You know those moments in ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ when po-faced anchor Simon Cowell suddenly glances up appreciatively at the singing dog he was mocking and eye-rolling at only moments before with thatsmug knowing look on his face that says, “see how I discover them, what a talent I am”? Well I just had one of those.
Not that there’s a dog anywhere in Von August’s line up but I’m privileged to be in the position where I can bring them to your attention if you’ve missed them before in these pages.
I’ve said previously that they are notably high-brow and even if they were singing in English I’d probably have trouble understanding what it was all about.
But just as with their previous effort, ‘Codex’, getting their lyrical drift isn’t the be all and end all as the music is so moody and atmospheric it sucks you in on its own. In this instance it’s almost monastic and it’s no coincidence I invoked Dan Brown in the last review for this would be entirely appropriate to a film of one of his novels, as he chases around abandoned churches with his latest erudite floozy looking for the Arc of the Covenant or Mary Magdalene’s sandals, or whatever.
And the vocal interjection in the middle would have Cowell’s face lighting up. It could be Susan Boyle (who’s middle name by the way is Magdalane; I’m a mine of useless information).
The little trick they use to vary the tone of the synthesised notes works well but is in danger of being over-employed towards the end but that’s the only fault I can find in what is another impressive piece of work.
‘Skjedde bare skjedde’ translates as ‘Happened just happened’ which I don’t quite get but it’s all happening for Von August.
It is available now by way of Monstera Records. The album ‘Blåøyd’ (‘Blue-Eyed’) will be released on 20th von August. See what I did there?
Hopefully there might be a track or two in English?
Speaking of the ‘Got Talent’ international franchise, joint vocalist Klara Lucie Østrem Ossum should appear on it with just her name lit up in spotlights. It would bring the house down. I can’t get over it, it’s just fabulous. My favourite female name used to be that of the lovely Ethiopian athlete Tirunesh Dibaba but even she trails in a distant second to Klara’s.
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