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Emmerhoff & the Melancholy Babies — The Dying of the Light
(Apollon Records AP232, 2025, LP / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2026-08-08

The Dying of the Light Cover art

After the gem that was Circle Six in 2018, Bergen’s Emmerhoff and the Melancholy Babies have taken their time finishing their next album. The Dying of the Light continues in the same vein with sophisticated and varied songwriting, stellar arrangements, and solid performances. The band’s personnel has remained intact since 1998, and it’s clear that these five musicians are on the same page. And, to continue the metaphor, it’s a very large page, encompassing energetic rock songs that border on both progressive and psychedelic rock, droning raga-rock grooves, folksy acoustic tunes, and motorik space rock. The opening track is “Repercussionist,” which aside from being a great title, is an excellent song with an introduction featuring lots of tight rhythms and fast accents and a verse built on a riff in 11. The interplay between the guitars (Gunnar Emmerhoff, Inge Joakim Rypdal, and Arild Vikane) is quite tasty, and the rhythm section (Iver Sandøy on drums and Einride Torvik on bass) hold it all together. “Hex” is another upbeat track, one that features a higher profile for acoustic guitar, and then “In the Hour of the Wolf” takes us into a moody tune with piano and strings (arranged by producer Jørgen Træen) and a loping triple-time beat. On “The Canyon,” guest backing vocalist Linda-Fay Hella takes a turn at the lead for a contrast, along with some trippy backwards guitar and a feel a bit like “Tomorrow Never Knows.” In short, The Dying of the Light is a great album by a band that refuses to be tied to any one style.

Filed under: New releases, 2025 releases

Related artist(s): Emmerhoff & the Melancholy Babies

More info
http://emmerhoff.bandcamp.com/album/the-dying-of-the-light

 

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