PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Norwegian noise-rock veterans Arabrot revealed their new song and video, ‘Rebekka (Tragoedie)’ taken from upcoming LP The Gospel (February 26 via Fysisk Format). Directed by Olle Lundin with effects by Tor Edvin Eliassen, the video is a direct reflection of the band’s distinct and dark sound.
Staring into the camera but masked entirely by silhouettes, Årabrot’s mainman Kjetil Nernes laments feelings of being, as he said when he announced The Gospel, “a lonely warrior on a summit looking out over a battle field, the smoke from the bomb craters, an all-encompassing silence.” Barely noticeable but gradually making her presence more known, a woman stands in the distance, waiting to deliver Nernes the shot that will end his life. Watch below.
“Rebekka” not only concludes The Gospel, but also strengthens the entire album’s appeal. Nernes wrote the LP while undergoing surgery, treatment, and recovery for malignant throat cancer. This experience directly informed the album: “You sink to the bottom of the sea. All of a sudden you are back on the surface again, stupefied. And hungry! A wicked hunger for everything human life has to offer: Sex! War! Drugs! You breathe, but not like before. ‘The man who has been in hell never forgets,'” said Nernes regarding The Gospel.
The Gospel was recorded partly at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio in Chicago and partly in an old church in the woods of Dalarna, Sweden, where Nernes lives and runs his studio these days. For this album, the band’s ever-revolving crew of contributors has expanded to include legendary musicians such as Ted Parsons (Killing Joke, Swans, Prong) on drums, Andrew Liles (Current 93/Nurse With Wound) and Stephen O’Malley (SunnO))/KTL) on guitar. Kvelertak singer Erlend Hjelvik also appears with Norse guest vocals on album track “Ah Feel.” As usual, the artwork is signed by Norwegian artist Johannes Høie.
ÅRABROT EUROPEAN TOUR DATES:
March 2016
4th Nalen, Stockholm, SE
5th Smedjan, Gothenburg, SE
8th Urban spree, Berlin, DE
9th Arena, Wien, AT
10th FreakOut, Bologna, IT
11th Traffic, Roma, IT
12th Lo-Fi, Milano, IT
13th L´ Usine, Geneve, CH
15th Magasin 4, Bruxelles, BE
16th dB´s, Utrecht, NL
17th Corsica Studios, London, UK
18th Lost @ B-Arts, Stoke-On-Trent, UK
19th Nice n Sleazy, Glasgow, UK
20th Chunk, Leeds, UK
22nd Instant Chavires, Paris, FR
23rd Accueil Froid Nuke, Amiens, FR
24th The Pit´s, Kortrijk, BE
26th Iparragirre, Gernika, ES
27th Ahotsgora, Gasteiz, ES
28th Antiguos Almacenes de la Mina, Udias, ES
29th Liceo Mutante, Pontevedra, ES
30th Lata de Zinc, Oviedo, ES
31st Orbeko Etxea – Llodio, Pais Vasco, ES
April 2016
1st Ocho y Medio, Alicante, ES
2nd La Residencia, Valencia, ES
3rd Velvet, Malaga, ES
5th Inciviczone, Barcelona, ES
6th Grnnd Zero, Lyon, FR
7th Gaswerk, Winterthur, CH
8th Hühnermanhattan Klub, Halle, DE
Årabrot will also appear at Temples Festival in Bristol on 4th June
‘Årabrot have always been both weird and heavy, with the ratio varying from album to album. On The Gospel, they’re at their weirdest and best’ – The Wire
‘An effective summation of human depravity if ever there was one’ – 8/10 – Metal Hammer
