When you think of Iceland in terms of music, you think, forward thinking experimentalists with fantastic melodies. From the intricate howlings of Bjork, to the power of For a Minor Reflection or the charming indie folk of Seabear, there's talent nestled away in every nuck of the little island. And Múm are no exception to the rule. Hailing from this icy nation alongside fellow glitch peers, Amiina, they create bustling soundscapes through chirpy hooks and erratic beats.
The 2000 debut album (reissued in 2005), Yesterday was Dramatic, Today was OK takes you on a journey into the land of glitch. The album opens with "I'm 9 today", a song that is emphatically hummable brings together a bunch of synths that really do explain the name of the track. It is as if the track is describing the subconscious thoughts of a girl on her 9th birthday. The simple but effective tumble of the embarking synth bumbles away throughout the entire track, spiced with soothing pads.
Track 2, Smell Memory gets more and more frantic, syncopated rhythms furiously breaking out left right and centre, shit gets crazy, and as you start to think "arrghhh my head, it's ERODING" the following track, There Is a Number of Small Things jumps to the rescue, like a Sunday morning brew and paracetamol. It soothes and warms, still with obscure drum hits to keep it interesting it builds up and bursts into life, the beat gets steadier, the vocalization kicks in and the true beauty of the song is released.
Random Summer, a more ambient piece feels as though it is closing what could be a four track EP, the first set of songs all sounding as if they were made to fit together so perfectly. The album's midpoint, "Asleep on the train" and "Awake on the train" go by with yet more flawless percussion, the balance between the bouncy drum hits and plonking synths hits perfection. And so the album steams on through yet more astonishingly good tracks, each movement fitting into the next flawlessly. And then, airy vocals hit you. An angelic voice sings over a raking guitar, the piece gradually builds up and drops us right back into the epileptic breaks once more.
The album rounds itself off with two consecutive eight and a bit minute epics. The first one clunks steadily like heavy machinery and then morphs into a monster! Everything intensifies, it's no so much glitch anymore, but some sort of ambient breakcore?! (now there's an oxymoron if i ever did coin one). Conclusively, the album reverts back to it's 9 year old self, but this time less excitable, more perplexed I suppose.
I am yet to discover an album quite like Ywdtwok, and it saddens me to think that, it will be unlikely that I ever will. This album is a real masterpiece, and Iceland can grant itself +10 awesomeness as a result.
Download it here.
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