(Does the fire still burn, or have Kvaen started cooling off? Our own Andy Synn finds out)
Success, or so they say, can be a double-edged sword. And they’re not necessarily wrong.
It’s something you see even in our beloved Metal scene (where what counts as “success” tends to vary depending on who you ask) – from bands who suddenly get a taste of mainstream acclaim and end up having to simplify and sanitise their sound to satisfy their new audience, to artists whose debut album set such a high bar that everything else they subsequently produce is inevitably judged (and often found wanting) in comparison.
And while Kvaen (aka the solo project of multi-instrumental marvel Jacob Björnfot) haven’t encountered the former issue just yet, there’s definitely an argument to be made that the arc of their career thus far has erred more towards the latter – in the sense that, as good as 2022’s The Great Below was (I even said so myself) it ultimately didn’t quite reach the same heights, or possess the same staying power, as their outstanding debut.
But just because success can cut both ways doesn’t mean that lightning can’t strike twice… so maybe the third time will be the charm?