I’ve been working on sound images for electric guitar since I bought an old Schaller Echosound echo machine from a friend in the mid-70s. It was a fantastic machine that produced otherworldly sounds, especially when you pushed it a little outside its comfort zone. Over the years I have played a few soundscapes with different groups, but it only became a single number, or two, which also scared the hell out of people at NRK (Norwegian Broadcasting) who had the dubious task of presenting local bands to their dear listeners.

The sound images were quietly tinkered with until I ended up at a concert with the English guitarist Derek Bailey at the Kongsberg Jazz Festival. He used the guitar in a way I never thought possible and it inspired me to attack my old images in a new and exciting way. So here, dear listener, is the result - and the name was not chosen by chance. String Theory is, simply explained, a scientific theory that is based on the fact that the world is made up of tiny vibrating strings. And as a guitarist, this is a fantastic thought. Because imagine if our wonderful world maybe consists of a lot of tiny vibrating strings.

Good art requires good music, and as a regular feature at Inger Brita Lange Ørmen’s exhibitions, I had the opportunity to develop new sounds and new ways of using the guitar. Solo playing is fine, but I wanted to expand the concept with some drums, so I asked Even Finsrud if he would like to work a little outside the usual forms. He took the challenge head on and did so well that I decided to record an album with these sound images.