A SEVEN INCH SPECIAL, VOL. 13: FRINGE PROGG

 
BRUNO WINTZELL
Idag sköt jag ihjäl en okänd man / Du och jag – en kärlekshistoria (Polydor, 1970)
Balladen om Joe Hill / Som en seglande mås (Polydor, 1971)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Roger Cook's ”Today I Shot A Man I Didn't Know” proved very popular when translated by Hawkey Franzén. There are four Swedish versions from 1970, that I know of, but there might be even more hiding away somewhere. The antiwar message was of course perfectly in tune with the times with the mindless Vietnam war raging like a tameless beast so loud the entire world could hear it. Actor (known for his role in ”Hår”) and singer Bruno Wintzell must have found it irresistable to record it as it's a perfect song for his voice and rather haughty vocal style. Vocally speaking, the best Swedish version is probably Tommy Körberg's, but the arrangement and the production is more to my taste with Wintzell. Still, the calculated maudlinness of the song is always overbearing. The sound and arrangement is what's best with the flipside as well. ”Du och jag – en kärlekshistoria” isn't progg but nice (if you like that kind of stuff) albeit undistinguished orchestral pop lacking the necessary distinctive features.

"Balladen om Joe Hill" was originally known as "I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night", and was first recorded in Swedish by Fred Åkerström. That one and "Som en seglande mås" (which is Leonard Cohen's "Bird On A Wire" in Swedish) are country tinged but both of them are pretty terrible, with Wintzell taking himself even more seriously than usual.
 

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Jukebox JSEP 5601 (Jukebox, EP, 1970)

Featured artists: Tommy Körberg / Mike Castle / November / Diddlers

 English vocals, Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

The so called Jukebox EPs were a long running series of budget compilation seven-inches known for mixing completely unrelated bands and artists, usually four at a time. They're in low demand as most of the tracks chosen for the EPs were taken from already existing releases. This one here is an exception, as blues artist Mike Castle's ”Walkin' Blues” was unavailable elsewhere at the time. It's a not very imaginative rendition of Robert Johnson's classic and was later added as a bonus to the digital reissue of Castle's lone (and Peps related) album ”Kaligyga Express”, also from 1970. But this is the only place to get it on vinyl, why I mention it here. The others are non-exclusive tracks by November, Diddlers and Tommy Körberg..
 

BJÖRN JANSON – Det är skönt / Sommar i en skärgård (no label, 1976)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Apart from music, Björn Janson was a boat designer and a restaurant owner, and he released this single at his own expense. The B side is pure dross, a nondescript piano ballad I wish a long and painful death, but ”Det är skönt” has some nice features of which the soaking reverb isn't one. It's certainly on the commercial side, but the fake funky drive is pretty catchy, and it has some semicool and semiheavy guitar passages which unfortunately are too short. You could probably remix ”Det är skönt” and bring a better track out of it, but I suppose the master tapes are long gone. Probably very rare, but I suppose nobody wants it and that most likely includes you too.

ENVOYS – Kräv Bryggeriet kvar / Så svårt (Marilla, 1976)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Envoys were more than anything a pop band, having started already in 1964 (then with future journalist and TV personality Robert Aschberg as a singer). Their first single appeared on MNW in 1969, a cover of The Beatles' ”I Saw Her Standing There”. Their best known track however is ”Almarna åt folket”, a translation of John Lennon's ”Power To The People” released in support of those who fought for the preservation of the elm trees in Stockholm in 1971. The next single had David Bowie cover ”Starman” on the 'A' side, which was followed by their second charity single ”Kräv Bryggeriet kvar” in 1976. Bryggeriet's full name was Münchenbryggeriet (=”the Munich brewery”) and was built in the 19th century. From the early 1970s, it was a node for various cultural activities, but the powers in charge wanted to tear it down and make room for a new housing area. It caused an outrage with the people, and the protesters against the teardown included several well-known musicians, actors and writers. As in the case of the elm battle, the authorities eventually backed down and Bryggeriet was spared. Envoys' call to arms isn't as powerful as their Lennon interpretation from five years earlier. ”Kräv Bryggeriet kvar” is fairly rocking, especially in the choruses, but it doesn't have the same punch, coming across like a mix of Björn Afzelius and Nationalteatern. The 'B' side is a sappy ballad that sounds more like teenybopper singer/songwriter Ted Gärdestad than a progg band, revealing Envoys' true commercial nature.

 

GOG – The Beatless E.P. (Magog, 1979)
Instrumental
International relevance: *

Not only fringe progg, but on the fringes of everything. Gog was a one man project by Gothenburg's visual artist and musician Dan Fröberg. Gog's self-released EP is basically an abstract sound sculpture in four parts with fractured musique concrète characteristics. It's not without artistic merits, but it's best suited for adventurous listeners accustomed to prototypical tape music and primitive EAM. Might interest those who consider Imp.Ink, Psynkopat and Friz Be too mainstream... Some, perhaps all, copies had extra, off-centre, hand-carved spindle holes so you could choose between a regular playback and a wowy one. 500 copies were pressed, some came with a picture sleeve and an insert. A rare item today, sometimes fetching €100 on the collectors market.

TOMAS BERGH – Upp till kamp / Oh... tryggare kan ingen vara (Frituna, 1979)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: ?

A very peculiar single with no clear target audience. Because who would possibly want a disco version of ”L'Internationale” in five different languages? Studio 54 strings, perky horns, cheesy basslines and a high BPM number – huh?! And a deconstructed punk version of the hymn ”Children of the Heavenly Father” on the B side?! I mean, what the hell is really going here??? It's obviously tongue-in-cheek but it's still so bizarre and absurd that I dare say that you've never heard anything quite like it before and never will again unless you play it a second time. And you might as well want to, just to figure it out.

I've no idea who Tomas Bergh was, if it even was his real name, but the guys backing him up were sessions musicians including Anders Eljas who thought up the concept. Eljas was a music conservatory graduate who worked with opera singers as well as pop stars (he played keyboards on ABBA's 1977 world tour for instance); he orchestrated the ”Chess” musical; produced stage shows for Povel Ramel (Mikael's dad), and conducted the London Symphony Orchestra during a Hyde Park show featuring guest stars like Kylie Minogue, Jamie Cullum, Lulu and Chaka Khan – to mention just a few things he's done. But I still think this very single must be the most askew thing he ever did. Do I like it? Not at all, but I'm intrigued by it. 

It was also issued as a 12” with an extended disco mix of the A side. Burn, baby, burn!

MAKE UP – Hot Love Street / My First Love (Wave, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: - 

Included here more as a warning. Make Up are often classified as a hard rock band, but there are not many features on this single to back up such an assertion. ”Hot Love Street” is a really terrible discofied pop rock track while ”My First Love” is a sappy ballad where the singer's linguistical and vocal shortcomings really come to the fore. A full length album followed in 1981.

DYNAMO VARBERG – Ayatollah Khomeini / Anwar Sadat (Nacksving, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Dynamo Varberg made their debut with a very rare cassette-only album called ”Filiberts höna” in 1978. The 1980 single at hand is a fairly elusive Nacksving release with two songs taking a clear leftist stand against Middle Eastern dictatorship and oppression, with an additional stab at Sweden's then rightwing prime minister Gösta Bohman, like Rävjunk did on their legendary ”Bohman Bohman” single. The music itself has in fact a wee bit in common with Rävjunk's more rock oriented style. It's not as punkish, but Dynamo Varberg had a similar sleazy vibe. There's some biting guitar playing including wah-wah going on, and the songs are quite good – especially ”Anwar Sadat” where singer Björn Spåls also manage to sound a bit like Eldkvarn's singer Plura Jonsson. The worst element is the sitar on the A-side which sounds as if it was played by a stoned-out Edward Scissorhands. Apart from that, this quite appeals to me, and it's certainly one of the more vital releases on Nacksving.

CALCUTTA TRANSFER

Mannen (som på tunnelbanan sket) / Howrah Station (Mistlur, 1980)
India Waits (Mistlur, 1981)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

If Calcutta Transfer hoped for any radio play with their first single, they probably shouldn't have named it ”the man who shat in the subway”, so a lot of people probably missed the lyrics' environmental worries. Like almost everything coming from the Transfers, ”Mannen (som på tunnelbanan sket) is outlined from Dag Vag, more precisely ”Ogräs” from their debut album. It's still one of the Transfers' best songs. The clavinet sounds like a spider tapdancing on a hot hob. It's either bloody annoying or oddly effective depending on your mood. ”Howrah Station” isn't their typical reggae but closer to disco. It was a live favourite apparantely, and I can imagine they could stretch it out with plenty of Kenny Håkansson styled guitar soloing on stage, but here it's as dull as yesterday's pasta leftovers.

Their second single is called ”India Waits”, but there's no track here by that title. Both songs are non-album tracks, and the Dag Vag influence is intact. The 'A' side ”Plus minus noll” is a fast paced ska track with a debt to pay to Dag Vag's ”Glappkontakt” but the 'B' side ”Fet guru” shows more originality. It's a slightly spacey track with a rock beat, thick layers of tasty organ and soaring guitars. The band whips up quite some energy the longer it goes on, and it stands out not only as one of their proggiest efforts but also one of their very best.

PAJ VAJ – Med hacka och spade / Flum e dum (Bums, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

It's actually rare that I hear something that leaves me stumped, but this eccentric 45 knocks me off course. What on earth am I listening to? Is it for real or is it a joke?

I've no idea who's behind it because I can't find any valuable info on it anywhere. The songs were written by Bask (who?) and Lindström (which one?), and the Bums label mostly released commercial artists. Paj Vaj were anything but. The singer sounds like Blå Tåget's Torkel Rasmusson trying to cure a hangover from hell by eating three pounds of chalk. He remains hungover but with a demolished voice. Ot maybe he sounds like a Kenta with a rubber ball stuffed down his throat? Is he fucking around or does he need a doctor? Is he immaculately groggy? Deranged? Is he, at all, for real? His idea of enunciation is, er, unusual but it's obvious that the singer (or lyricist, or both) holds a grudge against... parents, teachers, the police, the authorities, actually the entire society. Kill them and bury them. Problem solved.

The music is pretty straightforward with a certain lilt; it's standard rock setting plus harmonica, but thanks to the off-kilter vocals, it has some bizarre gravity. It's too straight qualifying as outsider music, and it's way too odd for any mainstream appeal. I can't really recommend it, but I can't not recommend it either. I'll probably play it a lot more, if only to find out what the hell is going on here. If the discofied "L'Internationale" was puzzling, then this is completely bewildering.

ROCKTEATERGRUPPEN SMÅFOLKET – Nu drar vi ner på stan (Rainbow, EP, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Little known four track E.P. by a self-appointed 'rock theatre group' which immediately makes you think of Nationalteatern. Which is perfectly true because it's hard to imagine this would exist without the source inspiration from said group, But it lacks the sharpness of the Ulf Dageby's and Anders Melander's songwriting, and the instrumental prowess that Nationalteatern developed is surely lacking here. Småfolket sounds like a local group (more precisely from Malmö) performing at youth clubs to a less than excited underage audience. The drummer is rudimentary, the guitarist is far from experienced, but the the two singers – male and female – are especially amateurish. Esther Nordenbrink in particular sounds shrill and shouty which suggests a punk awareness in a Mörbyligan way.

The four songs were featured in the play that gave the E.P. it's title, roughly meaning ”let's go downtown”, and while the B side is a wee bit better with ”Nu är jag ung” (=”now I'm young”) being the best song of all, none of them is up to snuff. A 'B' grade effort that time rightly forgot.

HS3 BOYS – Fel tåg / Hon är ett lik / Pia Love (no label, 1983; rec. 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Little information availabe for this one as well. There's no print on the colour-coded labels and only the members' first names are stated on the cover. However, HS3 Boys might originate from Östersund as Myrbein's bass player Johan Von Sydow is featured here, and both bands used the Tommys Musiklab studio. While this three-track EP wasn't released until 1983, it was recorded already in 1981 according to information presented to Swedish Radio. With no drummer present, the rhythm is provided by a drum machine which defines their original sound. It's hard to pinpoint it, but there's definitely a Latin influence there. I also sense a touch of Mikael Ramel, but that's possibly only in my head. Still, it's not a very good disc, so not worth the effort hunting it down. 

LJUDLÖST ÖS – Jerry / USA (Natty Records, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Reggae has always been pretty popular in Sweden after Peps Persson introduced the style in the mid 70s, and we had a few quite good or at least decent reggae bands already back in the day. Not only were there high profile names as Dag Vag, Rotpuls and to some extent Rockamöllan following Peps in his footsteps, but there was also a pretty widespread undergrowth of local bands. Ljudlöst Ös was one of the unknowns trying to adapt to the Jamaican backbeat, but thay had certain problems succeeding. If anything, reggae demands a drummer who can forget everything he learnt about the standard rock beat, and Matte Pettersson of Ljudlöst Ös struggles a bit. I've heard far worse examples of drummers losing the concept when switching to reggae, but a Bosse Skoglund he is not. Both songs on their lone, privately released single speak out against racism and cultural colonialism. With female singer Maria Johansson, Ljudlöst Ös sound like I imagine Nationalteatern would sound like if they attempted to be a reggae band. It all sounds a bit chunky and awkward proving that good intentions won't always come out as good results. 

MANTRA – Made In Japan / Här är jag (Mercury, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

This is probably Mantra's biggest claim to fame being released on major label Mercury, produced by Janne Schaffer and with lyrics for both tracks written by Mikael Ramel. It's not Mantra's typical test tube jazz fusion but it still sucks. ”Made In Japan” is some misguided attempt at synth pop an while ”Här är jag” is a bit better, the quasi-punkish rock falls on its feet just the same. 

ZVENSKA MUSKLER – Fyra årstider / När elden har brunnit... (no label, 1981)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

One-off single from a band that grew out of probably unrecorded band Dr Rockford, and with a name would translate into "Zwedish Muscles, featuring singer/guitarist Tobbe Rüsslander. ”Fyra årstider” isn't that great and not too proggish either, while the slower ”När elden har brunnit” is OK with some extended guitar workouts, electric piano and a peculiar, almost ghostly atmosphere – perhaps due to the decidedly non-professional mix. It's not as good Rüsslander's 1978 solo cassette, but it's still worth hearing once for "När elden har brunnit".

JSMB – Låt fler forma... / Håll mej varm (JSMB, 1982)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

More progg in the socially concerned lyrics than in the actual music. The lyrics are unusual in the sense that singer Magnus Sjögren declares he's a liberal (i.e. not a leftist), but he proclaims care for your fellowman whoever and wherever he or she is, so the fundamental tone is that of humanism rather than politics. Sjögren's phrasing suggests he's an Ulf Lundell fan although I wouldn't call the vocals exactly epigonic. ”Låt fler forma...” is decent enough in a rock singer/songwriter style, and certainly much better than the other track. ”Håll mej varm” is totally terrible, a rheumatic rockabilly pastiche which is entirely embarrassing complete with a bathroom reverb to make it sound 'authentic' which it of course does not.

Sjögren later reappeared in Örebro band Big Deal who had some success in the late 80s and is still active. I know nothing about the other members' whereabouts – there are no credits on the label and the single came in a plain white sleeve when originally released.

COREY – Havet / Livet är en dröm (GAT, 1982)
Swedish vocal
International relevance: *

A Gothenburg band apparently with some connections to the Social Democratic Youth Association SSU. Corey's lone single was a private release and features two pop/rock tracks with some semi-heavy and progressive elements. It's quite OK for what it is, especially ”Havet” which is actually rather good, but although it has some nice touches of the right kind, there may not be enough prog/progg here for most blog readers. Two versions of it exists, one in black vinyl and one in red.

Bruno Wintzell
Du och jag - en kärlekshistoria / Balladen om Joe Hill / Som en seglande mås  
Jukebox EP
November - Cinderella / Mike Castle - Walkin' Blues  
Björn Janson
Det är skönt (poor sound)
Envoys
Kräv Bryggeriet kvar  
Gog
Full single 
Tomas Bergh
Upp till kamp / Oh... tryggare kan ingen vara  
Make Up
Hot Love Street  
Calcutta Transfer
Howrah Station / Plus minus noll  
Paj Vaj
Med hacka och spade  
Rockteatergruppen Småfolket
Nu drar vi ner på stan  
Ljudlöst Ös
Jerry / USA 
Corey
Havet 
 
HS3 Boys, Dynamo Varberg, Mantra and JSMB no links found

A KLIPPAN PROGG SCENE SPECIAL – Tors Hammare / Heta Drömmar / Svenn Kruse / Christian Brandt

Klippan is a small mill town in the northwest part of the Skåne county in the south of Sweden. Way back in time, Klippan was known for their wool production, and later (and to this day) for their paper industry. But they did also leave an indelible mark on Swedish rock history in the late 70s and early 80s when local record label Svenska Pop Fabriken (and their various sublabels) began releasing singles and albums that gained nationwide attention from both media and record buyers. Responsible for the first ever Swedish punk single ”Vårdad klädsel” by Kriminella Gitarrer, they soon added bands like Torsson, Kommissarie Roy, Noise, The Push, and Wilmer X to their roster. Being a very Swedish label, none of the bands (mostly singing in Swedish) are known outside our borders, although Kriminella Gitarrer have indeed earned a belated international reputation as interest in local punk scenes has grown around the world. Most of Svenska Pop Fabriken's output may be called rural rock'n'roll with a strong sense of pop melodicity, but to someone like me who pretty much grew up with in their golden era 1978-1985, their legendary status is carved in stone.

However, Svenska Pop Fabriken's history goes further back in time to the music association Bombadill who took the homegrown music very seriously. Not only did Bombadill function as a local network for the bands, Bombadill also built their own studio. Plenty of recordings were made there from the mid 70s and on. One album and a couple of cassettes of Bombadill recordings were released at the time. Although Klippan is best known for the pop/rock of Svenska Pop Fabriken, a few of those early bands and artists represented a more progressive and experimental style. 

Tors Hammare: Ska du med på disco 

Tors Hammare went through several line-up changes, but important members in their fledgling days were Örjan Mjörnheden (guitars, vocals), Svenn Kruse (guitars, vocals) and Christian Brandt (percussion, violin). The so called Mk I only ever released one official track, ”Vägen till Valhall”, on the first Bombadill cassette. It's a surprisingly heavy, guitar infused, folk tinged instrumental, as was the five-part suite ”Ska du med på disco”. Among their true confessed heroes were Träd, Gräs Och Stenar and similar bands, plus the latin rock of most prominently Santana. There's strong psychedelic overtones with wailing wah-wah leads on the shambolic ”Hästen” as well as on their slightly revamped take on Träd, Gräs Och Stenar's ”Sommarlåten”.
 

Tors Hammare: Demo 1

The Santana influence grew stronger when Kruse and Brandt left the band, as proven by a surviving 1980 demo by Tors Hammare Mk II, but the demo also shows they developed a stronger grip of their progressive ambitions as on ”Myrornas flykt” and ”Nattens drottning”.

Meanwhile, Svenn Kruse and Christian Brandt made their own recordings in the Bombadill studio. Judging by those, they were the real avantgarde force of Tors Hammare Mk I. Their joint recording ”Kretsloppet” mixes field recordings, electronics and tiny slices of more organized music – it's almost like a nine minute condensate of Thomas Mera Gartz's ”Luftsånger”. ”Vernissagemusik del 1” (=”music for an exhibition”) is based around an extended organ drone before turning into a summery piece for acoustic guitar and synthesizer. A second part of ”Vernissagemusik” was recorded as Heta Drömmar (=”hot dreams”), which is pretty close to the lyricism of Anna Själv Tredje. The lyrical side also comes to the fore on ”Hjortronguld”, a 27 minute piece with guitar and violin, while their Träd, Gräs Och Stenar admiration is obvious on their very strange cover of ”Sanningens silverflod” with sped-up vocals similar to those on Kebnekajse's debut and Mikael Ramel's first album, a trick also used on Svenn Kruse's solo recording ”Tomtar på loftet”.

Christin Brandt & Svenn Kruse: Vernissagemusik 1

Other short Kruse tracks further emphasized his infatuation with Swedish folk progg and psychedelia – ”Svens psykedeliska ögonblick” (=”Sven's psychedelic moment”) gives it away already in the title, while ”Säkkijärven polka” (a Finnish tune popular in Sweden at the time) sounds like some lost demo for Kenny Håkansson's ”Springlekar och gånglåtar” album.

When Tors Hammare transformed into Mk 3 in the early 80s, they had lost just about all of their original underground charm. They got better at playing for sure, but their watered down takes on ska, funk and fusion simply suggest a band without a vision. They really could have used Brandt's and Kruse's experimental spirit.

There's also an 'all-star' recording of several Bombadill artists coming together as The Bombadill Chosen Few, "Latino Blasfemia" that mixes latin with Swedish folk.

All these recordings (and more) have thankfully been digitzed for the Bandcamp age. Although a lot of the music is admittedly sloppy, it has a youthful energy and explorative desire. More importantly, it reveals a part of the local Klippan scene that has previously been only fond memories in the minds of those who were there, but only tales and legends to those who weren't. It adds several fascinating pieces to the ever so nebulous jigsaw puzzle called Swedish progg. 

Bandcamp links:
Tors Hammare
Vägen till Valhall / Ska du med på disco - Svit i fem delar / Hästen / Sommarlåten / Vinternatt i Klagshamn / Demo 1 full album playlist 
Christian Brandt & Svenn Kruse
Vernissagemusik del 1 / Kretsloppet 
Heta Drömmar 
Vernissagemusik del 2 / Hjortronguld / Sanningens silverflod / Tomtar på loftet  
Svenn Kruse 
Hymn / Svens psykedeliska ögonblick / Säkkijärven polka / Långt ute 
The Bombadill Chosen Few 
Latino Blasfemia  

FRIA PROTEATERN – Vi blir fler / Tänk dej ett Stockholm (Folksång, 7", 1973)

  
Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Despite my deep disdain for Fria Proteatern, this is such an interesting release that it needs an entry of its own, not being lumped in with other 45s in one of my singles specials. This is a symbol for a lot more than music alone, why the background story is all important.

When José Feliciano entered the San Remo Festival (the Italian forerunner to the Eurovision Song Contest) in 1971, he came in second place with ”Che sarà”, a song written by the two Italians Jimmy Fontana and Franco Migliacci. The song became very popular and was translated into several languages across Europe. The Swedish lyrics were written by ABBA manager Stikkan Andersson, a prolific lyrics translator in his day and one with a certain knack for storytelling, more often with humanist (even feminist) political overtones than the he was acknowledged for. ”Che sarà” became ”Aldrig mer” which means ”never again” in English, a song that dealt with the often debated regional depopulation in Sweden at the time. The song gave Björn Ulvaeus's pre-ABBA band The Hootenanny Singers a huge hit in 1971.

However, the progg movement was quick and happy to mock Andersson's lyrics for being too nostalgic and resigned – ”we can't change what's happening, it's no use trying”. Especially as Stikkan Andersson was the capitalist devil himself to the progg cognoscenti who rather arrogantly thought only themselves to have the ultimate truth at hand. Then, in 1973, Fria Proteatern wrote their own lyrics to it and released it as a standalone single. Their words are clearly based on ”Aldrig mer” but turned the original message on its head. ”Vi blir fler” argues that the more people unite the greater the possibility to stop the negative process. Same song, same topic but coming to the opposite conclusion: you can improve society if you get together and fight for it. I don't object to that particular assertion, but I say that both sides make valid observations. 

Fria Proteatern of course represented the politically progressive phalanx, but I think Stikkan Andersson's sentiments towards the depopulation problem were closer to what people outside the affected regions thought. The Social Democratic Party governed at the time, and it was their aim to concentrate the population to the large city areas, thus emptying the smaller cities, many of them situated in the north. And I'm afraid a lot of people believed that Olof Palme, then Sweden's prime minister, knew what he was doing and that there wasn't anything that the so called 'ordinary people' could do about it anyway. That's resignation.

We mustn't forget that Stikkan Andersson grew up in a sparsely populated area and kept his pathos for what happened in such places. I believe that ”Aldrig mer” was a heartfelt lament. Add to that that ”Aldrig mer” wasn't an exception. There had already been a significant number of Swedish hits through the decades with lyrics looking through the rose-coloured glasses of safe nostalgia, celebrating the good ole days when life was easy (conveniently forgetting it really wasn't).  

But contrary to popular belief, quite a few Swedish commercial songs in the 60s and 70s had social concerns, a fact that the politically toughest proggers would never have admitted to. And if they did, they would have written them off anyway as cynical attempts at capitalizing on the zeitgeist. Much of the commercial music was crap, no doubt about it, but not all was. There are examples of commercial songs with genuinely concerned lyrics, albeit not phrased for a Proletärkultur or Oktober release. But you don't have to applaude Stalin to have honest intentions. Actually, I prefer if you don't.

My point is, there are nuances. Not all so called commercial music is inherently bad and meaningless, and not all progg is inherently good and meaningful. There is no such law of nature. It's just not that simple.

From this perspective, this is Fria Proteatern's most interesting effort. It's firmly dependent on the context, even if that hardly will make any sense to a non-Swede even if you know about its background. I happen to like the melody myself even if it's a bit of a tearjerker, but that is really irrelevant as the value here doesn't lie with the music, but what their version symbolizes in relation to the version it alludes to. It's a talking point where the music itself is subordinate.

The B side ”Tänk dej ett Stockholm” (=”imagine a Stockholm”) has strong environmental concerns, with lyrics painting a utopic picture of a Stockholm without pollution, noise and unfriendly atmosphere. It's very much like an afterthought to the elms battle, but musically it's just as chunky and lyrically blocky as your typical asinine Fria Proteatern original.

Vi blir fler (through kallelind.se, scroll to the end of the article and click the link)

TORBJÖRN "TOBBE" RÜSSLANDER – Tobbe med egna låtar (no label, MC, 1978)

 
Swedish vocals, English vocals
International relevance: *

A very obscure and almost entirely undocumented cassette-only album, privately issued in 500 homemade copies in 1978, with songs written from 1974 up to the release date. Torbjörn ”Tobbe” Rüsslander was a singer/songwriter and a pretty good guitar player who recorded these twelve songs in his rehearsal room.

Recorded on a 4-track TEAC machine, the album shares the sound characteristics heard on several American private pressings from around the same time. Although the portastudio has its obvious limitations, I've always liked the dryness of it, as if the music was registered onto a chunk of wood. Rüsslander is quite good at using the technical limitations to his advantage. 

Most of his songs are melodic, and a couple of them have a more pronounced proggish feel, like ”Fredagsnatt” and ”En vän i nöden”, the latter nicely decorated with understated flute lines. Otherwise, the progg feel lies mainly with the sincere DIY vibe, not unlike Per Forssell. 

I can't quite put my finger on what, but there's something about ”Tobbe med egna sånger” that occasionally reminds me of U.S. underground legend D.R. Hooker whose 1972 album ”The Truth” is highly regarded by psych fans and collectors, even if Rüsslander doesn't have quite the same off-beat outsider vibe. At any rate, I enjoy listening to it. It may have its shortcomings, but those are overshadowed by the merits.

Rüsslander later re-emerged briefly with his band Zvenska Muskler who released one single in 1981. He still performs, and he also works a guitar teacher.

Full album  

INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER – Remains (Silence, 2018; rec. 1968-1969)

  
Instrumental, English vocals, Swedish vocals
International relevance: ***

The batch review of the albums by the various incarnations of Träd, Gräs Och Stenar's is apparently one of my most 'controversial' blog entries as I don't share the automatic reverence for the band. I don't submit to any unreflected worship of sacred cows, and TG&S are the most sacred of them all, but I still think most of what they did was simplistic and inept for its own sake. There are flashes of brilliance, especially during their earliest Pärson Sound days, but not enough to justify their general status as sanctified untouchables.

Of course there's been a number of archival TG&S releases, most of them simply confirming what their original albums already told us. Again, the most striking exception is Subliminal Sounds' 2CD assemblage of 1967-68 recordings showing that the band actually could extract some real energy out of their drones if they wanted to, not only squelch through sleepy one-chord lethargy. And that's where the 5 LP box set ”Remains” comes into the picture. Two of the discs are original albums "Sov gott Rose-Marie" and "Hemåt" but three of them are dedicated to previously unreleased (or mostly unreleased) material, and it's those that I focus on here. 

Some of it is still just more of the same, but several of those unissued recordings are in fact much better than what ended up on their proper albums. There's some sloppy slosh here too, but pieces such as ”Cellodron” (”Cello Spear”), and ”Hemåt” (”Homeward”) – once it catches steam – are very good. As is ”Hes häst” (”Hoarse Horse”) which conjures up the spirit of Czech band Plastic People Of The Universe. 

It's hardly surprising that "Remains” is inconsistent both in terms of musical and aural quality, but the good bits are excellent and make me wonder why (International) Harvester/Träd, Gräs & Stenar just couldn't produce any album uniformly on that level instead of making a point of playing below their capacity.

Full album playlist (Spotify)

HOT SALSA – Hot Salsa (Montezuma, 1979)

English vocals, other languages
International relevance: *

Hot Salsa came together already in 1976 when a group of latinos living in Sweden met in a music pub in Stockholm. Among those were Sabu Martinez's sons Johnny and René, Wilfredo Stephenson of Aston Reymers Rivaler, and Rafael Sida of EGBA. Initially playing locally in small pubs and clubs, a live session for Tonkraft broke them to a nationwide audience (with one selection included on ”Tonkraft 1977-1978”). Their first album followed in 1979, released on the Montezuma label. Helping them out on the album were a few other noted names including oft-hired percussionist Malando Gassama and singer Susanne Nordin (later appearing on albums by Tomas Forssell and Occident).

As their name implies, the group played the Latin American salsa by way New York with some extra pinches of jazz and funk. I'm quite fond of the 70s New York salsa which can be hard swinging with rough edges, sometimes having almost militant overtones in a deep funk way. In short, it's entertainment with a meaning beyond sheer fun. Hot Salsa know the moves, but where New York salsa bears the message in its very sound, Hot Salsa's attempt comes off as too slick and proper. It's very competent, certainly tight, and I don't doubt they really meant it, but even though many of them have the right origins and influences, it still sounds like something out of a music academy. I hear their debut album with my ears, but I can't hear it with my heart and soul which is a must for this kind of music.

It's The Rhythm / Gulliver / Get In The Groove / Fishing In Funky Waters / Simbabele  

SCHÜLDT – Schûldt (Schüldts Förlag & Studio, 1979)

 Swedish vocals, English vocals, instrumental
International relevance: **

It baffles me that it's still possible to find albums that are more or less unheard of, unknown, unheralded. After all, Sweden is a small country and after running this blog for such a long time, probing, digging, scrutinizing what feels like every inch of the progg soil, it seems so improbable that there are any albums left to excavate. But it does happen, and it happens more often than should be statistically possible. (Not to mention the amounts of long gone, buried 45s – is there even an end to it?)

I can honestly say I had never heard of Schüldt before I came across this private pressing from 1979. Although the front cover shows only the richly bearded Björn Schüldt, it's actually a duo album recorded with his wife Heléne who was highly involved in the songwriting and vocals, played guitar and autoharp, as well as creating the tapestry used for the album's artwork. She has a rather nice voice and a vocal style steeped in both British and American traditions. Björn's vocals are closer to a singer/songwriter style – I can even trace a bit of Ola Magnell here and there. I like Heléne better – Björn's voice is a bit dry with a slightly numb sort of timbre. Their voices blend rather well though on the tracks with both of them singing.

Surprisingly enough, it's all original material, but just like the vocals, the songs themselves display a deep love for the traditional material of both the UK and the USA. Heléne is a tad closer to the Brits, and she also wrote the best song. Her ”Nattlig frost” opens the album and is pretty great in a style that would have worked well on Lal & Mike Waterson's masterful ”Bright Phoebus” album. Björn leans a bit more towards blues and Appalachian country folk.

The lyrics are split between Swedish and English, but the couple's English pronounciation isn't the best why the native language tracks work best. Apart from that, the whole album is elaborate enough both in terms of execution and sound. Especially for being recorded in their own studio which was obviously well equipped for the mainly acoustic framework. Despite the sparse arrangements, the music sounds satisfyingly rich thanks to the couple's tactful and tactile mixing work capturing the rural quality of the songs.

”Schüldt” isn't a 'lost classic', but with some lesser shortcomings aside, it's still rather pleasant and pleasing. And better yet, it suggests that there might be more and perhaps even better albums out there, still undiscovered.

Nattlig frost  
The Wish Of A Bird