Coloured Vinyl
Norwegian indie rock duo TAPE TRASH’s new album EDEN was written in the aftermath of losing faith. It reflects on the years spent inside Christianity and the disorienting ambivalence that follows when stepping into the secular world outside of EDEN. The songs move between freedom and grief, where moments of beauty and ecstasy are closely tied to confusion.

Across ten songs written by the band and recorded in Oslo with co-producer Jørgen Smådal Larsen (drummer of Norwegian indie legends Lukestar), EDEN embraces emo as instinct rather than genre. If something felt true, they didn’t overthink it. The process was fast and intuitive, and some songs came together in a single day.

Musically, the album explores the tension between the two members’ backgrounds. Frontman Anders Magnor Killerud comes from a singer-songwriter tradition shaped by Elliott Smith, Judee Sill, and Sufjan Stevens. Kristofer Staxrud brings the intensity and urgency of his teenage years in hardcore bands, grounding the songs in sharp rhythms and heavy guitars.

The album opens with RAPTURE BOY, a restless indie-punk track that echoes early 2000s records like Frengers and Silent Alarm. SINCE 94, the lead single, is a blast of fuzz-heavy shoegaze-punk, while WE WILL COLLIDE leans into dreamy '90s fuzz-pop.

Although they’re a duo, TAPE TRASH wanted EDEN to carry a communal spirit. Inspired by how they first bonded over the musical collective Broken Social Scene, Anders and Kristofer invited friends into their rehearsal space to record gang vocals after nights out in Oslo.

TAPE TRASH set out to make something heartfelt and sincere in a musical landscape that often feels shaped by cynicism and ironic distance. They chose openness and emotional risk instead. With EDEN, they have arrived at something more focused, more fearless, and more like themselves.[info sheet from distr.]