Afenginn

In Klingra, Afenginn’s composer and bandleader Kim Rafael Nyberg has crafted a gentle yet fervent post-classical exploration into the temperament of intertwined cycles. Both the music and poetry (in Faroese) are composed by using interlocked cyclical patterns. Like the gears in a clock, the parallel themes intersect at points, creating contracted dissonance or lifting consonance. The overarching experience is deeply contemplative and melancholic, with a light of emancipation always just ahead.

With a sound palette of two pianos, a string quartet (The Danish String Quartet), pedal steel guitar, synth bass and two drummers supporting the haunting vocals of Ólavur Jákupsson (Yann Tiersen), Klingra’s eight tracks flow one into the other, rippling with layers of ostinatos of unequal lengths, leading to a feeling of constantly being driven forward on an obscured path. The listener can be excited by both the mathematical design of the music as well as the raw emotional expression. The lyrics by Dánjal á Neystabø speak of the inescapable highs and lows in life’s journey. The refrain, “Vit bresta til jarðar og støkka til himmals” (We crash to the ground and spring to the sky) sets the tone and is elaborated with phrases like, “Klivin um klettar/brínd inn á bein/brostin til jarðar/stokkin til himmals/Fann teg við ánna krógvaði teg/fyri tíðini” (Climbed over boulders/ground to the bone/crashed to the earth/sprung to the sky/found you by the river/hiding from time).

Vinyl has as well been utilized as a compositional tool. Two different introductions are pressed into parallel grooves on the record, offering the listener two alternate listening experiences depending on where the needle begins on the circle. The B side ends with a closed loop that musically brings one back to the start of the album. It’s also available digitally and on CD with a different track ordering.

The team of musicians on Klingra come from many corners of the Nordic countries. From The Faroe Islands there is Teitur and Dánjal á Neystabø on pianos, Mikael Blak (Eivør) on bass, and Ólavur Jákupsson (Yann Tiersen) singing in Faroese. From Norway the percussionist Knut Finsrud, from Denmark Niels Skovmand on violin, Ulrik Brohuus on drums and guest appearance by The Danish String Quartet, and from Finland the composer Kim Rafael Nyberg.

Genre: post-classical, contemporary classical, post-rock, Nordic

Similar artists: Hauschka, Goldmund, Jonny Greenwood, Dustin O’Halloran

Press:
Gaffa calls it “a masterpiece” and gives it 6 out of 6. Read the article here (in Danish).

Tracklist:
1. Skjálvtin – the Impact

2. Litirnir – the Colours

3. Himnakropparnir – Celestial Bodies

4. Ivin – the Doubt

5. Vitin – the Lighthouse

6. Skapanin – the Creation

7. Tøkkin – the Thanking 

8. Eftirskjálvtin – the Aftershock

Released on the following formats:
Vinyl as a special edition where the first track on the A-side is two tracks running side-by-side. You never know which track you put on first.

CD digipack.

All digital platforms.