"runes"

Secret of the Runes is a concept album whose concept is centuries old. Norse mythology is said to have nine different worlds or planes, and each world gets a track devoted to it. With the lyrics that are sung in several different languages, it's hard to keep up unless you're a UN translator in your spare time. However, the operatic overtures transcend verbal communication, as every song swells and recedes with majestic aplomb, taking the listener on a ride that sounds more like a very loud opera instead of anything with a metallic base. Christofer Johnsson's gothic flair for the dramatic has never been more pronounced than on this, the band's tenth album, and the life he breathes into underground metal will make up for the breath it takes away from its listeners…

A more eclectic release than his preceding releases, Jan Garbarek's I Took Up the Runes satisfies listeners who had been more or less impatient for something with some meat and some muscle. Opening with a jazzy cover of Mari Persen's "Gula Gula," made fuller with bass guitar accompaniment that modifies the chord structure of the whole tune, the album next features the five-part "Molde Canticle," which spans from a dreamy esoteric sound to African folk music. Garbarek really wails in places, and it is a welcome surprise – he should wail more than he does. Synthesizer sounds are starting to become less prominent as well. There is excellent piano work by Rainer Bruninghaus and excellent vocalizing by guest artist Ingor Antte Ailu Gaup. A sign of good things to come.

Outstanding folk-jazz album. I think this is my favourite Garbarek album; it is tightly-focused, composed and performed. The whole album evokes life in the northwoods and carries a real outdoors feel. The best tracks are Molde 4, His Eyes Were Suns, and the title track, but each cut is interesting and moving. My only complaint is that the production is somewhat suspect. I find myself needing to adjust the volume constantly – either the sax is too loud or the background too quiet. I own the original CD, though, not the remaster. Maybe the remaster is normalized a little better.