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May 06, 2021 Issue #68 - Japanese Breakfast and HAIM (The Protest Issue) By Dom Gourlay

Having emerged from Copenhagen’s disparate punk scene some 13 years ago, Iceage have cemented themselves as one of the most uncompromising bands on the planet. Viscerally unpredictable yet never underwhelming in their output or delivery, each of the band’s four albums thus far told its own story whilst highlighting a different side of its creators’ armory.

Indeed, it is probably fair to say they have become synonymous with taking guitar music to new territories, ones yet to be discovered that were not previously fulfilled in the past. So, it should not come as any surprise that Seek Shelter pushes the envelope once again. Their first collection of new material since 2018’s Beyondless, Seek Shelter is also the first to feature new recruit Casper Morilla Fernandez. This addition on guitar only adds to the ferocious delivery we have come to expect from one of the most consistent bands of the past decade.

Having delved with post-punk, noise, hardcore, and psychedelia at various points of their illustrious career, Seek Shelter sees them fuse all of the aforementioned with occasional forays into rhythm and blues. Comparisons with Primal Scream immediately rise to the fore, particularly on gospel-tinged opener “Shelter Song” or fast-paced rocker “Dear Saint Cecilia.” Both tracks bear a passing resemblance to Primal Scream’s Give Out But Don’t Give Up period. Elias Bender Rønnenfelt’s unmistakable yowl adds another notch on Iceage’s instinctively diverse belts. Elsewhere, “Vendetta” takes a maraca-heavy journey through groovier climates, while closing couplet “The Wider Powder Blue” and “The Holding Hand” reaffirm Iceage’s panache for delivering epic sonnets with dexterous aplomb.

Iceage were aided and abetted in the control room by Pete Kember (aka Sonic Boom), whose masterful presence made him an unofficial sixth member of the band, and the album was recorded over 12 days at Kember’s studio near Lisbon. Seek Shelter is an album that surges irrepressibly from the outset and peaks at regular intervals over the course of its nine pieces. It represents Iceage’s most studied body of work to date. (www.iceagecopenhagen.eu)

Author rating: 8.5/10