9. Janove - Artisten & Marlene

Janove is the singer and frontman of my former favorite band, theatrical ompa-rock gods Kaizers Orchestra. Kaizers called it quits in 2012, after a streak of 8 amazing, eccentric and completely unique albums. The three first were thematically connected, vague concept albums, creating a tantalizing cast of characters and rich, evocative imagery from a mafia-like resistance movement during the second war, and a creepy mental hospital after. The stories weren't always possible to follow, relying instead on the power of suggestion to draw fans deeply into their absurd world. On the three last albums, the Violeta Violeta trilogy, the story arch is much more clearly spelled out, and I found the excitement of following the characters' fate to go well with the increasingly theatrical and bombastic music. Janove was always the dominant head of the six-headed Kaizers monster, but on the final instalment in the trilogy, Violeta Violeta vol. III, we hear only Janove's work. Written as a full-on rock opera, it leans more heavily on the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra. Janove was always the most ambitious one, restlessly aiming bigger and better, and towards the end (such as on VV vol. II) weirdly enough, Kaizers had started to sound "too small" for him.

Very beautiful. Also very much like Kaizers' Violeta Violeta covers,
which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

On Artisten & Marlene, his first solo venture (aside from the pretty but relatively unremarkable singer-songwriter album Francis' Lonely Nights in 2006), Janove continues his maximalist approach. It's a logical progression from VV vol. III, just with a new band and a new cast of characters. This time around we're following ballet dancers, a French girl and a Russian boy, who met as children and feel a sort of magical collection through the rest of their lives and keep dancing for each other. The lyrics don't really form a complete story arch, rather they become a thematic background that brings the music more weight and context, kind of in the way that the old Kaizers-universe did. Images are repeated, phrases reused, sometimes lazily, but it kind of works. The band is hard-hitting, musically excellent, and clearly having a lot of fun: Former Kaizers warm-up act Micke Lohse (aka. Micke from Sweden) is on piano, Matthias Hellberg on guitar, and the rhythm section is Gulleiv Wee (of The September When) on bass, Børge Fjordheim (of Cloroform, amongst others) on drums. They sound just as comfortable following Janove's whims whether it's towards hiphop, funk, polka, heavy rock, country or classical.

The single covers are really cool, too. This is for
"The world is going to hell, tralala".

My favorite songs are the most epic ones. Repeated modulations, dizzying emotional heights and piling on the goosebumps is the recipe for success here. As much as Janove likes a simple pop song, he is a true music nerd and a master of rhythm, melody, complex chord progressions and harmony. Some of the songs on Artisten & Marlene are a bit too simple for my taste, and the album doesn't deal well with restraint (the quiet closing track is really forgettable - for quiet it has to be as huge as "Mine siste berømte ord" ("My last famous words") ). I also really dislike the opening track unfortunately. It sets the stage for the story and the sound for the album, but it feels more like a placeholder, or an ouverture: all bombastic wrapping but no content. It's just Janove going "who-oah" and thinking he could get away with putting a half-finished song here.

But the album is 15 songs long, and really hits its stride from song 3 to 14. These are almost all top-grade Janove songs, and while I do understand the criticism that he should have distanced itself more from Kaizers, I think it just goes to show how much he actually was in charge of the Kaizers circus towards the end. The last five years have been tough for those of us craving more Kaizers, and I am super excited about Artisten & Marlene. This is so solid that it could have been just as big of a success as Violeta Violeta. There are plenty of songs here with room for oil barrels and crowbars, if the other guys want to come out of omparock retirement, but it sounds so great that I don't find myself missing them. I love the variation in genre; from the Eminem-flavored "Trixing & fixing" or the rockabilly explosion "Me vokser aldri opp" ("We'll never grow up"), to the krautrock-tinged "Aldri la de tru de er bedre enn deg" ("Never let them think they're better than you"), and "I natt blir du fri" ("Tonight you'll be free") reaches its peak when the amazing disco synth riff finally kicks in. The diversity of influences is part of the reason the album works so well. For being so long, it's a huge credit that it's not at all a slog to get through, and that's thanks to some brilliant transitions, and the totally different feels on many songs. And the variation doesn't make it a mess, rather it keeps things interesting.

Promo pics for Janove are much more awkward than the über-cool Kaizers badassery.
Painful!

This is a terrific album by one of my favorite artists (I'd say "Norwegian" artists, but no, I really am that much of a fan). Janove is still going strong - and has another brand new album out January 18th!!

Hear: "Vår uendelige sang" ("Our endless song"), "Trixing & fixing", "Perler & svin".

10. The Shins - Heartworms

Super awesome cover. On par with of Montreal's best. The mix of nightmare
and bubblegum cartoons reflects the music, too.

The Shins was never a band that was on my radar. They've been around since the early 2000's, releasing fairly popular indie rock, and I may or may not have heard some of their songs. I don't know what made me take note of their new single "Dead alive" released late last year, but it ended up on my playlists and I grew fond of its bittersweet bubbliness and catchy marching-beat refrain. When I saw that the new album was out, I put on the first song with quite moderate expectations, but it blew me out of the park. From its intro of jangly guitar, cowbell and du-du-duuh to its final bright major chord, "Name for you" is overwhelmingly entertaining, stuffed full of giddy ideas, constantly grabbing my attention with a new hook every second. I've played it over and over and over, and I still absolutely love it.

Only lead singer and songwriter James Mercer remains of The Shins' original lineup. There are other newer members listed, but I think they're more touring musicians than anything else. So, on Heartworms James Mercer offers his very own charming, leftfield pop vision in kind of the same way that Grimes did on Art Angels, or Kevin's barnes did on false Priest. Those are two of the albums that first spring to mind when I play Heartworms, and they're all filled with unabashed falsetto fun, layers upon layers of elements of the kind that bandmates or executive producers might gently suggest are getting to be a bit much. It's interesting because of how unique and still how catchy it is. The dark soundscapes but convincing hooks on "Painting a hole" make it feel like it's soundtracking a surreal and action-packed dream, one where you're discovering a technicolor world full of confusing scenes and weird creatures. "Cherry hearts" also immediately transports me to a fantastic, otherworldly place, although I'm not super excited about the chorus the tenth time I hear it. "Fantasy island", however, is totally loveable, probably my second favorite song on the album and one that never fails to make me smile. Mercer's wonderful vocal performance (you may also have heard him sing as half of the duo Broken Bells) lifts this and many of the other songs on here to that one extra level.

So you were curious about what the singer from this album was doing these days? He's releasing
his own music as The Shins, and it's way less sterile and stylish than this glossy thing. It's way more fun.

The record's few breathers are much needed and also work well. When listening to the almost bubble-gum pop of the title track, "So now what" and the other songs mentioned above, it's easy to forget that Heartworms is the work of a 46 year old indie rock lifer. But when the refreshingly synth-free "Mildenhall" lilts along over a familiar Americana groove we're brought back to the live stage, and I love the beautiful closing track "The fear", which goes slightly experimental with psychedelic downtempo jams and baroque strings. The only songs I don't care much for are the ones that fall between the two chairs. "Rubber ballz" has quite nice, sombering lyrics and a neat drive to its verses and chorus, but they don't balance well at all with the intense bass/vocal riff that keeps popping up. I'm also a bit ambivalent about the unexpected emo-rock revival of "Half a million", and it doesn't quite commit fully to the sk8er pastiche (perhaps a good thing), so this one also falls a bit short.

Despite these two tracks back to back, the record totally gets away with it thanks to the closing four song streak being even more awesome than the opening. Heartworms makes me dance like noone's watching, makes me smile on the gloomiest of days, listening to other pop music on the radio lately has had me wishing I was listening to Heartworms.

Hear: "Name for you", "Fantasy island", "Heartworms"

More very good: Honorable mentions 2

Makthaverskan - Ill

Cool logo and cover, but tellingly it's confusingly similar to their other albums;
 I always have to double-check which of the covers it is.

Young Swedish dream-rockers Makthaverskan ("she who is in power") channel the new-wave post-punk scene of the 80's to much better results than should be expected from a group of millenials from Gothenburg. Growing their fan base very gradually over the 8 years since their debut, Makthaverskan had the pressure on them with the long-awaited Ill. I and many others have been hotly anticipating the new album, especially since the amazing lead single "Witness" was released already in 2015. If Ill could even come close to matching that urgent, super-catchy song, it was bound to be good. And while I'd still say "Witness" is maybe the best song on here, Ill does very often come close to the same ecstatic levels, and is an impressive album.

While Makthaverskan's sound is nothing completely new, they are a very fresh breath on 2017's music scene. How's this for a statement: I don't think I can hear a single synth or keyboard on this entire album. The five-piece are fronted by songwriter and singer Maja Milner, whose voice is as beautiful as her style is raw and desperate. Her shrill but always melodic screams are one of Makthaverskan's main selling points, and she's packed away none of the power on Ill. I don't know she can sing a song like "Siren" in the same evening as "Witness" and "Asleep" (off II),  but she looks almost comically unaffected when performing live (on video - I've unfortunately yet to see them myself), seemingly bored by the trivial sounds she's producing. (The videos also reveal that there's a fair bit of studio magic behind making their punk lineup sound good on record, but I don't mind it when it sounds as good as this.)

In addition to Milner's singing, Andreas Wettmark's intense drumming and the intricate, interweaved bass and guitar lines all contribute to making Ill a riveting and thrilling listen. As do the lyrics (also Milner's), although I wish they played more on the political agenda of feminism and anti-consumerism that's occasionally alluded to, rather than the main focus on love and heartbreak. The 10 songs are all strong and none of them feel unnecessary, a major step up from I and II. The only thing limiting Ill's longevity is the lack of dynamic variation. The album does shift throughout in tempo and feel, providing breathers where necessary while maintaining urgency, but the overall sound becomes homogeneous pretty quick. And it's not clear where they're going from here, however good they may be a fourth album of the same stuff isn't necessary. Still, Makthaverskan are totally worth hearing if you haven't yet, and Ill is a great place to start.

Hear: "Witness", "Siren", "Leda", but I could just as easily have chosen "In my dreams", "Vienna", "Eden", "Days turn into years" or"To say it as it is".

Grizzly Bear - Painted Ruins

I worked on it, but really don't like this cover. I can make out a windowsill, and
maybe stones at the bottom. It's neither aesthetically pleasing nor challenging.

At their best, Grizzly Bear are one of my very favorite bands. When their four unique voices harmonize to a heavenly choir; when Chris Taylor's strange array of unnamable instruments melts my ear; when Daniel Rossen's meandering guitar lines take another surprising turn; when Chris Bear's ever-mutating drumming delicately shifts the rhythmic center; when intricate polyrhythms propel the song towards its next sections... I enjoy Grizzly Bear's music most when I pick it apart, analyze it to bits, understand why they do what they do and why it works. Their songcraft is meticulous - they don't have the strongest pop sensibilities, but their songs conjure up feelings because they build them up brick by brick to have that desired effect.

Which may be part of why they called their new album Painted Ruins, released a full five years after their previous: I get the sense that they were stuck with a pile of rubble, bricks and pieces that they couldn't figure out how to build into a new album. 2009's Veckatimest is perhaps their finest work to date, a delicate and beautiful composition full of fascinating music-theoretical experiments as well as powerful pop hooks. Shields, released in 2012, found them firing on all cylinders, and buries some of the detail under walls of sounds and rocking crescendoes. While it's a fun and exciting album, it also felt like a bit of a dead end. So I actually wasn't too hyped for Painted Ruins when it came out. Did I need a new Grizzly Bear album in 2017?

Well, Grizzly Bear seem to have rebuilt their own sound, so to say, on this album. It has the volume and intensity of Shields, as well as Veckatimest's ornate instrumentation and wide dynamic range. I'm partial to the understated "Wasted acres" and "Systole", gentle (yet interesting) sketches who whisper their story, in more of a Yellow House way. Elsewhere, Grizzly Bear add an ever so slight industrial tinge on songs like "Three rings" and "Aquarian". These less pretty textural elements feel like a new side of Grizzly Bear (compare to the beautiful ostinatoes in the second part of an old one like "Ready, Able"), and this willingness to add something that is neither bombastic nor beautiful is a strength on Painted Ruins. There's enough both beautiful and bombastic here - "Four cypresses", "Losing all sense" and "Neighbors" all sound amazing and are easily on par with Grizzly Bear's best - but the discomfort that permeates Painted Ruins is what keeps the album interesting for me. All in all it's a more than worthwhile addition to their catalogue - and considering the band in question, that's quite high praise.

Hear: "Three rings", "Systole", "Mourning sound"

Susanne Sundfør - Music For People In Trouble

Susanne's covers have never been too interesting. The same goes for this one.

Susanne Sundfør shouldn't need much introduction at this point, but she maybe does anyway. She's a singer-songwriter from Haugesund, Norway, and she's got one of the most beautiful and unique voices I know of. She writes great songs and I've been a huge fan of hers ever since debut album ten years ago. Amazingly, each of her albums since then has been a bigger leap forward than I thought was possible for one artist, and she did three of them. From the folk-pop of her self-titled debut, she explored a dark, electronic, moody soundscape on her second album The Brothel and made it clear she was in an entirely different league than her Norwegian contemporaries. With 2012's stunning The Silicone Veil and 2015's ecstatic Ten Love Songs, as well as guest features on some of Röyksopp, Kleerup and M83's very best songs, she's established herself as a world-class pop artist. It's been an amazing journey to follow.

But no matter how impressive her artistic development has been, she's always seemed awfully uncomfortable in the limelight. I've felt like she's been using pop music mostly as a tool to just get famous enough that she can do what she likes. That may seem a harsh criticism, but even her most joyous songs can't hide that there's a deep melancholy behind them. Despite the awesome recordings and performances, there's an uncomfortable dissonance when you see their shy and awkward creator. And so it's almost a relief that Sundfør for her new record has stripped back all the showbiz, and released what feels like a truly honest, heartfelt album. The result is unique and captivating.

Calling it a return to her roots feels wrong since she's such a completely different artist now than when she started, but Music For People In Trouble certainly has more acoustic guitar and less synths than anything she's put out since her debut. She's also added a bit of an americana sound with steel guitar, banjo, and the occasional jazzy clarinet or saxophone. The album is intensely dark even in its breeziest sections, only comforting you because you desperately need it in these troubled times. She insists it's not a political album, but it's hard to interpret the spine-tingling highlights "The sound of war" and "Mountaineers" in any other way. Both include spooky drone passages (on "Mountaineers" courtesy of John Grant) that contrast eerily with Sundfør's crystal clear vocals. Other songs look inward, focusing on overcoming emptiness, love and loss. The main theme that stands out is the hope and brightness that comes from acknowledging the darkness, whether it's personal or global.

Some may see it as her worst release yet, others as by far her best. Personally I don't know how I would rank it. Music For People In Trouble is not catchy, but it is truly remarkable.

Hear: "Undercover", "Mountaineers (feat. John Grant)", "Reincarnation".

The List Begins: Honorable Mentions 1

I'm realizing that this year's list may be slow sailing, due to that I'm travelling around California and enjoying myself immensely, and also that I have some scientific articles I should be writing in addition to this music blog, but what can you do. The show must go on. Here are some albums I though were really good this year but didn't quite make it to the top ten.

Sufjan Stevens, Nico Muhly, Bryce Dessner, James McAlister - Planetarium

It's nice. It feels like the opening scene to an old science fiction film,
and their unassuming names on the bottom are like the credits.

It's in many ways a collaboration of dreams. Sufjan Stevens, singer-songwriter extraordinaire writes and sings about space and mythology and religion and everything, accompanied by James McAllister, his go-to drummer, Nico Muhly, film scorer and contemporary chamber music composer, and Bryce Dessner, multi-instrumentalist from The National. The project was apparently initiated back in 2011, when Muhly was commissioned to write a song cycle for seven trombones and a string quartet. Planetarium first appeared as a series of concerts in 2012, and for a long time it seemed unclear whether the music would ever be recorded and released, due to all members being plenty busy with other projects, but finally the album is here, and it is a beautiful thing.

At first it sounds most akin to my favorite Sufjan Stevens album, the grandiose, electronic The Age of Adz, and he certainly indulges in a lot of similar effects here (and even melodic elements). Muhly's intricate, ostinato-heavy orchestral work unsurprisingly pairs wonderfully with Sufjan's songs. However, distinguishing it thoroughly from any previous Stevens work, about half of the album consists of eerie droney passages and ambient pieces. While it doesn't make for a particularly accessible album, it succeeds in conjuring the uncanny feeling of floating through space, for vast stretches of emptiness between each time you encounter a celestial body, each of which have their own aura and personality and story. 

There are some memorable hooks on here that have been bringing me back for the pop-song side of things, but each time I set out to listen to the album I end up losing myself completely in it, the ambiance and soundscapes captivating me as much as the Sufjan songs themselves (and among them are some of his most beautiful ones ever, such as opener "Neptune" and closer "Mercury"). I lose track of time and probably have fallen asleep once or twice to Planetarium's swells and explosions and dreaminess. It's a full-body experience, capturing the sense of joy, awe, curiosity, immersion and occasional drifting away that I get at great concerts. It's not the kind of album I can put on any time, but I'm super glad it exists. It takes me away from everyday life for a while and returns me with a slightly different perspective.

Hear: "Mercury", "Neptune", "Jupiter".

Cezinando - Noen Ganger Og Andre

Quite an odd cover. Me finding out how it represents the music: It's the kind of shot in which
other rappers would show off their gold chains and tattoos and look swag and imposing... but
Cez shows no interest in this and in stead looks interrupted, vulnerable. Ok cool.

It's a gramatically strange title in Norwegian, translating roughly to "Sometimes and others". The  second album (fourth release) from 21 year old Norwegian-Portugese rapper Kristoffer Cezinando Karlsen is a beautiful and personal work. It's a great listen, because it manages to be vulnerable while sounding tough, somber and heavy while sounding trendy and cool. And it's not afraid to be grandiose and emotional even though it's a rap record. He's borrowing from Lars Vaular's book, and sounds a bit like that (more established) rapper's 2015 triple-EP project 666 ALT GIR MENING. He follows in the footsteps of Karpe Diem, groundbreakers for Norwegian rap. And Cezinando's gentle, unassuming rap style bordering between rapping and singing also reminds me of Yoni Wolf (of WHY?). Like Wolf, Cezinando pours his heart out and does so without once feeling dominating or obnoxious or annoying. He sounds like a really good friend confiding in you. 

Cezinando collaborates with some of Norway's most interesting musicians here. A lot of the beats are from Ole Torjus from the electronica collective Rytmeklubben. Chamber pop wizard Einar Stray did the unique piano loop on "Tommelen på vekta", which cleverly stands out after the captivating hit single "Håper du har plass". And the closer "Er dette alt" featuring Chirag of Karpe Diem is a lovely collaboration between newcomer and idol.

The slow strings and autotune swaths of the enigmatic opening track immediately tells you your not in for a regular rap record, but the album gets a great start anyway as the intro segways into the upbeat "Heia meg", brass-laden epic "Ingenting er det samme men samme for meg", and goosebumps-inducing SKAM-anthem "Vi er perfekt men verden er ikke det". There are some less good cuts as well, where the production feels a bit boring and Cezinando's gentle voice less gripping, but I still find myself reaching for the repeat button once the album's 43 minutes have passed in a flash. That's a good sign.

Hear: "Håper du har plass", "Tommelen på vekta", "Vi er perfekt men verden er ikke det".

The xx - I See You

Same logo, new colors. Fair enough. I like the reflections in the background.

I'm impressed. British trio The xx invented their own genre in 2009, with their immediately iconic self-titled debut album, then released a rather lackluster rehash in 2012 exploring little new ground. After five years of silence, apart from Jamie xx' 2015 solo album In Colour (on which the best bits were all from around 2010), I had never expected such a good comeback from The xx as I See You. Their third album pushes their introvert sound in new, interesting, modern directions, broadening the pallette notably from that used on their first two, but keeping their best idiosyncracies at center stage. 

It wasn't always clear that Romy and Oliver's quiet, dreamy, sensual singing would go well with the louder samples, upfront instruments (horns!) and heavier beats. Although the singles "On hold" and "Dangerous" both succeed massively thanks to the amazing production by Jamie xx which makes space for their gentle voices when necessary, I wasn't sure whether it would work on an entire album. But The xx don't forget the quiet end of their dynamic range either, which after all is their specialty. The result is a record with excellent flow, constant shifts in dynamics within and between songs keeping things interesting throughout.

Romy and Oliver hold up their end of the stick as well. The verses are as full of hooks as the choruses; the lyrics are stark and personal, often about lost love, but more interesting when dealing with cases such as Oliver's battle with alcoholism. Framing the songs as a struggling dialogue between two confused, regular people, strikes a powerful chord in the listener. And the two singers' voices sound heavenly together, as always.

What keeps this record (just barely) outside the top 10 for me this year, is that it goes down a bit too smoothly. There wasn't much replay value as I had expected when I ogled at its amazing sound back in January when it came out. The one song that I've been playing obsessively is "A violent noise", and I think it's the use of dissonance that does it. It's one of the most stripped-down songs, closest to their old sound (seemingly countering my arguments in this review so far), but it has this amazing squelchy guitar (?) in the background during the chorus. The final half minute, after the climax, is only the sparse chorus repeated with this eerie guitar line intensifying, and when it suddenly stops it leaves me with "Burn the witch"-level chills. It's awesome, and I wish the rest of I See You conjured up similar amounts of feels more often. Anyway, it's still a triumphant record, a grand return to form and blast back to relevance, whether The xx like it or not.

Hear: "A violent noise", "Say something loving", "On hold".

Not the list

Hey all, and happy December 1^st! The musical advent calendar is making its return this year as well. To kick it all off I figured I would discuss some notable absences from this year’s list. While this might remove some of the suspense from the final countdown (pun not intended), I decided to do it because there were so many relatively high-profile releases I was looking forward to this year that turned out to be a bit disappointing. Many of them had some excellent tracks on them, however, so instead of ignoring them altogether I’ll mention some of these choice cuts here, alongside a brief comment on why I felt their respective albums fell short.

Arcade Fire - Everything Now

I don't quite get the album version. It's oddly empty, which contrasts
with the contents of the music. There's also a night-time version.

The title track and first single from Everything Now, and of course my prior knowledge (i.e. love) of the band, had me extremely excited for this album. The music is dance-y and poppy, in the style they began exploring on Reflektor, and the lyrics are blunt and angry, but that has never stopped me from enjoying Arcade Fire songs before. Thomas Bangalter (of Daft Punk) has helped with production on this and other songs, and he adds a fun, bouncy touch. I was totally sold on the irresistible piano hook, awesome panflute solos, and felt the themes they were addressing were important and could make for a great critical concept album.

Unfortunately, the album only very rarely manages to fulfill these expectations. It suffers strongly from what feels like lazy songwriting, both melodically lyrically, as well as some terrible conceptual elements. Yes, it may be a comment on clickbaiters providing the zoned-out online public with instant satisfaction, but playing the same (awful) song “Infinite content” twice in succession, first as a stupid punk rock mishmash, and next as a pointless cruise ship swayalong, just makes me jam the skip button. Other songs (“Chemistry”, “Peter Pan”) sound like Arcade Fire literally writing and recording the worst music they could imagine. I’m still a huge fan, eager to hear what they do next, and super keen on seeing them live, as Everything now adds a good handful of awesome songs to their already stunning back-catalogue, but due to the handful of garbage ones, this album sadly and strangely dropped off my list this year.

Hear: "Everything now", "Put your money on me", "Creature comfort".

London Grammar - Truth Is A Beautiful Thing

The cover is pretty representative of the album, with its clean-looking and probably expensively
designed logo - and the beautiful girl shining in the middle with the other guys hiding in the background. 

Hannah Reid has one of the most spellbinding voices I've ever heard. Her range is extraordinary, and I can't decide whether I'm more captivated by her arresting low register, her soaring falsetto, or her full chest voice. She's an amazing vocalist with an incredible vibrato, and seeing her perform a song like "Rooting for you" live, even on video, I simply feel like I'm in the presence of an angel. (Look how dead quiet the crowd is - until the points where they just can't keep their pure gratitude in any longer).

Truth Is A Beautiful Thing is London Grammar's second studio album. It sounds very much like their first album, If You Wait, which scored in my top 10 of 2013. Some songs explore slightly new territory, but very marginally so. The trio's two other members, guitarist Dan Rothman and keyboardist/beatmaker Dominic Major, understandably consider their role to be to stay tastefully in the background, bringing out the best in Hannah Reid's voice and not get in the way of it. But when they stay with their syrupy style of combining string overdoses with xx-copying sparse piano chords and light electronic percussion, it doesn't take much for the sound to grow stale very quickly. Truth Is A Beautiful Thing makes some admirable efforts at breaking away from this mold with some sharper percussion, some large instrumental climaxes where Hannah leaves the stage for a moment, but ultimately the album suffers from too little variation and is much less than the sum of its parts. The songwriting often leaves a lot to be desired, and a few too many unmemorable mid-tempo cuts and downright cringey lyrics ruin the overall enjoyment. It's not that Reid is amazing and her band is holding her back, they're good as a group and they all make great contributions. It's rather that as a group they too often choose to make things too easy and pretty rather than experiment a little. The quite popular singles "Oh woman oh man" and "Big picture" are just too normal to really do much for me. I still think they have the potential to make a truly excellent album, if they just take the risk and shake things up a little.

Hear: "Hell to the liars", "Rooting for you", "Bones of ribbon"

Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.

Fitting. It conveys Kendrick's struggle and the album's darkness,
but it's certainly a less interesting cover than that of To Pimp A Butterfly.

Kendrick Lamar changed the game for hiphop with 2015's To Pimp A Butterfly, my favorite album of that year. I loved how the jazz influence, lush instrumentation and organic percussion provided such a serene and different backdrop for Kendrick's jaw-dropping rapping and powerful lyrics about something bigger than himself. It really stood out from the regular hiphop sound of self-obsessed boasting accompanied by clickety-clack beats we hear so much these days (can you tell I don't usually listen to much hiphop?). Anyway, I was super stoked for DAMN., and although first single "Humble" was pretty much exactly what I was hoping Kendrick wouldn't do this time around, I have to admit it's pretty badass, the video is amazing, and it only strengthens Kendrick's reign as king of rap these days.

DAMN. is a very dark album, and the lyrics are more self-pitying than self-aggrandizing. There are some very powerful lines and Kendrick does to some extent manage to get me engaged in what he's saying, especially in the beginning of the album with the unsettling opening story on "BLOOD." and the very angry, inspired and impressive "DNA.". However, musically DAMN. quickly falls in to all the hiphop tropes and cliches I dislike. While the rapping is still great and there are some truly awesome tracks, the overall sound just rubs me completely the wrong way. It sounds like it's being blasted out of a stupid spray-painted car. The lyrics also don't address larger issues like TPAB did, they're just about Kendrick feeling sorry for himself and there's way too much God (there's even a song just called "GOD."). Especially midway there are some songs that sound pretty lazy and uninspried, and on Rihanna collab "LOYALTY." Rihanna sounds like a better rapper than Kendrick. I'm still full of awe for Kendrick, but unfortunately TPAB's shadow weighs to heavily while I listen to DAMN. I miss the biting political commentary (which is much less present here), the storytelling from other characters' points of view, the thematic cohesiveness, narrative and flow of the album, and the beautiful backing tracks (which were more than backing tracks). I'll be back for the next one, Kendrick, but even after loads of listens to DAMN. it feels like a step back.

Hear: "HUMBLE." (if you haven't already), "LOVE. FEAT. ZACARI", "DNA."

Best of Norway

Hi again. Christmas is nearing, I'm in the US, and similarly to what I did in the lead-up to last year's top 10 I want to start this year's calendar by mentioning some overseen albums from the year before. Coincidentially (not entirely), all the albums I'm going to mention are by Norwegian artists. You see, it felt a bit weird not having any Norwegian albums on last year's list. All the previous years I've had at least some Norwegian representation. Not only is it nice to promote my home country, I also often feel that songs written close to home resonate extra strongly with me. Although some of them may have less of an impact internationally, either because the listeners don't understand the language or the themes don't seem as immediately captivating, there's loads of great music being made in Norway,  and it's certainly worth sharing. So here's my top 5 Norwegian albums of 2016.

Beautiful cover. With all 12 stories in it, I think?

5. Moddi - Unsongs

I've classified him as an artsy folk-singer for too long, maybe. Pål Moddi Knutsen, from the island of Senja in northern Norway, has made an exciting leap from his pretty pop albums that I never listened much to with the release of Unsongs this year. Unsongs is a collection of covers or reworks of banned songs from different countries around the world, from Pussy Riot to Palestine, some well known and some on the verge of being lost. As a concept it's a strong statement against censorship and for freedom of speech. At the level of the individual songs it tells some important stories about unjustness and war from many of the world's forgotten tragedies. The richly orchestrated music is often dramatic, riveting and eager to colour its stories, not unlike a good Sufjan Stevens piece. Not all the songs pack quite the punch that they should have, but applause to Moddi for this bold and interesting move.

Put on: "A matter of habit"

Kind of standard metal-ish? I wouldn't have picked it up
on the basis of the cover, to put it that way.

4. Kvelertak - Nattesferd

Kvelertak make metal so much fun. Nattesferd ("Night journey") is their third album and possibly their most fun yet. Combining the heavy rock 80's gods like Van Halen and Judas Priest with the best from the 90's and 00's Norse black metal scene, the Stavanger band have become a critical and commercial success far beyond Norway's borders. The music is super high energy, full of fantastic riffs, catchy when it needs to be, angry when it needs to be. I haven't seen them live yet but I really hope I get the chance this year!

Put on: "Dendrofil for Yggdrasil"

It's dark and pretty freaky. Inner demons and such. Quite badass.

3. Highasakite - Camp Echo

Norway's best pop group at the moment, Highasakite, had a hard job following up 2014's s terrific Silent Treatment. Although they didn't quite manage to live up to my sky-high expectations, they actually came much closer than I initially thought. Camp Echo has some spectacular songs on it that rank among their best, but is on a whole colder, darker and more electronic than its predecessor, and didn't quite sit right as an album at first. But after seeing the Echo songs performed live at the Pstereo festival last summer, a new side of them was revealed to me. Many of the songs I didn't like much on the album opened up in their high-energy live versions, and became some of the highlights of the set. Camp Echo wasn't quite what I hoped for from Highasakite, but was a solid effort from an incredibly talented band.

Put on: "Golden ticket"

The singles covers were zoomed in on different parts of the pig. Cool concept!

2. Karpe Diem - Heisann Montebello

The rap duo Karpe Diem is one of Norway's most popular hiphop-acts, and they spent 2016 rolling out a series of provocative singles, challenging Norway's populist politicians, online hatespreaders, islamophobes and more. The seven singles now gathered on the "project" Heisann Montebello have all received heavy radio-play, but rather than growing tired of their voices after a year of continuous spotlight, I tend to turn it up every time they come on. With these iconic, immediately catchy songs and a determination to use their celebrity status for something more than their own gain, these guys have become important voices in the public debate in Norway. Heisann Montebello is by far the best in Karpe Diem's catalogue so far, and I don't think we've heard the last from them.

Put on: "Lett å være rebell i kjellerleiligheten din" ("Easy to be a rebel in your basement apartment")

Haha! A charming, oddball cover full of different weird people.
It looks homemade and sloppy, but makes you think twice when you look closer.

1. No. 4 - Henda i Været

The all-female band No. 4 (number 4) released their odd and charming debut last spring. It's a bit uneven, but at its best it really hits me hard. Maybe it's just that it really nails what it feels like to be a young adult in Norway, away from home and just finished studying and in the weird process of "establishing" without knowing quite what that means. The songs channel different personalities, many of which force me to consider the way I think and the choices I make. Some mirror me way too perfectly, while others challenge me to step aside and make sure that I haven't become what they're singing about.

Aside from the brilliant "Føkk lunsj" the first half is maybe a bit uninteresting lovesongy, but things really pick up later on, "No. 1" and "Låst" are surprising and impressive musically and lyrically, "Jeg har aldri sett elg" ("I've never seen a moose") and "Lite og stort" ("Small and large") are quaint, beautiful and goosebump-inducing. No. 4 were the most exciting breakthrough act in Norway last year, and I'm looking forward to hearing more from them.

Put on: "Føkk lunsj", "Låst" ("Locked")

1. Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool

There wasn't ever any question really. Within days of the release of Radiohead's long-awaited LP9 (9th album), it was evident to me that A Moon Shaped Pool was another treasure chest of Radiohead magic - rich, exciting, multi-faceted, stunningly beautiful and continuously rewarding, just like their best. The mere existence of A Moon Shaped Pool and the fact that Radiohead are still challenging themselves to making great new music 25 years into their career makes me immensely grateful, but this first place isn't just me being nostalgic. A Moon Shaped Pool is excellent by any standards, and I recommend it strongly also to people who haven't heard much Radiohead before.

A strange mix between natural elements and digital chops. What you see in it
depends on the viewer. Polar sea ice melting? A tumor growing in the body?

The hype was good, even by Radiohead standards. It's been a long wait since 2011's slightly underwhelming The King of Limbs, but rumours of a new album were circulating this winter. After the announcement of summer tour dates heightened speculations further, the band grew painfully quiet. Then certain fans received spooky postcards in the mail, and in a fascinating turn of events Radiohead's entire online present was faded away. All old tweets and Facebook posts were deleted, profile pictures turned white, and on radiohead.com, the opacity was gradually increased over an entire day until it was all just a white. After a week of this suspense where no Radiohead existed, a chirping claymation bird heralded the new "Burn the witch" video.

"Burn the witch" is perhaps Radiohead's strongest political commentary since the Hail to the Thief days. The dramatic video and the disturbing lyrics lash out against the horrors of groupthink and mob behaviour, and Thom Yorke's terrified wails remind you that if you don't pay attention, tumultous times like these can have people following ghastly mantras like "Abandon all reason / Avoid all eye contact / Do not react / Shoot the messengers / This is a low-flying panic attack". It's the refugee crisis, it's Trump's rize, it's climate change. The brilliant counterpoint melodies in the second verse, the thumping bass and drum machines, and the crescendo of Jonny Greenwood's col legno strings at the end of the song, one of the most chilling moments in Radiohead's discography, all make "Burn the witch" a powerful opener and impressive comeback single.

The rest of the album is less immediate, it's quieter and gentler, but equally strong. The arrangements, orchestrations and in particular the production on A Moon Shaped Pool are all amazing. Longtime producer Nigel Godrich (hailed as the sixth member of Radiohead) has created an intricate and beautiful record, brimming with unusual elements that flesh out and diversify the mid- and down-tempo tracks. After acclimatizing to this multi-layered wonder, the beloved In Rainbows now sounds bare, simple and almost boring. On the longing "Present tense", a surprisingly bossa-tinged beat and Godrich's intense use of reverb create an atmosphere unlike any other of Radiohead's acoustic guitar ballads. I don't know what kind of effect he put on the Satie-esque piano on "Glass eyes", but the disoriented feeling of the track stands out even on the hundredth listen. The bouncy, multi-part highlight "Identikit" has been modified just enough from its 2012-tour version that it fits perfectly alongside the other songs on A Moon Shaped Pool. But the biggest stroke of genius is the treatment of "True love waits". For 20 years it's been a live favorite with Thom alone on acoustic guitar, but the reworking on A Moon Shaped Pool to a sparse, icy piano piece brings a whole new meaning to the lovesick teenager lyrics. Decorated with piano snippets rolled around on unsynced tape fragments (the whole album is recorded on analogue tape), it's the kind of flawless recording where every odd sound contributes to the atmosphere in an unexplicable but essential way.

It's one of only a few songs on the album that change for me depending on the light I see them in. In 2015, Yorke separated from Rachel Owen, his partner for 23 years and mother of his two children, and on December 18th 2016 (as I began writing this review) came the shocking news that she had died at age 47, after a long battle with cancer. There's a lot of love and loss on A Moon Shaped Pool, but to what extent the songs are about his relationship with Owen is not immediately clear, and it's the new recordings of the older songs ("Present tense" and especially "True love waits") that seem to bear the strongest mark. Contrasting "True love waits" anno 2016 with its 2001 version on I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings, recorded at a time when Yorke and Owen had just had their first child, it becomes painfully clear how the chant of "just don't leave" has changed meaning.

In the physical release, the album is dedicated to Nigel Godrich's father, who passed away while Godrich was working on the album. If there's a key lyric on A Moon Shaped Pool, it must be "as my world comes crashing down, I'll be dancing, freaking out" (closely followed by "you've really messed up everything"). My sense is that Yorke and Godrich are more focused than ever on this album, that they're overcoming difficult times by doing the one thing they're best at. They gathered their band and put their everything into making as good a record as possible. And though they're certainly not the explosion of energy they were in the 90s, or the restless experimenters they were in the 00s, it's still a marvel when Radiohead commit to making the best record they can.

Best tracks: "Daydreaming", "Identikit", "Present tense", "Burn the witch", "Decks dark", "True love waits", and oh God it hurts to omit "Ful stop" and "The numbers".

But if nothing else, watch those two videos dammit.