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Music Picks
Music

Ice Hus, Anyone?

Norway's Röyksopp recovers from wipeout on sophomore slope.

Adam Simpkins 26 Mar 2009TheTyee.ca

Adam Simpkins is a Vancouver-based music writer.
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Native Norwegians seen here in traditional folk costume.

It's baffling that no one has come up with the terms "arctic house" or "ice hus" to accurately describe Röyksopp's downtempo Nordic beats. In the early part of this century, the Norwegian duo (Torbjørn Brundtland and Svein Berge) followed the grooves of other laid-back après-ski producers like Boards of Canada and Alpinestars, breaking through with the release of their stellar debut album Melody AM -- an innovative record that spliced atmospheric samples between cosmopolitan beats, effortlessly merging the great outdoors with carefree clubbing. (Not that kind of clubbing.)

The success of Melody AM granted the pair worldwide recognition while its singles found their way into television ads, and produced some stunning videos, all the while providing background music for trendy cafés from St. Moritz to Squaw Valley.

Röyksopp disappeared for a while but returned four years later with the sophomoric and lofty The Understanding, which failed to reach the bar set by its predecessor. A live EP released shortly after, Röyksopp's Night Out, proved nothing more than a pleasant reminder and appetizer for more.

So if fans are a bit apprehensive about the band's latest album, Junior, it's not without reason. Thankfully, the Norsemen have returned with a corker of a record -- one that's ready to warm up chilly nightclubs and, who knows, maybe even get some songs licensed for Playstation 3's SkiDoo Snowmobile Challenge 2.

With the help of a number of notable female Swedish vocalists -- Robyn, Anneli Drecker, Karin Dreijer Andersson, and Lykke Li -- Junior successfully achieves that, for some, sought after trifecta of dance-floor anthems ("Girl and the Robot" and "This Must Be It"), commercial appeal and critic-friendly tracks like "Vision One" and "You Don't Have a Clue."

And for you internet rumour mongers, Röyksopp may release a follow-up record (Senior, no less) by year's end. If this is true, fellow Scandinavians Junior Senior may just have to reunite for a coinciding world tour.

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