A Kristian Bugge Fest

Habadekuk
Hopsadaddy
Go’ Danish Folk Music GO1710

Impuls Trio
Bugge, Bæk & Vinther
Go’ Danish Folk GO0711

Jensen & Bugge
Hav og Land – 10 År med Dasnk Traditionel Musik
Go’ Danish Folk Music GO0611

Dwight Lamb & Jensen & Bugge
Live in Denmark 2010
Go’ Danish Folk GO0411

It’s a bit of a Kristian Bugge fest. For now at least, he’s the hardest working man in Danish folk. Habadekuk is certainly the more adventurous of the discs here, featuring not only Bugge’s fiddle, but also accordion, guitar, bass, piano, drums and three brass players. The nearest analogy might well be Bellowhead, although this is all instrumental. It certainly offers another, kicking take on the Danish tradition, whether stomping on Proptræken or offering something slow and melodic like Spilledåsen. It’s more straightforward than Bellowhead, but still wonderfully exciting, with superb arrangements that often build to a roar and make full use of having the brass section in this nine-man outfit. They do look to the repertoire of Æ Tinuser, one of the seminal Danish bands that featured trombone. But this is definitely music for dancing – hard to keep still, in fact.

The Impuls Trio disc is much more low-key, mixing fiddle with guitar (and mandolin) as well as accordion from Phønix’s Jesper Vinther. The focus here is on rare old tunes, and the sources are carefully noted. These pieces are well worth discovering, and the playing is delicate and exquisite. Not every tune here is ancient – some date from the middle of the 20th century or later in the case of Læsø Rejlænder. There are a few guests (sparing use of trombone, drums and double bass) and the arrangements are exquisite, making full use of the different tones of the instruments and setting them against each other, melodically and rhythmically. The trio are very evenly matched, and there’s huge joy in the music making here, with a real sense of playfulness. It’s a very different kind of treasure to the big band, but that doesn’t mean its treasures aren’t every bit as rich.

Bugge has been playing in a duo with accordionist Mette Kathrine Jensen for a full decade now, although they’ve known each other since childhood. That easy familiarity translates into the music here, whether it’s just the two of them or the full band (clarinet, guitar, double bass). This is (mostly) traditional dance music – they play many dances – performed not only with great vigour, but absolute pleasure. The sources are from all over the country. There’s a huge amount of skill here; this isn’t raw music from the country, but refracted through some highly sophisticated musical sensibilities who just happen to love, and have the feel for, traditional dance music. It makes for a fabulous, lively disc, and the clarinet brings an interesting, almost exotic tone to the band tracks.
Finally there’s the real trump card in the Kristian Bugge pack. It features Jensen & Bugge (along with guests – pianist Vagn Dahl Hansen and older accordion player Karl Skaarup) but the real star of the show is accordion player Dwight Lamb, from Iowa. He’s the great grandson of Danish musician Kræn Jerup, who left Vendsyssel in Denmark for the US in the 1800s. The old music – played very much in the old style – was handed down, making Lamb a repository of tunes otherwise forgotten. The three of them have played together periodically over the last couple of years, and brought Lamb to Denmark in 2010 to see the mother country – and play a few shows. This is the result, and it’s wonderfully stirring. It’s definitely old-time music, Danish style. Still ineffably Danish, but with the patina of history on the notes. It’s to J&B’s credit that they’re happen to take back seats and let the real tradition shine