For Ásgeir‘s fourth solo album, these strange times of introspection and separation have found him engrossed in the studio, pushing his ethereal brand of electronic folk-pop in fresh directions.
Concentrating on his angelic vocals and layering swathes of perfectly produced sound around him, he draws the listener into his carefully constructed sonic world, images of his frozen homeland abounding.
Time On My Hands is muffled, gentle and slippery, the electronic and acoustic elements tying together to produce a frame for his plaintive voice. It is a warm, welcoming sound as if the listener were bobbing in the blue lagoon while snow falls around. The music moves like a well-oiled machine but with many moving parts, everything merging in an icy mosaic.The synthetic melancholy of “Vibrating Walls” owes much to the brass embellishment which lends an air of hope, and the use of the brass throughout the album is one of the many extra touches that move the sound on. His native Iceland is a regular vision as the album progresses, that mysterious island reflecting back on the mood of the album; the acoustic folk feel of “Giantess”, with its ancient-sounding loop or the patchwork quilt of “Like I Am” that hints at influences long forgotten.
Everything is tied together by the voice though as it moves effortlessly from the soul ballad stylings of “Waiting Room” right on to the intimacy of album closer ”Limitless”. Here we find the veil lifting and Ásgeir moving up close, its electronic swoop and clatter only adding to the acoustic imagery.-Mr Olivetti-
