I hesitate to call it burgeoning (it’s been going on for well over 15 years) but the Norwegian explosion of incredible progressive rock feels like what the UK scene might have been like in the 70s. And despite all the praise I’ve already showered this year on bands like Tusmørke, Kosmodome, and others (my 9C stoner rock list is filled with Norwegian bands) Sykofant is be the best of the bunch. Their self-titled debut is a massive achievement, self-produced and embracing just about every prefix you can attach to the -rock tag: progressive, stoner, jazz, space, classic, psychedelic…it’s all there woven together in a rock solid tapestry of epic songs. If someone asked me to give them one album that captured everything I love about rock, Sykofant might just be the album I give them.

There’s no real keyboard here, and no symphonic sweeps, so prog nerds might have a hard time with the label, but for me the quartet push past the usual rock confines with their epic length, suite-style songs that wend their way through multiple section, repeating melodic themes and uniting Sykofant conceptually through their lyrics, written by vocalist/guitarist Emil Moen who, along with fellow guitarist Per Semb craft an album about a cosmic traveler lost no matter where he roams, searching for an oasis that is home. The funkiness of opener “Pavement of Color” seems light and upbeat at first, but the snappy chord after a bouncy speed up starts to lose steam, slowing down in tempo until it settle into a fantastic stoner groove, Moen’s vocals taking on a perfect mix of clean and grit that immediately reminded me of one of my all-time favorite rock records, Open Hand’s You and Me.

The song gets heavier and heavier and the dual guitars (hard panned left and right as God intended) kick off the rocking section half which gives the listener a truly righteous solo before segueing into the first epic of the album, the 12+ minute “Between Air And Water”. It re-uses the distorted riff from before, continuing the traveler’s journey from the forest path to the ocean where he remains adrift, finding no comfort. The guitars modulate up and down mirroring the roiling waves that keep the traveler from shore. Moen and Semb’s works is great, but as I discover more with each passing day it doesn’t stay afloat (sorry not sorry) unless you have a strong rhythm section behind you, and the dextrous touch of Melvin Treider on drums continuously shifts and adapts as the structure of each song changes. Bassist Sindre Haugen locks in wonderfully with Treider, finding pockets of space to propel the songs forward.

Side B of the double LP finds the two shorter songs, “Monuments Of Old” and “Between The Moments”. Shorter in this case is comparative; “Monuments Of Old” is almost nine minutes long. It opens with a stellar guitar solo, again slowly ramping up in tempo until a permutation of the chugging riff returns. There are moments of Permanent Waves/Moving Pictures Rush here, clashing against more classic funky blues rock in a way I never imagined but now I hear it makes perfect sense. Greider’s drums gets downright jazzy in spots, and it’s a further delineation between what Sykofant are doing that no one else seems to. “Between The Moments” is deceptive, starting as what you assume is the ballad of the album, but that soon gives way to some funky grooves that creams classic rock. Conceptually it’s the capitulation, the moment where the traveler resigns themselves to their fate. All that’s missing is some cowbell – my ears keep waiting for it, but it never comes because Sykofant have more sense than I do.

The second LP gives us an epic on each side, starting with “Strangers” and by now even though I understand the hard rock formula I’m still enamored of the subtle differences Sykofant brings with each new song. There’s an air of the exotic in the opening solo, and I love the syncopation of the rhythm in the verses. You even get Dick Dale style surf rock and cowboy “Hoo! Ha!” chants thrown in. I have no idea what alchemy Sykofant use to make this all work, but work it does. Then there is the real epic of the album, the 14-minute “Forgotten Paths” which gives us our first dose of acoustic instruments, and a shift to an almost Steven Wilson vibe. Sykofant have already proven themselves adept chameleons but this is another level, slide guitar and sweet harmonized vocals.

If it’s not already clear, Sykofant have crafted a rock debut for the ages, an album perfectly crafted to my tastes, ambitious and complex and filled with enough existing moments to keep me coming back again and again. It’s my discovery of the year, and easily sits in the top of my favorite albums of 2024. Yeah, if someone asks the kid of music rock music I love, Sykofant is the album I’m going to give them…