Solefald
Norron Livskunst

For fifteen years now, Solefald have blatantly disregarded conventions, consistently producing terribly bewildering and unique material. Admiring the Norwegian duo over the years has become a sort of badge of identification among initiates, a way to stand apart from the masses of crude headbangers and instead prove oneself to be a genuine metal intellectual. Following the commendable two-act concept (''Black For Death'' and ''Red For Fire'') that illustrated Icelandic folklore and its unusual customs, here comes, almost at the end of 2010, the seventh cry of our guys, awaited with anticipation by fans like the arrival of Santa Claus on the morning of December 25th for kids.

Norron Livskunst (meaning Norse art of life) plunges us back into the unhealthy and wild waters of bastions like ''Neonism'' and ''In Harmonia Universali'', leaving only ''Waves Over Valhalla'' with the task of closing a pseudo-trilogy with the aforementioned direct predecessors. Elements from all previous releases are magnetically drawn here, filtered through compositions drawing from the most varied and opposing genres (whether Jazz, Hard Rock, Folk, or primordial Black) and amalgamated through frequent use of organs, horns, and crazy vocal arrangements—the latter being by far the best of their career. Tracks like the title track, the opening ''Song Til Stormen'' and the unsettling ''Hugferdi'' showcase an incredible complexity of vocal tracks achieved by overlapping Cornelius's growls with Lazare's clean registers; ethereal melodies and sonic surges to be listened to over and over, lost among the fjords in unforgettable and exciting mental journeys. The further you progress through the tracks, the more surprising twists you encounter: such is the case with the absurd and unpronounceable ''Tittentattenteksti'' -with the essential presence of Agnete Kjolsrud on vocals-, a mischievous onomatopoeic dance with metrics on the verge of Hip/Hop, or the synths and electronic loops of ''Vitets Vidd I Verdi'', the psychotic and folkish ''Stridsljod/Rockabilly'' based on the texts of a noir novel written by Cornelius himself, or the brutal Thrash/Black power of ''Raudedauden''; yet it is with ''Eukalyptustreet'' that the album reaches its peak: an unstoppable climb of over nine minutes transforming, in its course, from a vocal poem accompanied by sax solos (with the now essential contribution of Kjetil Selvik) to an epic and solemn ride, with indescribable peaks of beauty.

In summary: relentless blast beats, urban saxophones, desperate growls, orchestrations, comic and legendary lyrics, female vocals, folk landscapes describing ancient lands, electronics. Need more? Ah, I forgot... the unmatched elegance that demonstrates—beyond any reasonable doubt—that this is not just an avant-garde metal band, but the best still active. Solefald have always been consistent in their inconsistency, the only thing we can predict from them is the unexpected, and Norron Livskunst is here ready to remind us once again.

Highly recommended to all those who wake up in the morning feeling the need to listen to something different.

ALWAYS DIFFERENT, ALWAYS THE SAME.