Jóhann Jóhannsson — Englabörn

I had never heard of Jóhann Jóhannsson before this album. When surfing the net finding some background info on the Icelandic musician I found that I probably saw him perform live with Apparat Organ Quartet. The music on his first solo-album music can’t be compared to that loud and energetic combo though.

He also worked with Marc Almond, Barry Adamson and Pana Sonic among others. His resume also features a lot of music for theatre, documentaries and soundtracks for 3 feature films. Englabörn is a collection of music written for a stageplay of the same name and revolves mainly about one melodic theme. The sound is situated somewhere between the new romanticism of composers like Arvo Pärt and with a touch of microsound and glitch of for instance Fennesz (I can't think of anything better). It’s very delicate, emotional and dramatic music, to counter the violent nature of the stageplay according to Jóhannsson.

The stringquartet is most prominent on the album. They get some rhythmic backup in Þetta gerist á bestu bæjum but the theme also recurs on piano and celeste for instance. During the whole album electronic enhancements and alterations occur, but always subtle and hardly noticable. The album’s opener (and also closer, only slowed down) has ‘vocals’ which sing the famous Odi et Amo poem by Catullus written in the first century about being torn between love and hate. The synthetic countertenor (in other words: a speech program for computer) is as endearing as the computer reciting Fitter Happier on Radiohead’s OK Computer.

I have to say I’m a bit lost for words with the breathtaking beauty of this album. I can’t describe the sound more precisely and I urge everybody to just try and find this album. Jóhannsson at first felt somewhat naked with this emotional piece he got more recognition for it (up to hugs by strangers in the middle of the street) than for any music he wrote before, so that should say something. This desolate and delicate masterpiece sure is something special.