Track Review: Iceage – “IIIIIIII”

[What's Your Rupture?; 2011]

Amongst all the critically lauded albums of 2011 so far, one of the most surprising inclusions has been that of Iceage’s New Brigade. The previously unheard of group of Danish teenage miscreants, have produced simultaneously one of the most zeitgeist-friendly, yet sonically-unfriendly records of the year. The group have blended hardcore and post-punk influences together, but instead of sounding unoriginal, manage to sound exciting and fascinatingly primal.

And now after the album’s release, the signature band of the movement ludicrously titled as “the new Danish way of fuck you” are releasing the similarly bizarrely named cut “IIIIIIII” as a bonus track on New Brigade. Perhaps rather unsurprisingly it’s not at all in stark contrast to the rest of the album, yet still serves as a upbeat ferocious slice of youthful energy. As is expected now of Iceage, lead singer Elias Rønnenfelt mumbles almost entirely unintelligibly amidst frantic guitar stabs and crashing symbols. The song’s focus is more on the instrumental than Elias’ lamenting, but serves as a perfectly adequate new edition to the album, and brings to mind the chaotic nature of Iceage’s now famously violent live shows.

8/10