Though Seabear’s (@seabearband) We Built a Fire was released only last year, lead man Sindry Már Sigfússon clearly had more creative energy to exhaust.  This March, the Icelandic artist released Summer Echoes, an album recorded under the moniker Sin Fang (formerly Sin Fang Bous) which reflects Sigfússon’s desire to expand his repertoire.

From the opening echoes of wildlife and churning squeals in “Easier”, it’s quite obvious that Summer Echoes is no Seabear album. Sigfússon isn’t afraid to test the limits of his instruments, bending and blending sounds throughout.  It’s largely influenced by electronic elements, though the album’s organic landscape and lush layered vocals are still the primary focus. While Sin Fang is listed as a one-man project, nothing about Summer Echoes depicts this.  It’s injected with female vocals, vast percussive arrangements, Sigfússon’s signature vocal style, and sounds taken from nature.  Each element lends itself perfectly to the musical environment created by Sigfússon.

Overall, Summer Echoes plays like an acid trip in the Amazonian rain forest.  Its jungle beats, atmospheric arrangements, and intertwining psychedelic and natural effects are thoroughly gripping.  Tracks like “Because Of The Blood”, “Rituals”, “Choir”, and “Two Boys” are all incredibly different, yet each holds it’s own, creating an interesting dynamic on the album. It’s sort of a multiple-personality ordeal.  Multiple musical influences thrown in a blender and mixed so well that it takes on a life of its own.

As with many products of Iceland, Sumer Echoes is production-heavy; there is absolutely nothing raw about it.  Nonetheless, Sin Fang is extremely successful at bridging the gap between traditional indie folk and more avant-garde genres.  No matter how carried away the band  may seem with their chants and warped instrumentals, there’s rarely a moment on the album that made me uneasy.  It’s very easy to listen to and doesn’t require much to grasp what Sigfússon is trying to accomplish.

There appears to be a lot of cross-over between Sigfússon’s two projects, but that’s not something to complain about.  It may be very different than I expected, but I’m enthralled by Summer Echoes and the direction Sigfússon has taken.

BUY THE ALBUM