Mit repetitiven Figuren, flächigen Klängen und spärlichen Solopassagen bewegt sich die Musik von Time Is A Blinde Guide im Spannungsfeld zwischen Jazz, Minimal Music und Klassik. Schlagzeuger Thomas Strønen ist ein Meister der leisen, aber treibenden Beats und die japanische Pianistin Ayumi Tanaka tupft ihre Soli manchmal wie nebenbei in die Tasten.
Bernhard Jugel, Bayerischer Rundfunk
With ‘Lucus’, the reflective, somber, and gentle timbres of composer/drummer Thomas Strønen and his ensemble, Time Is a Blind Guide, bring to mind poet T.S. Eliot's line, ‘Winter kept us warm.’ And even as the cold Norwegian waves rise up or lap gently against the rocks along this craggy musical shore, ‘Lucus’ elicits warmth, like a crackling fire on an windswept icy day. There's a chamber appeal to this music. That's only natural given the use of the violin, cello and double bass. But this music is much more than that. It's an inspired yet moving expression of Norwegian chamber jazz.
Don Phipps, All About Jazz
Das Schlüsselstück auf ‚Lucus‘ befindet sich in der Mitte des Albums. In ‚Fugitive Pieces‘ schält das fünfköpfige Akustik-Kollektiv Time Is A Blind Guide aus einer nordisch-melancholischen Streicherfigur eine japanisch-mystische Klangwelt. Dieser Brückenschlag ist das erklärte Ziel von Thomas Strønen – und sein größter Trumpf auf diesem Release. Die in Wakayama geborene Pianistin Ayumi Tanaka ist neu an Bord und drückt den elf Stücken ihren zarten Stempel auf. Die Kombination aus Streichern und Piano funktioniert hier ganz hervorragend. […] Strønen selbst, der zehn der Stücke alleinverantwortlich geschrieben hat, unterstreicht mit ‚Lucus‘ seine Qualität als Innovator. Eingefangen mit der agilen Akustik des Auditorio Stelio Molo in Lugano im März 2017, bringt Produzent Manfred Eicher den Zauber dieser Einspielung behutsam zur Geltung. ‚Lucus‘, die lateinische Bezeichnung für einen Gottheit geweihten Hain oder eine Waldlichtung, ist ein Trip in unbekannte Klangwelten. Und das inspirierende Werk eines Kollektivs, das sich in einem steten Prozess der Veränderung befindet.
Sebastian Meißner, Soundsandbooks.com
On the second album that Thomas Strønen has recorded with his band Time Is A Blind Guide, the Norwegian drummer offers a highly improvised program that is challenging, accessible and hypnotic. The ensemble pursues an aesthetic that draws upon many genres, including jazz, folk, baroque (and other European classical styles), new music, avant-garde sounds, film scores and traditional Japanese music. […]. Listening to this 52-minute program is akin to strolling through an art exhibition in which some of the musical segments are serene landscapes and others are “action” paintings by Abstract Expressionists. Overall, this sonic journey is a rewarding one.
Bobby Reed, Downbeat (Editor’s Pick)
As on the group's eponymously-titled and critically-lauded debut album there are excellent contributions from the string players - the quintet effectively containing both a string trio and a piano trio - and Manfred Eicher's production brings out all the fine detail in the collective’s sound. […] And yet it's the lightness of touch that makes the most lasting impression, the willingness to dart from almost brutish displays to the most small, intricate offering keeping you fully focused throughout.
Stephen Reid, Sea of Tranquility
Schon der Bandname Time Is A Blind Guide ist außergewöhnlich. Und die Musik, die der Norweger Thomas Strønen schreibt, passt nun in gar keine Schublade. Ein ‚klassisches‘ Klaviertrio mit Ayumi Tanaka (Klavier), Hakon Aase (Violine) und Lucy Shelton (Cello), tritt auf mit Ole Morten Vagan am Kontrabass und dem Komponisten am Schlagzeug. Doch das Quintett nervt nicht mit närrischem Treiben, sondern zieht den Hörer mit einer feingliedrigen Kammermusik in seine eigene Welt. Das genaue Gegenteil zu akustischem Fastfood.
Lothar Brandt, Audio
Whether you listen on CD or vinyl, ‘Lucus’ is an impressive balance of fragile beauty with moments of sadness and power. ECM continues to release music that asks jazz fans to broaden their definitions of the music.
Joseph Taylor, Soundstage Ultra (‚Recording of the Month‘)
While improvisation takes priority on ‘Lucus’, Time Is a Blind Guide isn't one to abandon focus and structure. The abstraction is contrasted with plenty of rhythmic propulsion and direction, providing enough grounding and variety for the album. […] Time Is a Blind Guide build their sound with a healthy influence of contemporary classical music. More so than simply referencing the inclusion of violin and cello, there's an artful abstraction to tracks like ‘Islay’ and ‘Baka’ that recalls the lasting influence of post-minimalism. It's jazz distilled through the universal spectrum of ‘art music’ (as troublesome as that term may be), a constellation of sounds and styles that prize timbre, silence, and harmonic evolution in a variety of ways. Introspective yet not indulgent, ‘Lucus’ reflects the development of a spectacular group of improvisers.
Andy Jurik, Pop Matters
The quintet has a piano trio and what effectively operates as a string trio, but the way it operates tends to have a rhythm section of bass, cello, drums working to support two lead instruments. ‘Lucus’ signifies a sacred grove or clearing in a forest, which implies an opening to allow in light. So, for example, the opening track has a softly rumbling drum pattern accompanying bowed strings that rise and fall in rhythm that echoes human breathing. If this suggests something meditative and tranquil, then the album’s title reinforces this and the overall mood of the music here captures it perfectly.
Chris Baber, Jazz Views
