Photo by Ellen Hemström and Oskar Nilsson
Slow burning Swedish post-rock act OH HIROSHIMA has released their fifth full-length album, All Things Shining via Pelagic Records.
Now pared down to a brotherly core of Jakob Hemström (guitar, vocals) and Oskar Hemström (drums), All Things Shining sees OH HIROSHIMA expands further into new sonic territory as they champion the power of wonder and awe in an age of faded youth and jaded disenchantment.
Founded over fifteen years ago as a DIY recording project by brothers Jakob and Oskar Hemström, OH HIROSHIMA has outgrown their Swedish hometown of Kristinehamn to become a highly regarded studio and live project within the international post-rock scene. With four diverse full-length albums to their name encompassing elements of shoegaze, electronica, post-punk, and danceable indie-rock, OH HIROSHIMA’s All Things Shining represents a significant evolution in the band’s songwriting and soundcrafting.
Having found themselves a loyal fanbase as a four piece with their 2015 sophomore record In Silence We Yearn, the process of writing, recording and touring subsequent albums, 2019’s Oscillation and 2022’s critically acclaimed Myriad, the band gradually boiled down to brothers Jakob and Oskar as they continued to hone their skills.
With Myriad a brooding kaleidoscope of thunderous drums, reverberating guitar feedback and ethereal synth sounds courtesy of Kristian Karlsson (Cult of Luna, pg.lost, Soars), All Things Shining is OH HIROSHIMA refining this complex sound further still. Already renowned for their command of panoramic, compositional atmospherics, this new collection of songs consciously leaves space for singer and guitarist Jakob’s lyrics and vocal delivery and brings a striking yet delicate intimacy to OH HIROSHIMA’s formidable sonic palette.
Working again with Karlsson as keyboard player and co-producer, as well as fellow Cult of Luna member Magnus Linberg who mixed and mastered Myriad too, the brothers embraced the challenge of their lineup change as a way to push themselves into uncharted creative space, to make the best of their tight-knit bond. As such, All Things Shining wrestles with difficult questions surrounding purpose, meaning and concerns of a generational ambivalence spreading across Western society.
All of this comes to a bristling, bracing head on “Holiness Movement,” the new album’s driving yet melodic nadir. Jakob and Oskar explore the uncomfortable balance between pride and persecution through a sonic juxtaposition of organic, crystalline synth tones, and harsh, overdriven abrasion whilst tender lyrics wrestle with nationalistic tendencies and how quickly they can turn towards violence.
Notes the band on OH HIROSHIMA on All Things Shining and “Holiness Movement,” “All Things Shining is about exploring the double helix of personal and societal changes in regards to meaning and about longing to reclaim the inner flame in the face of this indifference. ‘Holiness Movement’ is one of our personal favorites on the record as we used so many different instrumental elements, some tried and trusted and some entirely new to us, to deliver an important, universal message”
Stream OH HIROSHIMA’s All Things Shining at THIS LOCATION.
Watch OH HIROSHIMA’s previously released videos for “Secret Youth” HERE and “Wild Iris” HERE.
All Things Shining is out ow on CD, LP and digital formats. Find orders HERE.
Simultaneously personal and universal, All Things Shining is a sonic exploration of the duplicitous nature of ageing; the double-edged sword of amassing life-affirming experiences that inevitably dim our perception of the world around us. However, as the album’s title suggests, OH HIROSHIMA are adamant that all is not lost; with songs inspired by timeless works of literature pivotal for Jakob and his brother Oskar throughout their lives, All Things Shining is a reminder that, against all odds, the world will always find a way to reclaim its spark and mystique.
OH HIROSHIMA:
Jakob Hemström – guitar, vocals
Oskar Hemström – drums
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