LOVE EXPLOSION – Love Explosions bästa låtar (MNW, 1971)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **
LAG & ORDNING – 51, Moderately Beat (Ramblin' UNLTD, 1975/1979)
International relevance: **
LAG & ORDNING – 51, Moderately Beat (Ramblin' UNLTD, 1975/1979)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **
It's impossible not to compare
Gothenburg's Love Explosion and Uppsala's Gudibrallan. Both of them
were first generation Gärdet proggers, both of them utilized a sense
of vulgarity, and neither of them bothered too much with skills, as
confirmed by the albums they released at the time. Classic albums at
that, but with one major thing to set Gudibrallan and Love Explosion
apart: Love Explosion's ”Bästa låtar” is a very bad album.
Love Explosion sound just like they're
acting, dumbing themselves down, trying to dazzle people with their
self-conscious incompetence: ”Listen to this! We can't play! We're
so progg! Cool, eh? And we can say 'cock' on record too! Sooo
subversive and daring, eh? Now dig us!” Rebels without a cause. Or
giggly kids yelling ”poo!” at the dinner table.
I don't have an 'official' Worst of
Progg list, but if I did, this would certainly be on it.
The entire album of puerile dross is
available free for download from the band's website,
including the original version of ”Djävulens patrask”, an
unauthorized Swedish translation of Bob Dylan's ”Desolation Row”.
The illicit use of Dylan's music prompted MNW to hastily replace the
original edition of the album with a new issue including a rewritten
all-original version of the controversial track. The website also
offer albums by a later incarnation of the band.
The original Love Explosion disbanded
in 1972. Singer Dennis Huntington went on to form Lag & Ordning
who recorded an album in 1975 that went unreleased until 1979 when it
appeared on private imprint Ramblin' UNLTD. ”51, Moderately Beat”
is less folksy and more of a blues and rock'n'roll oriented effort,
including Chuck Berry and Reverend Gary Davis covers in Swedish. Had it been a British album, it would probably have been lumped in
with scruffier pub rock acts such as The Count Bishops. Still
slapdash and raggedy but far more pertinent, ”51, Moderately Beat”
is quite simply a much better album than ”Love Explosions bästa
låtar”. Better yet, it stands out as an object lesson of the
straightforward Gothenburg brand of progg.
Two tracks from "51, Moderately Beat" also appears on Röda Ropet's 1975 album "Spänn bågen", "Nynnat och sjungit" and "Rudolf e stark".
With ”51, Moderately Beat” trapped
in limbo, Huntington started Huntington Band who released one underrated album in 1977, refining the down
& dirty vibe of Lag & Ordning.
Love Explosion full album playlist
Love Explosion full album playlist
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