Active since the turn of the millennium, Atomic are a Norwegian quintet with an aesthetic that draws as much on brash US avant-jazz as it does on contemplative European chamber improv. On the one hand, there's a definite nod to George Russell's ambitious large-scale 1960s modal works – such as ‘Electronic Sonata For Souls Loved By Nature’ – in the lavish horn squalls and thick double-bass grooves laid down by Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, while drummer Hans Hulboekmo (who replaces Paal Nilssen-Love) kicks up some dust. But, when the rhythm section lays out, the angles widen and Håvard Wiik's delicately questing piano leads the investigations. Between the two extremes, the group strikes a cautious balance of freedom and control, negotiating twists and turns with tight, collective determination – and leaving plenty of room for the two lead voices: Fredrik Ljungkvist's Dolphy-ish clarinet squonks; and Magnus Broo's cauterising trumpet blasts. What it's perhaps lacking in soul and spirit, it makes up for in serious intent.