There is a sense of the unknown surrounding Sigrun Loe Sparboe’s second solo outing, ‘Vindfang’. From the slightest of glances over the shoulder of the cover art, to finding a new home with a major record label and, of course, airing ten new compositions for the first time in the public domain, the sense of trepidation is palpable. The move back to her beloved Harstad, however, proved the perfect tonic when setting about the task of writing the songs making up ‘Vindfang’, as both time and space were found, in addition to the picturesque scenery of the local environment providing much inspiration to help inspire these new songs. Whilst there are various clues indicating a feeling of sailing in uncharted waters, ‘Vindfang’ reveals itself in parts as, musically, a record of steely determination and fresh ideas, but one that is smart enough to not stray too far from its previous sibling, ‘Uten at du vet det’, considering the perfect formula that was concocted for this debut record. It was always going to be an uphill task for Sigrun Loe Sparboe to surpass the previous glory of ‘Uten at du vet det’, but, masterfully, this folk songstress, along with her faithful in-house musicians, has managed to sample various aspects of her debut solo record and apply subtle changes to some of these previous arrangements and runaway with a succession of new songs. Wise judgement indeed as the daydream feel of ‘Paraply’, and title track, ‘Vindfang’, are the two candidates that bear the strongest resemblance to the aforementioned debut album. But there is progression here, and it proves to be Sparboe’s boldest and strongest statements with a beefed-up sound concerning one or two tracks, which are then counterbalanced with songs containing slightly fuller arrangements or, whisper it, considerable deviations from the folk brand. Such examples can be gleaned from the near muscular in its construction of opening gambit ‘Forliset’, as it’s a song with a real edge and bubbling intensity that begins at a slow canter, only to gather pace, where one can sense the fluctuating weather pattern of the northern region of her homeland during the transition from autumn to winter, and captured magnificently here in a mere five minutes. Further progression is made with the pop tones and brisk tempo of ’12 Spor’, that filters elements of folk music but ever so lightly, only to be usurped in the surprise stakes by the pounding rhythm and pop influenced ‘Som Fortjent’, leaving one to holler, “C’est magnifique!” at its conclusion. Clearly, this was not in the script yet these two songs do not sound out of place when nestling between more customary numbers as the stirring beauty of ‘Om Du Fortsatt Vil Ha Mæ’ or the cold, biting rhythm that drives the compelling ‘De Som Frosten Tok’ because there is a genuine cohesive whole to ‘Vindfang’. By guiding this latest album along similar routes, as well as taking risks by diverting away from traditional folk music, albeit in small doses, Sigrun Loe Sparboe is shaping up to be an artist with a definite strong vision and creative flair that is willing to test certain boundaries yet remain respectful to the genre her music is often categorised under. Once the contents of ‘Vindfang’ begins to unfurl and starts to familiarise itself, any notion of a sense of uncertainty soon diminishes, as it becomes apparent that Sigrun Loe Sparboe has successfully hurdled the ‘difficult’ second album syndrome by combining the strongest components of her debut solo record, and then rewriting these, before taking giant strides with a set of new ideas that provides the perfect balance between the old and new, and reveals a genuine natural progression until the third instalment in her career.