Allfather by Neon Odin
Okay. How do we feel about synthwave? Good? Great. Now, how do we feel about sweet guitar riffs? And brilliant, booming percussion? And Norse folk music played on traditional instruments made by the artist? And Odin himself looking sexy as fuck on the album art?
Yeah, me too babe. Me too.
Synthwave has had its hooks in me for the last year or so, which means I've heard a fair amount of it now. I don't think I've ever heard quite so inventive a synthwave album as Allfather (released 1 December 2023.)
Now, Allfather is indisputably synthwave—synths so fat and heavy you can barely squeeze them through your door, and a bassline to match. But Neon Odin (a.k.a. Hungarian black-/folk-metal artist vvilderness) layers on top of that delicious 80's sound some absolutely immaculate metal guitar work. It's the sort of screaming, unapologetic synth-rock that ought by rights to follow your protagonist down a neon-lit, rain-soaked alley.
But this is not just synthwave and metal. There's a secret third thing in the mix: Traditional folk instruments that elevate Allfather from "damn good synthwave" to music that demands and earns your full attention. The talharpa and nyckelharpa (which vvilderness apparently built themselves!) lead the album into sounds that defy time, space, and genre expectations. It's cyberpunk in a snowy, god-riddled fantasy land; or perhaps a collaboration between William Gibson and Neil Gaiman.
Whatever it is, I cannot get enough of it, and you need it too.
