There is a timelessness to the music of Arabrot; just as you think you have pinpointed an influence or reference point, it will escape your grasp, twisting and turning in unexpected directions, shaping a sound that is truly unique.

The last two decades have seen Arabrot shapeshift through multiple iterations; they've tried on different shapes and sizes, encom- passed different moods and explored the outer reaches of various genres and yet never sounded less than entirely themselves.

2023 heralds the arrival of their tenth album, Of Darkness and Light - a cause for celebration.

Kjetil Nernes has been the core and the constant of Arabrot, and for some time now another heart has beat alongside his in perfect unison.

A partner in life, love and music, Karin Park has contributed to Arabrot to varying degrees for ten years, and on Of Darkness and Light her presence is both solidified and amplified.

The pair live together in a church in the Swedish village where Karin grew up, designing their own domain within which they nurture their children, their craft and their creative visions.

Of Darkness and Light took some time me to take shape. Producer Alain Johannes' curriculum vitae reads like a who's who of rock music; an accomplished musician himself (performing with the likes of PJ Harvey, Queens of the Stone Age, and Them Crooked Vultures, he also had his own band, Eleven), he has also has years of experience as a producer under his belt.

It was his work on Mark Lanegan's 2020 album, Straight Songs of Sorrow, that brought him to the forefront of Kjetil's mind before kismet intervened to bring them together.

With Alain declaring "my gut feeling is always right" he decamped to Djura Missionshus AKA the Church of A°rabrot, in August 2022 to commence work.

The trio spent several weeks together, weaving their work around family life, putting together the puzzle pieces that would make up Of Darkness and Light - their first album recorded entirely in the church.

The result is a bona fide rock album - under the electrifying veneer of shimmering synths and sophisticated sparkle, beats a heavy rock heart.

Words barely do justice to the visceral, concupiscent desire that lies behind their rallying cries on We Want Blood - a foot stomping, anthemic thrust that lies in the middle of the album.

Elsewhere sinister murder ballads sit alongside celebratory `fuck yeah' moments of joy; their pared-back approach to instrumentation does not diminish the richness of their sound.

For fans of SWANS, KILLING JOKE, WOVENHAND, CHELSEA WOLFE, THE MELVINS, CAPTAIN BEEFHEART, NINE INCH NAILS