Tomorrow, Dec. 22, Swedish atmospheric heavy newcomers Djefvul will release their first single, “Into the Water,” through Majestic Mountain Records. At core in the project — and if the name Djefvul has you thinking ‘devil,’ you’re right; it’s old Swedish — is Patrik “Putte” Lidfors, known for his work in the crunchier-sounding Grandier, and sitting in on vocals for the track is Lea Amling, lead vocalist of Besvärjelsen. The band actually started in 2016, but has taken on new focus with the end of Lidfors‘ prior outfit.

Which is pretty fresh, mind you, at least as regards being made public. Earlier in 2023, Grandier released the single “No Name Sky” following on from 2022’s debut LP, The Scorn and Grace of Crows (review here), which was also issued by Majestic Mountain. That standalone track also featured Amling singing, and if you’re up for it, going from one to the next between Grandier‘s “No Name Sky” and Djefvul‘s “Into the Water” demonstrates clearly the aesthetic pivot being made. “Into the Water” feels more suited in its tempo to Amling‘s languid delivery, which will be readily identifiable to those familiar with her work in Besvärjelsen (if that’s not you, don’t be afraid to get on board anyway), and as the tones grow lower and more concrete in the chorus, Lidfors contributes backing vocals for a moment worthy of the dead stop that follows. A quick and well justified breath before diving into the second verse.

There’s a sense of drone behind the second chorus, but “Into the Water” is a gradual urge, not an insistence — an emphatic invitation — and at just over four minutes, it ends up balanced between its catchy hook reaching out, “Come take a trip into the water,” and the surrounding slow-burner atmosphere conjured by Lidfors on bass and guitar and captured by his production, set to the roll of Hampus Landin‘s drums and finished with a master by the esteemed Esben Willems, the track is broad but working on solid ground, giving an open impression through tempo and tone without actually departing from structure.

But to return to an earlier point, Grandier‘s hiatus, or “pause” as they put it — maybe they’re done and maybe not — came just last month as Lidfors announced he was moving forward with the new name and new intentions. “Into the Water,” then, is the moment of that transition from one unit to the next, and it’s given rare fluidity by the appearance of Amling on both Djefvul‘s first output and Grandier‘s (potentially) last. I wouldn’t be surprised if by the time Djefvul are making their full-length debut, “No Name Sky” doesn’t end up featured on it, perhaps with some reworking, but “Into the Water” represents well the sonic shift and the consistency of songwriting and melodic focus shared between the two bands, and is exciting in the direction it seems to be headed.

So, of course, we end by looking forward. I don’t know when/if a Djefvul album will show up in 2024 or some point thereafter, but in terms of serving notice of their existence and modus, “Into the Water” resonates in groove and melody and hopefully is a herald of more to come. And just in case you want to do your own side-by-side, the Grandier track is at the bottom of this post, courtesy of their Bandcamp.

Please enjoy:

Djefvul, “Into the Water” premiere

Lea Amling on “Into the Water”:

“‘Into the Water’ is a song about letting go and diving into the unknown. About finding hope in the new and unknown and gaining courage to release the things that are holding you back.”

From the ashes of Grandier, Djefvul has risen.

Music by Patrik Lidfors (ex-Grandier), Lyrics by Lea Amling (Besvärjelsen)
Lead vocals Lea Amling
Choirs, Bass and Guitars Patrik Lidfors
Drums by Hampus Landin, recorded at Gramtone Studio, retrigged and mixed at Heathen Studio Norrköping
All other instruments and Vocals recorded at Heathen Studio Norrkoping

Cover Artist Thomas Moe Elfserud, Hypnotist Design Norway
Arranged, Produced and Mixed by Patrik Lidfors at Heathen Studio Norrköping
Mastered by Esben Willems at Berserk Studio Gothenburg

Grandier, “No Name Sky” (2023)

Djefvul on Facebook

Djefvul on Instagram

Djefvul on Bandcamp

Majestic Mountain Records store

Majestic Mountain Records on Instagram

Majestic Mountain Records on Facebook

Tags: Djefvul, Djefvul Into the Water, Majestic Mountain Records, Norrköping, Sweden

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 21st, 2023 at 5:34 am and is filed under audiObelisk. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.