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Marching Church This World Is Not Enough Sacred Bones

30.03.15

Last year two punk albums from Denmark shone with swelling, egotistical brilliance. There was Lower’s innovative hyperrealist debut and there was Iceage’s third (and best) album. This year Iceage’s genius frontman Elias Rønnenfelt has recruited some trusted Copenhagen scene regulars including Lower’s drummer and bass player to contribute to the latest instalment of his solo project, Marching Church. If you’re into what’s been going on in Copenhagen over the last few years – which we are – this is a big deal. Marching Church started as an outlet for Rønnenfelt to release abrasive noise with his 2010 At Night EP. It evolved into a frantic rock project on his 2012 outing Throughout The Borders and culminates in This World is Not Enough: a Nick Cave-worshipping, emotionally troubled collection of the kind of ballads hinted at in Iceage tracks like Morals and Against The Moon.

Lead single Hungry For Love is a great starting point for listeners with its unfurling, howling motifs, whispered introduction and deafening, screeching climax. You get the feeling Rønnenfelt has had something on his mind for a while. All the while tracks like King Of Song and Calling Out A Name burst with emotion beneath saxophones that ring with the meaningful chaos of James Chance or Terry Jones and mod-licked bass lines that swing beneath military drums. Even the nine minute ballad Up A Hill is tense and emotionally charged enough to keep us hooked. It’s probably the most well-written and well-structured music Rønnenfelt has been involved in, and we really thought he may have peaked on that last Iceage record.

It speaks volumes on his talents not just as a great leader but also as a truly unique songwriter. In the classic sense. This kind of prodigy only comes around once or twice in a generation.