Alcoholic Faith Mission - "Running With Insanity"

One of the first blogs I ever read, much less with any sort of regularly (read: religiously) was Eardrums - a delightful indiepop blog based out of Norway that tended to focus on music no one much did over here in the states. It was through them that I discovered the Music Alliance Pact a collection of blogs from various countries that would put forward one song a month to represent their country on what turned out to be fantastic eclectic homegrown batches of delectable tunes and through it I found a host of wonderfully blogs to check out (I Guess I'm Floating being one of them, though it took me years to realize this).

When Eardrums dropped out I more or less forgot about the amazing MAP but this week when those awesome fellas at We Listen For You sallied forth to represent the United States, it was once again brought to my attention. While We Listen For You's pick of Houndmouth's "Penitentiary" was an excellent contribution, the track that really knocked me off my feet was Denmark's choice of Alcoholic Faith Mission's "Running With Insanity" from their fourth studio album Ask Me This. 

Dimly aware of Alcoholic Faith Mission's existence from their slot on the Old Flame Records roster it wasn't until the palatable strains of Thorben Seierø Jensen's rousing vocals over an equally earcatching and pleasant accordion in "Running With Insanity" that I was even remotely aware of how special this band is. It was love at first listen. 

And there's certainly plenty to love. Arguably the best track on the new album, "Running With Insanity" has just about anything you could want. A Jackson Pollock of vibrant tonal colors, it shifts gears quickly but always smoothly. A bit of chamber pop goodness one moment, a bristling jam the other, one thing remains constant:  An infectious energy and smile-inducing sense of wonder as the song's textural landscape shifts before you. A highly lovable gem and a perfect display of the awesome making its way out of Scandinavia. A surefire favorite.



(via We Listen For You)