Consuming the Tangible

The Vintage Caravan would never have popped up on my radar were it not for Mikael Åkerfeldt’s appearance. And truth be told, his contribution is my favorite thing about Portals, the Icelandic trio’s sixth full-length of stoner progressive rock. I mean, you took one look at the band’s photo, saw that hat, and probably guessed the vibe from that, right? But if you guessed that, you probably also know that’s my weakness, my comfort food. Happily, even though the Åkerfeldt track is the highlight, the rest of the album ain’t too shabby, either.

I suspect the band knew they had gold as well: Portals opens with “Philosopher” and with the gentle acoustic guitars and flute intro, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was a recent Opeth track. Åkerfeldt’s vocals spill out over a great slippery groove and we’re off to the races. Goddamn that dude’s voice…there’s a grit and weariness that exudes experience with every lilt, and when the chorus kicks in and it blends with the unique, nasal quality of Óskar Logi Águstsson it works really well, giving my ears some gristle to chew on and reconcile.

Águstsson also handles guitars and the aforementioned flute, and across Portals he churns out riff after riff that echo the obvious ’70s influences but still has a modern feel, buoyed by robust production that brings Stefán Ari Stefánsson’s drums to life. They sound huge and analog, and despite the odd Muse vibe I get from “Days Go By” the drums themselves are amazing, and another highlight of the album.

Again, nothing new here, and I gladly admit my softness for this kind of music may go some way toward explaining why I’m so drawn to The Vintage Caravan. But as I continue down the album’s path and hear tracks like the twisting “Crossroads” (which has the best example of what bassist Alexander Örn Númason brings to the band’s sound), I hear a lot of things that just plain work. There’s a lot of care in song construction, the whole thing sounds fabulous, and as we head into another year of madness I suspect I’ll come to rely on this album more and more.