After the Swedish experiment that was ‘Till Harry’, Hege makes a welcome return with the single, ‘If You Have To Cry’. Taken from the forthcoming album, ‘When My Man Comes To Town’, this first offering from Hege marks a return to use of the English language, and one that will lift the restrictions for those who were unable to join in with the formerly mentioned ‘Till Harry’ long player. Where that previous album made heavy use of piano, the new single, ‘If You Have To Cry’, sees Hege opt for the more traditional rock and roll setup of bass, guitar and drums, with the addition of pedal steel because this is country music after all. The single itself is something of a mystery as the contents of the narrative makes for a compelling listen, with a closely guarded secret held between two central characters that alludes to some form of wrongdoing being the only giveaway. Repeat visits will only generate further questions as to the songs overall meaning, always a good sign when it comes to the art of song writing which, along with Hege’s emphatic vocal delivery that is suggestive of Dolly Parton with the slightest grain of Gillian Welch, are good enough reasons to keep coming back for more.

Incredible to think that Binghamton and Brooklyn’s Cold Sweats formed only five months ago, yet here they are with full album in hand and living true to that punk DIY ethic where rock and roll really is for everyone, if you have the audacity to give it a go that is. What’s even more impressive, however, is the manner in which Cold Sweats set about their business by constructing a series of songs that contain a considerable amount of variation between the layers of punk rock, where influences range from indie, pop and surf rock, but ultimately Cold Sweats has managed to cultivate a sound that is uniquely their own. Evidence of this can be garnered from the opening song, ‘The Business’ that stretches out its message by means of wavering guitar noises and a sinister vocal that has a habit of lingering, before crossing paths and imploding in a crescendo of noise. Elsewhere, ‘Coney Island Cops’ is straining at the leash, full of snarling attitude via its vocal and backed with a real vicious edge by way of a razor-sharp guitar. It’s a definite short sharp jolt to the system, and one with a single finger salute to authority. As mentioned, rather than pursuing the formulaic route of a punk rock album, Cold Sweats continue the variation with the scathing sentiments of ‘Waste of a Day’, that comes complete with a jarring guitar riff and pounding drums that manages to wedge itself deep in the mind, and continue echoing there long after it’s finished. ‘Souvenir’ takes an immediate stranglehold via the guitar and pretty much continues its hold over the entire song, only to find next the vocal taking centre stage, or at least try, as it staggers about in what sounds like a drunken state, relaying fragments of disaffected lives during ‘Problem Kids’. With the album having been produced by Hunter Davidsohn and recorded in a destitute and abandoned area of Binghamton, which just happens to be home to Twilight Zone creator Rod Sterling, it’s no wonder that Cold Sweats became influenced, in part, by their surroundings, where a combination of an extremely raw punk sound, in addition to various aspects of post-hardcore, combined with darker and more eccentric influences such as The Cramps, for example, can be heard,. ‘Social Coma’ is an astute collection of ideas, compellingly executed, and one that stands (far) outside the usual formula and expectations when it comes to punk rock albums, which makes this long player one of the definite highlights of this year without any doubt.

By producing a sound that is more in line with the alternative rock and early grunge that was vastly popular during 90’s America, but not without notable mentions to the likes of early shoegaze with UK indie band Ride, the band at the centre of this glorious racket that is the double A side single, ‘Monochrome / Derailed’, is Leatherneck. The North West of England is the actual destination where Leatherneck has been busy constructing these two songs that run similar themes reflecting on life’s struggles, and the changes these can bring in terms of the people involved and how they’re perceived. The backdrop, musically, to both of these narratives is gritty and guitar-driven, but not without subtle melodic touches that can be heard during both numbers. For example, there’s a definite sweet edge to the guitars of ‘Monochrome’ that sweep along at considerable pace, and countered by the blunt edges of the vocal that makes for a compelling experience. The other offering, ‘Derailed’, is similar in its delivery, only the guitars possess a greater sheen (that’s not a reference to being commercial by the way) which, by the song’s conclusion, are sounding absolutely red hot. An EP is scheduled for next year which, on the basis of this current single, is worth further investigation, especially to see whether Leatherneck can expand on their sound to add variation to the quality set by ‘Monochrome / Derailed’.

Recorded live at Charlatan, Ghent, earlier this year, Elefant fill the room with a largely instrumental sound that contains warped guitars, kraut rock, sludge and interestingly, in their words, “nachtwinkel” that translates as night shop for their current EP ‘Nordic Tanzen Am Sonntag’. Opening track ‘Proteus’ is the stuff of late nights, where a nightmarish vision exists via sinister guitars with bouts of distortion, and a backbeat that gives the impression of wading through sludge and making for a very claustrophobic experience. Follow on track, ‘Smithers’, continues along similar lines, only its rhythm is struggling at greater depths with its bass scraping along the bottom yet, despite such adverse conditions, Elefant mange such difficulties by creating an impressive and absolute monster of a rhythm. From these two heavy slabs of instrumentation, the load lessens somewhat during ‘Elefanten’ with the guitars providing direction, yet still fuelling the band’s sound with a creepy element as heard by the skeletal tones of the guitars and additional keyboards. It’s not all about providing a soundtrack, however, as Elefant show that they can do conventional which, by their standards, is still some considerable distance from such a description with the concluding, and frenzied state of ‘Depression’, where instruments intertwine and go into overload with only brief respites via the lead vocal. A real surprise, and one that will take some adjusting to considering its off-kilter approach compared to what’s currently out there, Elefant’s ‘Nordic Tanzen Am Sonntag’ is a welcome addition as well as a welcome relief.

Limited to a mere 150 copies is the new ambient long player from Ruhe with ‘Patriarchs’. Mastered by Ian Hawgood in September this year, the work that is presented is largely a succession of instrumentals designed for the wee small hours that suggests nothing but a lonely, isolated state where the only company that exists are one’s own thoughts. Bleak as that may sound, the song writing crafted is of the highest calibre as it carefully depicts the loneliness by means of instrumentation that is raw and stripped back where you can almost sense the cold creeping in under the doorways or up through the cracks in the floorboards, adding further fuel to the melancholy of this album. Examples of this can be gleaned from the title track, ‘Patriarchs’, which plays out like a forgotten record player with a sustained hiss in the background and its piano accompaniment filling the space of cold empty rooms, only to be momentarily broken by the crackle of a faint voice that sounds equally forgotten and consequently left in time. Fragments of this track seep into the next song, ‘Felled’, with the piano, along with filtered harmonised vocals unearthing the beauty at the bottom of this instrumental in a combined effort towards its conclusion. Speaking of beautiful, ‘Guide’ adds shards of light via its piano melody but is frustratingly cut short midway through, due to changing direction and leaving one to ponder that, in life, you can’t have everything. With this album being a warts and all affair, ‘Shelter’ is probably the closest you will get to experiencing an artist at work where it’s the sound of ideas being tried out for the first time (piano lid closing, stools creaking, shuffling of feet, etc.) and then patched together. With ‘Patriarchs’ expressing an overall sense of solitude, never has such seclusion from the rest of the world sounded so appealing with the fragile compositions making up this album.

Beautifully presented with the upmost care and attention to detail is the latest album by Finn Coren with ‘På Jorden et sted – Utvalgte Nordiske dikt’ (‘Somewhere On Earth – Selected Nordic Poems’). With this being his seventh solo album, and the third in a separate series that focuses on Nordic poets, Finn Coren has arranged his songs to provide an interpretation of the poetry from fourteen different Nordic poets. The poems selected will be familiar to those who grew up in such surroundings, or those who simply have a taste for Nordic culture, as the poetry centres on a selection of well-known classics from these regions, in addition to a few lesser known choices. Considering the level of detail gone into making these songs, it comes as no surprise that the majority of these tracks have been under construction for some considerable time. That’s not to say that Finn Coren has not received additional help in order to bring this latest album to life, as no less than four other musicians including Øyvind Fossheim (piano), Gjermund Kolltveit (Hardanger fiddle, kanklės), Stian Omenås (trumpet) and Lars Fredrik Frøislie (Mellotron, Chamberlin) contributed to the making of ‘På jorden et sted – Utvalgte Nordiske dikt’. With the chosen poetry relaying themes – three core themes in fact – concerned with life, love and death and inspired by classical and folk music, Finn Coren breathes the poetic words in a hushed manner that complements the often pared back sound of the instruments. ‘Salme’ is one such example where the vocals and largely grand piano provides an intimate experience that, in its combined state, drowns out all other external interferences such is the song’s alluring power. The intimacy grows even further with the pairing of acoustic guitar and faintest of horns during ‘Innbying’, that sees the vocals flit between the already mentioned whispered tones to spoken word passages making for a stirring piece of work. Finn Coren blossoms somewhat during ‘Sång’ and is accompanied by gorgeous sounding strings, only for the mood to blacken with the funeral procession feel of ‘Alle veier bort fra dig’ that, musically, could find a home on a Tom Waits album. With jagged edges all round adding to the compelling narrative of ‘Havet’, and the opening ‘Salme’ given another outing via an instrumental reworking, ‘På jorden et sted – Utvalgte Nordiske dikt’ is an absorbing experience full of light and shade, and one that is skilfully managed by way of its musicianship and chosen poetry that marks out album number seven for Finn Coren as really rather special.