Paabel returns after 12 years with new album

Estonian band Paabel has released its first album in 12 years, with guitarist Jaan Jaago saying its music has always stood for innovation and making the impossible possible. He hopes listeners will find that feeling on the new record, “Ajatu,” ERR reported.

The band, which released its debut album in 2009, took a break in 2017. Its members reunited three years ago for the 30th edition of the Viljandi Folk Music Festival. After that concert, they realised there was more to explore and began writing new music together.

Paabel first presented the new material at last year’s festival. Jaago said the group decided to record an album after completing and arranging enough songs for a full set of material, a creative effort they had enjoyed.

The years apart brought changes for the band members and meant they had to find new ways to communicate, Jaago said. Singer Arno Tamm added that the group’s shared student years made it easy to pick up where they had left off.

Musician Lauri Kadalipp has joined Paabel as a new member. Jaago said the new lineup and the members’ personal growth had also brought some changes to the band’s sound.

Paabel’s music draws on traditional material. For “Ajatu,” the band agreed to use only regivärss verses and regilaul songs, Tamm said. He added that the album’s arrangements took shape through the members’ collaborative work in rehearsals, where they brought in ideas and developed them together.