The Young Mothers, the brainchild of the Norwegian born bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, was formed 2011 in Austin, Texas (USA). The Vilnius Jazz audience has met this musician when he appeared in the festival with the legendary Scandinavian groups The Thing and Atomic.

The core of the ensemble is made of stars of Texas’ experimental scene since Austin is known for the avant-garde music traditions and the high standard of cross-genre improvisations. According to Flaten, group of this kind could not have been formed in Norway and not even Chicago.

The Young Mothers is an explosive amalgam of free jazz, punk, hip-hop and Afro-beat. According to critics, they’re so far ahead of what’s happening in jazz right now, that they’ve placed themselves light years ahead of everyone else. They play collectively composed music, which they documented in two limit-braking albums.

The Young Mothers conquered the stages of Europe’s leading jazz festivals in Austria, Portugal, Finland, Denmark and Norway. Recently, the group made their second tour of the US. This concert in Vilnius is a part of the group’s European tour.

Double bassist and composer Ingebrigt Håker Flaten studied jazz at the Music Conservatory in Trondheim. Later he honed his skills with various Scandinavian and American groups.

In 2009, he settled in Texas where he met quite a few local talents thirsty for experiments. Thus he formed not only a band but also an avant-garde festival Sonic Transmissions, which merged punk, hip-hop, free jazz and Indie scenes. Critics are unanimous in saying that the Norwegian opened new vistas for locals and considerably raised the standard of alternative music in Austin.

Flaten draws inspiration from such diverse figures as Derek Bailey, George Russell, Chris McGregor and filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, as well as gritty punk music and contemporary pop melody, and also everyday sights and sounds. The critics compare the double bassist to such celebrities as Paul Chambers, Wilbur Ware, Charlie Haden and Malachi Favors.

It would be difficult to imagine The Thing, Free Fall, Atomic and Scorch Trio without Flaten’s curiosity and flexibility. In 2004, the improviser made his debut as a leader with his Chicago Sextet, and since 2011 his aesthetics and philosophy has been communicated by Austin-based The Young Mothers.

“It’s inspiring to have your own band to write for, but you have to make sure that people feel free and not limited by the music; the compositions should lead the way to a player’s open mind” Flaten describes his artistic principles.

Flaten has also recorded and performed with Frode Gjerstad, Dave Rempis, Bobby Bradford, the AALY Trio, Ken Vandermark, Stephen Gauci, Tony Malaby, Daniel Levin, Dennis Gonzalez and numerous others.

The influential jazz magazine Downbeat annual critics poll voted him a Rising Star on acoustic bass three times in a row, and once – an Established Talent on electric bass.

Houston born-and-raised trumpeter and rapper Jawwaad Taylor feels at home in free improvisation and forward-thinking hip-hop. He admits that his main source of inspiration is trumpeter Joe McPhee. In addition, Taylor performs solo (his latest projects – The Bully Love Set and Black Fetish) and with Shape of Broad Minds. He spent a handful of years living and creating in New York City; some of his higher profile gigs included performances and collaborations with hip-hop luminaries Jay-Z and MF DOOM.

Saxophonist Jason Jackson is a centrepiece of Houston’s productive improvised music community who has played with Leroy Jenkins, Pauline Oliveros and William Parker. He is also a member of Free Radicals, a consistent winner in Houston Press’ best jazz category; appears on recordings with Alvin Fielder, Damon Smith and Thomas Helton. Jackson is also an instructor and education coordinator with Nameless Sound, a Houston music program that teaches creative music classes to children and young adults

Guitarist Jonathan Horne is one of Austin’s most prolific musicians. He is a forceful presence in an across-the-board buffet of projects that range from pop and rock to improvised music and avant-garde jazz. He also plays a variety of woodwinds. Horne is the frontman, vocalist and songwriter in Plutonium Farmers, plays in the free-jazz blowout trio Posture, collaborates with pop adorable Ichi Ni San Shi and also with percussionist Chris Cogburn in the forceful improv machine Lo Stadio. This is just a small part of his artistic ventures.

Dallas born Stefan González’s drums, vibraphone and demonic vocal is heard in many jazz and noise projects. His solo project Orgullo Primitivo is his most natural universe. In addition, González plays in a free-jazz trio with his father (a jazz trumpeter, poet and visual artist Dennis González) and his brother Aaron, as well as in the punk-rooted jazz-rock group Unconscious Collective. In 2014, The Dallas Observer named González as the city’s Best Drummer.

Mexican drummer Gustavo Nandayapa began his musical studies in his homeland.

He studied at the University of Sciences and Arts of Chiapas, later continued in Fermatta Academy in Guadalajara and at the Conservatory of Amsterdam. He has attended workshops of Bobby McFerrin, John Scofield, Richard Bona, Terry Line Carrington and other jazz coryphées. Nandayapa has played with Paquito D’Rivera, Enrique Nery and Victor Mendoza, performed in Spain, France, South Korea, China, USA, South Africa, Taiwan and Mexico.