“Ulli” is the fourth album by Norwegian-Sámi duo LEAGUS, consisting of pianist Herborg Rundberg and guitarist Kristian Svalestad Olstad. The album takes its point of departure in ideas of cycles, circulation and movement — in nature, in rhythm, and in the way musical ideas emerge, disappear and return in new forms.
Ulli is the Northern Sámi word for high tide. High tide is not a static state, but part of a larger natural cycle: it rises and falls, expands and contracts, moves outward and inward, and returns to familiar places without ever being quite the same.
The first taste from the new album is the track “Gaskkas” featuring the joiker Lávre Johan Eira, and it can be heard here:
The duo has this to say about the track:
“Gaskkas” is the first single from our forthcoming album, Ulli.
“Gaskkas” means “between” – a space this music grew out of. Dwelling in the energy between force and fragility, memory and movement, the old and the new. “Gaskkas” also means juniper — a plant rooted in the landscape, resilient and delicate at the same time. And last but not least, “Gaskkas” marks a new collaboration between LEAGUS and Lávre.
Rooted in a Sámi identity, LEAGUS has always explored the space between composition and improvisation, and between established musical roles and the possibilities of redefining them.
The music on Ulli was not composed first and recorded afterwards. Instead, LEAGUS set up in their studio and spent an extended period of time improvising, composing and recording simultaneously. Ideas could be kept and developed when they felt meaningful, while others were left behind for later. Over time, the material began to take shape through this continuous process of exploration.
Photo by Sverre Simonsen
About “Ulli” and the process, the band explains:
The duo originally started as an experiment. We wanted to challenge what the roles of our instruments could be, and we developed a toolbox for new ways of improvising and playing together. With Ulli, we wanted to return to that explorative mindset as a starting point.
From there, the music gradually revealed what it needed. As the ideas crystallised, we began bringing in other musicians — not to add something on top of the music, but because their voices became part of what the music was asking for.
The album gradually expands beyond the duo. Svein Schultz contributes bass, while Torkil Vollstad-Giæver and Aleksander Kostopoulos appear on drums. The joiker Lávre Johan Eira contributes on two tracks, with his voice and joik becoming an integral part of the compositions.
The music moves between acoustic and electronic textures, composed structures and improvisation. Piano, guitar, percussion, programming, bass and drums form a constantly shifting framework, while joik introduces another dimension of musical expression rooted in LEAGUS’ Sámi identity.
With artwork by Daniel Peder Askeland, the tracklist for “Ulli” is:
1. Gaskkas
2. Buolža
3. Eamit
4. Čáhcemuitu
5. Uvlu
6. Áhkut
7. Guohtun
“Ulli” will be released on the 20th of November on Digital and the 4th of December on Vinyl format, available to pre-order now from:
The return to the duo format comes after the expansive “Flora Eallin”, a commissioned work for the ten-piece Nordnorsk Jazzensemble. After the experience of working with a large ensemble, there was a natural desire to explore the intimacy, freedom and possibilities of working as two musicians again. Not as a step backwards, but as part of the same ongoing movement.
The different formats have all been part of LEAGUS’ development. Their debut, “Lea Áigi” (2016), established the duo and its experimental approach to the roles of piano and guitar. “Naimaka” (2019) expanded the sound into a quartet, while “Flora Eallin” (2023) opened up an entirely different scale of musical possibilities.
With “Ulli”, the music moves back towards the duo, carrying the experiences of everything that came before. The movement is not linear. It is a continuation of the journey — a natural swing of the pendulum.
For more information about LEAGUS:
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