WORLD 
Last month we reviewed the latest single from a Norway-founded and now Norway-UK post-punk darkwave band called Permafrost. Today they are releasing their ‘Permafrost’ EP digitally, although the tracks featured will be familiar to the vinyl connaisseurs who purchased the EP in 2019 when it was issued on vinyl in a limited run. However, this edition also includes a bonus track, which wasn’t featured on the original 12″ – it is the Japanese Mix of ‘Sugarcubes’, featuring backing vocals by Tsugumi Takashi and Yoko Sawai. This EP is a must-listen for anyone claiming to love the following genres: dark pop, darkwave, postpunk, goth rock, synth pop and I could go on with a few more sub-genres, but I’m sure you get the idea. Especially ‘Kingdom’ is a standout track and we have the video here today as well.
If you didn’t otherwise know their backstory, you would think that these are some very talented youngsters, calling to mind such modern-day peers as ACTORS, Night Nail, Pink Turns Blue, Bootblacks, Creux Lies, Drab Majesty, Holygram, Motorama and Bootblacks. A dark, yet brilliant listen, through and through. Brooding and upbeat, here we have a classically post-punk vibe with compositions still centred on starkly compelling melodies.
Release via Fear of Music with distribution by Secretly Noord.Recorded at The Overlook, Braund Studios in Brooklyn, this EP was produced by Permafrost, this EP, mixed by Erik Braund(Mac DeMarco, A Place To Bury Strangers, Beach Fossils) and Shane O’Connel, and mastered by Paul Corkett (The Cure, Placebo, Sleeper, Strangelove).
Permafrost was formed in 1982 in Molde, Norway by school friends Frode Heggdal Larsen and Kåre Steinsbu during the first post punk era. Robert Heggdal and Trond Tornes joined in 2001, the group finally rounded out with the addition of London-based keyboardist Daryl Bamonte in 2016. They take their name from a song by Magazine with other notable influences being Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads, Pere Ubu, Yello, Fad Gadget, The Residents, Wire and Wolfgang Press.
Debuting with the ‘Godtment’ EP in 1983, released as a limited edition of 50 numbered cassettes, Permafrost issued their sophomore offering – the ‘Permafrost’ EP, a vinyl-only release, to high praise in 2019.
2021 brought a trio of critically acclaimed singles via Fear of Music label – ‘Femme Fatale’, ‘Closed Eyes’ and ‘Restore Us’, the latest offering from September featuring remixes by MAPS (a.k.a. UK producer James Chapman) and Paul Corkett. All three singles reached #1 on the Indie Disko Top40 Chart and Top 5 on the Deutsche Alternative Chart, the latter also reaching #1 on the Native25 Chart, in addition to significant press and radio play on six continents.
The ‘Permafrost’ EP is out now everywhere online, including Apple Music at https://music.apple.com/us/album/permafrost-ep/1584995289. Some copies of the EP are also still available on 12″ vinyl while they last.
TRACK LIST
1. Sugarcubes
2. Kingdom
3. Lifetime Commitment
4. Sugarcubes – Japanese Mix
CREDITS
Lyrics and Music by Permafrost
Produced by Permafrost
Recorded at The Overlook, Braund Studios (Brooklyn, NY)
Mixed by Erik Braund and Shane O’Connel
Engineered by David Plakon, Erik Braund and Shane O’Connel
Backing vocals by Tsugumi Takashi and Yoko Sawai
Mastered by Paul Corkett
Artwork by Per Olav Bergem
‘Kingdom’ video by Per Olav Bergem
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