Gazpacho - Molok

Gazpacho Molok cover
Gazpacho
Molok
Kscope
2015
6.5
Only a year after “Demon”, Gazpacho are back with their new album “Molok”. In truth to be told, I didn’t enjoy “Demon” that much; I still think that it’s an OK album without reaching the high levels that the band attained with “March of Ghosts”. I was really curious to listen to “Molok”. Now after several spins I can say that “Molok” is way better than “Demon” but still a level (or two) below “March of Ghosts”.
 
“Molok” starts with the 3 weakest tracks. That’s a very wrong way to start. Specifically, the folkish “Bela Kiss” is barely tolerable and it would have been better if it wasn’t on the album at all, imho. Gratefully, the other 5 tracks raise the music-quality bar again and offer us some very beautiful moments. Still, “Molok” is a “strange” album which needs several listens to get into it. The album features the famous Norwegian accordion player Stian Carstensen (Farmers Market) on accordion and ethnic instruments, and the Norwegian music archaeologist Gjermund Kollveit that plays reconstruction of stone-age instruments & the Skåra stone (the oldest known instrument ever to be featured on an album). The production is crystal clear and full.
 
Gazpacho is also the first band ever that is actively trying to destroy the universe with their new album “Molok”! What does that mean?! Well, a small code that sounds like a strange noise at the end of the album will cause the correction software that runs in all CD players to generate a random number every time the CD is played. If that number should correspond to the actual position of all electrons in the universe then technically the universe could be destroyed. How about that?!! You play the album and at the end the whole universe is about to collapse! Hehe, quite a thought… but things are not that easy to complete.
 
All things considered, “Molok” is a fine album, which features some wonderful tracks such as “Alarm”, “Choir of Ancestors” and “Abc”, and will most likely gratify their loyal fans for the most part. Nonetheless, I feel that something’s missing here to take the whole outcome to the next level…