New Releases: Closed Eyes (Open Mouth Remix) | Permafrost

The new mix keeps the 80s vibe but exchanges the Post-Punk mood to Kraut-Rock inspiration.

Permafrost is the ground that continuously remains below 0°C (32°F) for two or more years. Coming originally from Norway, one might think that the band name is a reference to their homeland, or perhaps a prophecy about the long hibernations the band took, but the truth is that the name was simply taken from a Magazine song, one of the influences, along Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads, Pere Ubu, Yello, Fad Gadget, The Residents, Wire and Wolfgang Press, that led school friends Frode Heggdal Larsen and Kåre Steinsbu follow their inspirations and, back in 1982, form a band.

Since the first inception, which was a lo-fi affair, Permafrost songs were intricate and uniquely structured, gaining the respect of their older peers. A limited 50 numbered cassettes copies of the EP ‘Godtment’ was released, but, by the mid-eighties, after a few line-up changes, Permafrost decided to enter their first hibernation.

Alternating briefs revivals in 1992 and 2001 and hibernation periods, the band started to become more and more active and finally came together again in 2016 booking a session at Braund Studios in Brooklyn in which they recorded The ‘Permafrost EP’.

The ‘Permafrost EP’ was released on vinyl-only in the spring of 2019, and after mostly working remotely from Oslo, Trondheim and London, the band are putting the finishing touches on the debut album. The first single, the critically-acclaimed ‘Femme Fatale’, was released on 18th February 2021 and reached #1 on the Indie Disko Top40 chart as well as top 5 on the Deutsche Alternative and Native25 charts. Complemented by the band’s own ‘Dark North Remix’, it was added to numerous playlists, including Apple Music’s ‘New In Rock’.

‘Closed Eyes’ the second single is a fantastic song that feeds the nostalgic hunger for 80s post-punk tunes while still sounding fresh and contemporary to newer generations. The new mix keeps the 80s vibe but exchanges the post-punk mood to kraut-rock inspiration.

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