Friday, August 10, 2018

FICKTEATERN – Allt växer till det hejdas (MNW, 1971)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Fickteatern was an early independent theatre group, founded in 1967 by former Narren members, including Suzanne Osten who directed a total of 23 Fickteatern plays until 1971 when they called it a day. They performed all over Sweden, and wanting to reach audiences not regular theatre goers, they appeared in jails, libraries, schools and in the streets.

Gunnar Edander wrote the music, and Fickteatern released two albums during their three year lifetime. Their first LP appeared in 1968, ”Människor i stan”, and ”Allt växer till det hejdas” in 1971.

While ”Allt växer till det hejdas” has some of the typical theatre group album characteristics, it's a bit quirkier than most, partly because of the highly welcome addition of musicians Bengt Berger, Roland Keijser and Kjell Westling. First track ”Vi valde inte våldet” is a minor classic featuring a particularly energetic Berger. Something about the track makes me think of ”Montgomery Chapel” by U.S. Xian band The Search Party. That track alone puts ”Allt växer till det hejdas” a cut above most albums I've heard originating from the theatrical circuits of the 70's, but ”Vem bombar i Kambodja”, ”Revolution” and the short title track are OK too.

The vastly prolific Gunnar Edander later composed music for feminist projects ”Sånger om kvinnor”, ”Kärleksföreställningen” and ”Jösses flickor – befrielsenär nära”. Suzanne Osten kept working with theatre, and has written a number of books and directed several movies.

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