Inåt by Erik Levander
An album where guitar white noise and Ambient swagger collide
On sixth album Inåt (translated as Inwards) Swedish producer Erik Levander mongers in ironclad, experimental music not dissimilar to Ben Frost, Rafael Anton Irisarri or Roly Porter. Composing with a caped majesty, the monumental scale of his work would lend itself to a blockbuster film soundtrack and a proper sound system. Opener Oförankrad for instance wields a devastating presence, sparking sonic synapse reactions, bulldozing through your senses (and that's just through my headphones). Then as the slow chord progression on Prövning emerges from a chaotic noise of thundering guitar feedback, a persistent pulsing heartbeat carries the listener through to the end.
The shift between light and dark is a recurring motif in Levander's music and is best wrought on centrepiece År av tvivel, a track that mixes a cacophony of white noise and guitar feedback offset by harrowing Ambient passages. The serene sense of ascending peace on closing track Celestrografi is fitting, not only offering balanced contrast to the preceding aural assault but the gently haunting melody elevates things to a quasi holy level, bringing to mind Abul Mogard's And We Are Passing Through Silently remixes.