Swedish vocals
International relevance: **
A Stockholm band rooted in punk band Skabb and with ties to
Psynkopat, Boojwah Kids and Elegi and others. Hjärnstorm fit well
into that lot, with arty progg in their DNA but fully aware of the
then burgeoning experimental post punk scene.
This 12” technically features only
two songs, but the 'A' side ”En ensam man” (=”a lonely man”)
plays like two different ones itself. It begins with an uneasy
section of catatonic vocals set to a cold sweat organ drone before
bursting into a dance-punk like beat and guitars not entirely
dissimilar to Carlos Alomar's on Iggy Pop's ”The Idiot”. Chilly
industrial synth effects emphasize the steel-and-concrete paranoia.
The 'B' side is entitled ”Min skugga” (=”my shadow”) and starts with a simple but wonderful almost folksy guitar melody. Halfway through, the song changes to something that reminds me of Dom Smutsiga Hundarna before returning to the original theme's sweet melancholy. ”Min skugga” is oddly haunting, and even better than ”En ensam man”.
It's hard to pinpoint Hjärnstorm's style, because they hint at very different things without ever feeling disjointed. They were quite original, and it's such a shame they didn't stay together long enough for a few more releases. They did back singer/actor Johan Lindell on one 7” track in 1981, but that was a disappointing effort. And when Hjärnstorm emerged into the more typical sounding post punk band Stadion der Jugend, much of their original tension was lost.
Hjärnstorm's 12” was released in
four different colours (blue, green, red and black for those who keep
track of such things), but none of them seems very rare or
sought-after, suggesting this remains something of a lost gem on the
brink of genres.
Min skugga
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