05 August 2025

ACTION & TENSION & SPACE – New Dimensions (2025, LP, Sheep Chase Records)

RELEASE INFO:

Label: Sheep Chase Records

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, 140g Black Vinyl, Gatefold

Release Date: 4 April 2025

“New Dimensions” is the fifth album since 2012 for this Norwegian spaced-out, instrumental lounge-rock psych band, which occasionally expands to a sextet, as seen in this new album. Action & Tension & Space consists of Per Steinar Lie (lap steel, electric guitar), Øystein Braut (guitar, organ, mellotron), Julius Lind (bass), Ørjan Haaland (drums), with the addition of maestro Sigbjørn Apeland (Fender Rhodes, harmonium) and jazz drummer Ståle Liavik Solberg (percussion).

The interstellar voyagers from Haugesund, Norway, return with “New Dimensions”, an album that doesn’t just live up to its title but bends it. Action & Tension & Space once again prove they’re masters of subtle evolution, pushing their already heady instrumental psych-jazz blend into even more atmospheric, groove-heavy territory. Less of a genre exercise and more of a sonic terrain mapping session, the album’s six tracks feel like topographic readings from different planets. And each one is alive. The Opener “Folkemusikk Fra Kvala” unfolds like an aural topographic map of the band’s hometown. Rooted in a hypnotic bassline from Julius Lind, it pulses with Ørjan Haaland’s ever-organic drumming and a slow-burning guitar interplay. There’s a folk undercurrent, sure—but it’s more of a memory than a melody, wrapped in echo and reverb. The next one, “Joe Hannes And The Tres Wanceros” burns with motorik desert heat. It sounds like an imaginary road movie scored on peyote. A clear highlight and smart choice as the first single—tight but trippy, cinematic but raw. The Spacey and sprawling “Worms” follows, a track that drifts on waves of delay and gently unraveling textures. The addition of Ståle Liavik Solberg’s light percussive touches and slow-cooked organ swells makes it one of the most immersive tracks on the album. It doesn’t rush—it glides, creeps, and then finally blossoms, a beautiful Psychedelic scenery unfolds… “Champagne Of Course”, is a respectful, fuzz-drenched nod to Min Bul’s 1970 classic; this cover bridges eras without feeling retro. The band bends the original into a post-everything jam: jazz, psych, noise, and drone all merging like melting film reels. Loose, chaotic, but beautifully held together by the band’s collective telepathy. What follows is ten minutes of cosmic drift anchored by deep, earthy grooves. “Asteroidebeltet” (that opens side B) it’s a massive track—slow-building, exploratory, with clear nods to the Masters Floyd and their Ummagumma-era. The bass is king here, and the guitars shimmer like distant stars. The album comes to an end with “Above The Condor”, Apeland’s harmonium adds an almost spiritual depth, and the whole track feels like the aftermath of a trip, not quite back on Earth, but somewhere quiet, soft, and safe… In “New Dimensions”, Action & Tension & Space don’t just explore – they inhabit. Every member is given breathing room, and yet the interplay feels tightly woven. No vocals, no flash, no waste, just six deep cuts that trust the listener to listen. This is Astral Jazz-Psych for the Living Room and the Observatory… Recommended… TimeLord Michalis