Årabrot - Heart (2022)

Hailing from Norway, Kjetil Nernes and Karin Park are the duo known as Årabrot, a very eclectic and quite interesting Noise-Rock band. Usually a bit far from our regular cup of tea, we didn’t really get into the band until their intense set at L'Homme Sauvage 2022 in France earlier this year. The show’s intensity was palpable and both Kjetil and Karin are so charismatic that their music really clicked when seeing them deliver it live, luckily we also were able to capture it on our camera lens in this gallery.

In “Heart” the band delivers four very unique and atmospheric covers of well known tracks but with the band’s unique spin and vibrance added to the mix. After a funky intro, the cover of Nancy Sinatra’s “Lightning Girl” comes around and the band immediately does their own thing perfectly blending funky arrangements, distorted guitars and Karin’s talented vocals. Our favorite cover has to be the band’s version of Miklós Rózsa suite for Green Fire, as the original is an instrumental piece, but here we get some hypnotic vocals and a creepy Sabbath Assembly like vibe from it.

Brilliantly covering Marc Boland and T. Rex’s “Children of the Revolution”, we have Kjetil infusing some extra weirdness and magic to an already very unique 70’s song. The vocal arrangements are quite excellent in the band’s version of the song. The EP closes with a longer version of Coil’s “Going Up”, that still delivers the same bone-chilling atmospherics and perfectly timed vocal additions.

Overall, “Heart” is a very unique and definitely weird EP that showcases Årabrot in all their magical oddness. Having revisited the band’s previous releases after seeing them live for the first time, we have found appreciation for their unique style and powerful energy. While many bands are always looking to sound or be like others, this outfit is marking its own path with their own brand of weirdness and we love it.It is also worth mentioning that this EP comes in a heart-shape vinyl version that will certainly look great in our collection.

Label: Pelagic Records

Release: December 2nd, 2022

Genre: Noise-Rock

Country: Norway