Flight Mode - The Three Times

Thanks to a couple of superb EPs, Norway's Flight Mode have found themselves as unexpected poster boys of the burgeoning fifth wave of emo. So much so,they're one of the headline acts for the re-booted Tiny Engines label (once home to the Hotelier et al.). In truth, such accolades should come as little surprise given the pedigree of the personnel involved, who have been mainstays of Norway's indie rock and emo scene for years thanks to their contribution to acts like Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson, the Little Hands of Asphalt and Ben Leiper. That said, Flight Mode are still much greater than the sum of their exceptional parts.

'The Three Times' contains the group's previous two EPs – 'TX, '98' and 'Torshov '05' – as well as new EP 'Toyen, 13' – providing the perfect introduction to the highly-lauded act across 12 spiky indie-rock tunes.

The eagle-eyed will spot the theme between the dates of the EPs and the lead tracks from each – 'Sixteen', 'Twentyfour' and 'Thirtysomething'. These songs are anchor points, serving as dividing lines between the EPs, giving each their own distinct style and form to mark out the passage of time.

For example, 'TX, '98' is the punchiest and darkest of the EPs, moody and brooding but punctured by serrated guitars and Sjur Lyseid's breathless vocals. The 'Torshov '05' songs are much more elegant – serene even – while those on 'Toyen, 13' are the most dynamic work Flight Mode have penned to date.

Brilliance is, however, scattered throughout. The aforementioned 'Sixteen' might be the greatest indie-rock song of the past five years, although 'Thirtysomething' – a sumptuous mix of dreamy indie and folk-tinged rock – gives it a bloody good run. The beauty of packaging three EPs together like this is that there's simply no filler, and you could make a similar argument for any number of songs.

Climbing on the shoulders of Superchunk, the Weakerthans, Death Cab For Cutie and the Mountain Goats, Flight Mode are reaching for greatness. Across these twelve songs, they've more than achieved such lofty aims.