post rock
The year 1099 saw the Siege of Jerusalem during the First Crusade. Pope Paschal II succeeds Pope Urban II, as the 160th pope. In the USA, Form 1099 is a much feared IRS tax form. In Norway, 1099 is an excellent post rock band that deserves a lot more attention than they got.
I first got acquainted with these instrumentalists through there immersive 'Young Pines' album back in 2015 (read). Now, they return with a brand new epos, one that almost got lost in the pile of albums to review. With 'Blindpassasjer' 1099 take their inspiring sound to new lengths.
With twelve songs, together creating a quite long album, 1099 take the usual elements from post rock acts like Mogwai, God Is An Astronaut and This Will Destroy You and strip them down to Alice In The Cities, Tortoise and Radare levels. The result is still a post rock album but one that flirts with jazz, Americana, western soundtracks and surf pop. Opener 'Silverdal' is a pure post rock tune and 'Tundra' is a pure post rock masterpiece but then there is 'Osiris', thriving on wind instruments and Moogs. It reminds me of Belgian act Condor Gruppe and I think that is a very good thing. It adds variation, plus it makes the whole thing suitable for both the cosy living room and the blasting festival speakers.
But we're not done there. 'Under Isen' takes the both dark jazz scene and The Shadows by the arm and invites them for a gloomy but immersive post-whatever jam session. By now, only four tracks into this album, I feel I'm getting angry. That doesn't often happen but suddenly it is there. It's an anger much like the ones I feel when there is injustice somewhere. I'm thinking "why aren't these guys playing the festivals? Why are they stuck in Norway?" I now feel like it's my duty to recommend them for Dunk! 2019. I am damn confident that they will awe and inspire heaps of people in Zottegem, much like I did with Spoiwo, Cecilia::Eyes and Radare. 'Blindpassasjer', the title track is a lust for the ear, brilliant in every note.
'For Seg Selv' also is utter brilliance, now digging deeper into the dark jazz scene than before. And with this one, I'm going to stop doing a song-by-song description. There are other stunning highlights to be found but I will leave those up to you to discover. In my time as a music reviewer I have been glorifying post rock bands like crazy. Many of them have ended up in my end-year lists and with 1099 I'm going a step further. This might not be the biggest or most popular post rock band in Europe but it is definitely one of the best. They showcase a ton of musical skills and experience. They showcase a neat playfulness while enchanting the listener with pure beauty.
Oh well, I guess you get the idea by now. Let's all move to an island together, away from the so-called civilized world and make the guys from 1099 our government. They deserve it. Now go buy that album.
Serge
I first got acquainted with these instrumentalists through there immersive 'Young Pines' album back in 2015 (read). Now, they return with a brand new epos, one that almost got lost in the pile of albums to review. With 'Blindpassasjer' 1099 take their inspiring sound to new lengths.
With twelve songs, together creating a quite long album, 1099 take the usual elements from post rock acts like Mogwai, God Is An Astronaut and This Will Destroy You and strip them down to Alice In The Cities, Tortoise and Radare levels. The result is still a post rock album but one that flirts with jazz, Americana, western soundtracks and surf pop. Opener 'Silverdal' is a pure post rock tune and 'Tundra' is a pure post rock masterpiece but then there is 'Osiris', thriving on wind instruments and Moogs. It reminds me of Belgian act Condor Gruppe and I think that is a very good thing. It adds variation, plus it makes the whole thing suitable for both the cosy living room and the blasting festival speakers.
But we're not done there. 'Under Isen' takes the both dark jazz scene and The Shadows by the arm and invites them for a gloomy but immersive post-whatever jam session. By now, only four tracks into this album, I feel I'm getting angry. That doesn't often happen but suddenly it is there. It's an anger much like the ones I feel when there is injustice somewhere. I'm thinking "why aren't these guys playing the festivals? Why are they stuck in Norway?" I now feel like it's my duty to recommend them for Dunk! 2019. I am damn confident that they will awe and inspire heaps of people in Zottegem, much like I did with Spoiwo, Cecilia::Eyes and Radare. 'Blindpassasjer', the title track is a lust for the ear, brilliant in every note.
'For Seg Selv' also is utter brilliance, now digging deeper into the dark jazz scene than before. And with this one, I'm going to stop doing a song-by-song description. There are other stunning highlights to be found but I will leave those up to you to discover. In my time as a music reviewer I have been glorifying post rock bands like crazy. Many of them have ended up in my end-year lists and with 1099 I'm going a step further. This might not be the biggest or most popular post rock band in Europe but it is definitely one of the best. They showcase a ton of musical skills and experience. They showcase a neat playfulness while enchanting the listener with pure beauty.
Oh well, I guess you get the idea by now. Let's all move to an island together, away from the so-called civilized world and make the guys from 1099 our government. They deserve it. Now go buy that album.
Serge
