Burning Shed is inviting pre-orders for CD and vinyl versions of Flown, the debut album by the Norwegian trio, Dim Gray. They list the band as “art rockers” and describe the album thus:

The music on Flown combines strings-infused chamber pop, dark indie folk and grandiose art rock. An ambitious musical statement […] in the vein of artists such as Radiohead, Fleet Foxes, Steven Wilson, Sigur Rós and Susanne Sundfør.

The Crotchety Selection Committee found this a little baffling but sufficiently intriguing to seek out online samples of the band’s music. The whole album is available to stream on Bandcamp and Spotify, and there are a few videos on the band’s YouTube channel. So, let’s get this blog post off the ground with a three-track YouTube playlist.

The Wave We Thought We’d Ride Forever is a mainstream progressive rock song. Guitar-lead, with strong vocals, pounding bass and big keyboards, it wouldn’t be out of place on prog- or classic-rock radio stations.

Ouroboros shows the softer, folk-influenced side of the band. It starts with rich cello and double bass drones, adds a powerful vocal line and builds to a cinematic climax. It’s a song about a man going round in circles, lost within himself:

Chasing my tail again
A circle with no end

The last track in this playlist and on the album is Black Sun. This is my favourite on first spin. It blends the instruments seductively, it rolls along at a comforting pace and it has an appealing melody. One day, perhaps, I’ll try to make out the lyrics but they have seemed superfluous so far.

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If this has whetted your appetite and you’d like to hear more, click here to stream the album on Bandcamp.