Espen Berg, piano and compositions // Bárður Reinert Poulsen, bass // Simon Albertsen, drums
Since their debut in 2014, Espen Berg (piano), Bárður Reinert Poulsen (bass), and Simon Albertsen (drums) have established themselves as one of the most distinctive piano trios in European jazz. They have toured across Europe, Japan, China, and India, sold out clubs such as Ronnie Scott’s in London as well as concert halls in Tokyo, Kyoto, Guangzhou, and Athens, and have been described by Jazz Journal as «one of the best trios in existence today».
Espen Berg Trio continues both to challenge and to renew the piano trio format through their distinctive combination of complex rhythmic language, deep harmonic insight, and strong melodies, all driven by an intense, virtuosic, and playful interplay.
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Espen Berg Trio has released four albums on the Japanese label Blue Gleam and sold over 2000 CDs in Japan. Their third album, Free to Play, was listed in Downbeat as one of the best releases in 2019. In 2026, four years after their previous release, the trio returns with their fifth album, Entropies, out June 5 on Svale Records. Created over a period of nearly three years, the album nevertheless emerges as their most concise and transparent recording to date, carrying forward the trio’s defining qualities in the very best way.
Entropies revolves around the tension between order and dissolution — the planned and the immediate. Berg has written a set of explosive, highly memorable melodies, but also pushes further with spontaneously composed pieces and polymetric structures that place both the trio and the listener right on the edge of their seats.
Undoubtedly one of my favourite albums of this year, “Free To Play” is a richly rewarding experience, from a trio who are proving to be not just one of the best in their field of music, but also beyond boundaries. Fabulous music that I have a feeling Iʼll be enjoying for many years to come. – UK Vibe (5/5) on reviewing Free to Play (2019)
Like all the best music, this album reveals something new and pleasing on each successive hearing
– BBC Music (4/5) on reviewing Free to Play (2019)
ESPEN BERG 