Even fans of Scandinavian underground music may have missed one of this year’s overlooked gems, Still Quiet (Voices of Wonder), a transfixing and truly original work of experimental erudition that vacillates between post-metal and post-rock while lacing the pacifying musical passages with male and female vocals.
The release came out a few months back courtesy of The Soundbyte, a more adventurous project led by Trond Engum. The guitarist and composer is better known for his more popular band The Third and the Mortal, which activated last year following a 19-year break, much to the delight of rock fans titillated by forays into melodic doom metal, darkwave, atmospheric alternative-rock and even trip-hop.
The Soundbyte is arguably even more daring in its compositional capacities, and Engum’s project hasn’t paused since he incepted it in 1998. If this all sounds like a lot to digest, join us as we delve into the mind of one of Norway’s most cherished musicians, and take a gander at some Still Quiet selections along the way, in The Bad Penny‘s most extensive interview of 2025 thus far.
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