Tripper

VINYL FORMAT. Copenhagen's Efterklang reach far beyond the expectations of a debut with their ambitious first album for The Leaf Label. The ten-member group's music whispers like thunder, combining glacial strings, febrile electronic rhythms, hushed male-female vocals (reminiscent of My Bloody Valentine) and a Greenlandic choir - all joining together to a transcendent whole. Tripper was a year in the making, and it captures the intricate majesty of the best film soundtracks and most evocative classical works. Efterklang means 'reverberation' (literally, 'after noise'), but is loosely translated as 'remembrance.' Both definitions capture the band's effect; a strong sense of yearning lies at the heart of their work, while ghosts of aggression linger menacingly along the edges. Tripper breathes with sensations and subtleties and emotional depth, bringing to mind the music of Rachel's, Múm or Mogwai. Formed in early 2001 by Mads Brauer, Casper Clausen and Rasmus Stolberg, the core members soon augmented their line-up with Rune Mølgaard Fonseca's piano and Thomas Kirirath Husmer's percussion work. This line-up recorded their debut EP (and sole release to date), Springer, on their own Rumraket label. The current line-up completed by Nils Karlsson (trumpet) and Kristina Schjelde (trombone), together with members of Iceland's Amina string quartet, known for their extraordinary work with Sigur Rós.