Pascal Pinon: Twosomeness

Pascal Pinon is fairly well known on the Reykjavík music scene for their quiet ways and low-key performance style. Following up their widely acclaimed first album with ‘Twosomeness,’ the band attempts to bridge the difficult gap between childhood and adulthood with a more expansive and mature sound aided by the expertise of producer Alex Somers (of Jónsi and Alex fame).
‘Twosomeness’ is a step forward from their earlier work, which was decidedly simple and acoustic in style. This time around, however, they combine their sweet, breathy vocals with a bigger, more varied sound, for which they utilise anything from a choral backdrop to crunchy electronics.
On a track-by-track basis this change to a more complex style works quite well for the group and their determination to move forward in their sound is admirable. On the down side, the album feels like it might need a more decisive track order as it tends to veer around, as opposed to building up logically. Also, although the group is decidedly ‘krútt’ in their ways, the new album and new sound could have done with a bit more lyrical backbone.
On the whole it is definitely worth checking out, and hopefully these loose ends do get tied up and lead to a stellar third album.