Image
Bands

Norwegian Post-Punk Outfit Permafrost Travel Down an Icy Road Towards Hope With Their Video for “Come Back To Surprise”

Norwegian post-punk outfit Permafrost, a band which hails from Molde, Norway, was formed in 1982 by school friends Frode Heggdal Larsen & Kåre Steinsbu. Taking their name from a Magazine song, Permafrost found their sound influence in bands like Joy Division, Pere Ubu, Yello, Fad Gadget, The Cure, Talking Heads, The Residents, Wire, and Wolfgang Press. Permafrost began as a lo-fi affair, but their intricate, unique songs were heavily influenced by Norwegian authors Knut Hamsun and Jens Bjørneboe.

Despite only being able to play private shows due to their age, the band’s audience grew. But after several line-up changes, Permafrost decided to deactivate for a while by the mid-eighties. After a brief revival in 1992, the band went into cold storage once again until 2001. Robert Heggdal, an old friend of Frode and Kåre, joined the band. Another Moldenser ex-pat called Trond Tornes joined the crew, bringing a rich history of musical influences, and Permafrost was reborn again, solidifying the lineup in 2016 with the addition of Englishman Daryl Bamonte on synths.

After recently celebrating the band’s 40th anniversary, their latest offering, “Come Back To Surprise”, is deceptively mellow: the song provides hope within the confines of allusion to a dystopian near-future, persisting with a relentless surge. The accompanying lyric video, set on a snowy highway, is at once bleak and peaceful; foreboding and comforting. One hears elements of Echo and the Bunnymen and Tindersticks in this track.

“Come Back To Surprise initially sets a tone of coldness and loneliness, which is resolved by a story of beauty and shelter,’ says the band.

The video for “Come Back To Surprise” was filmed in Norway by the band, with additional footage shot in Iceland by Mimi Supernova who edited the hypnotic sequence together.

Watch the video below:

“Come Back To Surprise” is available on all platforms on 21st January through their own Fear of Music label and distributed by Secretly Noord. To date, they have released 1983’s Godtment EP, the 2019 Permafrost EP, and three critically acclaimed singles in 2021.

Stream the single here.

Follow Permafrost:

Alice Teeple

Alice Teeple is a photographer, multidisciplinary artist, and writer. She is not in Tin Machine.

Recent Posts

  • Art

Darkwave Trio Corlyx Colour Outside The Lines in Their New Single “Zombie Kid” — Plus Announce New Album “Purple Pain”

Darkwave trio Corlyx is a band that boldly colors outside the lines of traditional genre conventions, redefining the contours and…

15 hours ago
  • Art

French Synth Act Minuit Machine Returns With the Video for Their Resilient New Single “Hold Me”

They way they tore me apart Like I’m a corpse they wanna ditch They way they sold me for parts…

17 hours ago
  • Bands

Ballerinas Twirl in the Video for Los Angeles Post-Punk Artist Indiana Bradley’s Luminous New Single “Silent Moon”

It is a quiet devastation, a weight that presses without end. The realization unfolds not in a sharp moment but…

2 days ago
  • Song Premiere

Karolina Bnv Reimagines Classic New Beat with “Germany Calling”

In the history of new beat, there are few more memorable samples than "Germany calling." Taken from a Lord Haw-Haw…

2 days ago
  • Bands

Stella Rose Debuts Video for Smoldering Alt-Rock Anthem “HOLLYBABY”

Today, New York City's rising singer-songwriter Stella Rose drops her latest single and lyric video for HOLLYBABY, the title track…

2 days ago
  • Bands

Kim Deal Serenades a Flamingo in Her Surreal Video for “Nobody Love You More”

Perfect hosts and room ghosts shout I don't care what they say They can fight it out I mean to…

2 days ago
Sticky Footer Banner with Close Button