Composed in the 14th or 15th century Odin’s Raven Magic is an Icelandic poem in the ancient Edda tradition (Edda - a term that describes two Icelandic manuscripts which together are the main sources of Norse mythology and Skáldic poetry) its anonymous author clearly had an intimate knowledge of the Edda literature and mythology which alludes to a number of pagan motifs which are now lost. The poem recounts a great banquet held by the gods in Valhalla while they were absorbed in their feasting, ominous signs appeared that could foretell the end of the worlds of the gods and men.
The album 'Odin’s Raven Magic' is an orchestral collaboration between Sigur Rós, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, Steindór Andersen and Maria Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir which premiered 18 years ago at the Barbican Centre in London and is now finally almost two decades later being released. The performance honours the poem, dramatic and beautiful, classical and contemporary. A stone marimba was built especially for the performance by Páll Guðmundsson.
Odin’s Raven Magic - the poem - had been relegated from mainstream ancient literature ever since 1867, when Norwegian scholar Sophus Bugge claimed it was a 17th century fabrication. This theory has since been toppled with literary and linguistic arguments and new research has concluded that Odin’s Raven Magic was indeed authentic and has finally been reintroduced to the Edda.

1997 EMI release, their fourth album (1988) digitally remastered. The album features six extended ambient tracks, including 'Desire', 'Eden' and 'I Believe In You'.

On May 13, Swans will release their next album, To Be Kind, the followup to 2012's epic The Seer, via Young God/Mute. It features a number of guest contributors, including St. Vincent's Annie Clark, Little Annie, Cold Specks, and Bill Rieflin.

Keith Kenniff mustn’t sleep at all, after releasing the incredible Goldmund album ‘Corduroy Road’ for Type early in 2005 he was already busy at work crafting his second record as Helios; all this while finishing a degree at the acclaimed Berklee College of Music in Boston! ‘Eingya’ is very different from his work as Goldmund, as it incorporates not only his piano playing, but his delicate touch on guitar, drums and his masterful electronic production. It is an album of wordless songs, eleven carefully measured movements, each holding inside it an entire movie’s worth of emotion. Beginning the album on a high with the pastural beauty of ‘Bless This Morning Year’ we witness a showcase already of what Kenniff does best; hearbreaking guitar and piano melodies punctuated by crumbling beats and backed by the most atmospheric synthesizer sounds this side of Eno’s ‘Apollo’. Moving on we are treated to the appetising ‘Halving the Compass’ which blends subtle field recording with the kind of piano melodies so beautiful they could be compared to Virginia Astley or Harold Budd. This is followed by the album’s clear highlight – ‘Dragonfly Across an Ancient Land’; an unsurpassable folk guitar piece with a decomposing percussive background and the sort of melodies that would turn evil tyrants into weeping babies. An album which could as easily appeal to fans of Nick Drake as fans of Boards of Canada or even early Air; this truly has something for everyone. To put it simply – it’s gorgeous.

The second album, first released in 2009. Also available on both CD and vinyl at Blueneck.com.
Download 'Seven' for FREE!
For all publishing/synchronisation enquiries please email hello@blueneck.com
credits
released November 1, 2009
Written and performed by Blueneck. Additional cello parts by Sandy Bartai. Engineered and produced by Corin Dingley (Don't Touch Recordings). Music and recordings owned by Blueneck. Copyright Blueneck 2009.

Recorded by Silent Whale Becomes A° Dream and Yannick Tournier
String Direction by Julien Costa
Mastered by Jeremy Henry at Villa Mastering
Photography by Christine Drouillard
The brightness of day has come to an end. The setting sun lays out a crimson path over the water. Our spirit flies free with the migrating birds effortlessly gliding through the spindrift then swiftly soaring overhead.
There are instances in life when one is left standing on a cliff contemplating what it would be like to leap off the edge. Standing on the edge of a cliff gets you thinking about the different outcomes of a possible situation. It also tests your decisiveness. There is a short moment of time when taking in the view, that our fear of heights is subdued by the desire to fly and perhaps even the sudden belief that we can. The longer we feed on these inconsistent thoughts, the less grounded we become and the more likely it is that we will leap and plunge to our death.
Overlooking an opulent ocean induces a dreamlike state. This is the sea. the sea that returns memories. It is a mirror to our soul. From high up we grasp our fists tightly, fully realising our insignificance, remembering and releasing everything we had chosen to forget. This is where all is laid bare with total abandon. Where we lose our inhibitions, remove the many masks and costumes that have hidden our tears yet failed to dispel our dejection. With no control and no restraint over our emotions, we engage in sincere resignation-filled monologues of acceptance uttering I have lost you, I shall never be with you again, oh my love, oh my heart, my life”.
To the sea, we release everything for it so zealously keeps our secrets. From the sea, we regain the will to rise again.

this, this long-playing record, a thing we made in the midst of communal mess, raising dogs and children. eyes up and filled with dreadful joy – we aimed for wrong notes that explode, a quiet muttering amplified heavenward. we recorded it all in a burning motorboat.
(context as follows:)
1. UNDOING A LUCIFERIAN TOWERS – look at that fucking skyline! big lazy money writ in dull marble obelisks! imagine all those buildings much later on, hollowed out and stripped bare of wires and glass, listen- the wind is whistling through all 3,000 of its burning window-holes!
2. BOSSES HANG – labor, alienated from the wealth it creates, so that holy cow, most of us live precariously! kicking at it, but barely hanging on! also – the proud illuminations of our shortened lives! also – more of us than them! also – what we need now is shovels, wells, and barricades!
3. FAM / FAMINE – how they kill us = absentee landlord, burning high-rise. the loud panics of child-policemen and their exploding trigger-hands. with the dull edge of an arbitrary meritocracy. neglect, cancer maps, drone strike, famine. the forest is burning and... more
releases September 22, 2017
PERSONNEL
Aidan Girt: Drums
David Bryant: Electric guitar, MG-One
Efrim Manuel Menuck: Electric guitar, organ, OP-1
Karl Lemieux: 16mm film projections
Mauro Pezzente: Electric bass
Michael Moya: Electric guitar
Sophie Trudeau: Violins, organ
Thierry Amar: Contrebasse, electric bass
Timothy Herzog: Drums
GUESTS ON TRACK ONE
Bonnie Kane (saxophone, flute, electronics)
Craig Pederson (trumpet)
Recorded by Greg Norman at Hotel 2 Tango and The Pines.
Mixed by Greg Norman and GYBE at Hotel 2 Tango.
Masted by Harris Newman at Greymarket.

待望のフル.アルバム発売!! 9月リリースのクラシック.ピアノ.アルバム「ISOLATION」と対を成すかたちで制作された「PURPLE」は、スパングル的レイドバック感あふれるメロウなサウンド満載のニュー.アルバム。前作のクラシカルでモノクロームな雰囲気とは打って変わって、本来の持ち味でもあるバンドアンサンブル中心の曲構成と、リリカルでありながら同時にシニカルな側面も見え隠れするウエット&ドライな作風に磨きをかけ、ラフなストリート感も増幅させたヒップな内容。トミーゲレロやアメリカの西海岸文化のようなメロウでソウルなビーチ&サウダージ感と、ヨラテンゴや北欧エレクトロニカ勢などの鬱蒼とした音のレイヤード感覚がうまく混ざり合ったスパングルの新たな定番。

Genre: Instrumental Post-Rock / Piano / Ambient with electronic influence
Country: Ukraine, Odessa

冰岛新的年轻天才，很有涵养的Olafur Arnalds 能把古典元素融合在氛围和微电子节拍里，有Sigur Ros的味道，也有Mum的感觉。
Olafur Arnalds原来在家乡Mosfellsbaer离雷克雅维克偏壤的一个小镇上，他同时身兼多支Hardcore乐队的鼓手职务，先是替友人的乐团My Summer as a Salvation Soldier担任多项乐器伴奏，还获邀为美国Indie-Rock乐团Cursive担任德国巡回演出的伴奏乐手。Olafur Arnalds的个人音乐作品以钢琴和弦乐为主， 与其说是post-rock， 不如干脆说是modern classical。

"Iceland's best new export comes in the shape of Eulogy For Evolution!"
"If you thought Sigur Rós had the patent on hauntingly beautiful and meticulously compelling music coming out of Iceland, then Ólafur Arnalds is here to educate you otherwise. - Eulogy For Evolution is perhaps this years most hauntingly emotive sounding experience'"
冰島繼Sigur Rós、Jóhann Jóhannsson、Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson之後，地表上最罕見的動人樂章。
「Eulogy For Evolution」其實是一張非常特殊的唱片，誠如上一段介紹裡提到，Ólafur Arnalds原來在家鄉Mosfellsbær離雷克雅維克偏壤的一個小鎮上，他同時身兼多支Hardcore樂隊的鼓手職務，理應深受重型搖滾音樂的薰染甚過於古典音樂；可是在「Eulogy For Evolution」這張唱片裡，卻處處見到了半古典音樂編制，鋼琴、提琴與弦樂四重奏的鋪排架構，Ólafur Arnalds玩的是猶如Erik Satie、Claude Debussy等人深鬱的鋼琴樂曲，聽來頗有電影配樂般的壯闊景致。Ólafur Arnalds肯定會被拿來與Sigur Rós等人相作比較，無論從草創時期的音樂涉獵，亦或是其後音樂創作上從容不迫的大器，那都有無數可以比較的理由。專輯裡8首曲目全以4位數字來作為標題，看似時間又像是一套數字密碼，彷彿非得解開其背後的動機，才能完整理解Ólafur Arnalds的創作。專輯中除了3055與終幕曲3704／3837等兩首曲子適切地加入了鼓擊與電吉他的噪音聲浪，其餘6部作品均是以鋼琴、弦樂為對話，靜謐而深刻地描繪著對於環境的讚佩。
開場曲0040即是一首辨識度極高的鋼琴演奏曲，旋律非常耳熟；Ólafur Arnalds十指落於黑白琴鍵上的力量，彷彿主宰著天地宇宙，任憑他撥一片雲、淌一團霧，在哀怨苦楚的弦樂伴奏下，叫我想起的是希臘大師安哲羅普洛斯 (Theo Angelopoulos)的電影。我想若能親臨Ólafur Arnalds與弦樂隊的演出現場，一定會叫自己落淚。0048／0729在濕潤的Reverb所凝結的空間氣氛下，遠處傳來微弱的斑鳩琴的哀鳴，既深刻、亦悲楚。0952裡散落的琴音，與愁雲般的弦樂糾結在一塊，彷彿是怎麼拉扯也散不開。1440若來作為電影配樂，絕對相當契合；Ólafur Arnalds花了許多精力在鋼琴的獨奏鋪排上，總是緩慢、緩慢地勾起了一絲絲懸疑、一絲絲宏偉的史詩架構。專輯中最漫長的旅途1953，Ólafur Arnalds彷彿平復了劇烈的情緒，安分地作為故事的引導者，引領聽者一步步地踏往深處的陰極。3326突然又轉為室內樂曲，透過中、小提琴穿插排列出的層次，呈現與前6首曲子截然不同的氣氛。而終幕曲3704／3837的巧妙鋪設，Hardcore音樂、電子剪輯手法，彷彿電台司令之於 Paranoid Android，那種瘋狂、錯亂的景致，叫人愛不釋手。
多才多藝的Ólafur Arnalds也沒有完全丟下對搖滾樂的熱情，先是替友人的樂團My Summer as a Salvation Soldier擔任多項樂器伴奏，還獲邀為美國Indie-Rock樂團Cursive擔任德國巡迴演出的伴奏樂手。完全無法想像，Ólafur Arnalds這居中的多重音樂性格，哪一個才是原來的自己；又或許是性格冷漠卻喜愛尋求刺激的冰島人，的確有著異於常人的敏銳觸覺。「Eulogy For Evolution」是一張驚心動魄、具有罕見美感的音樂大製作，似乎連唱片封套設計都不敢馬虎。而唱片則交由倫敦新銳音樂廠牌Erased Tapes Records於10月29日發行。