Review Summary: Thoroughly spacey; thoroughly Scandinavian.
Atmospheric: the only word that springs to mind upon hearing the first track, and one that persists throughout the album. This is music for space flights (and wide eyes), and this immediately obvious - Kaufmann's soaring, off-key vocals segue and soar with the strings and piano in The First Day, Pt. 1 and, coupled with the album artwork, conjure images of rocket launches, of majestic days in the history of a community, and possibly humanity. "This is the first day", the lyrics remind us, and notes of poignancy and expectation, of exploration, filter through the instrumentation as well as the words.
The musicianship here is low-key: nothing flashy or outstanding. Instead, it serves to add to the ideas presented in the lyrics - flowing from ambient, drawn-out notes (Until The End of Time) to an explosive roar, reminiscent of post-rock (The First Day, Pt. 1). Indeed, were it not for the vocals drawing us closer to the territory of 'indie' (a term I use grudgingly for music of this ilk), this could pass for post-rock with an emphasis on the latter word: think God Is An Astronaut, but more Scandinavian - seriously. I've often heard it said that those northern countries have a particular style, in film and music, and it's notable here - mostly in the accent half hidden in the lilting vocals, but something in the instrumentation points towards a colder climate too. In my opinion, this adds to the previously mentioned themes that run through the album. Rocket launches and the sweeping Icelandic glaciers, combined, conjures particularly interesting images.
This leads me back to the atmosphere generated by the music: this is by no means a collection of songs thrown together to make a release. I've always felt, personally, that an album is only truly an album if it feels natural, cohesive: a whole unit. The notes of poignancy - the consistently futuristic, optimistic tone of the lyrics coupled with the haunting ambience of the music is enough to grant this collection of songs that status. If there is a drawback to the album, however, it lies here: there isn't a plethora of variety in the musicianship. It's undeniably pleasing to listen to, and enough to hold interest, but it won't have you scrambling back to listen to it - but if you're looking for sweeping acres of variance in musical style or technical skill, look elsewhere, because this is pretty pedestrian.
That being said, this album is one that deserves your attention - it's well crafted, well maintained and pretty beautiful music, and serves well as an asset to creative writing or a pensive frame of mind. These boys from Iceland might not have the most original or varied style of music, but they achieve their intention to a near flawless level.
