BJ Cole has been playing steel guitar since the early 1970’s, & over the years he’s collaborated with a long list of artists that fall in both experimental  & more mainstream brackets- people such as: David Sylvian, Bjørk, Brian Eno, Elton John, REM & Emmylou Harris. The 1982 trio bring together Fiddler Nils Økland, organist/harmonium player Sigbjørn Apeland and percussionist Øyvind Skarbø- they have released three albums since 2009 which brew-up a  mostly melodic improv based mix of different musical genres.

The album features eight untitled tracks that fall between  just over minute to just over the nine minute mark. All of tracks here meld & mix together instrumental genre traits & world music elements in a fairly drifting & lose manner, yet there is always a sense of structure & focus here. The tracks go from the lose & drifting feel of the first track  which moves from edgy harmonium & phaser like guitar interplay, onto a mixture of elegant Irish melody tinged fiddle playing that’s  slow swayed by country tinged steel guitar. Through to slowly drifting sustains of melancholic organ drift that sail with wishful fiddle sawing, slow simmering steel guitar trails, and barely moving percussive textures.    And at the other end of the spectrum  we have track eight; which is one of one  the albums more up-beat moments. It mixtures together mid-pace skittering percussion & drums, roaming country rock guitar twang, simmering slow monition Cajun like harmonium sways, and fiddle darts

For the most part all eight tracks here work well with there  slow drifting & stirring mix of different genre traits, but there are a few odd moments when this mixing processer feels a little too awkward or lop-sided, but thankfully these are only fleeting.

On the whole this is a most rewarding collaboration which will appeal to those who enjoy more structure & melody based improv, and those who enjoy looser musical genre mixing.