Barrens | Corpse Lights | Pelagic Records

 

Release Date: 12 September 2025

Format: LP/Digital

Genre: Post Rock/Experimental

Country: Sweden

Sweden’s Barrens return after five years of silence with “Corpse Lights”, a patient, atmospheric, and emotionally charged journey that unfolds like a long exhale after a storm. Formed by Johan G. Winther, Markku Hildén, and Kenta Jansson, three musicians who had already shared years on the road with Scraps Of Tape before starting this project, the band sounds as unified as ever. Their debut, “Penumbra”, already hinted at their instinct for dramatic balance, but “Corpse Lights” takes that sense of purpose to a grander, more cinematic level.

Recorded again by Kristofer Jönson and mixed by Magnus Lindberg (Cult Of Luna), this album is built on trust and shared experience. The production is wide and detailed, allowing guitars and synths to shimmer over a muscular rhythm section that hits hard without overcomplicating things. Barrens has clearly honed their sound through patience, letting moments of near silence collide with bursts of energy that feel earned.

Tracks like “Periastron” and “Sorrowed” rise and collapse in elegant arcs, moving from delicate synth layers to roaring guitar storms without ever losing focus. “The Derelict” brings forward intricate drumming that borders on ritualistic, while “A Nothing Expands” serves as a fitting conclusion, heavy, reflective, and strangely serene. The sequencing feels intentional, taking the listener through waves of tension and calm, darkness and light, in a way that demands full immersion rather than background play.

“Corpse Lights” doesn’t rely on obvious hooks or climaxes. Instead, Barrens trusts their sense of space, dynamics, and emotional gravity to guide the listener. The record’s title, drawn from folklore about lights appearing near the dying, fits perfectly; this is music caught between worlds, melancholic, beautiful, and unafraid of silence.

What’s impressive is how naturally the trio communicates. Every shift in volume or texture is like a conversation between instruments. The result is an album that’s alive and unhurried, a document of friendship turned into sound. “Corpse Lights” earns its place as a thoughtful, mature work from a band that understands the value of restraint and atmosphere. It might not demand attention through volume or speed, but it rewards those who stay with it, patiently, as its luminous world unfolds.

Score: 8.3