to making sophisticated jazz arrangements accessible to those with a taste for high-quality pop music and even indie rock. A disarmingly strong set, Golden Years is one of the year’s better albums, and you should make a point of hearing it." – Yahoo Music

The award-winning Norwegian jazz quartet Pixel is in the vanguard of a scene brimming with exceptional young musicians, charting an exhilarating, improvisation-steeped jazz path infused with the cathartic energy of indie rock. Pixel’s third album Golden Years captures the next step in the band’s rapid evolution.

Pixel consists of double bassist and vocalist Ellen Andrea Wang, drummer Jon Audun Baar, trumpeter Jonas Kilmork Vemøy, and saxophonist Harald Lassen (with everyone contributing vocals).

Pixel tends toward translucent textures, tight orchestration and pop-inflected songcraft. While the sound is essentially acoustic, Vemøy and Lassen increasingly employ subtle effects that provide deeper textural depth to the already charged mélange of bright harmonies and protean rhythmic thrust.

Golden Years is the result of Pixel’s bustling 2014, a year in which the quartet played nearly 100 gigs (while also each pursuing projects of their own). When they started the recording process at the end of the year, everyone brought new songs to the table, tunes documented over five intensive days in the studio. Together these extraordinary musicians created an expansive album and sound unlike any other band on the scene. Still growing and discovering what they’re capable of, the musicians of Pixel are in their prime, and the group’s third album makes a compelling case that these are the best of times on the Norwegian scene.

Golden Years press release

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WE ARE ALL SMALL PIXELS



RUNE 372

"... one of the most memorable moments of the [Match and Fuse Festival]." – DownBeat

Following up on their acclaimed 2012 debut Reminder, which established Pixel as a bold new voice on the international jazz scene, the young Oslo-based quartet delivers a exuberant second album that makes a mighty big musical statement, further refining its fervently creative vision with We Are All Small Pixels, a genre-smashing manifesto that translates ancient spiritual insight into the digital age.

Pixel's music is fun and youthful. The group stands at the forefront of a rising generation of jazz players who are remaking jazz in their own image, and doing so for an audience that is hungry for something new and reflects modern day sounds in creative music.

We Are All Small Pixels press release

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REMINDER



RUNE 342

Pixel, the powerhouse indie-jazz ensemble from Norway, makes an indelible first impression with Reminder. Led by bassist, vocalist and composer Ellen Andrea Wang, the band also features drummer Jon Audun Baar, saxist Harald Lassen and trumpeter Jonas Vemøy. Combining indie-rock energy with the improvisational flexibility of jazz, Pixel are earthy and ethereal, wistful and agressive, sensuous and pummeling.

Reminder is the debut release by the most exciting band to come out of the insanely active Norwegian jazz scene in recent memory. In a country where jazz talent seems to seep out through the tap water, that's saying a lot!

Reminder press release (English)

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MEDIA
For press and media: cover art and high resolution images are available below for download (click thumbnail, right-click image and select "Save As.."). Please credit the photographer (when available) and "Courtesy of Cuneiform Records". For more information, click here.

Golden Years
We Are All Small Pixels
Reminder
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PRESS RELEASES
Golden Years press release
We Are All Small Pixels press release
We Are All Small Pixels press quotes
Reminder press release (English)
Reminder press release (Norweigian & English)
Reminder press quotes

CUNEIFORM E-BLASTS
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