Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.12.2014, Blaðsíða 24

24
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 1 — 2011
Music | Album reviews
24 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 18 — 2014MUSIC
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on facebook.com/kbarreykjavik Asonat’s recently released
‘Connection’ takes the best
moments of their debut record-
ing, ‘Love in Times of Repetition’—wistful
lyrical lines, glitchy beats, and lush, warm
synths—and builds upon those even fur-
ther for a standout second LP. Each track
on the album has song-like vocals and is
song-length, with nary an extended mix
to be heard. The duo of Jónas Þór Guð-
mundsson and Fannar Ásgrímsson have
smartly added singer Olèna Simon to
their ensemble, and her quiet, sometimes
Björk-like melodic inflections offer a va-
porous romance. The group all takes turns
at singing, sometimes joining voices at the
unison, and sometimes breaking away into
subtle harmonies.
Each track on ‘Connection’ show-
cases Asonat’s palette, different facets of
the same persona. Album opener “Quiet
Storm” sets the tone for hushed, yearn-
ing vocals and lush background textures.
It sways gently in a three-beat pattern,
much less common than the traditional
four-on-the-floor pulse in electronic mu-
sic. “Hearts in Trouble” is in French, which
still feels completely at home amidst other
English-language tracks. “Rather Interest-
ing” conjures a little shoegaze, Iceland’s
version of the Cocteau Twins or Boards of
Canada. “Before It Was” revels in off-kilter
overlap and swapping of metres, pitting a
three-beat melody against a basic four-
beat percussion.
Despite the album being somewhat
reserved and downtempo, ‘Connection’
is far from boring. Melodic lines, bass
lines, and the vocals all contrast smartly in
rhythm and range. The chorus of “Every-
thing Illuminated” repeats simply “single
firefly/everything illuminated,” but the
track is sweet and concise. “One Step at a
Time” is a dancier track that feature sharp-
er synths, ripe for remix. “This is the End”
is one of the few less-inspiring songs on
the album, more saturated with static. But
perhaps it’s the least exciting because one
knows the album is nearing its comple-
tion; we’re breaking our connection to this
listening experience and we know the end
is near. But there’s a solution to that—you
can just begin all over again.
- NATHAN HALL
A Skálmöld fan since the very
beginning, I was feeling quite
giddy when I first laid my ears
on their new album, ‘Með vættum’. Grant-
ed, there was a hint of worry in my fragile
little heart, since it’s not super uncommon
that third albums are completely crappy
and useless.
Not this one though.
This one is completely awesome, in al-
most every way.
I’ve always been fond of bassist/lyri-
cist Snæbjörn’s storytelling prowess. The
Skálmöld M.O. of making all the songs part
of an epic story told throughout the album
just makes listening to the whole thing that
much more satisfying.
And then, there is the music.
Most of the songs are very good.
Those that aren’t—they’re awesome.
The new songs are less “catchy” than
the songs that make up Skálmöld’s two
prior LPs. This shouldn’t come as a sur-
prise, though: the band declared before-
hand that they wanted to make a very
heavy metal album,. And that’s what they
did.
‘Með vættum’ is a powerful album,
the often-long tracks chock-full of great
riffs and wonderful solos. And so much
screaming. Skálmöld still play Viking
metal, make no mistake. This time around,
though, there’s a lot more metal, and a bit
less Viking.
I really do like the fact that they play a
lot more with the voice of guitarist Baldur
this time around. Listening to that guy’s
screams literally makes my throat hurt.
Keyboardist Gunnar Ben also jumps in
more this time around to recite poems. As
ever, though, it is Björgvin’s growly voice
that carries all the brunt of the songs, and
he does a stellar job as always.
Those three voices contradict and
support each other in a weird, yet satisfy-
ing way. Somehow it all works out great.
Those who forked out for a physical
version of ‘Með vættum’ will also enjoy the
awesome artwork of Ásgeir Jón, who also
did the artwork for the band’s sophomore
effort, ‘Börn Loka’. He truly brings the
world of Skálmöld to life with his enthrall-
ing depictions of dragons and giants and
war and death.
Skálmöld is a band that loves doing
what they do: playing together and de-
livering great music and fantasies in the
process. Here’s hoping they keep at it for a
long, long time.
- SNORRI ÖRN RAFNSSON
For someone whose life re-
volves around metal, try-
ing to get through an entire
Skálmöld album in one sitting is like
subjecting yourself to Chinese water
torture. Throughout the whole, endless
run-time, the only thing I could think
was, “What did those poor instruments
ever do to you guys?” When the cho-
ruses kicked in, I was left wondering if
Einar Bárðarson—or whoever is behind
this marketing ploy—had not fully un-
derstood the results his “define: metal”
Google search.
Basically, the utter dreck coming out
of my speakers sounds like the whole al-
bum was mixed through a filter of Easy
Cheese, and the few Taco Riffs which
that cheese was sprayed on top of were
of the Taco Bell kind.
The consensus within the local metal
scene about this band and its music—
this album included—is that somewhere
along the way something went terribly
awry, and what we are now stuck with is
being represented internationally by an
entity that doesn’t come close to defin-
ing what the scene—and the talent, pas-
sion and hard work that goes into keep-
ing such a high standard of quality—is
about. It’s like the local metel scene has
been hijacked, kind of like parliament
was hijacked by a slack-jawed horde of
utter buffoons that no one will admit to
having voted for.
Such is the high price of the lowest
common denominator.
- BOGI BJARNASON
Album
Reviews
Asonat “Connection”
Skálmöld: Með Vættum
(2014)
www.n5md.com/artist/Asonat
A synth-filled romance
Napalm Records (2014)
www.skalmold.is
With ‘Með vættum’, Skálmöld continue to set a bad
example for aspiring metal musicians, emphasizing
that cliché trumps hard work and talent every time.
HATER VS. LOVER