Black Feather: Silhouette

All the way from Oslo, Norway come the pleasant ventures of Harald Frøland, working under the name Black Feather. This young musician left behind Jaga Jazzist, a popular experimental jazz band whose debut LP was once named best jazz album of the year by the BBC, to finally focus on his own music.

Seemingly so, Frøland was willing to lose the 10-piece band, though not the orchestral sound. Silhouette is packed with guitars, trumpets, trombones, flutes, clarinets, synths, organs, violins, and a whole other range of instruments and singing styles. And although Frøland did enlist many Jaga Jazzists for the part, the record is mostly this multi-instrumentalist’s doing.

Black Feather’s debut is all warmth and breadth. The sound is experimental but far from overwhelming, mostly because Frøland is able to balance it out with catchy melodies and mellow vocals. The album successfully combines alternative pop/rock structures with indie-rock energy for a refreshing sound.

All throughout Silhouette, building crescendos and pilings of harmonious instruments showcase this Norwegian’s ability to create intricate orchestrations. Frequently, he’ll focus on a particular arrangement and lead it through to the song’s climax. The brightest examples are “Ardent Cloud”, “If You Can’t Feel Yr Heart” and “American Zen”. However, what is probably the record’s foremost strength can sometimes become its biggest weakness. After two or three relatively long and repetitive build-ups, it’s difficult to wait around for the track’s peak and not lose interest.

Frøland’s use of vocals make the whole trip very intimate, contrasting with the deeply orchestrated arrangements that grant Silhouette an epic feel. Unfortunately, in some songs it seems as though Frøland’s voice is just too discreet to keep up with all the complexities. What’s more, the vocals are not always at the front of the mix (which was incidentally also prepared by Frøland) and although occasionally this seems precise for the song, most of the time you just wish they were more predominant. Take “Etienne De Silhouette”, for example. Among multiple instruments and sound effects, the vocals have a hard time powering through the song. Luckily, from time to time he´ll add tasteful backups which never fail to give the song an extra boost.

Another winning blend is completed with Kenneth Lamonds’ effortless yet intricate drum frills. In songs like “American Zen”, it’s the percussion that really lends the song a distinct quality. However, the record’s true winner is “Razor Blade”. Thanks to a beautiful main melody, a clever mix of instruments and deeply thoughtful arrangements, the song reaches a larger-than-life feel.

As a whole, the record maintains a nice cohesiveness, and most of the songs add to the album’s overall quality. Regrettably, Silhouette does lack a bit of punch here and there, and when it does, it’s a fact nearly impossible to look over. All the way through his debut, you can see that Frøland really put himself into the album in more ways than one. According to his label, the record was composed and recorded by him over the course of two years in Norway. It was apparently a long haul, with months of corporate postponements and technical difficulties until, finally, Black Feather found refuge with Other Electricities, a Portland label that prides itself on signing artists without sticking to a particular genre.

Save a few specific flaws, Frøland has reached great heights with Silhouette. There’s no doubt he’ll be able to outdo himself in the future.