Skraeckoedlan Premiere “Kaktus Galaxus” Remastered Demo from Äppelträdet Anniversary Edition LP
Skraeckoedlan will release the 10th anniversary edition of their 2011 debut, Äppelträdet (review here), on June 11 through The Sign Records. Ten years ago, Äppelträdet (“apple tree” in English) was an electrified blend of heavy elements, bringing together weighted fuzz and the impact of progressive metal’s rhythmic turns, like a spliced-gene monsterlizard crafted by pulling together elements of Mastodon and Truckfighters, and it remains precisely that. Led by the clarion riffing of “Världarnas Fall,” it was prone to even more massive ready-to-be-called-“slabs” of stomp like the instrumental “Chronos,” and as “Arise the Sun” or the title-track or the duly careening “Universum” demonstrated, there was always more to the Norrköping, Sweden-based outfit’s approach than tonal novelty. Even at their outset, they were songwriters first, and the fact that they had such a clear idea of what they were doing only furthered their cause.
The 3LP edition of Äppelträdet is duly huge, and you can see the details below. If you’ve been keeping up, the band — now comprised of guitarist/vocalist Robert Lamu, guitarist Henrik Grüttner, bassist Erik Berggren and drummer Martin Larsson — have
been posting re-recorded tracks from Äppelträdet ahead of the release of the box set. They’ve unveiled two of three intended thus far, with “Arise the Sun” (posted here) last month following “Universum” (posted here) in February, but also included in the comprehensive offering is a remastered version of Skraeckoedlan‘s two demos, Flykten Från Tellus and Världarnas Fall, both originally released in 2010. And it was a different Skraeckoedlan before they hit the studio with Truckfighters‘ own Oskar Cedermalm to record the debut full-length. By and large, the songs are longer, dirtier, and rawer, with “Skräcködlan” and “Från Havet Dom Kommer” forming a one-two of surging low-end and spacey melody that presages some of what the band would soon become, but still presents it in nascent fashion, bolstered by the energy of the band’s youth and the sheer excitement of playing that comes from the fact that, at the time, what they were playing was new to them as well as to the listener.
“Kaktus Galaxus,” which would become “Cactus” on Äppelträdet proper, is in its Flykten Från Tellus form a blast of fuzzy push and cymbal crash, its chugging verse and nuanced drums allowing the vocal melody to come through in a ready showcase of potential furthered by the chorus. These demos were compiled together on a tape in 2012, but the remaster brings new clarity to the speedy development that took place going from Flykten Från Tellus to Världarnas Fall and finally into Äppelträdet, and as a way to mark the passage of 10 years since the latter first arrived, the totality of the release is more about telling the story of who Skraeckoedlan were and how they got their start than it is simply putting a record back into print — although between you and me, even if it was just about getting Äppelträdet back out there, the album holds up now as it has seeing periodic represses. I actively remember when it came in the first time around and I’d still be stoked to have it show up as a brand new outing from a brand new band. A decade after the fact, I can’t think of anything more to ask of it. It tells the story it wants to tell and puts emphasis on the early growth of the band, which, if you’ve followed the course of their career — their most recent LP was 2019’s Eorþe (review here) — you know has not abated in the time since.
So, as a lead-in for Äppelträdet‘s 10th anniversary edition, let’s go back to the start with the demo of “Kaktus Galaxus” mentioned above. You can dig into the track on the player below, and Lamu was kind enough to offer some words about it beneath that.
Please enjoy:
Robert Lamu on “Kaktus Galaxus”:
You are riding along in your space craft through a sandless desert, the world is coming to an end and everything seems lost. That’s when you see her. A giant space cactus, your savior.
“Kaktus Galaxus” is without a doubt our most important recording to this date. Both the writing and recording of that song showed us our sound and a way to play together. That demo made us re-record it for our debut album, and the song “Cactus” was born. That song has become our anthem.
“Äppelträdet” will be released as an anniversary vinyl box on June 11 via The Sign Records. The box will be available in 500 copies and includes:
– 3 X 180g Gold-colored LPs in a black box with Gold Foil
– “Äppelträdet” (10th anniversary edition)
– “Äppelträdet” (Original)
– Demo recordings “Flykten från Tellus” and “Världarnas fall”
– 3x Inner sleeve (black with Gold Foil)
– 2x Posters (size A2)
– Lyric sheet and story from the band
Skraeckoedlan’s debut album ”Äppelträdet” was produced by Truckfighters’ bass player Oskar Cedermalm and released on Transubstans Records in 2011. In 2015 they teamed up with Razzia/Sony for the release of their sophomore album ”Sagor”, and in 2019 they launched their third and latest studio full length, ”Eorþe”.
Skraeckoedlan:
Robert Lamu – Vocals/Guitar
Henrik Grüttner – Guitar
Erik Berggren – Bass
Martin Larsson – Drums
