The Scandinavian music scene has established itself worldwide in recent years, and among its leading exponents is certainly Norway. Home to two of the most interesting and refined projects that we have had the pleasure of covering in our webzine. Having said that, let’s talk about this collaboration, or split album would be better, involving Jordsjø and Breidablik. Titled “Kontraster,” it was released on April 25, 2025 via Apollon Records and contains two epic tracks of 20 minutes each. The first side is by Jordsjø, who immediately immerse us in the sounds that have characterised their discography. Buckle up because the journey is very long but also very enjoyable, exploring the different facets that characterise their style over the course of more than 19 minutes. The band interweaves Progressive Rock with keyboards as protagonists with long textures steeped in Psychedelia and Nordic Folk, with guitar and flute solo inserts. The atmospheres of Scandinavian Progressive Rock permeate the song, bringing classic sounds into a modern and persoal context. The sound changes on the second side, dedicated to the epic track by Breidablik, another Norwegian trio involving Hakon Oftung, with Morten Birkeland Nielsen on synth and Trond Gjellum on drums. The electronic component is a characteristic feature of the band’s sound, opening the track with a hypnotic melody of synths and effects modulations, with guitar and flute solo inserts. The references to 1970s German music in its most experimental sense are evident, but the band proposes its own highly original style between electronic and progressive. In a continuous musical crescendo, the song in the second half introduces drumming and the guitar offers a prolonged solo cue. In the finale, the track ends with markedly electronic and Ambient sounds, with the synth leading us towards the end of the disc. As mentioned at the beginning, the Scandinavian scene is full of interesting projects and works, and this album is proof of that. A collaboration between two bands that offer two diametrically opposed styles of prog, retro Jordsjø and more electronic and experimental Breidablik, perfectly complement each other. The two long suites enhance and enhance the characteristics of the two bands, and confirm their qualities. A recommended listen for lovers of both the more classic Prog sounds with keyboards-flute-guitar in evidence, and the more electronic side with references to Kosmische Musik, for over 40 minutes of refined music.
01. Jordsjø – Kontraster (19:50)
02. Breidablik – Kontraster (20:13)
Lineup
Jordsjø
Hakon Oftung / Vocals, Guitars, Flute, Keyboards
Kristian Frland / Drums, Percussion
Breidablik
Hakon Oftung / Guitars, Flute
Morten Birkeland Nielsen / Synthesizers
Trond Gjellum / Drums