Written: 16th August 2024
In their twenty-three-year history, Leprous have consistently evolved and developed their sound and as such, fans will point to their favourite periods based on their own individual tastes. Those followers who have been able to enjoy all the twists and turns, have been rewarded with a band that are not afraid to experiment and new album Melodies of Atonement proves to be no exception. Deliberately adopting a different approach from the beginning, vocalist Einar Solberg describes the band’s aims. “I came home from tour and I started writing material for this album. The goal for that album was to remove all the orchestral elements and focus everything more around the actual members of the band. The symphonic parts, I will take further in my solo project later on. It’s a change of path in Leprous for sure. The goal was to be more straight to the point and more pure, in a way, to emphasise our qualities more, by adding less.”
Combining some of the heavier elements from their past with an increased amount of electronic embellishments, opening track Silently Walking Alone gives an instant insight into what lies at the heart of Melodies of Atonement. Blending the familiar and the experimental, Silently Walking Alone, while slow paced, has some titanic, reverberating chords and pounding percussion amongst the throbbing electronics. Musically, this is without doubt a more stripped back, fully exposed Leprous that maintains Solberg’s lyrical approach that focuses on the introspective rather than the conceptual. On a striking beginning to the album, he captures the duality of solitude as both a refuge and a challenge. Counting all the days and nights / I have tried to please the crowds / Irreparable and bruised / Still I never felt refused.
Atonement starts with a deep pulse, which is joined by rapid-fire synth beats and subsequently melodic but restless guitar motifs. As Solberg utters his first words, the music is uncluttered and minimalistic. Steadily, each member of the band joins and a minute into the track, it erupts with tempestuous vibrancy. Stuttering electronic elements add a feeling of discomfort, and the dynamic shifts in the track are sudden and intense. The climax of Atonement is nothing short of incredible, as Baard Kolstad’s drums cascade with hammering might, Simen Børven’s bass oscillates and Solberg’s astonishing vocals climb in power and pitch. Cannot deny / You’re standing trial / And it’s true that it’s all because of you.
Continued innovation and use of swift changes in energy are evident on My Specter and I Hear The Sirens, both fluctuating from tense, questioning tones to explosive ferocity and back again, the opening of the latter being one of the most beautifully plaintive moments of the album. In contrast to sections such as this, segments of true heaviness are threaded throughout the album, but as Solberg explains, there is a logic behind this. “It’s kind of heavier in its own way, and it’s very modern sounding and not retro at all. It has a lot of electronic elements. It’s heavy, it’s catchy, and there are a lot of songs that could potentially work as singles. I’m not sure it’s very prog… maybe a little here and there, but in general, not a lot of odd time signatures on this one. It’s more heavy than proggy, but not in that standard heavy way. I think people might get the wrong impression if I just say it’s heavy. It’s heavy when it needs to be!”
Børven’s bassline opens the absorbing Like A Sunken Ship with an almost late-night lounge, jazz type aura that gradually draws in the listener. Kolstad’s ever fluctuating percussion (including the odd moment of cowbell!) helps to weave the intoxicating mood. Half-way through, a monumental riff descends as guitarists Tor Oddmund Suhrke and Robin Ognedal combine with a seismic formidability. Lines of growling vocals add to the sheer force of the track and as Like A Sunken Ship reaches its finale, Solberg screams and the band stomp with wild fury. Mirroring the shifting music, the track - among the strongest on the album - deals with the protagonist’s internal battle with recurring defeat and how unequipped we sometimes are when faced with life’s challenges. Calling, tried to fly but I’m / Falling, once again / Taken, how can I be / Mistaken, once again.
Limbo opens in similar fashion to Like A Sunken Ship but conjures a more unsettling atmosphere. Developing gradually over its first two minutes, Leprous toy with the listener’s emotions until a chorus that is more typically progressive, groove laden and melodic takes over. As with many songs on the album, Limbo swings between these elements, never truly resting on one style. Melancholic and thoughtful, Faceless initially blends gentle piano, undulating bass, wistful vocals and more traditional percussion, until it eventually changes character when staccato guitar, strident synths and the clamouring rhythm section join. Featuring a short but exquisite guitar solo, a range of vocal deliveries from Solberg, and the repeated background vocals during the song’s final section, Faceless is more varied than much of the album. Dramatic and exciting.
Those who enjoy Melodies of Atonement will find many highlights in which to bask and Starlight is certainly a contender for the best track on the album. Beginning slowly and understated, the multi-faceted track – the second longest on the album –progresses unhurried and organically. A central segment of powerful guitar and hypnotic rhythms finds Solberg at his most pained. In what way can I be spared? / How can I be prepared? / For all the sudden storms. Subsequently stripping back the sound once again only serves to make the ignition during the last two minutes all the more turbulent.
Self-Satisfied Lullaby – which contains some gorgeous harmonies and apart from the final minute is the most restrained track here - and Unfree My Soul end the album with some superb guitar work and Leprous, once again, playing with mood and colour. While conveying the depths of inner struggles, there is an optimism within the music that balances the urgency to escape, and the belief that a pivotal change is imminent. Unfree my soul at last / Throw away my outcast / I have to force myself / To reside in the world of the dead. Relying on less electronic aspects than some songs on the album, the band combine to produce an epic sounding and compellingly vehement conclusion to the album.
Very different in nature to their most recent album Aphelion, Leprous themselves are more than happy with the result. “For us, this album is by far the one we’re most satisfied with, and we think it’s our best,” Solberg avows. “It bores us to stay in the same musical vibe for too long, so we like to explore and see what more we can do, but at the same time, keeping the essence of what Leprous is. We definitely feel that we’ve taken it in a new direction, but also I think it’s not going to be very hard to get Leprous fans on board with this album. It’s very new but it doesn’t feel very risky! It’s one of the albums we’ve made that is easiest to get into. It's quite instant.”
While many will point to Solberg’s voice as one of the most defining aspects of the band, it cannot be denied that such an album could not have been made without the full commitment of the entire quintet. Operating as a team on Melodies of Atonement, Leprous are determined to take the next step in their evolution, while also incorporating far more than just a passing nod to the heavier elements of their past. Those listeners who enjoy the truly progressive aspects of Leprous’s sound, may initially find themselves searching for them - they are in their in songs such as Starlight - but in truth, the band have been heading away from exploring purely that direction for several albums. Despite the variation in the album itself, the quiet, LOUD, quiet, LOUD structure to a number of the songs is explored to, and perhaps occasionally beyond, its limit. However, in the context of such a strong album, this is a minor quibble.
Although Solberg discusses the immediacy of the album – and indeed there is plenty to enjoy during a first outing - much of what makes this such a fulfilling listen are the nuances that reveal themselves after multiple plays. Not every long-term fan of Leprous will warm to Melodies of Atonement. However, those ready to accept the electronic adornments that appear throughout much of the album and those who have already revelled in the band’s willingness to experiment, will be thrilled. It offers a vibrant spectrum of sounds, another mind-blowing performance from Solberg and a band convinced of their direction on an album that exudes confidence in their musical abilities, arrangements and song writing. A bold stride forward yet again.
Melodies of Atonement is released on 30th August 2024.
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