Wobbler Announce Oct. 23 Release for Dwellers of the Deep
Classic progressive rockers Wobbler were last heard from with 2017’s pan-flute-and-mellotron-laced From Silence to Somewhere, a listener’s buffet of proggy delights that ran through four mostly extended songs. The follow-up, Dwellers of the Deep, looks like it will take somewhat similar shape — at least in its basic construction — also playing out across four tracks, the last of which is an extended finale. If you’re not familiar with the Norwegian outfit, don’t sweat it too hard, but their melodies and the kind of stately bounce of their rhythms make their sound genuinely engaging, and they’re clearly well schooled by now in where they’re coming from as a band. They’re prog and they know it. And you know they know it. And they know you know they know it. And so on.
Karisma Records certainly knows it, which I’ll assume is why preorders for Dwellers of the Deep are up now ahead of the Oct. 23 released date.
No audio yet, but the PR wire brings art, details and links:
Karisma Records Announces Details Of New WOBBLER Album “Dwellers Of The Deep”!
When WOBBLER’s fifth album “Dwellers of the Deep” hits the streets on the 23rd October, it´s exactly three years since the Norwegian’s last release “From Silence to Somewhere”, and if anyone is expecting an identical album, they may have to think again, because, according to the band, the new album will be a different beast entirely:
When we set out planning the new album we agreed that we couldn´t make the same album over again. With “Silence” we did things without wanting to fit into a progressive box, and the process behind “Dwellers of the Deep” was even more along those lines. In that sense it´s more experimental.
Some songs contain rock blast outs while others provide the calm of a foggy morning in the woods; all have their place in what eventually became a thematic dive into the depths of human emotion. Our take on it, anyway.
“Dwellers of the Deep” promises to serve up an exciting blend of both carefully planned and passionately jammed compositions encompassing everything WOBBLER has done up to now. These new musical directions will no doubt further enhance the quintet’s aural idiosyncrasies, and solidify the band’s burgeoning stature as one of the most exciting and interesting bands on the global music scene, independent of genre.
The production is open, detailed, warm and punchy, making the soundscapes put together by Lars Fredrik Frøislie to an aural feast. “Dwellers of the Deep” will be available in Digipak CD and digital formats, as well as in four different 180 gram gatefold vinyl editions; black vinyl, two different limited edition coloured vinyls, and a limited edition transparent vinyl. All the limited editions come with a poster.
Side A contains two pieces at medium length showcasing the band´s mastery of dynamics and flow, with passages and themes veering from the scenic and serene to the downright rocking.
Side B opens with the welcome respite of four minutes serenity, cradling the listener in pastoral and mystic swathes of acoustic guitar, glockenspiel and gentle vocals before an album closing 19 minutes journey into the unknown with the band in full blast.
Track listing for “Dwellers of the Deep” is as follows:
1. By the Banks (13:49)
2. Five Rooms (08:28)
3. Naiad Dreams (04:24)
4. Merry Macabre (19:00)
“Dwellers of the Deep” is now available to pre-order from:
Dwellers Of The Deep is now available to pre-order from:
Webshop: https://www.karismarecords.no/kar194-wobbler-dwellers-of-the-deep/
Bandcamp: https://wobbler.bandcamp.com/album/dwellers-of-the-deep
US Webshop: https://karismarecords.aisamerch.com/
Consisting of four distinctive pieces “Dwellers of the Deep” is a fine example of WOBBLER´s trademark creative whims and playful exuberance, and the band has offered an insight into what fans can expect from the album and what went into its creation:
The recording sessions were somewhat shaped partially by what was happening during the first months of Covid-19. In a very Decameronesque way, we sent “histories” to each other from our hermitages, while the plague waited in the shadows outside. It contributed to a sense of meaningful gravity, making it crucial that the task at hand be fulfilled with our most sincere and unparalleled endeavours.
The lyrical themes on the album deal with human emotions, and the ongoing struggle between juxtaposed forces within the psyche. An introspective voyage amongst the realms of memories, feelings and instincts, where the light is brighter and the dark is darker. The concepts of wonder, longing and desperation permeates the histories told, and the currents from the deep are ever present. The final track, “Merry Macabre”, is a 19 minute suite taking the listener through aspects of the darker sides of WOBBLER´s sound. It probably sums up what we wanted to express this time around; songs with a weirder tint, an experimental, almost impressionist splitting of themes that at the same time provides a larger frame.
Formed in Hønefoss in 1999, WOBBLER’s lineup features Lars Fredrik Frøislie on keyboards and backing vocals, Martin Nordrum Kneppen on drums, percussion and recorder, Kristian Karl Hultgren on bass, Andreas Wettergreen Strømman Prestmo on vocals, guitar, glockenspiel, recorder and percussion and Geir Marius Bergom Halleland on lead guitar and backing vocals.
https://facebook.com/wobblerofficial
https://wobbler.bandcamp.com
https://wobblerofficial.com
https://www.facebook.com/KarismaRecords/
www.karismarecords.no
Most anticipated album of the year. From Silence to Somewhere has already become an all time classic in the genre. Dwellers of the Deep has a high bar to live up to.