Wiki
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Release Date
11 October 2017
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Length
8 tracks
E is the simplified title of the fourteenth album by the Norwegian progressive metal band Enslaved, released on October 13, 2017, by Nuclear Blast. The actual official title of the album is ᛖ, the Elder Futhark rune Ehwaz, which was used to symbolise the horse. The runic character resembles the roman letter M, but it is pronounced comparably to the English letter E, hence the simplified album title.
Guitarist Ivar Bjørnson has said the following regarding the album title: "The concept of the album lies in both its meaning as a letter in the Latin alphabet, and its runic reference: the rune 'Ehwaz', that is depicted as an 'M' when drawn as rune (just to make sure it gets really confusing) – the runes are drawn to look like what they literally mean. Ehwaz (pronounced and used as what's known as E, but drawn as an 'M') looks like and means 'horse'. Which is closely linked to its esoteric meaning; which is 'trust' and 'co-operation'. One of mankind's oldest and deepest pairings/collaborations with any "outside" entities is with the horse. When they were first tamed and utilised there must have arisen the notion of some esoteric link between the two; now we could move swiftly, escape faster and even eat and drink from the animal (both horse milk and horse blood), and of course show off and brag before our enemies and peers with the most spectacular horses.
So, no, it is not about horses! It is about the symbioses that surrounds us; which are vital to our existence, to our development – on all scales: man and vessel (for instance horse, yes), a person and its significant other, child and parent, musician and instrument, chaos and order, subconscious and conscious, Oden and Sleipnir – wisdom and communication. There are many levels and variations of this concept on the album; the duality of man and nature, present and past personalities within one self, the conscious fear and the subconscious drive. And other symbiosis."
Like most of Enslaved's previous music, the music for the album was written by Bjørnson; bassist/harsh vocalist Grutle Kjellson collaborated on the lyrics with Bjørnson. This album marks the band's first release with new keyboardist/clean vocalist Håkon Vinje, who joined the band earlier in 2017 to replace Herbrand Larsen (who left the preceding year). The album also includes guest performances from Wardruna's Einar Kvitrafn Selvik, flutist Daniel Mage, and jazz saxophonist Kjetil Møster.
Regarding the music, Bjørnson stated: "It is absolutely fantastic to be in the studio with these new songs. So many doors were opened with In Times and the times that followed; for us as a band, for me as a composer and I guess for us all on a personal level. I have never worked this hard to put together music for an album before, and that intensity continues into the studio where everybody is giving their everything, every hour of every day. We are a tighter unit than ever before, which is obvious sonically. The concept conjured by myself and old war-brother Grutle is the strongest we have worked with. Finally, I am proud that we have taken more risks than ever before, and one in particular - and it is yielding awesome results. What does that mean? Stay tuned to find out!"
Kjellson said: "I'm always psyched and proud when we have finished an album recording, and this is no exception! It was a really exciting process this time, with the line-up change and everything, so although it wasn't a dramatic change, the band dynamics were suddenly different. But, it was like a little re-boot, a fresh start so to speak. The studio sessions were great, and we all feel that we have done something truly amazing. We hope you'll enjoy it."
For undisclosed reasons, the LP version of the album contains six tracks, while the CD and digital versions contain eight. The LP version has an etching on the fourth side, so it would have been possible to press the missing material without requiring another record. The final track on the CD and digital versions is a cover of fellow countrymen Röyksopp.
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