SWEDEN’S VED, the Malmöit five-piece who have thus far released three EPs and three albums, concoct a similarly wondrous brew of Middle Eastern, krautrock, and psychedelia to the Swedish bands of their ilk.
Akin to the likes of Goat and Hills, VED summon an all-encompassing maelstrom wholly their own. Their fervid channelling of repetitive psych, taking traces from Steve Reich’s entrancing monotony, is one which simmers vociferously, not looking back on its creative milestones but erupting into new ones in their continually burning evolution – pummelling the inner ear with interwoven mantras of guitar, bass, and drums.
The new VED single, “The Embrace of the Oarfish”, inspired by the enormously proportioned sea serpent of the same name, uses the aforementioned monotony as it’s rigid backbone, with a one-note, repetitive, pulsating bass.
This bass acts as the smoke, signalling the track’s burgeoning blaze, as doubly inflamed bouts of guitar build up around it and eclectic, tantalising percussion pervades every beat.
Such menacingly aggressive instrumentation, intensified by shamanic vocals declaring “…the king is alive!”, resonates as tension-filled reverberations, echoing the supposed power of the oarfish to forecast earthquakes, something which evidently seeps into VED’s oscillating euphoria; the track’s slithering, irresistible groove also conjures the aquatic Goliath’s movements.
The single will also feature “Ett visst fängelse” (translating to ‘A Certain Prison’), a track that furnishes rhythmic mania in a CAN-embellished, addictive, instrumental groove.
“The Embrace of the Oarfish” is released today alongside a stunning video combining beautiful vistas with an ominous, cut-and-paste style of multitudes of affecting imagery- all canvassed in a pastel pink hue.
VED release “Ett visst fängels”, featuring both tracks, on March 5th. Pre-order yours here from tomorrow as part of Bandcamp Friday.
