“You will not hear a more beautiful, powerful, and affecting album."

- Tim Sommer, Rock and Roll Globe, 5 of 5 Stars

The Andvaka Suite - An antidote to sleeplessness.

ANDVAKA (Icelandic) Pronunciation IPA: /ˈant.vaːrɪ/ Noun

1. Sleeplessness, The act of staying awake at night.

2. Insomnia, habitual sleeplessness; inability to sleep.

Curious Music is very pleased to present the 180-gram limited edition audiophile vinyl release of the album The Andvaka Suite, by Icelandic composer Bjarni Biering. This elegant and thoughtful work is a restorative reflection on themes of slowing down, healing, and well-being.

Originally released digitally and on cd in November 2021, the expansive warmth and depth of Bjarni’s compositions are beautifully enhanced by the rich breadth of vinyl, offering an immersive listening experience.

To celebrate the release, we are honored to feature a rework of the album track "I can let go" by Jlin, one of America's most distinctive composers and a pivotal figure in electronic music. Jlin, praised by Pitchfork as "one of the most forward-thinking contemporary composers in any genre," brings her multidimensional touch and depth to the track. Her newest album, "Akoma," is now available and features collaborations with Björk, Philip Glass, and Kronos Quartet.

Biering says about The Andvaka Suite:

“Sleep is a naturally recurring state, and an essential function that allows our bodies and minds to recharge. I have always had a strained relationship with sleep, despite knowing its vital importance to my health and well-being.

It never feels as though there are enough hours in the day. Time is our most valuable asset, a finite resource, and it often feels counterproductive to 'waste' time on sleep.

It is all too easy to fall victim to forms of passive relaxation. How many of us start our day tired with the ambition of an early bedtime, only to find ourselves immovable in front of a screen, or ticking off one more task as the hours tick past midnight? Constant stimulation and a constantly ‘on’ mindset directly impacts our sleep and wreaks havoc on our circadian rhythm. We are rarely given the chance to step back, reflect and recharge.

It sometimes feels as though the hourglass has been knocked down on its side, where time has lost its linearity and we are stuck in a seemingly endless loop, desperately waiting a return to some sort of normalcy.

The Andvaka Suite is a reminder to slow down. To allow space for reflection. To create moments of stillness. And, hopefully, to peacefully transition into restorative sleep.”

About Bjarni Biering

Classically trained in traditional modes of score and technique, Bjarni disrupts the clean classicism of his sound with economically dispersed beats and delicately layered piano. He has developed a holistic style as a composer that merges sight and sound through the lens of human emotion. Bjarni revels both in the quiet, reverent solitude of composition and scoring, and the collaborative process - bringing a practical, unfussy artistry to his work with filmmakers, visual artists and musicians.

After training as a pianist, Bjarni immersed himself in composition, drawn to the endless creative potential of modern recording technology and the freedom of improvisation. His obsession with sound and composition began early, during his childhood in Reykjavík where he would sit in concert halls or in front of his parents’ hi-fi laboriously studying the sounds produced. He would spend endless hours at his piano or computer attempting to recreate, construct and deconstruct those sounds, his own melodies and the works of classical and contemporary composers. This construction and deconstruction can be heard in the music of the internal worlds he creates now, gently building and felling the passage of time and our human experience.

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