As you could guess by the album title, Under Byen do not come from here. Their tongue is a foreign one; one of those with dots and diagonal lines through the characters. So it’s should come as no surprise that their music is similarly alien: Under Byen play post-rock – a genre possibly more alienating than either death metal or minimalist German techno.

Born of Denmark, land of quaint little villages, statues of naked mermaids and delicious pastry dishes, Under Byen have an equally quaint singer by the name of Henriette Sennenvaldt. Sennenvaldt’s choice to sing her native tongue is, surprisingly, a welcoming move; the listener is free to make up their own meanings for songs, even their own lyrics if they find they need to. I swear, for example, that Sennenvaldt is singing “suddenly you’re here” in ‘Pilot’ even though the lyric sheet clearing states that she’s saying “sa pur nar du skar himlen op.” Given that Samme Stof Som Stof roughly translates to the much less poetic ‘Same Fabric As Fabric’, singing in a more graceful tongue was a clever decision.

Using violins, cellos, horns, harps and a variety of other old fashioned real instruments, Under Byen create their own little symphonies, almost Architecture in Helsinki-esque in their inventiveness. The most beautiful of these little symphonies is the absolutely adorable ‘Tindrer’ featuring Henriette whispering her way delicately through a simple melody, as the band – including someone whistling a melancholy tune – sways in the background. It’s exactly the kind of thing you’d expect from a post-rock band from the land of the quaint.

In addition to these little symphonies Under Byen also create big drum bashing, guitar feedback inducing Arcade Fire-style epics, like the 10-minute opus ‘Film Og Omvendt,’ and the much shorter but equally dramatic ‘Al Samme Stof Som Stof’ – in which Henriette sounds as though she is running away from a great evil beast. Such giant, overwhelming, accomplished musical soundscapes, could risk sounding a bit too over-serious and to avoid the pretension that Under Byen is made up of music teachers, requires the presence of Sennenvaldt, who adds to these mighty creations a touch of humanity, whispering her vocals in Scandinavian accent, verging on Bjork.

Any descriptions of Under Byen – with classical instruments, foreign languages, 10 minute long epics, Bjork impersonations – is likely to make this album sound challenging. This is not the case. Even without Sennenvaldt, Samme Stof Som Stof would still be a journey that is sometimes relaxing and gentle, breaking out occasionally with spectacular scenery. However, given that the only songs without her calming presence are the instrumentals ‘Panterplanker’ (a cold, almost soulless little jingle), ‘Liste Over Sande Venner Of Forbillder’ (a sinister bore) and ‘Mere Af Det Samme Of Meget Mere Af Det Mele’ (a piece of random dramatic piano tinkling) it is clear how importance her presence is to the total Under Byen package. Without her, Under Byen do sometimes sound as though they are a bunch of over-serious, studious classical music teachers.

While listening to Samme Stof Som Stof is not a challenge, and although Under Byen provide a friendly, welcoming vibe to the genre, the album is not a thrilling listen from start to finish. Samme Stof Som Stof is an album, not of good songs, but of good bits – like the piano tinkling and vocally whispered start of ‘Tindrer’, the trip-hop with feedback outro of ‘Siamesick’, the bit in ‘Palads’ where the music crumbles down and Henriette croons yearningly “enhver derv over sig ud.”