Following up on last year’s EP ‘Norrønasongen. Kosmopolis Nord’ Solefald have completely expanded their reach from the more insular travelogue that took in the traditions and folklore of the Norse centric regions and explored their chilly terrain with a progressive cold musical touch. As the title here suggests the Swedes spurred on by Cornelius von Jackhelln globetrotting have spread wings and flown much further afield taking in a heady brew of sights and sounds and ones that musically deliver everything from trip-hop, ethnic tribal drumming, techno, trance, Spanish acoustic guitar and a splash of metal, all in one song. This is as the first song title declares ‘World Music with Black Edges’ and what a fantastic trip it is. The band have never been predictable and no two albums have ever been alike since they first bamboozled us with their avant-weird take on black metal that was 1997 album ‘The Linear Scaffold.’ They have always challenged by stretching boundaries and have delighted those of us that enjoy dipping into their mania on the way. Last album Norrøn livskunst 2010 was a delight, so too was actually managing to catch the band live for the first time ever. Still nothing quite managed to prepare me for this!
As dubby tones and harmonic choral parts flow rapidly and breathe life into things you feel like you could have put on a Bhundu Boys album by mistake at first before more caustic, growly vocals bite in. It’s quickly evident that this is full of life and energy and is not going to stand still for a second. Also it has a real happy and upbeat vibe about it and you go from that sudden techno stomp all ‘stadium house’ to babbling choral jousting. Cornelius has in his words (for an interview coming in Iron Fist magazine to be reprinted here in full once it is out) delivered lyrics here that are sung in “New Norse (really «High Norwegian», «høgnorsk»), English, French and German – and of course, Gobbledygook!” Naturally they come as thick and fast and twist and turn as deliriously as the music itself. If I tried to describe everything I was hearing here this review would stretch to 20 pages, it’s that crazy. Although the first number is akin to throwing 20 darts in a map of the world and visiting all the places in a day, the roots of ‘The Germanic Entity’ are a little easier to fathom as a glockenspiel is struck with cartoon exuberance and the song swaggers and struts off. It’s got a firm Teutonic stomp about it and sings about travelling down the Autobahn in a way that no Kraut Rocker ever perceived. Be prepared for some rousing choral gymnastics that wouldn’t be out of place on a Pet Shop Boys song and some stomping Laibachian electronica here too! As for ‘Bububu Bad Beuys’ nothing will prepare you for this insane dose of Techno Metal Chicken Madness™ where Cornelius goes completely off on one vocally sounding like he has bitten the head off a poor fowl and is conducting a frenzied voodoo ritual!
Dipping into American culture with some austere spoken word parts ‘Future Universal Histories’ kind of reminds me of a dystopian vision akin to ‘Iron Sky.’ There’s some good prog laden parts and some solid riffing and it has a very organic feel with the mix courtesy of Jaime Gomez Arellano really coming to the fore and sounding excellent. Reaching for the sun with ‘Le Soleil’ we get some fast and frenzied beats and strumming with clean vocals heading for the skies and spoken growls sounding like they are being delivered by an African tribal chief. It makes you want to listen to this in a jeep on a safari but that would not be a good idea as it would scare all the wildlife away. It is wild and unhinged though and a great dose of lunacy. The last few tracks are described as “are quite elegiac, though, relating to the loss of a family member and the collective grief in Norway after July 22nd, 2011.” Don’t go expecting a sombre affair particularly though. The joyous way that ‘2011, or a Knight of the Fail’ bounds in and revisits as a central chorus totally reminds me of something that Julian Cope might have done, it’s kind of like Solefald doing an infectious ‘World Shut Your Mouth’ and I totally fell in love with it on very first listen. Listening to the vocals between these sunny bursts does give insight to what Cornelius has said though and there is a gloomy vibe to these parts of the song. Piano tinkles in and vocals literally hit the roof straight off on ‘String the Bow of Sorrow,’ it goes as metallic as the album does at any point with some burgeoning riffs driving the number along and giving plenty of opportunity for some solid head banging action. Emotionally there’s a fair bit of anger and rage about this but the vocal harmonies are so damn uplifting in comparison this delivers the best of both worlds. Last track and shortest ‘Oslo Melancholy’ delivers a funeral wreath on the album in more ways than one, serving as an acoustic sorrowful tribute with softly spoken male and female vocals. You do however need this time out to reflect after what the rest of the manic album has delivered, before ultimately silence is installed once more.
So an album that drags you through hedges and round the world and one that has those words “it’s a wild ride mama” going round in my head. World Metal Kosmopolis Sud is equally a work of genius and lunacy and a hefty emotional rollercoaster ride of an album. It’s one to keep coming back to as well; a keeper in every respect. I have been told that the band will “probably” do a European tour this year so fingers crossed, until then this is going to be my addictive musical crack!
(9/10 Pete Woods)
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