Whether you know their name or not, there is a high probability that your ears have unknowingly been exposed to an abundance of their creations from video games, commercials, television shows and even as default introduction music on PCs. This is a measure of their electronic influence over the last 13 years and all this is reaching an inevitable end. Despite their commercial success, their music has just enough playfulness and experimentation to still warrant a credibility status in sophisticated dance circles but since their lush and innovative debut Melody AM, that fine line has grown narrower to a point where their protégés are drowning out their distinctiveness (the same danger that lays ahead for DJ Tiesto and Calvin Harris). Maybe now they feel unneeded or irrelevant, searching for a purpose? The final album The Inevitable End brings nothing new to their gallery and is somewhat an anticlimax to the hype that the album title provokes. However it’s still quintessentially Röyskopp and is an appropriate final chapter.

 

Like previous LPs, it has a dual personality, whilst half of the songs can motivate vigorous jogging and exercise sessions with thumping basses and fast paced structured synth pop (I Had This Thing, Monument, Running To The Sea), they are also fond of down tempo chill out (Compulsion, Coup De Grace and Thank You). This schizophrenia makes it hard to recommend the album to any listener biased towards one tempo. A third audience might admire Röyksopp’s special ingredient within their electronica, which is their surprising inclusion of symphonic elements and ambient noises heard this time onRong and Here She Comes Again.

 

They have drawn comparisons to their influential counterparts Daft Punk during their career for their futuristic use of synthesizers and robotic voices but Röyksopp’s greater importance is their assistance in helping to launch international potential for organic singers, in particular Scandinavian musicians. Anneli Drecker, Erlend Øye , Lykke Li, Karin Dreijer Andersson and Robyn have all benefitted from their collaborations with the Norwegian duo. This time they have unearthed another Nordic piano singer-songwriter in Susanne Sundfør on Save Me and an additional promising vocalist in Jamie McDermott from the art-pop band The Irrepressibles. His voice is heard on three tracks that utilize his soothing, self-reflecting and patient vocals, blending them seamlessly with the electronic sphere he inhabits.

 

Maybe the nurturing of these talents over the course of their portfolio was Röyksopp’s strongest purpose and for that we must say the biggest thank you. MTH

 

Highlights: Save Me, Compulsion, You Know I Have To Go

Proposed quote: "Nothing innovative but an appropriate last chapter".