Long regarded as singular architects within European post-rock, EF have built a catalogue defined by dynamic patience, melodic clarity, and widescreen emotional reach. Across two decades of touring, the Gothenburg ensemble have carried that language to clubs and theatres at home and abroad, earning a reputation for meticulous, high-impact live shows and a body of work that has steadily gathered critical regard and a devoted international following.
In 2025, EF and Pelagic Records mark a double milestone: the 20th anniversary of ‘Give Me Beauty… or Give Me Death!’ and Pelagic Record’s 300th release. Reimagined and with expanded production, this edition is a considered re-engagement with the material that first crystallised EF’s voice. The band returns to these songs with the benefit of twenty years’ craft, presenting new arrangements that stretch time and deepen narrative, while retaining the quiet-to-catharsis arc that has always set their music apart.
“Since it’s our precious first born we wanted to give it the love it surely deserves. We felt we didn’t want to celebrate its big 20th birthday by just remastering it and we surely didn’t want to make the songs too modern and unrecognisable for the old fans. We wanted to give it a tighter, more dramatic and bombastic make over… a gentle touch of today’s EF.” (Niklas Åström)
Originally released in 2006, ‘Give Me Beauty… or Give Me Death!’ introduced EF’s signature blend of cinematic guitars, patient dynamics and aching melody. For this new edition, along with an incredible cover illustration by Phillip Janta and brand-new bonus track ‘Noll’, the band returned to the material with fresh ears and clear intentions: to open more space in the arrangements and to enrich the melodic lines with orchestral colour.
1. Ett
2. Misinfom the uninformed
3. Noll
4. Hello Scotland
5. Final Touch/Hidden Agenda
6. He came, he stayed, he fell
7. Tomorrow my friend...
8. ...we’ll meet in the end