"Though Europe and Scandinavia are better known for their multitude of saxophonists, one should not overlook the remarkable number and quality of bassists hailing from the region. Though his greatest exposure arguably has come through his membership in the Scandinavian groups Atomic and The Thing, Norwegian bassist Ingebrigt Haker Flaten is aggressively versatile in a wide array of contexts. Townhouse Orchestra is Flaten in partnership with Thing cohort Paal Nilssen-Love (drums), Sten Sandell (piano) and seminal British saxophonist Evan Parker. At least format-wise, this group is reminiscent of Parker's work with Alexander von Schlippenbach's quartet. But an even earlier precedent was set with the Parker/Kowald/Irene Schweizer/Pierre Favre group of the late 1960s. Belle Ville, named for the Oslo club from whence this live recording comes, sounds quite different from either, primarily through the sparse attack of Sandell. Parker, equally capable of squalls and stillness, operates more in the latter, with Flaten and Nilssen-Love restraining themselves for the most part. One of the best things about free improvisatory settings is that the "rhythm section" isn't cowed by playing with someone of Parker's stature and that the saxophonist is in discovery mode alongside his partners. An expansive, two-disc followup to this group's first album." Andrey Henkin/All About Jazz NY