The Quiet North 🇳🇴 - ‘Tremble’ (single)
- Andy
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
I wrote about noisy post punk outfit Green Tea Bitches earlier this week, and couldn’t help pointing out that we do spend a fair amount of time featuring artists that we love very much, but that do seem to spend a disproportionate amount of time staring slightly sadly into a pine forest. Of course I missed the obvious point that this should be a genre in its own right, a distant cousin of Shoegaze, known as Pinegaze (other Nordic tree species are available) and The Quiet North even has a Spotify profile photo that seems to suggest he’s a perfect fit.
I had The Quiet North on some of my listening playlists last year, but never had chance to write about any of his new releases. New track ‘Tremble’ is a stand out early New Year release, a natural, organic sounding song that I think suits ‘the cold clarity’ that Fredrik Kristiansen is trying to achieve through his music.
Built from a blend of melancholic folk and ambient textures, it unfolds slowly, with patience and quiet confidence. Nothing here is rushed, instead the songs builds in volume and intensity gradually and there’s a feeling of restraint musically too.. That’s matched by the lyrics, which have a calm strength:
“I've learned to breathe between it
To hold the fear with open palms
If the dark comes back to find me
I′ll just leave the door ajar”
Kristiansen is an excellent songwriter and lyricist, and tracks such as ‘Southbound’ and ‘Family of the Northern Hemisphere’ are particularly effective for me.
We look forward to future releases. Release Date. 7th January