Album Review // 2023-12-23

Svalbard

The Weight of the Mask

Released: 2023-10-06

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There is something very respectable about Svalbard. They feel authentic and raw. They seem to just need to make this music and let it happen naturally. They embrace freedom to let be what will be, and are not held to a genre or expectation. They seem to respect each other and what each member brings. They said they had more time put in on this album, with the pandemic and hang-ups along the way. This album is what it is because of the extra attention given to it.

It seems that the lyrics, penned by the vibrant, adrenaline-craving Serena, are more internally-focused and painful than previous albums. She is helping people also struggling to sit in their feelings. I can respect that.

The name of the band, Svalbard, is directly related to a group of people from a specific area. Not much else to be said.

The title of the album, The Weight of the Mask, feels like something everyone can relate to at some point and in some way. Depending on how much you wear a mask, it could become almost unbearably heavy.

Honestly, I hesitated to do this review because the potential was there that I wouldn't like the album. I am not on a mission to offend people who work hard on music. I am just a person with one subjective opinion.

Svalbard is a pretty new band to me. I had only heard a handful of their songs going into this review, so I decided to quickly look over their past work in preparation. I tried several times to just write this review, but life has been full of busyness. I finally had some moments to think about the times I listened to the album and had some more listens. Here are my thoughts.

Album Art

I like how the artwork stays in a few colors and shades. Though at first glance it seems simple, the detail in the flowers is great. Why is this person wearing this particular mask? How does it resemble something they want to be? Is it something they thought would meld into the surroundings? The top of the mask seems like it has a plant growing out of it. This makes it seem like the person has been hiding behind it for a lengthy time. 

Mood

I think the band did an excellent job with the name of the album because the mood and imagery that comes to mind is someone wearing a mask, and for me additionally, they are floating down a river. The mask is what they are doing to try to protect themselves from others. Maybe, in some ways, it is to protect from themselves too, because if you promote yourself in a certain way, maybe you will also believe it over time. Being in the water is holding you up with your mask attached because it is very heavy. Floating along a river, you are alone, but wanting to be. You can't hear anything but your own breathing with your ears underwater. This is what the songs say lyrically, and a few say as a whole.

However, when it comes to the general sound of this band, it paints a much more upbeat picture. Like someone riding their bike with their headphones on, taking a moment to themself, but just for a moment as they travel between places. They need to renew themselves before the next move.

Vocals

I was quite surprised by the singing on this album. It feels very vulnerable. Some songs just seem to require that they be sung (as opposed to screamed or growled) to get the sensitive and intimate nature of it across. This is a definite increase in the frequency of using softer vocals, on this album. 

The combination of Liam and Serena is actually often surprisingly similar. I like that Serena actually has the lower, more growly vocal, compared to Liam's more high-pitched scream. They work so well together, that I actually didn't realize there were two people vocalizing at times. Both of them didn't intend to be the vocalist for the band at inception but stepped into the role when there became a need. I think they get the job done, and do a good job of sharing the part.

The flow of vocals feels like something incredibly natural. Almost like that person at a conference or wedding who takes the mic with nothing prepared, but they know exactly what to do. 

I find sometimes the enunciation of vocal comes in choppy, such as in speech, as seen in To Wilt Beneath The Weight.

The whispering was surprising in November, but it felt like internal dialogue that often comes out loud to yourself when you are alone. 

I imagine, at times, because Serena wrote the lyrics for a song, she would want to take a lead role in the vocals. If it is incredibly personal for her, she would need to be cathartically screaming it out. I really respect that this band doesn't fall into putting a woman as the one doing only singing.

Music

I think the standout of this music is the erratic way that songs are laid out. There certainly isn't a cheat sheet for the formula. 

For me, personally, there is also a disconnect on what the lyrics say and what the sound of the music is saying, as the music feels quite a bit more positive than the vocals. Overall, it is surprising to hear what the lyrics say because the music feels so up. Is it the high-pitched notes that are being tremolo-picked, or the pace that feels hardcore-esque, at times? A good example of a song that sounds upbeat is Be My Tomb.

I do find this album feels less hardcore and has more atmosphere compared to their earlier material. There are some slower moments on this album. The first time around, I didn't like hearing so much of what I would describe as "quiet moments." As I heard it more, I could feel the pain in many of the more sedate songs. The heaviness of sorrow is what drew me in. 

Some songs seem to follow a pattern my brain seems to understand, and they involve some drawn-out notes and defined verses and choruses. In songs I don't connect with so much, the vocals and music aren't moving together in a way my brain expects. It is like they are beating to different drums. 

I am impressed when vocalists play instruments on top of doing vocals. 

I would love to be there when this band is creating music. It feels quite eclectic and yet still instinctive.

Faking It

This is a straightforward name for a song about this subject. I think we live in a world that believes the lie that we have to be okay. We can't admit weakness. And when we ask someone how they are doing, we don't truly listen to the answer and we certainly don't see the signs of pain and struggle in others. 

There is an incredulousness
That accompanies my depressed existence
It asks how on earth I am getting through this
So how on earth am I getting through this?
The question repeats and repeats
I stare blankly in disbelief
How am I standing?
How am I alive?
How am I making it seem like it's fine?
The question repeats and repeats

Eternal spirits

What a beautiful tribute. This has to be about a very specific person since it is heavy with true sadness. It gets right to the point and is thankful for what someone has done, the impression and influence left on their life.

Your legacy lives in our hearts
Every person you inspired to pick up an instrument
Every person who is still alive
Because of your words
Of your songs
Of your life
The passion you gave
Forever lives on
We carry your torch held high
Now that you are gone
The music you gave
Forever lives on
We carry your torch held high
Now that you are gone

Defiance

I think the defiance here is fighting against - your own anxious thoughts, other people trying to stop you, pain setting in, people trying to shut you down. I think some people are in a constant fight.

Try to kill my drive
But
I'm fighting
Try to hold me down
But
I'm rising
Try to tell me I can't do this
But
I'm trying
I'm fighting
|I'm rising
I am defying

This battle is not
Insignificant
This battle is not
Insignificant
All I can do
Is carry on
All I can do
Is carry on

November

This makes me think of a time of year something happened and you think of it every year at the same time. Maybe you made a decision not to have it happen again or to change something. Every year it is a reminder of your failure.

Never feeling love
But never feeling pain
I vowed every day
That I wouldn't feel this bad again
How I try
I try and I try and I try to change
Yet the hollow ache remains
I grit my teeth to feign my way

Lights Out

I know this all too well. I was very depressed as a child. My friends knew, but adults didn't know. I didn't have the help I needed. I didn't know how to tell the right people, how to describe how bad it was. I am thankful for the honesty in this song.

I am too depressed to show you
How depressed I really am

It feels beyond expression
The weight of the mask
Buries me into silence
And no one can tell
The light inside me is out
Screaming for help
Whilst muting myself
And no one can tell

How to Swim Down

I am not familiar with swimming down. However, it does make me think of swimming down into a hidden place. Or even of people who were left behind, out on the ocean, to fend for themselves. They found themselves barely surviving, and many dying.

Can't let you see
What my love
For you
Has done to me

Don't break the spell
I'll never tell
Why we won't drown
If we swim down
Down

Be My Tomb

I can so relate. I am fighting against this mindset that was drilled into me. The way we can dissociate from ourselves and our feelings, in the name of it being good for someone else, or, somehow, even ourselves.

To hope for numbness
To long for nothingness
To want for anything but this
Is that really the goal
To build a switch
To turn my tears off?
To block everything for numbness
To master how to live as loveless
In a house of empty rooms
I kneel on the floor
I plead at the walls
Please don't let this be my tomb
Please don’t let this be my tomb

Pillar In The Sand

Do you have a place or a memory to go to to escape? 

My heart feels different in this land
Like putting on a friendship band
The memories come flooding back
Of laughing hours
And thornless flowers
Cheeks flushed beneath electric towers
With careless abandon
And my dearest companions
Beneath a skyline with no comparison
I sigh relief and I feel safe
I know my sentiment is not misplacеd
And when I leave wе never part
Because here will always be my heart

To Wilt Beneath the Weight

Anything will wilt if it has too much pressure. We aren't invincible.

A flower wilting
Beneath the weight
A flower wilting
Beneath the weight
Of this sinking ship
This sinking ship
It pulls me down
It pulls me down away from you
And the loneliness, it makes me stupid

Playlist Pick

I feel like I enjoy the lyrics on this album more than the album as a whole. Though, some songs I really love.

Eternal Spirits will make it to my playlist. It is so emotional and I appreciate the layout of this song. This is a great use of the softer vocals by Serena, mixed in with harsh. I like how the emotions really amp up as the song goes on. I can identify with remembering someone and their impact on your life.

I had a hard time not choosing Faking It for my playlist because I like the music part of it. It is just well put together, with some memorability. In the end, I chose Lights Out because It keeps me on track the way it is laid out. It really features Serena's deep vocal, and takes a quiet moment but doesn't stay there for too long.