Efterklang are an arty Danish band that successfully craft a mix of post-rock with a sniff of dreampop, through the medium of IDM. The main drive of the majority of the songs is clicks and cuts from the glitch genre as well as its tonally more extreme cousin microsound. Basically, it’s a very good and original idea that would come closest to Sigur Rós on a laptop, had there not been Múm, sounding awfully similar. However this might take away their respect enjoyed in the field of originality, their qualities and levels of experimentation are not less.

We are taken on nine journeys trough nine songs, starting with very fragile little tweaks and details in innocent and shy breakbeat configurations. Not to disturb the fairy’s play, the vocals are added most gently and almost whispered. The choice of a male and female voice singing mostly exactly the same, gives the record an exclusive character, of a dreamy kind. Then there is room for other instruments: keys, strings and even a very welcome trombone lift the songs into dream-space. There is surely elevation, a crescendo, but the songs do not build up into epic releases of power as in the Godspeed You! Black Emperor school, or into emotional climaxes home to Sigur Rós. Efterklang is rather about the atmosphere, a spacey fairytale, a dream. I could say this is accessible, yet I would then be lying to the microsound element, exploring the rather extreme regions of the sound-spectrum.

In summation, Tripper is a highly enjoyable record with a convincing atmosphere and a very rare, yet not unique, sound. Sure, they do sound a lot like Múm, one might even call it a rip-off, but fact is, they are quite good at it. Fragile and intriguing in every aspect, dreaming of beautiful lands in result. Let this fairy keep you spellbound.

Videos:
Efterklang – Swarming
Efterklang – Prey And Predator
Efterklang – Chapter 6

Note: In time these links will likely become outdated.