Magnus Öström

The Swede Magnus Öström became world-famous as the drummer of the Esbjörn Svensson Trio. From 1993 onwards, this trio had revolutionised the jazz world. With his almost hypnotic and rocky grooves, Öström was a major component in e.s.t. redefining the classical piano trio. The band's career ended at its apex in 2008 with the death of Svensson. It took two years after that tragic event for Öström to find his way back to music and to present his first own album entitled "Thread of Life". It was an often melancholic expression of mourning, which sought its own path using art-rock and electronic elements, and with a strong orientation towards sounds rather than melodies. "A jazz band that bathes itself from head to toe in rock" is what Jazz Thing heard on this album, which also proved just how important and style-forming Öström's unmistakable drumming was for e.s.t.; as precise as a metronome and yet with a feverish groove and extraordinary use of the brushes. So impressive in fact that Öström was awarded the Echo Jazz in 2012 as Best International Drummer. The rock magazine "Eclipsed" gushed: "Here, a musician has left his comfort zone so far behind him, surpassing himself in a monumental apotheosis." The next stage in the journey was Öström's "Searching For Jupiter" (2013). The style remained jazz rock and progressive rock dominated, but the mood of the album is more positive, optimistic and hymnal.