Justin Nuoffer
Eivør
w/ Sylvaine
Majestic Theater – 2/15/25 – Madison, WI
Review + Photos ©Justin Nuoffer/NuofferMedia.com
A cold wintery February night in Madison couldn’t have been any prettier. As the snowflakes fell, the state capital stood proudly up the street from the nearly 120-year-old vaudeville theater known as the Majestic. The red and gold facade was bright and vibrant. On the massive marquee hanging above the four glass doors, Evior was plastered out front in bright red lettering. The glass doors below opened into a small hallway where you can hang a left and head upstairs into the balcony or straight ahead through the small security check and into the main room.
The beautiful, well-worn hardwood stage stands about 3 feet higher than the floor. Glimmering golden trimming wraps over the front of the performance area, from stage to ceiling. The ornate piece gives the venue something dating back to its roots.
Opening tonight’s performance is Sylvaine, the Norwegian black metal and folk maven. The tour is simply the multi-instrumentalist Kathrine Shepard without a backing band. Shepard, a classically trained vocalist, has been forging her way through the harsh landscape of black metal, folk, and the music business as a whole.
A dimly lit stage and a small, graceful figure with long blonde hair approaches the microphone. The lights shone and gleaned around her. Her set for the evening consisted of five songs. Each of them was unique. Opening with “Dagsens auga sloknar ut,” the very anxious Madison crowd was put on notice with her vocal precision and command.
With just Sylvaine and her backing tracks to fill the ears, the simple earnest beauty was gracefully put out there, and the juxtaposition of her first and following two tracks is quite noticeable. Diving back into the earlier albums, grabbing her black metal screams and integrating them with the soulful melodies had those unfamiliar with her work open their eyes and ears to the overflowing traditions of her native land and music.
Closing out her quick 32-minute time frame, “L’Appel du vide” and its ethereal feeling held spectators captive. The soft sweet notes and smooth crisp guitar riffs were a thing of art and as the stage went black three lights focused on the microphone stand. Sylvaine stood at the stand just like the way she began the show, by herself and with no instrument. She performed the title track from her 2024 EP release Eg Er Framand as an acapella, with no background tracks and no additional vocals – just the angelic voice that has gripped everyone’s attention. The elegant notes bounced off of the historic Majestic walls and the crowd silence was a blank listening to snowfall.
As that final note rang out a massive applause erupted. Smiling and waving around the room, the Norwegian songstress turns to grab her guitar and walks off into the darkened corner of the stage.
Sylvaine Concert Photos from the Majestic Theater in Madison, WI:
The moment all the fans were waiting to see was upon us. Eivor, the Nordic electronic folk goddess came from her small island of Eysturoy for a stop in Madison, WI on the North American tour. With her powerful and sweet vocals, we were in for an incredible treat and she left no doubts from the first note.
The band she had assembled was wrapped around her on the classic hardwood stage. Piano keys began dancing and floating softly from the stage. Eivor stood in the middle of a dim stage wearing all-black attire and a flowing shawl draped over her shoulder.
Approaching the microphone, the heavenly voice elevates the feeling of floating through the clouds. Her movements were smooth and calculated. Every hand gesture was coordinated with the changes in her voice. The highest registers of her vocal capabilities rang out cleanly and without strain. Eivor was in fine form and it was perfectly enchanting.
Opening her performance with “Ein Klota” and “Jardarta” as a pure warm-up was simply brilliant knowing how much more was to come. The focus of her opening four songs was directly from her latest release ENN. The album was released on June 14th, 2024 so it has had time to resonate with the fans. However, the band reached back into the catalog to 2020 and pulled up two well-received tracks from SEGL. The synth-pop like “Let It Come” and “Skyscrapers”. Both songs seemingly were paired for their similarities, yet the moods were drastically different and the lighting changes from a purple to pinkish hue supported that.
Regardless, the songs hit a warm reception. The standing-room tiers filled with fans moved and swayed with every note. Eivor as a whole didn’t miss and at this point, the best was yet to come.
The middle of the set is when the night becomes otherworldly. Trollabundin roughly means spellbound and it was exactly that. The highlight of the entire night was the chance to witness this masterpiece of folk music being performed to its absolute perfection.
Eivor stood firmly behind her microphone stand holding a drum skin. She kept precise timing with every strike. The low-end strings vibrate the floor. The primal and alluring nature to which her vocal timbre hits was unparalleled and the layers kept stacking on top of each other. Every breath in and out was its own sound. The primitive feel transports the mind to the time of European tribes or even America’s first peoples. It was spiritual above anything else. The sensory tingle touched something deep down inside of you.
This wasn’t the only song of a more traditional nature either. “Salt” pushed those same time-worn and ancient notes even further into the consciousness. Drum thumps from her handheld skin hit and bounced off one’s chest like a simple yet impactful reminder. This paired with the bass line, keys/synths, and on top of the modern drum lines, you could easily close your eyes and be taken away into another plane of existence.
Heading into the final few songs, Eivor only amplified the electric atmosphere with another track from Slør, “I tokuni”. With her request to the eager Madison crowd, she asked for them to help with the breathing chorus in a few parts. Every time smiling as she extended her hand and microphone outwards.
The slower and darker pace was trance-like and it didn’t stop there. The final song before the encore was “Gullspunnin”. A song that plays like a love song or ballad but carries deep meanings about loss and longing. The somber tone and incredible vocal pitch intertwined itself. The depths of human emotion took hold as the stage went completely black.
Instinctually, the audience knew she could’ve left the evening at that, but they began pounding, stomping, and chanting: “One. More. Song,” repeatedly.
The goddess from the Faroe Islands walked out as the lights once again rose and the applause was near deafening. No one who is familiar with Eivor’s work was surprised she closed with “Falling Free”. The song was a perfect encapsulation of her ability to simply sing. The explosive closing, once again with perfect control and tone, felt as if she was giving nods to those powerful female artists of decades past. The range of her voice was beyond impressive and she was able to show her personality through it all.
Eivor Concert Photos from the Majestic Theater in Madison, WI:
It is very easy to say that what we as an audience witnessed this evening was incredible. The two types of artists on stage and their contrasts were beautiful. This was not a normal rock show.
Sylvaine and Eivor stuck to their guns and didn’t change anything about who they were despite performing a world away from their native lands. The cultural aspects blended and weaved through the performances with ease.
At the back of the room, the merchandise area was packed and backed up, which is always a great sign that the impact was felt. Eivor and Sylvaine came out to meet fans and signed items for the fans that stuck around. Both were extremely humble and made sure each fan was taken care of.
Truly, it was a special evening, and as the crowd made their way out into the cool Madison night, the notion of the night’s grandeur wasn’t lost on anyone. Very few things in the universe could compare to this level of perfection.
Eivor Setlist:
1. Ein Klota
2. Jardarta
3. Hugsi Bert Um Teg
4. Purpurhjarta
5. Let It Come
6. Skyscrapers
7. Trollabundin
8. True Love
9. ENN
10. Upp Ur Eskani
11. Hymn 49
12. Salt
13. I Tokuni
14. Gullspunnin
Encore:
15. Falling Free
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