Gothtober- Kælan Mikla :" Undir Köldum Norðurljósum"

This album was timed just right.  Darker than I remember these gals from Iceland getting before, but I am not mad about it. Sure the accent is bound to bring Bjork comparisons. I wish Bjork had gotten this dark. The opener has the right amount of drive. On the second song the vocals come more to the forefront and their melody drives the song. There are crazy layers of vocals in the background that sound like screaming witches , helping to make this a perfect Halloween album.  At first it sounded like their were going to the well twice on the third song, but it turns out to be more organic and they are driving the verses with an actual bass guitar. Sung in their native tongue the melodies are infectious enough for you to sing along even if you are unsure what they words are. I think this also gives her the ability to use her voice more like an instrument. 

Midway into the album things begin to take on more of a dark wave feel. Things become more concise in how the more traditional layers of vocals and synth interact within the space in which they are mix. Guitar begins to surface and it is more reverb heavy Cure like guitar. "Sirenur" goes back to a more atmospheric route. The beat is not the album's strongest kinda feels like they are just using a default ethereal dark wave pre set. "Stormurrin" has a thudding bass to balance out the pan pipes and other dreamy elf sounds. Almost more new age than dark wave. The song after this has more wine in it's languid sway. 

Alcest joins them for " Hvitir Sandar" . This collaboration sounds almost exactly as you might imagine it would. Though Neige employs his screamed vocals that are further back in the mix. Musically it is a hypnotic shoe gaze with a big crash.  'Saman" is more like a dark folk ballad, but it is well done for what it is, even if what it is puts the bulk of the weight of the composition upon the vocals. I will give this album, a 9, I really enjoyed what they do here. If you are a fan of the more ethereal side of dark wave with a healthy side of Nordic folk mixed in at times , then this is more than worth your time. 

 

Gothtober- Kælan Mikla : " Nótt eftir nótt"

Meant to check this album out last year but it got lost in the shuffle so here we are. more dark wave than post-punk, which is a good thing as it has a groove you can dance to. This is the Icelandic goth project's 3rd album. They dig up all the old 80s sounds. It is also suitable lo fi. The drum machines are probably fruity loops patches , but the have the machine like precision of 1982. The darkest element is how the vocal are layered with witchy whispering in the corners of the songs. "Skuggadans" gets more peppy. The whispering vocals are still there to keep the creep in the corner of your eye. The song after it however is more like your average cold wave retro fare. When the vocals join in for a chant it's the best part of the song.

When they back off and allow melody to breathe then it works best. With projects like this it is easy for them to get into the syndrome I complain about where they capture a great sound , but do not write great songs. I have heard evidence they are capable of writing decent songs. Would I prefer better production ? Sure, but I get what they are going for . They are pretty successful at this. The more organic bass lines that sound like they could have been played by an actual bass being the better moments.  Sometimes the results are more mixed than others. The more Bjork like voice being the better approach than the child like one that sounds almost like Yolandi. The atmosphere they create does make up for some of the more predictable moments.

One of the album's darkest moments is the title track. The vocals are the childish one, but they emerge from veil of reverb. It is very sluggish tempo wise and with a stronger beat might have been more effective, though it sounds like it might be real drums. I will give this album an 8. The inconsistent emlodies and obligatory production the only thing holding it back. They have a great sound and mood for what they are doing and the dark under current of the whispering helps them stand out from the pack.