STAFFAN WESTERBERG & THOMAS WIEHE – Med örat mot jorden: Ett musikaliskt rymdäventyr (Silence, 1980)

 
Swedish vocals, spoken word
International relevance: *

I've already clarified the existential anxiety caused by Staffan Westerberg's children's series televised in the 70s and on, so I don't really need to go into that again, but as it's a lingering generational trauma. His television programmes were so creepy and you could never tell exactly why. They were cheap to produce as his props mainly consisted of troubled socks representing the trod down good people and papier-mâché dolls representing the capitalist evil while Death played cello on the brink of a flat earth. (These days, people start podcats peddling the very same notions and get a cult-like following storming the Capitol Hill.)

That was enough to secure the yield of manifacturers of psychotropic drugs for a human lifetime.

Westerberg apparently took offence at my peers who aired our collective unease brought on by his bizarre, angst-ridden fantasies, but I'm not one to lament his hurt. File under poetic justice and find some other shoulder to cry on.

I actually tried to watch his most 'famous' series ”Vilse i pannkakan” (=”lost in the pancake” – spot the insanity) as an adult, and it still freaked the fuck out of me.

For some reason, underrated singer/songwriter Thomas Wiehe (Mikael's brother and maker of the criminally overlooked album ”Tårta och raketer” to name but one) obviously got along well with this mental violator. Not only did he write the music for the aformentioned ”Vilse i pannkakan” in 1975, he returned four years later to contribute music to ”Med örat mot jorden” (=”with the ear to the ground”). Subtitled in translation ”A musical space adventure”, I can't remember if I actually watched it or if I, at 14 years of age, had learnt how to defend myself against psychological abuse. But I think I did, unless its my existential nightmares playing tricks on my memory.

The double album with music from the series was released in 1980. Actually, apart from some incidental music, less than half of it consists of actual songs by Wiehe, Turid and actor/director and Westerberg partner in crime Ellika Lindén, and most of them don't have enough musical bearing to warrant a listen. The other half is Westerberg narrating his story meaning you get to hear him wheeze out phrases like ”I will choke your light with my tail”. If that won't scare the living daylights out of you, you need a fucking doctor.

Even if you're a Thomas Wiehe or a Turid fan, there's nothing for you here.

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