Two years on from their debut The Approbation, Norwegian progressive rock group Avkrvst is poised to release sophomore follow-up Waving At The Sky, due on 13th June via InsideOutMusic.
As a taste of what’s to come, the band – featuring composers Simon Bergseth (Guitars, bass and vocals) Martin Utby (Drumd and synthesizers), alongside Øystein Aadland (Bass, keyboards), Edvard Seim (Guitars) and Auver Gaaren (keyboards) – has joined with Haken’s Ross Jennings for new single ‘The Malevolent’.
The Approbation was praised by critics for its “ambitious, immersive storytelling and its musical complexity”. It was regarded as one of the best genre debuts in years, and it showcased Avkrvst as a top-tier newcomer in progressive music. Now, Waving At The Sky is said to take everything that was compelling about “The Approbation” and pushes it further towards progressive perfection. A dark and devastating concept record about real life events, it is a spiritual successor to its predecessor, and a huge leap forward on every conceivable level.
Bergseth commented: “The great response to The Approbation was beyond what we could’ve ever imagined. Since the release we’ve been playing some live shows in England, Germany, Norway and the Netherlands, but at the same time we’ve been doing many yearly trips to our now famous cabin to write new material for what has become Waving At The Sky.
“With Waving At The Sky, we’ve tried to evolve ourselves in a bit more original direction, and maybe a tiny bit more mature? It definitely sounds like us, but I think this album sounds even more us than The Approbation. And that was kinda what we hoped and aimed for as well, to dig a bit deeper into our musical selves, try a bit more stuff than last time, but without losing ourselves in it. I think we’ve achieved exactly that.”
Story wise, Waving at the Sky is actually the prequel to The Approbation. The seven new tracks are inspired by a gruesome family tragedy and the bleak soul from the debut, showcased as the lonely man in the cabin in previous music videos, is one of the characters in the new album.
Tracks featured are ‘Preceding’, ‘The Trauma’, ‘Families Are Forever’, ‘Conflating Memories’, ‘The Malevolent’ featuring Ross Jennings, ‘Ghosts Of Yesteryear’ and ‘Waving At The Sky’.
Available as a digital album, CD digipak and gatefold creamy white vinyl album it can be ordered here.
