Espen Eriksen Trio

The Espen Eriksen Trio is a Norwegian jazz piano trio whose members are pianist Eriksen, bassist Lars Tormod Jenset, and drummer Andreas Bye. Their sound emerges from Eriksen's lyrical, often limpid compositions that draw inspiration from folk and liturgical musics and jazz impressionism. Based on their first three albums, 2011's You Had Me at Goodbye, 2012's What Took You So Long, and 2015's Never Ending January, critical and aesthetic comparisons to E.S.T., the Necks, and Tord Gustavsen Trio abounded. That said, none of these groups rely on lyric harmony to the extent that Eriksen does. British saxophonist Andy Sheppard also appears with the trio as a guest soloist. Since playing on 2018's Perfectly Unhappy, however, he's been a near constant, both on tour and in the studio. While 2020's End of Summer didn't include him, both 2022's live In the Mountains and 2023's As Good as It Gets both featured him as a co-billed soloist.