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Sonisk Blodbad — The Shores of Oblivion
(Apollon Records AP093, 2022, CD / LP / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2024-01-07

The Shores of Oblivion Cover art

Sonisk Blodbad ended their previous album, Electric Mirror (2019), with a long track called “The Shore of Oblivion,” and now their follow-up album is titled The Shores of Oblivion. Founding members Ole Christensen and Håvard Tveito are here, along with a long list of contributors —  Beate Jacobsen, Conrad Schnitzler, Heidi Torsvik, Helene Rickhard, Jan-Morten Iversen, J.S. Theracon, Katje Elise Janisch, Kristian Stangebye, Laurie Amat, Niklas Rundquist, Nils Wohlrabe, Oliver Kersbergen, Sam Fossbakk, Sandra Minter, Steven Cerio, Tord Litleskare, Ulf Knudsen, and Wolfgang Seidel — though there are no specific credits as to who does what. The music is a dark, swirling electronic dream (or nightmare) of misty uncertainty. It starts out with “Sonisk Blodbad 4,” which began as an unreleased recording by Conrad Schnitzler that Christensen used (with permission) as a base. Washes of synths and sequences are augmented by pounding drums and wandering melodies. On other tracks we hear ominous voices, electronic percussion, spaced-out violin, and Gilmour-esque guitar, along with a lot of noise wrapped in dense reverberation. The dominant moods are anxiety, dread, and anguish, offset with stretches of peaceful, floating ambience and ethereal vocals. But the minor keys and dissonance always convey a sense of uneasiness even in the calmest moments. The more intense and rhythmic tracks are all front-loaded in the set, and the album proper (what you’ll find on the LP version) ends with “Aspik,” which is more than eleven minutes of very quiet, very minimal electronic droning. Those who opt for the CD or download version will get an additional track, “Blue Triptych,” which clocks in at 24 minutes and gives the impression of a night with noisy crickets and birds, along with electronic wind chimes ringing randomly. Sonisk Blodbad has a distinctive take on electronic music that doesn’t fit into any of the standard categories, and while the music certainly won’t appeal to everyone, those who like a bit of darkness in their lives should enjoy it.

Filed under: New releases, 2022 releases

Related artist(s): Conrad Schnitzler, Sonisk Blodbad

More info
http://soniskblodbad.bandcamp.com/album/the-shores-of-oblivion

 

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