The Knife - Silent Shout

The Knife – Silent Shout

When you get hold of an album by a Swedish electronic brother/sister duo you usually imagine that you’re onto something pretty obscure; an album of music that you couldn’t possibly have heard before. However as the opening bass intro to the opening track, the eponymous Silent Shout, kicks in it soon becomes apparent that the tentacles of international marketing have a long reach. I can’t remember which advertisement used the track but it just goes to show you that there isn’t much great music in this world that has escaped unnoticed. If you dig a little deeper you’ll also find that The Knife gave us the original Heartbeats from their debut album, covered by Jose Gonzales and used by Sony in another advert. The fact that this album has found its way into the mainstream isn’t really a surprise because despite its dark electronica it’s actually a very accessible album. There’s something about the fragmented and distorted vocals, juddering bass and bubbling synths that draw you in; the sound is dark and frightening but utterly compelling. The music sounds simple, hollow and cold but full of meaning. Reminiscent of early 90s dance music with a wintery Scandinavian twist; as if Orbital had moved to Kiruna in northern Sweden back in 1994, dumped Allison Goldfrapp and recruited Bjork. That might not appeal to everyone’s taste but I felt that this was one of the best albums that I’ve heard in years. For those of you still living in the material world there’s a three-disc version of the album available that adds a live CD and DVD and is essential. Whatever format you go for this album is a must hear. Hopefully I haven’t over hyped it…10/10