I wrote about Icelandic band Suð back in 2016 when they suddenly reappeared with an album entitled ‘Meira Suð’. It was a welcome return for a band who’d been in hibernation for around 10 years, and thankfully they haven’t left it quite so long before returning with a follow up. Entitled ‘Vesen’, it’s a 10 track album from the 3 piece who have a conventional lo-fi indie rock spirit, taking influences from 90s American rock bands, maybe with a healthy dose of punk / post punk influences too.
Immediately noticeable in ‘Vesen‘ is the band seem to have developed a little more of a sophisticated, and maybe even a ‘produced’ sound. Opening track Hægjum á is a good example, because the band are patient in their build up, slowly layering on the sound, and creating the effect of the track speeding up, when the song title is telling is that we all need to ‘slow down’. It’s a really clever, effective opener.
There is one track ‘Shakin’ that isn’t written in Icelandic, sent to me helpfully with the notes, ’’The only Suð song in English because all the other ones are in Icelandic’’, and it’s clear why this has become a firm favourite on a fair few Indie playlists across the globe, including of course our own NMR New Indie Playlist. It’s a post punk romp, delivered at speed, with a catchy vocal line and just 2 minutes long too, it really doesn’t hang around.
But personally I quite like that new slightly developed sound, which is an evolution I think rather than revolution. Tracks such as ‘Glaumgosi’ show the band in a slightly different light too, reflective but building to a dynamic conclusion. But I guess whilst Suð maybe a little older and wiser, they’re still just indie kids at heart, playing guitar music as loudly as they want, and ‘Vesen’ is, as expected, an enjoyable listen.