To say Per Oddvar Johansen is a drummer for all seasons is a bit of an understatement. Neither flashy nor overbearing, he has mastered the priceless art of playing less in order to mean more.

A five-times winner of the coveted Spellemannprisen, often referred to as ‘a Norwegian Grammy’, his in-demand talent can be heard on a wide range of classy Norwegian albums. A talent so often in service of others, The Quiet Cormorant, his fifth album under his own name, gives another glimpse at the kind of music that nourishes the inner man. All 13 compositions are written by Johansen – “It’s a very strange and rewarding thing to have someone play music from your own head”, he says – for his trio with Helge Lien and Torben Snekkestad, with Hedvig Mollestad on guitar guesting on ‘Brown House’ and ‘Love, Peace and Currywurst’. In some ways it might be said this music expands, rather than is a continuation of, that corner of jazz once occupied by the late Paul Motian. Programmatic in intent – with titles like ‘Sunshine – After the Fog’ or the title track, Snekkestad is subtle but commanding, but much of this album’s success lies with Lien, who gets inside this music with some inspired playing thoughtfully and unobtrusively guided by Johansen.