I have been lucky enough to see Pelican live on two occasions. They always bring it. I remember both of the shows vividly.So a live album from the band makes perfect sense, which brings us to Pelican’s latest release Arktika a live album that was recorded at a show in St. Petersburg, Russia in late 2013. The final show of the Pelican’s 2013 European tour. Nothing will ever be able to provide you with the full impact of actually being at a Pelican live show, but this comes close.
Most of the material on Arktika is from the bands previous three LP’s. 2007’s City of Echoes, 2009’s What We All Come to Need, and last years brilliant and soaring, Forever Becoming. A few crushers from the old days have their say during ‘Arktika as well. Every second of this album is outstanding.
Getting it started with some eerie and wailing drones before sliding into the “The Creeper,” the band brings their ferocious composition to the front after lingering in the fog momentarily. That is something Pelican have always done and continues to do so well: contrast both the brutal and the beautiful perfectly.
These dynamics come out even more in the live setting. “Deny The Absolute” really builds perfectly to its menacing and evil center, a track that really stood out on Forever Becoming and stand out even more on Arktika. It’s just a great song! Another highlight, “Immutable Dusk” has a climatic and gorgeous middle section before erupting into a sinister final turn.
“Strung Up From The Sky” along with a combined performance of “Dead Between the Walls” and “Mammoth” close out Arktika with pure force and power. Pelican have consistently amazed me and that only deepens with this live album. They are a great band and an even better live band. You can hear it throughout Arktika. Pelican have self released Artika themselves this time around and a vinyl version hits on August 26th. Highly recommended listening.
Rating: 5/5
Pre-Order Arktika on vinyl.
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Paul runs Bleeding Light Records.