- -- Release information ----------------------------------------------- -- -
Artist : Tusm°rke
Album : Riset Bak Speilet
Genre : Progressive Rock
Year : 2014
Label : Svart Records
Cat# : SVR270CD
Source : CDDA
Bitrate : 255Kbps
Size : 130,76 MB
Runtime : 70:55 min
URL : https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tusm%C3%B8rke/100833236668197
- -- Tracklist -------------------------------------------------------- -- -
01. Offerpresten 08:04
02. Gamle Aker Kirke 08:03
03. Black Swift 08:40
04. All is Lost 07:26
05. Riset bak Speilet 14:12
06. Mener Vi Alvor Nσ? (bonus) 04:03
07. Kairo (bonus) 09:40
08. En Verden Av I Gσr (bonus) 10:47
- -- Release notes ---------------------------------------------------- -- -
If I were to tell you that Norwegian unusualists Tusm°rke spun
out from a psychedelic space-rock outfit called Captain
Cumulonumbus And His Wondrous Cloudship and claim to be mainly
influenced by the Bronze Age, that ought to give you an
approximate idea of what one should expect from Riset Bak
Speilet, and I don't think I really need to tell you, based
upon this information and the fact that the members of
Tusm°rke are often pictured wearing cloaks, that we're dealing
with Progressive Rock here do I?
Yes, Prog of a decidedly Canterburyesque stripe is very much
the thing for this Oslo-based quartet. To my ears, the ghosts
of The Soft Machine and Caravan flit through Tusm°rke's sound,
with Ratledgey organ action from organ/Mellotronist Deadly
Nightshade, warm, supple bass from Benediktator and nimble
drummage from HlewagastiR, joined by the expressive flute of
Krizla, adding that 'Tull feel to proceedings too. Occasional
stabs of brass join the fray too, most notably on flighty,
fruity opener Offerpresten.
The pastoral edge of their sound is very much in fitting with
that whimsical Canterbury thang, but there is a baroque,
medieval side to Tusm°rke too that brings The Incredible
String Band, and occasionally Gentle Giant, to mind - which,
as far as I'm concerned - is sure as hell no bad thing.
Admirers of Svart stablemates Hexvessel and where-are-they-now
British oddballs Circulus will find much to dig into herein
for sure.
You'll find no Crimson calisthenics or bruising instrumental
workouts on Riset Bak Speilet - which translates into 'The
Birch Behind The Looking Glass', referring to the birch rod as
opposed to the tree - instead a quirky mix of nimble quasi-
prog-pop - oft-times shot through with a haunting air of
melancholia - offset by the astringent nature of that baroque
edge. There are also definite tonal similarities to the music
of British polymath Matt Berry, a man more known for his
outstanding comedic TV performances than his incredibly
finely-wrought pastoral prog psychedelia, unfortunately.
With flautist Krizla and bassist Benediktator providing mostly
unison vocals and some crazy pileups of heavily layered music
on display, it's fair to say that Riset Bak Speilet covers a
lot of ground for what appears to be a minimalist musical
roster.
Previously-mentioned opener Offerpresten powers along under
the steam of the rhythm section, those strident unison vocals
and the aforementioned brass notes and provides a punchy,
hooky start to the album, swiftly derailed by the pastoral,
gentle - but oddly sinister, thanks to a stalking bassline -
flute-led second number Gamle After Kirke, a track that begins
to build steam across the course of its length, moving from
bucolic reverie into an almost-dervish-like approach with
eastern scales and needling keyboards infringing on the edges
of hearing.
Black Swift is initially driven by twinkling acoustic guitar
and lively drums, but perks up as it heads into its chorus
with parping brass and a really quite lovely theremin refrain
that hovers like a ghostly Kestrel above the rest of the
instrumentation. A very prog synthesizer and unison guitar
solo section is added that I personally found just thrilling,
but then I'm a total sucker for that kind of thing.
Violin - or it could be artfully deployed Mellotron -
emboldens All Is Lost, the rockin'est track on offer, along
with some dark, tumbling electric guitar, an endlessly
shifting rhythm pattern and some nifty tub-thumping, putting
me oddly in mind of a lost track from Cathedral's classic
Forest Of Equilibrium being played on 45, which is, again, no
bad thing!
Finally, we reach Riset Bak Speilet itself, a funky mix of
effected, busy bass, swirling organ and expressive Norwegian
vocal delivery that twists and turns in many directions across
its serpentine 14 minute length and never once fails to
enthrall and delight the ears and mind. So many different
meters are employed but the darkly buzzing thrum of the
electric organ is a constant throughout, leaping between
joyous runs and ponderous throbs like it ain't no thing at
all. Krizla's breathy flute really jumps to the fore here too,
either singing sweetly or else tolling hollowly as chaos
whirls all about in the climactic run up to the finish. Just
wonderful, wonderful stuff.
One point I will make before signing off is that there are
five tracks on the LP, and on this promo, but the CD adds a
further three tracks, soooooooo, if you think Riset Bak
Speilet sounds like your bag, baby - and it is most certainly
very much mine - you may want to plump for the compact
discà..or both. Which is more than likely what I'll be doing.
As I said earlier, this is just wonderful stuff that presses
all of my buttons and I can't possibly recommend it more. Now,
where's me cloak?
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