Sarah Agnac and the Cider House Rebellion: Landscapes of the Soul, Parts 1-4 Review – Racial Power, Haunting Beauty | Popular music

CReleased at a terrible time of year, the latest installment of this collaboration between Ume Sámi singer Sara Ajnnak and popular British improv duo Ciderhouse Rebellion. Delivered in four editions throughout 2025, the artists’ joint project Landscapes of the Soul has moved through life from Geärkakame (Cradle) to Gárránis (Raven), Hálluo (Desire) to Jábmieájmmuo (Shadows Between Worlds), fusing the dramatic folk improvisations of violinist Adam Summerhays and accordionist Murray Grainger with a singer whose Arctic language is one of the most Popularity. threatened in the world.

Ajnnak has a strong understanding of one of the oldest vocal art forms in Sámi culture, the… GOICIt expresses musical images of people, places, and creatures through short words, or wordless sounds. On Jábmieájmmuo’s title track, her vocals oscillate between shimmering high notes, low ululations and gasping breaths that morph into heavy metal-worthy growls, backed by drones and writhing slips of violin melody. Ajnak represents new Here, a central figure in Sámi society spoke between worlds, at a time when industrialization and the climate crisis forever threaten the existence of her culture. The baby’s gurgling cuts off at one point, like horror.

Other parts of this project are immersive, but less intensely brain-twisting. On Geärkakame (Cradle), the least powerful suite of the four, the slow track Vuöstiebiegga (Whirlwind of Whispers) deftly builds a sense of gentle panic. On Gárránis (Raven), Geärkkie – Whispers Through Stone includes a vocal tone ripe for a great remix, while Hálluo (Desire) portrays Ajnnak as an older, softer soul, with Summerhayes and Grainger’s playing, more regular in the meter, sounding supportive and yearning behind it. But it’s the series’ dark climax – the chattering and howling of the elements – that hits hardest, leaving you craving more.

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