Ihsahn : "Pharos"

Yes, I am fine with Ihsahn exploring things not black metal. He is a great singer and when he taps into things with more of a 80s pop sense or 90s alternative vibe he does not turn he back on metal dynamics when it makes sense . Sure he might not emplo his black metal scream. This comes closer to what you might expect from Devin Townsend. Now this new mood might work better in some places than others and might flow as a song better than other times., The first track was strong , but the second song does not grab me as it feels too happy for my tastes. So I am ok with what ever stye of music an artist goes in but less willing to compromise on it not being dark. It  is well done for what it is and I respect that , just not what resonates with me .

The tite track swims in the same middle of the road prog ambiance that Opeth has been peddling in recent year. I do like this however better than the previous song and he does find his distortion pedal to shift the dynamics in a big way. With that said it means I like this more than most post- "Watershed"  Opeth.  And now we get to the covers . It is funny because before I went through my email to review this I was listening to Porishead. I like hearing him reach up into his upper register to micmic Beth Gibbons. He does an excellent job with this one .

I am not familar with the Aha song he chose as like most I think we think of them as one hit wonders with little exsistence beyond  "Take on Me".  Einar Solberg of Leperous takes over the vocals for this one. It is fitting as he has a higher ranger in his natural voice . I appreciate even the moments that do not resonate with me as they are not dark enough and will go ahead and give this a 9, though it is not as good as the "Telemark" album he released earlier this year. He is not the only artist that is releasing multiple abums this year due to covid giving more people more time on their hands which is allowing for excursions into places they might not normally wander.