Iceage – You’re Nothing

By Ryan Lake

March 05, 2013

You’re Nothing is the second release from the Danish four-piece, and this self produced marvel continues where New Brigade left off. The Danish youngsters keep up the pace of their previous record and blast through twelve songs in just under half an hour.Blazing from one great song to the next, Iceage barely give themselves time to play a bad note, and after two years of touring seem to have honed their song writing skills. Drawing influence from across the punk and hardcore spectrum, on this record Iceage have managed to craft a performance that is cleaner than previous efforts, yet no less powerful. They are shaping up to be a great band, and You’re Nothing shows that the work they are putting in is paying dividends.

From anxiety-ridden beginnings to a triumphant end, the opener ‘Ecstasy’ plays much like the rest of the album, murky chords power through the restless hi-hat rhythms whilst Elias Rønnenfelt bellows “what shade/of joy/will hit/me first” with passion and anticipation. There are so many great songs to choose from, ‘It Might Hit First’ is the shortest track of the collection, its an absolute barrage of intensity travelling at 100mph – ironically, it’s a song about waiting. ‘Coalition’ is about a breakdown of communication between previously amorous partners “she gives me signals/she gives me signals but our hearts are not the same…”. ‘In Haze’, ‘Burning Hand’ and ‘Rodfæstet’ (completely in Danish) also stand out as great moments but it’s hard to judge them separately  as the collection works so well in sequence.

This is a proper album, but it fits together like a live show, acting as a sort of teaser for what to expect when you see them, and after listening to this album you’ll be scrambling to find out when they’re next in your area. There’s no hint of a polished ‘album voice’ or any auto-tune here, this is all real.

In a time when electronic music is king, it’s refreshing to hear a band like Iceage; their raw dark delivery breaks away from the norm. These guys are fighting the corner for guitar music and we could definitely see them getting themselves noticed in a big way. Drawing kudos from all the usual outlets (NME, Pitchfork) for both this release & New Brigade, Iceage are only an album away from becoming a big name in the rock/punk/hardcore scene if they keep going at this rate.

Joyfully poetic lyrics, blistering riffs and unquestionable production with the occasional slip of broken English make You’re Nothing an incredible example of punk in 2013.

You’re Nothing is out now and is available from amazon and iTunes.