Listen to Jónsi's new album 'Obsidian,' a companion to his NYC art exhibition
UPDATE: The album’s out, listen below.
Jónsi will release a new album, Obsidian, on Saturday, October 30. Co-produced and mixed by Paul Corley (Yves Tumor, Oneohtrix Point Never) and Nathan Salon, Obsidian is an ethereal collection of ambient pop inspired by his new art exhibition of the same name that will be on display at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery from October 30 through December 17. Here’s more on the Obsidian the exhibition and album:
After lying dormant for nearly eight hundred years, the recent eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland serves as the inspiration for Jónsi’s second solo exhibition. Unable to travel to his homeland and experience the rare phenomenon, the artist instead conjures the majestic life force within the gallery space through two new sound installations and a series of sculptural works, each presenting a sensorial proposition.
Obsidian the album, likewise, centers on the Icelandic natural wonder. Recorded and produced in tandem with the works on view, the parallel formats inform one another and interweave through their embodiment of volcanic energies. Over the course of 10 tracks, each with evocative titles referencing sights, textures, and aromas of the ashen terrain, Jónsi takes his listeners through narrative arcs between erupting flares. Through an instinctual sensibility for layering vocals over orchestral passages, Jónsi masterfully collapses the boundaries between the senses. Velvety, musky notes of amber translate through deep, sustained progressions of the double bass. Similarly, sharp, tapered edges of obsidian glass register through piercing and frenetic digital bursts. And finally, in the manner of falling ashes, sounds of rushing winds and water cascade steadily over listeners, signaling a return to serenity, stillness, and recovery.
Listen to Obsidian, and check out the album art and tracklist, below.
The opening reception for the Obsidian art exhibition happens October 30 at NYC’s Tanya Bonakdar Gallery from 6-8 PM. The gallery is open from Tuesday – Saturday, 10 AM – 6 PM. More info is here.
Tracklist
1. Vikur
2. Ambrox
3. Kvika
4. Pyralone
5. Obsidian
6. Cypriol
7. Eyja
8. Öskufall
9. Vetiverol
10. Hedione
