BRITTA LINDELL – How Would I Like (Prophone, 1973) / Waiting For The Next Sunrise (Caprice, 1981)

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

Certainly one of the most curious entries here, Britta Lindell's music defies any easy categorization. If there was one artist worthy of the buzz phrase 'thinking outside the box', then it might as well be her. It's definitely not jazz, it's not folk, it's not classical, I don't even know if it's prog or progg but it's definitely progressive in the sense it doesn't sound quite like anything else.

Lindell was born in Lisbon in 1943 and moved around Europe, and as a trained alto violinist she had played with several European symphony orchestras before settling down in 1970 in a cottage in Västmanland, an area west of Uppsala and Stockholm. She mastered more than 50 instruments of different kinds including the piembalo, a prepared piano she came up with herself. Over the years, she worked as teacher, and briefly as a choreographer for the Swedish national television, wrote music for the stage and even a contribution the Eurovision Song Contest in 1986 that never got as far as to the actual competition.

Her debut album appeared already in 1973, with ”How I Would Like” on the independent label Prophone. A curious mix of folk music from around the world, baroque and renaissance music, and something that was simply Britta Lindell's own mind, with some lyrics from Swedish poet Nils Ferlin and William Shakespeare. At times she reminds me of both Iva Bittová and Dagmar Krause but with more of a playful tongue-in-cheek humour. Although she draws from a plethora of 'high-brow' influences, she never fell prey to pretentiousness. The album is fun, and Lindell's approach is almost that of a child discovering the world through magical thinking. Through charm she tunes you gently to her wavelength; she makes you not listen to her music, but to listen to it with her.

It took until 1981 before she released her next album, ”Waiting For The Next Sunrise” on Caprice Records. It pretty much follows along the lines of ”How I Would Like”, but it sounds a bit more elaborate, more developed and with a greater emphasis on the renaissance strain. It's still a good album, and still clearly original, but it feels a bit more contained and therefore lacks some of the wide-eyed freshness of the debut. The best track on ”Waiting For The Next Sunrise” might be the last one, the strangely eerie and suite-like ”The Next Sunrise”.

Britta Lindell released one further album called ”Lights” plus a single of her rejected ESC song ”Simsalabim”, both on the Siljum label in 1986.

Lindell passed away in 2000, leaving a slim but highly original and often intriguing recorded legacy behind.

How Would I Like full album
Waiting For The Next Sunrise full album playlist

JERUSALEM – Complete albums 1978-1981

Swedish vocals
International relevance: */**

Jerusalem was the most popular Christian rock band Sweden had to offer at the time, reaching listeners far outside the religious circuits, even playing to foreign audiences. Founded near Gothenburg, they had a lot of the straight-ahead, dry sound typical to the late 70s bands of the area. Jerusalem was mainly a mainstream band but earned their popularity from their touches of hard rock and boogie rock. Their first album (sometimes referred to as ”Volym 1”) was released in 1978 and is an undigstinguished effort that fails to make much of an impression, with lacklustre sound and mediocre writing.

”Volym 2” is slightly heavier, slightly better produced, and slightly better. The most interesting tracks (without being that interesting) are ”Getsemane” and the extended ”Introduktion” which both features some progg characteristics.

Third album ”Krigsman” is probably the best one here overall, and also the most progressive one thanks to the title track with passionate vocals from Jerusalem main man Ulf Christiansson, ”Moderne man” which is the top track in this collection, and the 12 minute epic ”Sodom”.

This might give you the idea that Jerusalem are at least occasionally worthwhile, but I can't say they are. Most of the time they're mediocre and dull. Even duller is Ulf Christiansson's solo album ”I mina drömmar” released as Uffe in 1982, a painfully boring collection of radio friendly dross that shows hardly any of Jerusalem's heavier side which after all is their strongest point.

Jerusalem full album playlist
Volym 2 full album playlist
Krigsman full album playlist
I mina drömmar full album playlist

INGEMAR OLSSON MED FLERA – I alla fall (Polydor, 1973)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Ingemar Olsson has already appeared on this blog once, with his 1970 debut album ”Livs levande”. This is Olsson's third album, and inbetween the two albums he had acquired a higher degree of self-confidence. ”I alla fall” is basically a Christian singer/songwriter album with upfront rock and pop aspirations, but it has nevertheless a few progg ties which I think make it worth mentioning. Tomas Ernvik collaborator Agneta Gilstig appears on backing vocals on most of the tracks, and guitarist Björn Linder is known from albums by Sam Ellison, Blues Annika, Runeson and Ola Magnell to name but a few. Also, two of the album's three cover choices are fairly stirring, namely ”Kom om du vill” which is an energetic Swedish take on Bob Dylan's ”Quinn the Eskimo” and a rowdy and similarly Swedish version of Joni Mitchell's ”Woodstock”.

Beware of later re-recordings of the songs!

Tänker man efter

ALEXANDER LUCAS – Alexander Lucas (Subliminal Sounds, recorded 1969-1976, released 2022)

English vocals, Swedish vocals
International relevance: ***

One of the 'lost' bands of Swedish 70s hard rock, with only one seven-inch released in 1973 on the Efel label. And what a seven-inch it is! Especially the 'B' side ”Svarta skogen” is a full-blooded hard rock classic. The other track, ”Speed”, might be weighed-down by embarrasingly poor English pronounciation and some flat vocals but the song itself is still good. So my interest peaked when Subliminal Sounds announced an archival release of Alexander Lucas. Especially following the label's powerhouse release of Great Ad which will stand as one of the best Swedish tape archive clear-outs for many years to come.

There's a lot to like on ”Alexander Lucas”, but it also reveals the band's shortcomings – the vocals in particular were obviously a constant problem that unfortunately weakens the impact some. The adolescent machoisms occasionally occuring are downright cringeworthy even for a hard rock band, and the material is somewhat inconsistent too. Inferior tracks include ”Race To Heaven”, ”The Saint”, a completely pointless cover of ”Johnny B. Goode” and – worst of all – the absolutely dreadful ”You're Gonna Die” that not only has seriously embarrassing lyrics but also the silliest attempt at ”scary” vocals ever. The compilation would certainly have benefitted from a less allowing selection – it would have presented Alexander Lucas in a generally better light and the listener would have had fewer annoying moments. Nothing here is as good as the 45 tracks that open the album, but there are still a few things here that stand up fairly well and deserve to be heard. The guitar playing is pretty great too, with a nice bite and quite a few Eastern influences. I can also sense small bits of Black Sabbath, Pentagram, November and even Deep Purple scattered among the tracks. ”Free To Ride” even comes off as an early blueprint for a Motörhead that hadn't yet made their debut on record! 

I wouldn't call this essential to the casual listener, but if you're interested in obscure 70s hard rock, this will surely be a welcome listen, especially if you harness your expectations and are prepared for a couple of duds along the way.

Full album playlist

FOLKTEATERN – Nya kvasten (Folkteatern, 1978)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Definitely an album to ignore, being songs and spoken excerpts from a local Gothenburg stage play written by political playwrights Kent Andersson and Bengt Bratt. All Andersson's and Bratt's works have a strong socialist kitchen sink framework with a strong local colour, and this is no exception. Only one track has a progg feel, namely the actually rather decent ”Irrfärd” that vaguely sounds like a something inbetween Motvind's ”Lära för livet” and some of Ulf Dageby's soundtrack to ”Ett anständigt liv”.

The album was released by Folkteatern themselves.

No links found.

ANN SOFI (NILSSON) – När kommer dagen (Oktober, 1977)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Ann Sofi Nilsson has an appealing voice in the region of Maria Hörnelius, and hadn't it been for the ever so suffocating politics, this would probably had been an OK album.”När kommer dagen” ends with the millionth recording of Brecht/Eisler's ”Einheitsfrontlied” (as "Enhetsfrontsång") which says just about everything you need to know about the album. If you for some reason still need more information, it's released on Oktober, the very same label that gave us Fria Proteatern, Arbetets Söner & Döttrar and – for that they will forever burn in the most incinerating parts of hell – Bruksteatern. If you consider Mao's Little Red Book pornographically arousing, then ”När kommer dagen” will be Viagra to you.

All these albums with totalitarian, in-denial brainwashing politics are becoming more and more problematic and repulsive the more I hear, especially in times when totalitarian, in-denial brainwashing politics are the order of the day all around the world. Left or right doesn't matter because as I've said before, politics aren't linear but circular. At one point they meet, and it's digusting.

The most interesting thing about "När kommer dagen" is probably that Stefan "Stoffe" Sundlöf plays drums on the album. Sundlöf was the drummer of Sven Zetterberg's Telge Blues (that later developed into the highly successful Chicago Express). The album is produced by Gunnar Rosengren which was the bass player of Telge Blues.

No links found

GRUS I DOJJAN – Slarvigt men säkert (Sonet, 1974) / Högt spel (Sonet, 1975)

Swedish vocals, English vocals
International relevance: *

Third and fourth album by Grus I Dojjan, previously featured on the blog with their debut album. These albums are simply more of the same: cheerful mix of old-timey Western folk traditions including Great Britiain, America and Sweden, performed in a devil-may-care fashion. ”Slarvigt men säkert” translates to ”sloppy but surely” which is the best description of Grus I Dojjan you'll ever see. ”Högt spel” is a little more professional sounding which in a way contradicts Grus I Dojjan's homegrown nimbus. If you're one of the two last people (there can't be any more than that left) who still absolutely love this style, you'll love these albums too. 

Slarvigt men säkert full album
Högt spel full album playlist

TOMMY KÖRBERG, ANDERS LINDER, LILL LINDFORS & ANN SOFI NILSSON – Barn i stan (Folksång, 1980)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

The featured booklet explains the album: ”This album deals with the condition of children. Some of the songs are newly written, but most of them date back to the turn of the century. You can learn a lot from history. Knowledge of the historical context can help us to greater power of action today.” Needless to say, the lyrics have a strong political bent, and while it's hard to object to the sentiment, the wiseacre approach is as tiresome here as always.

The most interesting thing about the album is the all-star lineup with several of prog stellars including Tommy Körberg (Solar Plexus, Made In Sweden), Anders Linder (all-round performer well-loved for his many children's shows on national TV), Stefan Nilsson (De Gladas Kapell, Kornet, Hörselmat and later on stahlwart with Tommy Körberg), Stefan Ringbom (Mascots, Fria Proteatern) and of course, the everpresent multi-instrumentalist maestro Kjell Westling (Arbete & Fritid, Harvester, Gunder Hägg/Blå Tåget, Vargavinter, Spjärnsvallet...). Still, the music itself isn't very interesting, and ”Barn i stan” stands most of all as merely a historical document from the tail end of the progg movement.

Folksång was Fria Proteatern's label.

No links found.

MANTRA – Take It! (A-Disc, 1980)

Instrumental
International relevance: *

Latecomers to the A-Disc roster, Mantra's debut album showed more than a few commercial leanings towards the radio friendly pop rock of the day as well as dehydrated funk fusion and disco. One track, ”Swing Your Thing” suspiciously shares a few features with Toto's ”Hold The Line” which is revealing enough. ”I Sold My Soul (To Rock 'n' Roll?)” is – with a question mark or without it – one of the worst over-used song titles ever. It doesn't matter that it's probably used here as a tongue-in-cheek hint at the slight hard rock charasteristics sneaking into what's basically a mediocre jazz fusion track. Guitarist, songwriter and arranger Henrik Janson obviously had a taste for American FM hard rock, as his playing is soaked with it. The album is entirely instrumental, but whether that's for the better or for the worse is impossible to say since ”Take It” sucks harder than an anabolic Hoover anyway.

Mantra had a few 45s out and released their second album ”Mantraction” on the Hill label in 1982 before Janson turned to a prolific career as a studio guitarist. He was also a member of Mikael Ramel's backing band Harru Lust in the early 80s (appearing on ”Strömavbrott” from 1982 and ”Bra sak” from 1984), and Ramel also wrote the lyrics for one of Mantra's songs on ”Mantraction”.

Balladtime

RUNO ERICKSSON'S OMNIBUS – Runo Erickson's Omnibus (Four Leaf Clover, 1980)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

I had never heard of this album until very recently when I stumbled upon it by chance. To be honest, I had never heard of Runo Ericksson's name either until then. At least not knowingly. I have, however, heard his trombone before – he appears on numerous recordings by artists mostly in the jazz field, including national treasures Jan Johansson, Monica Zetterlund and Mikael Ramel's dad Povel Ramel. And strangely yet – he's present on one of my all-time favourite jazz albums, George Russell's dazzling live album ”The Essence Of George Russell”! But somehow, his name never registered in my memory.

In my defence, Runo Ericksson played a successful hide-and-seek spending lots of time abroad, from the end of the 60's mostly in Switzerland. Prior to that, he studied under Romanian conductor Sergiu Celibidache and French composer, conductor and Polar Music Prize winner Pierre Boulez.

Being something of the eternal sideman, ”Omnibus” was his first – and as far as I know, his only – album as a leader. Recorded in Switzerland with Swiss, Austrian and American musicians, it was released on Swedish label Four Leaf Clover in 1980. And what an album it is!

Taking cues from both spiritual jazz, free jazz and Eastern traditions, it's an elevated work of art, dripping with mysticism without ever getting cheesy (like a lot of spiritual jazz does). It's musically sparse but emotionally dense, and although it often turns its attention inwards, it's never insular or arrogant. ”Omnibus” has a wide-open heart and welcoming arms; an intense care for the listener. It's also no stranger to surprises, as in ”Fiddeling” when a Swedish folk tune suddenly bursts through but vividly coloured with bright Indian pigments. The pieces move lightly, sometimes so lightly they seem to levitate and lit the air with the beautiful colours of the music. I'm not a fan of jazz guitar, but here, Harry Pepl's guitar smoothly adjusts to the essence of the sometimes eerie groove of the collective. This is a masterpiece of an album, unique and strangely detached from time, sometimes bordering on psychedelic in spirit but always moving in its own mysterious ways, never failing to stun, captivate, and amaze.

Full album playlist

ASTON REYMERS RIVALER – Complete albums 1979-1981

While a first glance may not reveal any overt progg credentials, Aston Reymers Rivaler were in fact cut from the same cloth as Peps (especially in his later years), Ronny Åström and Dag Vag. Mixing African influences, reggae and other Caribbean styles with elements of both cajun music and old-timey Swedish dance tunes, it's no wonder that several Dag Vag members occasionally sat in with the band, and that the ever so open-minded Per Tjernberg, fresh from Archimedes Badkar and then known as Per Cussion, was a permanent member for a while. Also, their first two albums were released by Musiklaget, the very same label responsible for Bättre Lyss, Solen Skiner, Underground Failure and other certified proggsters.

Aston Reymers Rivaler were originally a street band, and a continuation of obscure rock outfit Rockslusk who subsequently had two tracks on a Sista Bussen tape compilation entitled ”Mediokra hjärnor” in 1982. Aston Reymers Rivaler released several albums in the 80's, but only the first three fit in with this blog's timeframe.

Från myggjagare till foträta (Musiklaget, 1979)
Swedish lyrics, instrumental
International relevance: *

The debut LP immediately defined Aston Reymers Rivaler's eclectic musical mix and demonstrated their penchant for exuberant tongue-in-cheek performances. But if the humourous element seemed fresh and catchy back in the day, it unfortunately sounds dated today, a bit like those 'funny' hats you see in 40 years old pictures of your parents at parties that seemed cheerful then but cringe-worthy today. Still it has a couple of OK tracks, namely ”Sambo” (although the possibly ironic jungle themed lyrics are relentlessly dated) and the bittersweet instrumental Russian traditional ”Metsäkukkia”. The track ”Bruno och Vera” was chosen for a single and gave the band a minor hit.

Kräål (Musiklaget, 1980)
Swedish lyrics, instrumental
International relevance: *

Second album ”Kräål” (= the word ”creole” with a made-up Swedish spelling) was a bit more polished than its predecessor, but similar in style. The track ”Stockholms ström” was never released as a single, but it quickly became a massive radio success nonetheless. A Swedish cover of Millie's early ska hit ”My Boy Lollipop” entitled ”(Min tjej) Sockertopp” is this album's cringe peak, while their first full-on foray into reggae ”(Vi bygger om) Hela Stockholm” is surprisingly credible with its mild use of dub effects. Fittingly enough, it features Peps on backing vocals, clavinet and tambourine. Thinking of it, it wouldn't have been out of place on Peps' own album ”Spår”.

A non-album single from around this time brought the band another hit, as the anti-nuclear power calypso ”Godis är gott” was released with the March 1980 nuclear power referendum in mind. ”Godis är gott” and ”Stockholms ström” are probably Aston Reymers Rivaler's still best known tracks.

Tvål (Metronome, 1981)
International relevance: *
Swedish vocals, instrumental

For their third album ”Tvål”, the band switched labels from the independent Musiklaget to major label Metronome which may partly explain why it suffers from a duller sound. Also, their patented gumbo of styles began wearing thin at this point. You may not like the first two albums, but they were nevertheless bubbling with joy whereas ”Tvål” sounds predictable and lacklustre. Album opener ”Jakten på amazonkvinnornas guld” is a decent stab at New Orleans rhythm & blues (with some nice harmonica work to boot), but again, the best track is another brooding extended reggae number called ”Det går”.

Från myggjagare till foträta full album playlist
Kräål full album playlist
Tvål full album playlist

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Rockplock (Talking Music, 1980)

Featured artists: Dynamis / Vackert Väder / The Information / Kyrkstöt / Rubbet
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Compilation of five Christian bands contributing two tracks each, on the Talking Music label. The five bands featured are Dynamis, Vackert Väder, The Information, Kyrkstöt and Rubbet. While no band is fullblown progg but more in a pedestrian AOR and hard rock vein and of little interest, there are proggish undercurrents in Vackert Väder's and Rubbet's contributions. Kyrkstöt's ”Hårda krav” is a boneheaded boogie number, but the lyrics take a welcome dig at the fashionable politics of the day even if it's from a severely Xian perspective.

Kyrkstöt released a 45 also in 1980, while the other bands all had at least one album under their own name.

Full album playlist

FOLKVIND – Folkvind (Oktober, 1977)

Swedish vocals, instrumental, a capella
International relevance: **

Trio Folkvind's sole LP is a straight-ahead folk album with mostly traditional tunes, some augmented with new lyrics. It's quite likely the only trad folk album to mention heroin and Ritalin in its lyrics.

Despite being released on the Oktober imprint (and featuring a Fria Proteatern member, Marie-Louise Söderström), it's a pretty good album. It's well played with mainly fiddle, keyed fiddle and zither providing the musical backdrop to Eva Tjörnebo's voice that fits in nicely with style. Some tracks are pretty evocative, such as ”Jag vill gå vall” and ”Visa från Önnarp” – the latter almost sounds like something out of the ”Wicker Man” movie.

It will hardly appeal to the casual progg fan, and unless you have a special interest in traditional Swedish folk music, it will surely be dismissible, but it's a solid if unremarkable genre piece with the occassional peak moment.

No links found

HEAVY LOAD – Full Speed At High Level (Heavy Sound, 1978)

English vocals
 International relevance: *

Formed in 1976 as a trio by brothers Ragne and Styrbjörn Wahlquist, it wasn't until the early 80's that Stockholm band Heavy Load had their real breakthrough – as a quartet – championed by Sweden's then only high profile heavy metal journalist Anders Tengner. Albums ”Death Or Glory” and ”Stronger Than Dirt” – along with busy gigging – made them into Sweden's first prominent contribution to the ever growing heavy metal scene. With their old Norse aesthetics, they were also pioneers of what was to become known as the nebulous Viking metal style, predating even Bathory with a couple of years.

However, when ”Death Or Glory” was released in 1982, they already had one album out. Released as early as in 1978, ”Full Speed At High Level” was self-financed with support from Stockholm hard rock shop Heavy Sound who put it out on its shortlived imprint bearing the same name as the shop. Falling somewhere between 70's hard rock and the not yet fully developed heavy metal, ”Full Speed At High Level” not only suffers from being insufficiently self-produced, but worse: inexperienced songwriting and amateurish playing. Ragne Wahlquist's vocals are laughably bad, weak and screechy, much like the guitars actually. The drums (handled by Styrbjörn Wahlquist) try so hard to be powerful, but due to the inferior production, it sounds is if they never quite gel with the rest of the music. Dan Molén's bass is perfectly audible though, flipflopflapping about in the midrange. It takes only one listen to ”Full Speed At High Level” to understand why Heavy Load was once dubbed Sweden's very own Spinal Tap.

The best tracks, if you can find anything here worthy of that description, are also the two most rooted in prog, the rambling, twelve-minute ”Storm” and ”Caroline”, which could have been moody with a producer without a broken hearing aid.

Heavy Load's later albums aren't good either, but at least the band hade obtained some clue of what they were doing by then. Here they just don't know squat. ”Full Speed At High Level” flaps and flaps like a psychotic turkey, never going anywhere but right down to the ground. It's easy to poke fun at this meltdown as the ambitions are so high and the results are so low, but honestly, it deserves no better than being laughed at – hard. It's more comedy than anything else, and a definite must-hear for fans of grand fails.

Full album

SYDKRAFT – Sydkraft (EMI, 1979)

Swedish vocals, English vocals
International relevance:*

This is an album I've hesitated to put up here for years. But as it's among those '100 bands you also might want to check out' in ”The Encyclopedia of Swedish Progressive Music” book, I thought that I should have a go at it anyway, if only to get it done with. While it has faint progg hints as in the guitars of ”London (Hela dygnet laddat)” and ”Lycka till”, it's not really a progg album at all. It's closer to the commercial pop rock of bands such as Noice, Snowstorm and Magnum Bonum. Names that mean little or nothing to foreign listeners but say a whole lot to Swedes. And what they say is not good.

Sydkraft may have had more pronounced new wave or pop punk edge than the aforemention bands, but not enough to redeem their truly annoying songs. The best track is the Buddy Holly cover ”Love's Made A Fool Of You” which features some pretty hot harmonica from Mats Ronander (Nature et al), but it's still pretty redundant. The worst moments by far is Sydkraft's attempt at reggae which is closer to an insult than a tribute. For some reason, some people holds this album in pretty high regard, but don't ask me why because I found this one a 24 carat clunker. They had two singles out as well (both included on the digital reissue), but thankfully they never relased another album.

Full album playlist

GEORGE T ROLIN BAND – The Grunden Recordings 1980 (Flymama, released 2019)

English vocals
International relevance: **

Archival release from a band with a pretty solid progg provenance. Three members had been in Scoop, a Södertälje band which also featured Kenth Loong from Blueset. Christer Åkerberg of Trettioåriga Kriget not only brought his guitar to the band, he also let them rehearse at Trettioåriga Kriget's rehearsal space named Grunden (where this session was recorded, hence the album title). George Trolin in turn had made a good impact as a singer for Panta Rei.

But to be perfectly honest: the band's progg connotations are far more impressive than their music. Although tightly performed and executed with serious intentions, they end up rehashing 70's Stones licks and some washed-up Mott The Hoople ideas. And as impressive Trolin was in Panta Rei, well, here he sounds more like a Mats Ronander of Nature doing hungover Mick Jagger impersonations. It's Åkerberg who's the star here, stealing the show with some really elegant and soaring guitar work, on ”Hey Girl” in particular.

While ”The Grunden Recordings” may seem interesting on paper, it's pretty redundant in reality, with their pre-history raising wrong expectations.

George T Rolin Band had one 45 out in 1983, "Sommaren kommer" b/w "Elenor". It's on the CTR label and is neither expensive nor very sought after.

Full album playlist

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Jazz & Rock (Caprice, 1979)

Featured artists: Barabbas / Stetson Cody Group / Ramaskri
Swedish vocals, instrumental

International relevance: **

Caprice Records have always been tireless flagbearers for Swedish contemporary and historic music, but then again, being the record outlet for the Rikskonserter organisation, they were on a mission from the Swedish Social Democrat government in the 70's. While that might sound dull, more often than not it wasn't, as their catalogue of jazz, folk and classical music is as almost as qualitative as it is quantitive. Don't forget that their series of annual volumes of ”Jazz in Sweden” gave us both Sevda and Rena Rama back in the day. While Caprice have graced ”Jazz in Sweden” with CD and/or digital reissues, of the informal trilogy of ”Jazz- Och Rockstipendiater 1976”, ”Tvärsnitt” and ”Jazz & Rock” only the latter resurfaced as a (digital) reissue for the time being. Similar in spirit to ”Jazz in Sweden”, these three volumes are different insofar they also present rock oriented bands.

On the live recorded ”Jazz & Rock”, the most out-and-out rock – or progg – band here is Ramaskri. Their three tracks remind me of a more rudimentary ”Hej på er!” era Trettioåriga Kriget, which means I'm not at all impressed by them. Very dull.

Only marginally better are Stetson Cody Group whose four tracks are more varied. ”Kraftrock” suggests King Crimson or perhaps some lesser RIO act. Then they go from undistinguished prog over pseudo-symphonic rock to 'complicated' and pretty embarrassing funk fusion. Worth mentioning is that this was Kjell Hilding Lövbom's first band. He later changed his name to Kee Marcello and made it big with hair metal band Europe.

Barabbas round off the album in a slightly more pleasing manner with two rather energetic free jazz/post-bop outworks. While not top of the heap, they're at least OK.

All in all, this is far from any of Caprice's most memorable releases. Europe completists (if there's such a thing) need it, but hardly anyone else.

Full album playlist

GREAT AD – Deep Down Death (Subliminal Sounds, recorded 1975-1976, released 2022)

 English vocals, instrumental

International relevance: ***

Malmö trio Great Ad only managed to release two 45's during their existence, both on the Scam label famous (or infamous) for Solid Ground's exceedingly rare ”Made In Rock” LP. With the singles issued in tiny editions of 100 each, in 1975 and 1976 respectively, they too are gargantuan rarities. Both singles are featured on Subliminal Sounds' archival release ”Deep Down Death”, fleshed out with more primitive but for the most part OK sounding recordings (especially in the 'basement' category) made before the band broke up as an even more confident five-piece due to military draft.

The four singles tracks open the compilation with classic mid-70's hard rock with progressive moves. But it's the unreleased material that truly reveals Great Ad's potential and explains why they once were dubbed 'Northern Europe's most violent band'. Tough riffing and unhinged-to-the-point-of-transgressive guitar soloing, plus: surprisingly convincing vocals! The fidelity even emphasizes the band's inherent rawness that sets them apart from several other hard rock bands of the era that may have had weight but not necessarily grit. Great Ad had both, and at times they could whip up a menacing, intimidating sound that almost makes me think of Blue Cheer in their heyday. Not in style, but in power.

There are plenty of albums that should have been kept forever hostage by oblivion and not being reissued. And there are many archival tapes that should never have been excavated from whatever putrid abyss they originated from. That's certainly not the case with ”Deep Down Death”. The question here is not why this was released. The question here is why this wasn't released before. Hadn't fate had other plans for Great Ad, they could have been legends. In a way they were. It only took us almost 40 years to find out.

Full album playlist (Bandcamp)

KATAS DÖTTRAR – Kvinnor sjung ut! Två sidor av Katas Döttrar (A Disc, 1979)

 
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Another feminist album to add to the previous lot of ”Jösses flickor”, ”Tjejclown”, ”Sånger om kvinnor” and the rest. Meaning: lyrics with plenty of message; clumsy lyrical metres negligent of melody; idiotic pastiches; annoying vocals, and too many people singing at once, religious style. (Religion and politics often do the same thing to people's heads anyway, so why not...). Soundwise it's a bit slicker than the standard political/feminist outpourings, a bit more towards ”Sessornas sånger”. Some songs are OK-ish, such as the title track and the semi-folk rock of ”Visa i 70-tal”, but as with most albums in this ilk, there's a cultish vibe running through it that quickly becomes unbearable unless you're part of the cult. Short songs, mostly around 1 to 2 minutes in length but if that sounds hopeful to you, remember there are 19 of them...

Side one
Side two

VARIOUS ARTISTS – 10 års kultur i partiets tjänst (Kulturföreningen Spartacus, MC, 1981)

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

Is this an endurance test, or what? A double cassette-only release named ”Ten years of culture at the service of the party”, with the party in question being KPML(r), the far-lefties best known on this blog for inhouse propaganda band Knutna Nävar. Needless to say, Knutna Nävar appear here with three tracks, including the otherwise unavailable ”Mortelslagen ekar i bambubyn” which is a rather suggestive and hypnotic track. Dan Berglund, Maria Hörnelius and Röda Ropet are other wellknown names. Also Viveka Seldahl and Knutna Nävar affiliate Sven Wollter; both later launched successful acting careers. And then there's the expected slew of marchings bands, Stalinist choirs, ideologically constipated singer/songwriters, and various other fistwavers. The few listenable tracks would have made a half-decent EP, but at almost 90 minutes, this is a study in nausea.

Full album

INFRA / TREKLÖVER – Infra/Treklöver (Subliminal Sounds, 1972/1974, released 2022)

English vocals, instrumental

 International relevance: ***

Two names, but basically the same band. Beginning as Treklöver, they recorded a demo for EMI in 1972 which lead nowhere. After recruiting singer Eddy Kristiansen, they changed their name to Infra, taped a 1974 demo for UK label RSO which faced the same fate as their first, leaving two studio sessions left unheard by the public for four decades.

The Infra demo takes up the major part of the album with seriously progressive rock with symphonic aspirations, which for the sake of clarity means plenty of neurotic time signature changes. They indeed aim high, and although they're accomplished musicians, there are split seconds where especially drummer Jörgen Nordgren slips. OK, so it's a demo, but the clean and conspicuously modern-sounding production is too revealing at crucial moments. Eddy Kristiansen in turn is way too operatic and pretentious, but it gets even worse when he tries to 'rawk out' in the busy bordering-on-hysterical ”Keep On Truckin'” in which he gets absolutely unbearable. 

All in all, it's everything I absolutely hate with progressive rock.

Not that the Kristiansen-less two-song Treklöver tape is much better. The production gels a bit better here, and while hired-gun vocalist and organ player Ann-Marie ”Ami” Henning's voice is a bit weak, it's still way more pleasant to listen to than Kristiansen's self-important bombast. But already in the band's early stage, they suffered from time signature Tourettes and it takes me a fair amount of death defiance to get through eight minutes of ”Saturn” (one of their two tracks here).

”Infra/Treklöver” will probably give folks who enjoy playing their Trettioåriga Kriget albums at 45 rpm a boner, but my self-mutilation session with this nonsense is forever over.

Full album playlist (Bandcamp)

INGEMAR OLSSON – Livs levande (Teamton, 1970)

Swedish vocals, English vocals

  International relevance: *

Ingemar Olsson is a very prolific and still active artist, and one of the better mainstream singer/songwriters to come out of the Swedish Xian movement in the 70s. ”Livs levande” was his debut and sports a slew of studio pros including Janne Schaffer, jazz flautist Tommy Koverhult and drummer Ola Brunkert. Claes af Geijerstam provides percussion and backing vocals, and also produced the album which explains why ”Livs levande” shares some characteristics with Geijerstam's own 1970 solo debut "Out Of My Hair".

The songs are split between English and Swedish tracks with some fairly witty lyrics. Not all of them are good with the country parody ”Jesus Walked This Lonesome Valley” being the worst, and the Simon & Garfunkel cover ”Mrs. Robinson” feeling very redundant 40+ years later. But there are some nice moments here, such as ”Somebody's Knocking On My Door”, a is mellow and catchy post-60's pop song, and the pleasantly breezy ”En typisk medmänniska” with a swirling Leslie guitar emphasizing the light feel. The entire album's a lighthearted and good-natured effort, retaining much of the hopeful air of the 60's.

Musically and generally speaking, it may not be the classic some claim it to be, but you have to acknowledge it for being a pioneering work being one of the first albums, if not the first, to blend Xian concerns with a real mainstream appeal. Also, coming only one year behind Pugh Rogefeldt's ”Ja dä ä dä”, it's one of the earliest proper pop albums to feature Swedish lyrics.

In 2019, Olsson overdubbed new Swedish vocals to the originally English speaking tracks, and while it might have looked like a good idea at first given that Olsson's English pronounciation wouldn't quite get the Queen's approval, the update sounds like any attempt of that kind, with the young Olsson and the mature Olsson anachronistically trading vocals. If you want the album, make sure to get the original vinyl version or the original CD release from 2005 ('wrong' version has brighter sleeve colours so it's easy to distinguish from the old CD).

Full album playlist

J.P NYSTRÖMS – Låtar i Norrbotten (Manifest, 1979)

Swedish vocals, instrumental

International relevance: *

Formed way up in the Swedish north in small Malmberget (current population of around 6,000), a part of municipality Gällivare, J.P. Nyströms took their name from a prominent 19th century harmonium builder. Harmonium was indeed part of their gear along with fiddle and the diatonic button accordion. Much like Norrlåtar, J.P. Nyströms repertoire consisted of tunes from the Norrbotten region, and they are a bit like a poor man's Norrlåtar, with a lighter touch and a softer edge. The dance tunes and songs are mostly upbeat, and if you're not well versed in the deep traditions, a lot of it come off as pretty lightweight (especially when compared to Norrlåtar). Perhaps that's why the slower, more melancholy ”Villiruusu (Vildrosen)”, ”Rimppa” and ”Matalan torpan balladi (Det låga torpets ballad)” stand out, breaking the otherwise rather samey flow.

This was J.P. Nyström's first album, and they have infrequently released a few more over the years. They're still active to this day.

Full album playlist

EMIGRANTORKESTERN – Nu packar vi bagaget: Emigrantvisor (Oktober, 1978)

 Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Above average Oktober album insofar it has a bit of entertainment value. Firmly rooted in tradition, the album focuses on songs from the period in Swedish history when almost one million Swedes left poverty for hope for a better life in America from the mid 19th to the early 20th century. With less blatant politics shoved in your face it's easier to stomach than most releases on the Oktober label, but while the performances are enthusiastic, its greatest value is still of a documentary nature. I appreciate that these songs are saved on record for posterity as they represented an important part of Sweden's social history, but it's not an album I'd put on for everyday pleasure. As a matter of fact, I'm not sure I'll ever put it on again. Quite frankly, it gets a too thumbs-up hey-ho over the course of 40 minutes playing time, not unlike a Guinness-soaked Dubliners album.

Emigrantorkestern released two more albums in 1982 and 1983, plus a 45 also on Oktober in 1982. Their final LP ”Rårivet” was recorded with homemade instruments.

Side one
Side two

DRÖMPOJKARNA – Drömpojkarna (Grisbäck, 1979)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: -

Featured here mainly because of the label Grisbäck run by Ulf Bejerstrand, and because it's included in the '100 bands that didn't make the cut' in The Encyclopedia of Swedish Progressive Music. Very little here could possibly be called progg, although there's a couple of references to the Music Movement mentality in one of the lyrics. Mostly "Drömpojkarna" is just straightforward pop, or perhaps 'rural new wave' if such a thing exists. I suspect it was some of the lyrics that appealed the most to Beijerstrand's prepubescent toilet humour.

The album was reputedly recorded in just 17 hours and it's probably true. If you can ignore the weak vocals and some of the most embarrassing lyrics (which is hard if you're a Swede), some of the songs are in fact rather good and wouldn't have been out of place on some early outing on the seriously amiable Svenska Popfabriken label. (As a matter of fact, Drömpojkarna went to the village of Klippan in Skåne after this debut album was released to record their final two 45s in the Svenska Popfabriken's legendary Studio Bombadill.) "Vagabond” is a catchy enough psuedo-country number, and the band's theme song ”Drömpojkar” is a nice slow garage rock inspired track, while a basement organ adds an ethereal, almost psychedelic touch to ”Äppelpaj med vaniljsås”. But the flat production and the general uniformity of the songs makes the album too one-dimensional to sit through in a single session. And, like I said, there's not much here for the progg-head.

After releasing the two aforementioned singles, Drömpojkarna members went on to join other Svenska Popfabriken bands (including the obscure Hugh Scott Band) and Aston Reymers Rivaler.

Full album playlist

HUSMODERNS BRÖST – Där fruarna bor (Amalthea, 1979)

Swedish vocals, instrumental

International relevance: **

At a first glance, this looks just like your standard feminist pamphlet, but it's a lot better executed than most of the albums in that field. Vocals are way better, and the jazziness sometimes suggests inspiration coming from Joni Mitchell's elastic vocalisms.

Malmö's Husmoderns Bröst were formed as an instrumental combo already in 1974, and by the time their first and only album ”Där fruarna bor” (”where the wives live”) came out in 1979, they sure had gained their chops. The album displays tight and versatile playing, and just like the vocals it has some jazzy edges that thankfully never strays into fullblown fusion. The songs cover a lot of ground, ranging from the Latin moves of ”Samba allergi” and ”Kork o plast” to the semi-reggae of ”Husmoderns affär”, from the disco allusions of ”Husmoderns disk-o-bänk” to the Steely Dan-ish slickness of ”Husmoderns vals” (which despite the slickness stands out as the collection's best track).

While it is nice to hear an album once in a while where the players actually can play good enough to get their point across musically, I have to say that ”Där fruarna bor” is a bit too clinical. It was released in 1979, at the tail end of the progg era, and as confirmed by several albums from around the same time, the heart and soul of the Movement had pretty much gone out of it and become something different and not necessarily better. ”Där fruarna bor” is an OK album, but comes off as a bit pedantic at times, and while it has its moments songwise, I'm left with an unsatisfied feeling once its over. It's a lot more accomplished than (the more entertaining) Röda Bönor and a lot more gratifying than, say, ”Tjejclown”, but it simply goes a bit too far into the realms of perfection to engage.

Husmoderns Bröst also appear on Silence album ”Bara brudar”, as well as ”Min søsters stemme” on Danish label Demos, both albums released in 1978 and recorded live at feminist music festivals. They disbanded in 1980, with their most prolific songwriter Maria Lundström continuing in music, releasing several solo albums from the 80's and on.

Full album playlist

JONAS HELLBORG – The Bassic Thing (Amigo, 1981)

Instrumental

International relevance: **

Jonas Hellborg is a world renowned bassist having played with a plethora of bands and musicians as diverse as John McLaughlin, Material, Public Image Ltd. and Ginger Baker. He's best known as a jazz fusion player, and although this his debut album shows him a solo player in the strictest sense, it's still a fusion album, with fusion moods, fusion moduses and fusion methods. Stripping away every other musician to let the electric bass be all and everything doesn't change that. And if your standard fusion album is a group exercise in picking fluff out of your umbilicus, "The Bassic Thing" even more of a belly button scrutiny. I never understood the notion of the bass – or for that matter, the drums – as a solo instrument as anything but a show-off by someone who doesn't know his or her place in an ensemble setting. And a show-off this is. I'm bored to ashes before even the first track is finished, and then there's 35 more minutes to suffer by. File under 'patience flagellation'.

Full album

SAMBANDET – Gud är! (no label, 1976)

Instrumental, Swedish vocals, English vocals

International relevance: **

This is one of the most striking obscurities from the Swedish Jesus underground. Still largely undiscovered, two tracks were included on Subliminal Sound's excellent ”Frälst!” comp, so I suspect it's only a matter of time until prices skyrockets. (One guy on Discogs already tries to cram a laughable €300 out of it – yeah, right, good luck with that.) Until then, it's still possible for a lucky guy to pick it up for peanuts in local charity shops around Sweden.

Apart from being recognized by Subliminal Sounds, the appearance of Björn Famne immediately piqued my curiousity. Famne 's finest moment is ”Vampire”, an outrageous full frontal fuzz attack originally featured on his eponymous 1975 Rasp Records EP and later revived on ”Who Will Buy These Wonderful Evils Vol. 3”. Those who because of that and Sambandet's two ”Frälst!” tracks expect a hard psych freak-out from their sole LP ”Gud är” (”God is”) from 1976 are sure to be disappointed though. As a whole, this is a different beast – but an intriguing one.

Those in the know consider ”Gud är” as one of the finest Xian albums ever to come out of Sweden, and it doesn't take much to get its appeal. It's much harder to pinpoint its style though, as it constantly changes. ”I Am Free” is a strangely prog-induced track with quacking wah-wah guitar, while ”Go(o)d News” is a bizarre kind of tripped-out studio exotica, with no similarity whatsoever to anything else on the album. (No wonder these two tracks ended up on ”Frälst!”) Unusual to a religious album, a large part of ”Gud är” is all instrumental. Some tracks remind me of a less trippy and more flute-folky Älgarnas Trädgård (but I might be just about the only person in the whole wide world to sense that), while ”Don't Be A Loser” could have been a Gabor Szabo outtake with its clean-sounding easy listening styled guitar work and feather-light beat. ”Happy” makes me think of a Gentle Giant getting drunker by the minute on Swedish schnapps while trying to play a sunlit jazz waltz. ”Vi tycker om att sjunga” translates to ”we like to sing” but is in fact another short instrumental which sounds as if it could have been the theme music from a 70s children show no-one ever saw. ”I Wanna Be More” in turn is Sambandet's stab at but of course warped through a prism of female vocals private pressing UK folk. And so on.

”Gud är” is one of those albums so kaleidoscopic in style it's hard to understand what exactly the band was aiming for. Definitely inconsistent, but the inconsistency is also what gives it its weird charm and works to its advantage. Recorded in the semi-mysterious/semi-legendary Falks Studio in small city Eksjö, it has a ”professional low-budget” sound that goes well along with the decidedly mixed skills of the performers. (Falks Studio might even be the label, but who knows.) Björn Famne is a driven guitarslinger (and shows off his acoustic guitar chops on the renaissance sounding instrumental ”Bortom”), while drummer Kjell Ljunggren doesn't bother a sometimes sloppy beat.

The wild mood and style changes makes for a truly original listening experience, and once you've put it on, it's hard to turn it off as you never quite grow accustomed to its bizarre versatility. Hear it ten times, and you're still not prepared for what comes around the corner. Like I just said, I've no idea what Sambandet were trying to achieve anything but whatever lept to their minds at any given moment, but in the end, the possible lack of a proper plan almost appears visionary. It's a one-of-a-kind album no matter how you look at it, and if you decide to strictly view it as a Xian album designed to woe the Lord, it only gets even stranger and even more confusing.

Is it a masterpiece? Not necessarily, but it's sure an album you don't hear everyday but one you definitely want to hear more than once in your lifetime. If only to find it out.

I Am Free
Go(o)d News

DAGENS UNGDOM – Pick-nick på bilparkering (Mistlur, 1982)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

Avid blog readers might remember I have a certain weakness for bands straddling the fence between progg and punk. Something interesting happens when the twain meet, when traceable remnants get energized by a new attitude. Sometimes the results are excellent like Kräldjursanstalten, sometimes they're just... Boojwah Kids. You can't always win.

From Hudiksvall, Dagens Ungdom stormed the stage in 1980 with the four track EP ”Den sanningssökande hunden” (”the truth-seeking dog”) on Mistlur, a label that like Dagens Ungdom walked the thin line between progg and new wave/punk. The EP is more a lot more punk and reggae than their subsequent full length album – the best was yet to come.

Dagens Ungdom stayed with Mistlur, and in 1982, their first and only album appeared on the label. It's a more accomplished work than their EP, rich with angular rhythms and sudden changes, sometimes reminiscent of a less bombastic, more skeletal Cardiacs. Some tracks are a bit contrived but their compositional grasp had tightened a lot overall in the two years that had passed since their somewhat trying debut EP. It's hard to single out any particular track – ”Pick-nick på bilparkering” works best as a whole despite a slight inconsistency due to a couple of less than potent pastiches. It's not as exciting as Kräldjursanstalten, but if you too are interested in the progg/punk borderline style, it's well worth hearing.

Full album playlist
Full EP

SVARTVITT – Svartvitt (Nacksving, 1981)

Swedish vocals

 International relevance: **

Latecomers to the Nacksving roster, Svartvitt had a straightforward gritty style close to what you could expect from a late 70's/early 80's Gothenburg band. Their secret weapon was powerhouse singer Gerda Persson whose raspy and soulful voice gave them a certain edge that nevertheless set Svartvitt apart from most other bands at the time, giving guitarist and main songwriter Bernt Wahlsten's songs a touch of a revved-up working class version of Delaney & Bonnie at their heaviest. Svartvitt's style may not be something that automatically appeal to fans of the more experimental side of progg, but to those who fancy the no-nonsense approach of bands such as Rekyl, Huntington Band and Ensamma Hjärtan, Svartvitt will most likely come as a pleasant surprise. Gerda Persson did in fact appear on Ensamma Hjärtan's final studio LP ”Nam Nam” in 1981.

Svartvitt also had several singles out; their debut work was a self released 500 copies 7” in 1979, while the heavy ”Solsting” and the slightly punkish ”Gasmannen” were culled from ”Svartvitt” for a 1980 45. The album's most accessible track ”En gång till” was strangely enough only distributed as a promo 12” not available for general consumption.

The band's history goes back to 1976, but it wasn't until 1979 they settled for the name Svartvitt. They were active to at least 1983 when their second and final album ”En ny tid” arrived through Nacksving. While it still had its share of good songs, the production was marred by an 80's production seriously weakening its impact. Still, Svartvitt remain as one of the unsung heroes of latter-day progg in a wide sense.

Värdighet
Gasmannen
Jag vill ha mer
En gång till
Solsting
Kan du höra hjärtat slå

LOVART – Stormsvalor (Oktober, 1977)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: * 

 

On and on and on it goes.

And on and on and on.

There's simply no end to albums declaiming the horrors of capitalism and the glory of the betrodden working class of the world. Yes, I agree that capitalism eats the less fortunate on a golden plate with caviar and paté and then finish off the meal with a loud burp, but please – stop whining about it! Please. Just stop. Please.

These albums are so formualic and predictable I no longer need to actually listen to them to know just how they sound. But yeah, I listened to Lovart, with a supernatural patience and a glass of wine to relax my poor tried and tested brain. Apart from the standard political sermons, here's the as-shouty-as-always male and female singer hollering some Asian/Latin American/Russian inspired melody (sometimes interspersed by good-timey pastiches that are even worse). Did those 'passionate', 'politically aware' and 'socially conscious' desktop communists pay any royalties to the betrodden people they nicked their tunes from? Or was it all a rip-off in good spirit?

OK, so the Danish traditional ballad ”Herr Tidman” is pretty okay for a song, and most songs on ”Stormsvalor” are in fact originals (according the sleeve at least) but that is beside the point. The point is that this is just another exercise and selfrighteous and thickheaded political shouting. Then again, what did you expect from a label with both Fria Bloody Proteatern and Bruks-fucking-teatern on their roster...

Note to self: Don't forget to take a double dose of meds before listening to the next album with lyrics utlizing the phrase ”majority of the shares”.

No links found.

LARS KIHLBOM – Spegelryttaren (Talking Music, 1981)

 
Swedish lyrics, instrumental
International relevance: **

Little-known or at least rarely mentioned album by not very productive singer/songwriter Lars Kihlbom. My guess is that Ola Magnell and Marie Bergman were among his prime inspirations. Kihlbom, however, was never even within grasp of Magnell's talent. The songs often deal with interpersonal relations but fail to engage. I simply don't care about Kihlbom's pedestrian observations of mundane situations. The best tracks are the short instrumentals – the opener ”Introduction” is by far the most interesting 35 seconds on the entire album along with the Debussy drenched flute closer ”Israel” clocking in at less than a minute and a half. The album title is quite poetic though, meaning "The Mirror Horseman".

Talking Music was a seemingly Christian Gothenburg label which released several singles and albums by a variety of little-known acts such as Kyrkstöt, Ben Antell Band and Dynamis. They were also the distributor of Tomas Ernvik's/Vatten's Gutta label.

Lars Kihlbom released a non-album 7” in 1981, plus a couple of albums later in the 80s. In a strange turn of events, he also record a 45 in 1988 with tennis pro Mats Wilander as part of his less than successful musical career. There are also a couple of much later albums up on Youtube by one Lars Kihlbom which I assume is the "Spegelryttaren" guy.

No links found.

ROGER EKMAN – Ångest (no label, 1978)

 
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

This is an album I've been eager to hear for years, but being in the three-figure league pricewise, it's not one you easily stumble upon (or can afford if you, like me, are on a tight budget). It's been conspicuously absent from the Internet as well. As the years went by, my hopes for a true gem only got higher, but I was afraid it would in fact be another Axelsson dump of incompetence. Thankfully, it isn't near Axelsson's unfathomable crappiness at all, and despite its dark lyrical topics, it's not a fright trip into the mental abyss like Stephen David Heitkotter either. Instead, it's a surprisingly accessible and well-crafted piece of work.

”Ångest” means ”anxiety” in English, and the lyrics deal with the insufficient mental health care system from an indeed personal standpoint. Knowing the lyrics capture firsthand experiences of depression and anxiety, they hit harder than if they were only an outsider's proclamations to make easy political points. Better still is that Ekman was a talented songwriter and a good enough singer who also managed to assemble a line-up of able students from Stockholm's distinguished Adolf Fredrik's music school to get his ideas across. The arrangements often have a jazzy feel but with its acoustic framework including flute, sax and upright bass, they never fall into the dreaded fusion trap. Some songs have a Latin touch as opening track ”Väntan”, while ”Besök hos en allmänpraktiserande läkare (specialitet nervösa besvär)” is decidedly folksy. Tobias Peterson compares Ekman to Ronny Åström in his progg encyclopedia, but to be honest, I don't hear Åström as much as I hear someone like Mikael Ramel thanks to the album's versatile musicality and Ekman's melodic sense. The album was recorded live-in-the-studio and has a highly appealing organic well-balanced sound rather unusal to private pressings – the richness of the upright bass is particularly sweet.

”Ångest” had a run of only 100 copies in 1978 and has never been repressed. Most of them were given away to friends, but a batch of overstock copies was later discovered and sold with a newly produced booklet authorized by Ekman himself, as the original insert was missing in some of the covers. To keep the original manufacturing costs to a minimum, the album came in sleeves from other records turned inside out, and were re-glued and stamped with Roger Ekman's name along with the album title.

As the album's raison d'être is the lyrics, an important aspect is lost to non-Swedes so it might not appear as urgent to foreigners, but with Ekman's knack for songwriting and the empathic backing musicians, it's still an album several notches above the standard homemade progg album. Despite ”Ångest's” lyrical concerns, it's a beautiful album to listen to and one in a crying need for a proper reissue. Until then you might want to check out this website in case any copies of the re-circulated original are still available.

Full album