The Samuel Jackson Five

Since their 2004 debut Same Same But Different, the band has never quite settled inside the post-rock scene it’s often associated with, preferring to chart its own course. After exploring vocal material on The Samuel Jackson Five (2012) and Ghost Karaoke (2017), the band returned to a fully instrumental format with their 2026 album A Passage to Elsewhere, released via Karisma Records and their most expansive work to date. Rather than building toward the genre’s familiar crescendos, the album unfolds as a restless, ever-shifting melodic journey.

The group is led by multi-instrumentalist Thomas Meidell and drummer Sven Andréen, who also handles mixing at his own studio, Klokkereint, near Gjøvik. True to the band’s DIY roots, they write, produce, and record everything themselves. Over the years they’ve drawn in musicians from across the Norwegian prog, metal, and experimental scenes, including members of The Chronicles of Father Robin, Tusmørke, and Suburban Savages, along with a rotating cast of guest players.

Across two decades and eight albums, from Same Same But Different (2004) through Goodbye Melody Mountain (2008) and Seasons In The Hum (2014) to A Passage to Elsewhere (2026), The Samuel Jackson Five have built a body of work defined by curiosity, craft, and a refusal to repeat themselves.