Album Review: Eik – Undetected
3 min read
Scandinavia has always been a fairly fruitful source of quality pop music over the years. Sweden in particular has seen pop music rise from the days of Abba and remain a prominent fixture on the international market ever since with the likes of heavyweight acts including Roxette, The Cardigans, Ace of Base and Robyn all making waves and showing the rest of the world that the country may be small but it is a musical force just as powerful and relevant as it’s UK and US competition. Norway has also seen a fair amount of attention cast upon it with the likes of a-ha and Royksopp finding their place within the nations most influential and recognised musical exports.
With an abundance of talent surging from the Nordic countries over the years the time seems just about right for a new band to rise into the mainstream and that band is Eik. Made up of Oslo based Per Kare Limmesand and Kristoffer Carlsen, Eik have been working hard at crafting their sound and encapsulating that sound on the duo’s debut record which is out on Monday.
Undetected is the acts first dive into mainstream waters and the collection consists of ten well composed and superbly tweaked electronic gems that echo is the bands influences which include Goldfrapp and Royksopp. Playing along in similar style to the bands heroes we are guided through the opening All That She Said. A gentle and softly sung opener to the record the song ushers us into the duos gifted songwriting talents as some sweet textured female vocals move us through one of the records more commercial additions and Love Storm which seems to be doing particularly well as the bands introductory single and one that holds its place on the album with confidence and persuasion to keep the listener wanting just that extra bit more. With it’s instrumentation that sounds like it would have been the perfect fit for the soundtrack of Bladerunner.
The album then takes a more techno influenced turn and we are offered a kaleidoscope of ambiance and charm with tracks like the aptly titled Background Music for Documentarie which twists and turns around a spacey key theme while Thinking Of which sits further toward the end of the track-listing boasts anther female vocal dominated number while sitting around a stripped back and instrumentally minimalistic foundation shaped heavily by what sounds like a drum machine – less is more with this track as they show us.
If the current surge of electronic loving pop delights is your thing and you enjoy the mainstream appeal of acts like Goldfrapp or even Groove Amada then Eik might just be the highlight missing from your current record collection. Fresh, inspiring and dripping with just the right amount of commercial appeal without sounding like sell outs before their time, Undetected has got us here at Renowned For Sound all warm and fuzzy from the inside out and we think this duo are on the brink of hitting the big time with their brand of engaging electronic satisfaction.
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Interviewing and reviewing the best in new music and globally recognized artists is his passion.
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