Album Review: MØL - 'DREAMCRUSH'
There are few bolder, more abrasive bands than MØL – alt metal visionaries from Denmark with a real bite to them; and this record is unlike anything you’ve heard from them before.
DREAMCRUSH is a record instrumental in its sonic riffs that explore hopes and dreams from start to finish with a loud soundscape of reality reflecting on us. These dreams can be both good and bad; have real world repercussions both positive and negative. It’s a titanic tour de force of a record that hits you like a sucker punch from its opening track and refuses to let up – building on past records Jord and Diorama the five long years since for new material has been worth the wait. It soars – arriving with the kind of confidence that you’d expect a band responsible for Jord and Diorama to put out – tapping into what makes MØL a band as much as it does reassure their craft in ways that are both uniquely singular and different.
From the word go it’s easy to recognise the alt-rock sonic influences of Smashing Pumpkins and Cocteau Twins. MØL create an aggressive sound that does not let up – exploring the focal pain and the natural losses that come with life in all its forms; of grief – and how life’s community needs to be centred completely or it will be destroyed and torn asunder. In its wake comes a new landscape – DREAMCRUSH earns its guitar solos in its triumphant moments thanks in part due to the sheer talent of Nicolai Busse – without whom the record’s emotional journey wouldn’t feel anywhere near as complete.
Vocalist Kim Song Sternkopf creates an onslaught of languages that he fuses his guttural growling with – one second Danish; the next English; blending native track with alien tongue across the entire discography. He taps into an emotional sonic blast of sensory-rocking sound that makes you sit up and take notice – when watched live; this thing is going to be loud – and you know it right from the start. It’s entirely abstract and an emotional centrepiece that pushes them in bold new ways – Stermkopf sears for the crescendos of the songs in the way that few of his peers can manage – the screams of Young interlude with a Mogwai-esque loud backing sound that will almost certainly deafen the ears live. The quieter intro of Hud draws you back to reality as the dreamscape of the song is crafted through the lyrics that build and craft a cinematic tapestry of events akin to La Dispute’s No One Was Driving the Car from last year. It switches gears between track heavyweight Young and quieter singles but never fails to immerse you in what practically commands you to sit back and replay the record. It’s cohesive never rambling – and all the better for it.
Crush wraps up DREAMCRUSH with a statement – ending the record with the title signifies that; bringing all its styles that combine a beautiful mystery together. It feels destined to be relistened to as its mysteries are unpacked before us – with shades of Agriculture in the way the band come across. Their chords are washy, wavy and highly exciting in their approach – taking Jord and Diorama and expanding on what has come before in those records whilst also pushing the band In ways that you simply haven’t seen them do so before. The Danish Blackgaze is ever-present and ever enveloping – the drumming is thunderous and really adds to the cinematic landscape that MØL must have here. You can see the touches of Slowdive and Alcest and where they get mixed in with Deafheaven. It’s abrasive, unforgiving; and Mogwai would be very proud indeed.
Able to blend between the experimental of Hud (Skin in English) and the roaring centrepiece of Young, instantly my favourite track of 2026 thus so far – DREAMCRUSH feels like a hypnotic triumph, capable of pulling you under the spell of the band effortlessly. Be it the slower pace of Favour or a dreamlike sonicspace of Garland that feels appropriately dense – there’s a lot of good material here that maximises the band’s strength in visionary, exciting ways that showcase it as an album of the extreme. Ken Lund Klej’s drumming is so dynamic and flexible it suits whatever the band wants of him; and from the opening track of Dream – which juxtaposes the closer Crush to make up the title; you’re aware of the band’s intent from the go. Stories have a beginning, middle and end and that is what MØL set out to tell.
MØLtackling post blackgaze metal head on is a triumphant statement piece of a record – fans will instantly fall in love with it; and you should too. In terms of what the band are trying to do they are completely and utterly unique – underrated, rich in scope and legacy. It’s brave, fearless and unafraid to hold anything back. If you want blast beats mixed in with soaring vocals and guitars that aren’t afraid to experiment, you’ve come to the right place.
Words by Miles Milton-Jefferies
