There is a timelessness to the music of Årabrot; just as you think you have pinpointed an influence or reference point, it will escape your grasp, twisting and turning in unexpected directions, shaping a sound that is truly unique. The last two decades have seen Årabrot shapeshift through multiple iterations; they’ve tried on different shapes and sizes, encom- passed different moods and explored the outer reaches of various genres and yet never sounded less than entirely themselves. 2023 heralds the arrival of their tenth album, Of Darkness and Light – a cause for celebration.
Kjetil Nernes has been the core and the constant of Årabrot, and for some time now another heart has beat alongside his in perfect unison. A partner in life, love and music, Karin Park has contributed to Årabrot to varying degrees for ten years, and on Of Darkness and Light her presence is both solidified and amplified. The pair live together in a church in the Swedish village where Karin grew up, designing their own domain within which they nurture their children, their craft and their creative visions.
Of Darkness and Light took a long time to take shape and become a whole. Kjetil’s prolific songwriting ability meant that some songs had been tucked away for years, waiting for the perfect time and environment to bloom. Others were written with more urgency in the months leading up to the album’s recording.
Having survived throat cancer almost a decade ago, Kjetil speaks of the high that follows the realisation of a second chance at life. But eventually the inevitability of normality creeps back into daily life; the lull in live band activity in 2020 provided an opportunity to reset and take stock.. “There were certain things that I had to address concerning myself,” he states, “I’m dealing with human things, anger, frustration, bitterness, regret… not without hope though.” The album’s title references Nietzche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra – a philosophical text centred on self-overcoming, of transcending our own limitations. Or as Kjetil puts “You’re down in the dirt, but you have to climb out of it and find a way to make it all better.”
