The music talks about life in these remote locales. I received some communications from the band, they talk about things like "The earth, ground and the power of the nature and mountains where we live." There is a natural perspective here, a pagan approach, heavy on the mystic, alive with the tone of the earth, but tuned to the darker side of reality. The music, well, that’s pretty good too. Their web sites take you to some of this strangeness. Many of the photos take us to the macabre. Their website seem to glorify this direction. It’s almost a sideshow for the insane, leave your reality at the door, proceed with caution, this place is not for the mentally infirm. Their MySpace takes you to even darker scenes, and provides you with intros to the sounds from the CD. And those sounds reflect the reality that Myrka is all about.

Now I will admit, I’m not generally interested in boring music. However, I don’t like the extreme presented by some forms, rap, for instance. On the other hand, much of today’s contemporary music leaves me cold. I like something a little different, and that’s pretty much what we have here. This is music from a different perspective, it’s clearly metal, a bit symphonic, to be sure, sometimes soothing, but in a way that leaves you uncomfortable. Reminds me of the acid rock of the 60s on occasion. We know we’re in some form of reality; we’re just not sure which one. My God, I do miss the 60s sometimes, back in the days when music had something to say, when life had promise beyond the next corporate rip off. Myrka seems to capture this longing, this prayer for a measure of what stands beyond the everyday, our understanding that our daily existence is limited, and getting more limited by the hour.

So how does 13 get across this feeling of psychological dissassociation . . . ? Well, they do it with some pretty damn good music. Myrka is a quartet, four pretty good musicians who put out a solid wall of sound, pretty good production as well. But, when it’s dark most of the year, you have time to spend in the studio. The vocals are hardly what you’d call operatic, but operatic might not fit the bill with this approach to communication. Better we get it from a voice that reflects the reality that Myrka has evolved from. Their art is not limited to music, they produce jewelry, they work with "horrifying" graphic arts, they do theatre. They can get you in a lot of ways, most of them outside the bounds of the everyday where we tend to spend out lifeless existence. And they do it in a way that actually leaves you feeling better, assuming you’re comfortable with a trip to the dark side.

13 begins with a walk with the elves and trolls, you know you’re not coming back to that mundane existence for a while. Unborn lets you know immediately that the road will be different and Myrka makes it clear with the lyrics that they have strange times in store for you. The instrumental section is heavy on the guitar, but it serves to carry us on the journey, over a subdued symphonic, with the vocals taunting and enticing us on that very strange road.

Untouched is a bit more metal in flavor. Guitars again lead the way, but they are guitars that seem to point the way to an oblivion that reflects the world where Myrka is most comfortable. Lyrically, our dark Nordic vocalist takes us on a tour of the northern worlds, an existence that is foreign to most of us, one that can only be appreciated by those familiar with it.

Myrka’s music isn’t happy music, although there are some catchy rhythms. You might begin to enjoy the music at times, even feel a beat that gets you up and moving. But then you get that vocal and it brings you back to the core of the intent. Neurosis is one of these titles. A great song, great beat, nice instrumental qualities, but the vocals take hold of you and drag you through that dark reality. Our vocalist sings:

Well, at least you can dance to it. Waste is another of these tracks where we get interested in the music, and it is strong metal, the guitars crunching, the keys flowing, the drums crashing. The vocals, however, again bring us back to that slice of life that reminds us that all is not beauty. Our existence carries a touch of the gothic perspective, one that is less than attractive to many of us, but one that has to be viewed as a part of the total package. Again, our vocalist reminds us of this path:

Myrka is not beyond doing a little of the beautiful when the need arises. Reborn / Endurfæðing is a ballad, one that soothes us, it takes us to a lovely side of the darkness they seem to revel in. We view the mystical here. The instrumental side is hypnotic, the vocals take us into the realms of the spiritual. A pagan’s delight and one that reminds us that the unknown can provide a glimpse of beauty that is every bit as rewarding as any of the more traditional sounds we are more familiar with.

Myrka talks to us from the north. They present a reality we are not often exposed to. The perspective is a little off the road from that path we traditionally travel. 13 speaks of ancient worlds, places we visited as a child, and maybe decided were too frightening to come back to. And it talks about the pain and the fright that we often try to avoid, the places that children hide from, and adults deny. But the sound that delivers that message is one we can surely live with, it’s metal, it’s got some lovely melody, some variance from the traditional that makes it interesting.

And isn’t that what life is all about. . .or at least what we want to explore in our most private moments. Music should teach, it should cause reflection, and it should do it with entertainment. And it should sound right. Myrka has delivered on that promise. There’s clearly something going on up in Iceland, and it sure sounds right to me.