Silver
Apollon, 2020
8/10
Describing Norway’s Aadal is no easy task, as the quartet are equally versed in jazz as they are prog-rock, and there’s also bits on Americana and metal present in their very striking instrumental formula on this fascinating listen.
“Looking Back” starts the listen with frisky percussion and warm saxophone in an atmospheric jazz setting that builds into a controlled chaos with the brass, and “Dusty” continues the unpredictable nature with tumbling drumming and a darker prog-rock approach.
A listen where each track offers new surprises, “Revival” flows with mature melodies amid plenty of soulful Americana, while “Telegram” burns slow with a hypnotic quality where strings add much to the soothing climate. “Follow The Sun”, the album highlight, then pairs a moody landscape with precise, gorgeous restraint that’s cinematic and artistic.
Late in the listen, “The Last Walk” shimmers with a post-rock meets classic rock execution, and “The Canyon” exits the listen with bare, spirited guitar work that builds into a percussively heavy, charged display of driving prog-rock with metallic tendencies.
There certainly isn’t much- if anything- out there that follows a similar path to Aadal, and their very atypical vision towards genre meshing makes every second of Silver captivating.
Travels well with: Weserbergland- Am Ende der Welt; The Opium Taylor- Valor