So, the original version was a Swedish title with English lyrics appearing on Skraeckoedlan‘s 2011 debut, Äppelträdet (review here). Now titled “Arise the Sun,” what was “Soluppgång” before has Swedish lyrics. Opposite the title. If you manage to keep that straight before actually listening to one song or the other, you’ll have done better than me.
Actually, it took me a little bit (before I saw the info below, obviously) to work out which song on Äppelträdet “Arise the Sun” corresponded with. If you take the roots it makes sense. “Sol” relates to sol, solar, the sun. And I know from Dutch that “utgang” is exit, so it makes sense that “uppgång” in Swedish would be relatively close to getting up, or rising. So, sunrise, basically. “Arise the Sun.” I wish I could say I was linguistically talented enough to have worked that out just reading the titles beforehand, but no. I matched the riffs. “Soluppgång” was the second track on Äppelträdet and is readily recognizable from that position in its new incarnation.
This is the second single the Borlänge four-piece have issued to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their first long-player — their most recent was 2019’s Eorþe (review here) — coming behind “Universum” which arrived in February. As I recall, this was to be a series of three, so that puts them on track for June for the last one? I guess that’ll be “Doedaroedlan,” which opened side B of the original vinyl. Here’s looking forward, whenever it arrives.
If you’ve heard Skraeckoedlan’s 2011 debut album “Äppelträdet”, you probably recognize this massive track. “Arise the Sun” was originally released with English lyrics, with the title “Soluppgång.”
Celebrating their 10 year anniversary, Skraeckoedlan has re-recorded the track, this time with Swedish lyrics. “Arise the Sun” is mastered by Cult of Luna’s Magnus Lindberg.
Enjoy it loud, and stay tuned – More anniversary releases from Skraeckoedlan TBA!
Skraeckoedlan: Robert Lamu – Vocals/Guitar Henrik Grüttner – Guitar Erik Berggren – Bass Martin Larsson – Drums
Skraeckoedlan, “Soluppgång” from Äppelträdet (2011)
Posted in Reviews on March 25th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Behold Greenleaf in their element. The Swedish heavy rockers date back to the turn of the century with their someday-I-will-own-that-vinyl self-titled EP, and Echoes From a Mass is their eighth album and third for Napalm Records. It arrives some 20 years on from their 2001 debut, Revolution Rock (discussed here), and finds them a more stable band than perhaps founding guitarist Tommi Holappa, also of Dozer, ever expected them to be.
Crucially, this is the fourth offering since Arvid Hällagård came aboard as vocalist, and like each of its predecessors, it finds the Holappa/Hällagård dynamic growing in exciting ways that are only bolstered by the rhythm section of bassist Hans Frölich and drummer Sebastian Olsson. Holappa has always been a songwriter as the catalogs of Greenleaf and Dozer both demonstrate, but with Echoes From a Mass even more than 2018’s Hear the Rivers (review here), the guitar parts sound as though they were constructed with the vocal accompaniment in mind.
From opener “Tides” onward through the 10-track/46-minute release, Greenleaf and longtime-associate/producer Karl Daniel Lidén create a world with these songs that is at once contemplative as the boldly-chosen leadoff is, and also decidedly blues-based, as cuts like “Good God I Better Run Away,” “Bury Me My Son” and “Hang On” demonstrate. Hear the Rivers and 2016’s Rise Above the Meadow (review here) before it seemed to reach for the same kind of spaciousness in sound — Hällagård‘s first record with the band, 2014’s Trails and Passes (review here), was somewhat more earthbound in its production — and Echoes From a Mass pushes further in inhabiting that space, with melodies floating in vocals echoes above even what in other contexts might be a driving straightforward riff on “Love Undone” or a hook conjured by lead guitar in early cut “Needle in My Eye.”
As one would expect, it’s not all atmospherics and moody sounds, with Olsson leading the way into “Good God I Better Run Away” and the title-line there making for one of the album’s most memorable impressions — there’s stiff competition — or (presumed) side B opener “A Hand of Might” with its classic and signature Holappa boogie, each riff cycle seeming to try to push the one before it out of its way en route to the listener. The tradeoffs throughout between loud and quiet, faster and subdued, etc., bring to light the chemistry in the band at this point.
This is Frölich‘s second long-player with Greenleaf, Olsson‘s fourth, and, as noted, Hällagård‘s fourth. For a band who throughout the last 20 years has seen players come and go, come and go and come and go, the solidified lineup feels like a novelty, but it’s one that allows for a new kind of development in the band’s sound and purpose. It’s not just about Holappa paying homage to classic ’70s rock anymore — in fact it hasn’t been for some time — but about what this whole group brings to the material.
To wit, the near-proggy rhythmic tension coinciding with the chug of “Needle in My Eye” and the thickened stomp in the penultimate “On Wings of Gold,” which suitably enough seems to take flight ahead of closer “What Have We Become,” that quieter, purposefully understated finish a key-laced showpiece for Hällagård and an occasion to which he every bit rises.
The same could be said of everyone throughout, and though one doesn’t necessarily go to ‘album number eight’ as a landmark happening in the tenure of a given group, Greenleaf engage a somewhat fraught emotional perspective — see titles like “Good God I Better Run Away,” “Needle in My Eye,” “Love Undone” and “Bury Me My Son” — early on and answer with a bit of hope in “Hang On” and “On Wings of Gold” before finally looking back to ask “What Have We Become” at the end. The answer to that question is, at least as far as the album is concerned, that Greenleaf have become a full band with an increasingly complex perspective and a greater depth of sound than they’ve ever had before.
Considering the places Greenleaf have gone stylistically in their time — still under an umbrella of heavy rock, but ever more characteristically so — that’s not saying nothing, but to hear even the downer sway in “Bury Me My Son” as it moves into the bell-of-the-ride hits that start the creeping-into-surge intro of “A Hand of Might,” the subtle turn of defeat to persistence isn’t lost, and the rush of that track helps the band build momentum as they move through Echoes From a Mass‘ second half, with “March on Higher Grounds” arriving not with fanfare but as a melodic highlight nonetheless. Its riff careens deceptively forward and and where one might expect Hällagård to belt it out in the hook à la “Bury Me My Son,” the decision otherwise speaks to how able Greenleaf are at this point to see the bigger picture of what the album needs at any given point.
The flow continues through “Hang On” and “On Wings of Gold” as one would hope, with the latter the longest track at 6:28 and the crescendo for the LP as a whole, bringing together the blues and the heft and the space and putting everything in its proper place without losing the emotional force behind it — that force only getting further prevalence on “What Have We Become,” which seems to call back to “Tides” even as it refuses the temptation to hit into the same kind of largesse. Or maybe that’s just me going back to the start and playing the record again.
Either way, as a fan of Greenleaf, Echoes From a Mass excites not only in the continued quality of its songwriting — Holappa is name-brand as far as that goes — but in the increasing cohesion of its performance and how the production seems to highlight the band simply melting together as a single unit. It is immersive and progressive in a way Greenleaf have not always sought to be, and that too stands as testament to just how special they are, to be trying and achieving new things and building on their past in this manner some 21 years on. One of 2021’s best in heavy rock, no question.
Posted in Questionnaire on March 3rd, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Arvid Hällagård
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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
Well I sing and I write melodies and lyrics. And I think I have been doing it since I was around 10 years old. I started by impersonating singers that I liked. Vocalists like Jim Morrison, Otis Redding, Joe Cooker and many more. Songs just got stuck in my head and I walked around humming for hours without an end. Trying to figure out how and why they sounded so cool. I didn’t even know English back then I just faked the sounds sort of. My dad had a really cool record collection and that’s how I found all that good stuff. Just going through all of his vinyls and CDs.
Describe your first musical memory.
Well there is this Swedish jazz song called “Visa Från Utanmyra.” It’s a hybrid between old Swedish folk music and jazz. I recall my mom singing it when I was a kid. It’s a really beautiful melody. And think that’s my first memory of music.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
Oh wow! Hard question, I think maybe it was one of the earlier tours just when Trails & Passes came out. We had been doing alright with around a 100 people per show and then we played Berlin for the second time and 500 suddenly showed up. They knew my lyrics from the first riff and on. That was amazing. Just hearing the crowd call out: “Open up your eyes, don’t trust their lies.” I still smile when I think of that moment.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
All the time, when you’re touring a lot. And at the end you always think: OK this is it. But then you’re home again for a couple of weeks haha. The rush is just too good. I can’t live without it I think.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
Hard to say. With Greenleaf it’s sort of like a solid old steam train. It rolls on as long as you put enough coal in it. And it always takes a new path, but slowly. My way of progressing is by listening to new stuff all the time that necessarily does not come from the genre we are playing. I try to find stuff outside the box that inspires me. And in the end that stuff that got down on tape rarely sounds the way you imagined it in your head. But hopefully good enough haha.
How do you define success?
I guess for me a really successful person for me isn’t necessarily someone that’s rich or famous. More a person that is truly happy with what they’re doing and how they live. I dream of having a small house in the countryside, a small but functional studio, tour now and then when you feel the urge. And for the rest of the time just spending time with the family and being creative. That’s maybe my definition of success. Really I’m just happy people dig the stuff we are doing. It’s a rare thing and I feel very humble about it.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Nothing really if you mean concert wise. It’s always an experience. Even if it sounds like dogshit.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
At some point I’d really like to record an old sounding soul record. With horns and everything. Preferably in the US somewhere. On holy land haha. Just for my own personal pleasure. It doesn’t even have to be released, it’s just something that I’ve always wanted to do. Moan my way through the songs, singing my heart out.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
Well I think you have to at some degree be happy with what you created. If you are it’s all good. At the end you do it for yourself. Other people enjoying it should be seen as a bonus.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
The summer here in Sweden, it’s been dark and cold for a long time now. Especially with this isolation. I want to be able to jump in the lake and bike through a summer breeze.
We’re into March now, and soon enough we’ll be drawing to a close the first quarter of 2021. Greenleaf‘s Echoes From a Mass is my first serious contender for album of the year. Will it be? Hell if I know. We still have about 10 months of the year left at this point, but my list already has 18 records on it and I can’t think of one that beats it at this point. If you have, I’d love to know what.
So I’m sure whatever you’re listening to right now — because all we do all day is listen to music, right? what else is there? — is really cool, but you might want to hit pause and check out the lyric video below for “Love Undone” from Echoes From a Mass. It’s not necessarily a complete picture of everything the veteran Swedish four-piece are doing throughout their eighth long-player, but it does give a relevant example of some of the melancholy underpinning their bluesy rock even when uptempo and catchy as ever, and it’s three and a half of the least regrettable minutes one might spend on a given day.
Plus, as Napalm Records lyric videos will, it plays off the artwork, which in this case works particularly well since the lettering is so much of the character of the cover. Plus I’m a sucker for art-deco in general, so it hits on that aesthetic level as well.
PR wire info follows, including the preorder link, as usual. You know the drill.
Swedish heavy stoner rock favorites GREENLEAF are about to draw their listeners deeper into their maelstrom of buzzing guitars and hallucinogenic vocals: The four-piece have just released their second single, “Love Undone”, along with an artful lyric video cut from their upcoming album, Echoes From A Mass, out March 26 via Napalm Records. Their new track delivers an uncompromisingly heavy soundtrack to a tragic past love story, drenched in the hypnotizing GREENLEAF trademark sound and shrouded in a sludgy, heavy journey of extended riffage.
Once again, GREENLEAF prove that they dare to think outside the box and deliver a heavy roller comprised of Sebastian Olsson’s rumbling drumming performance, fuzzy guitars, Fröhlich’s haunting bass lines, Arvid Hällagård’s powerful yet ghoulish vocals and undeniable, heavy stoner, southern desert and blues vibes. Echoes From A Mass was recorded at Studio Gröndahl in October 2020 by former band member Karl Daniel Lidén, who also mixed and mastered the record at Tri-Lamb Studios. Lidén is recognized for his work with well-known acts such as Katatonia, Bloodbath, Lowrider and Crippled Black Phoenix, to name a few.
GREENLEAF are: Arvid Hällagård – vocals Tommi Holappa – guitar Hans Fröhlich – bass Sebastian Olsson- drums
Posted in Features on February 25th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Dozer‘s fifth and final (to-date) long-player, 2008’s Beyond Colossal (discussed here), has been reissued on Heavy Psych Sounds along with its predecessor, 2005’s Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here; also discussed here) and the collection of demos for that album, Vultures (review here; discussed here), first released in 2013 by the band itself. With Beyond Colossal — originally on Small Stone — out again, Heavy Psych Sounds has completed the Dozer catalog, having also overseen new editions of 2002’s Call it Conspiracy (discussed here; also discussed here), 2001’s Madre de Dios (discussed here) and their debut LP, 2000’s In the Tail of a Comet (discussed here).
One does not in the least envy the task that was before the four-piece of guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Nordin, guitarist Tommi Holappa, bassist Johan Rockner and then-new-recruit drummer Olle Mårthans. They were coming off their most realized vision yet in Through the Eyes of Heathens and had a desire to push it further, yet the songs still had to feel right to them as players. They still had to be Dozer, and headed toward album five, you can bet there were feelings about what that meant.
As a swansong, Beyond Colossal is almost tragically good. It is nothing less than exactly the album Dozer should’ve made and needed to make, building on the more aggressive stance of its predecessor, holding strong to the basic underlying craft that results in hooks like charging opener “The Flood,” “Exoskeleton (Part II),” as well as “Empire’s End” and “Two Coins for Eyes,” both of which feature Clutch‘s Neil Fallon sitting in on vocals, but also the subdued finish “Bound for Greatness” and the rush between “Message Through the Horses” and the cascading “The Throne,” so much of the record flowing in a way suited to the vinyl treatment it’s been given, but carrying a seemingly unstoppable momentum from front-to-back.
Don’t go calling Beyond Colossal the last Dozer album just yet, apparently. The band posted studio pictures on social media last month and who knows what that might mean. Rockner, in wrapping up this interview series, gives hints of more to come as well. Here’s hoping.
Enjoy, and thanks for reading:
Beyond Colossal Q&A with Johan Rockner
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On some levels, Beyond Colossal is the most aggressive album Dozer wrote. What was driving the band at this time?
I think we just wanted to move forward. But at the same time, I don’t recall us saying “let’s make a different album”, it just happened.
For me, when you listen to those two last albums, you can hear the development, those two albums kind of work well together. They are not far away from each other, like Madre de Dios and Call it Conspiracy.
I know we really liked the sound of “Big Sky Theory” and “Until Man Exists No More” from THEOH, those songs are dropped in tune. I guess we liked the idea of taking that to the next level.
Tell me about following up Through the Eyes of Heathens. You had Troy Sanders from Mastodon on that record and Neil Fallon from Clutch on this one. How important were their voices to those songs?
Their vocals work really good on those songs, the extra boost, like the perfect spice. The songs are great, but they needed some more beard. :)
The album is a real journey from “The Flood” to “Bound for Greatness,” but “Message Through the Horses” still stands out for its intensity. What do you remember about what you were feeling as these songs came together?
I guess I’d liked the anger, aggressiveness, the intensity and the power of the songs on the album. That we didn’t set a limit or what we could or not. Just put together riffs of darkness and anger into really good, mean songs that are Beyond Colossal.
How do you feel about this being the last Dozer album, your final statement as a band?
Who said that?! But if it is, it’s a hell of a statement.
Anything in particular you’d like to add about Beyond Colossal? Any other standout memories to share about this time in the band?
Posted in Features on February 24th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Last week Sweden’s Dozer oversaw reissues of their final two (to-date) albums through Heavy Psych Sounds. The Italian label has been making its way through the Dozer catalog, and so has this interview series. Below, bassist Johan Rockner takes us back to 2005’s Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here), following the discussion yesterday of the demo collection recorded in the same era, Vultures (review here; discussed here), originally issued in 2013.
Through the Eyes of Heathens is a special album, and to be completely honest, I’m just happy to have the excuse to put it on while I write. From the bombastic opening of “Drawing Dead,” it establishes Dozer as a more dynamic outfit than any of their prior material could have, even as it hinted toward what was coming. “Born a Legend,” “From Fire Fell,” “The Roof, the River, the Revolver,” are more than just catchy tracks. They find Dozer more fully realizing the brash side of 2002’s Call it Conspiracy (discussed here; also discussed here), as they moved farther away from the desert-style heavy of 2001’s Madre de Dios (discussed here) and 2000’s In the Tail of a Comet (discussed here) and deeper into their own identity. Recording in Finland, they nonetheless set a standard for Swedish heavy rock that few beyond themselves could hope to meet, try though they might and have.
Their fourth album was also their 10th anniversary, and Rockner, as well as guitarist Tommi Holappa, guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Nordin, and then-drummer Karl Daniel Lidén rose to that occasion in songwriting and performance. Complete with a guest vocal spot from Troy Sanders of tourmates Mastodon on closer “Big Sky Theory,” Through the Eyes of Heathens is the moment at which Dozer became the band they were meant to be, and the identity of their craft has not been dulled in the least by the ensuing 16 years. It is a thing of beauty right unto Peder Bergstrand‘s willfully weird cover design, and whether you’ve embraced and been embraced by the record before or you’re a stranger to it, as someone listening to it right now, I’ll tell you flat out that you’ll only find welcome and refuge in its course.
This interview series, the other parts of which are all haphazardly linked above, will conclude tomorrow with Rockner discussing Beyond Colossal.
Until then, here’s this and thanks for reading:
Through the Eyes of Heathens Q&A with Johan Rockner
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Tell me about where you see Through the Eyes of Heathens in terms of Dozer’s overall progression. How does it relate to Call it Conspiracy in your mind?
That album was a big turning point, in the same way Call it Conspiracy was, but different. I think it relates mostly through songwriting. But also, we learned alot from the making of Call it Conspiracy, which was a big project from start to finish. Especially for us. Best producer and best studios.
So, take all the good lessons we learned from CIC, and carefully use those, but in our way in the process of THEOH.
This was the first album Dozer put out with Small Stone Records. How did that deal come about and what did that change in distribution mean for the band?
Haha! I guess all the money ran out on the CIC project, and we were in urgent need of someone else to pay for the next album. ;) I guess distribution was a part of it, and also other connections the label had. But I guess, we needed a change over and all and Small Stone was back then a place for bands like us to be.
Looking back on them now and revisiting them for this reissue, what do songs like “Born a Legend” and “Man of Fire” mean to you now? What do you remember about writing or recording them?
For me, all the songs are great, and the songs “Big Sky Theory,” “Until Man Exists No More” and “From Fire Fell” stick out the most to me, but they are also songs we always love to play live. But this album is the album that I guess had the best impact for us as a band.
A lot of things happened before recording it, Erik [Bäckwall] left the band, Daniel joined the band, European tour with Mastodon and two years of making songs. So the band was full of new energy and the direction of the songs just came naturally. We made 16 songs for this album, 10 on album and six of them ended up on Vultures. Says a lot about our creativity at this time, we were definitely on a roll. :)
What’s the story behind the album cover?
Love the cover that Peder [Bergstrand, Lowrider] made. I don’t know the story, but I guess Peder had some weird fantasies about crossing different animal species and see what kind of strange new ones who would appear. We’ll never know.
Anything in particular you’d like to add about Through the Eyes of Heathens? Any other standout memories to share about this time in the band?
This album recording sticks out for me. A lot of good memories. This was around Midsummer’s Eve on an island just outside Helsinki, Finland. Two weeks of good times. Good recording days, music, friends and parties. Troy [Sanders, Mastodon] came by to sing some guest vocals, went to see their show with Iron Maiden. Good hang with them and Fantomas, who also toured Europe at that time.
The only video recording diary we ever made. Which also reflects how much fun, crazy and weird stuff that was going on during our recording. Watch it!
Posted in Features on February 23rd, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The reissue of Swedish heavy rockers Dozer‘s 2013 offering, Vultures (review here), is out now on Heavy Psych Sounds. With new artwork by Peder Bergstrand (also Lowrider) and an extra track that finds Dozer taking on Sunride‘s “Vinegar Fly,” it is the closest the band has come to issuing new material since their fifth and final full-length, 2008’s Beyond Colossal (discussed here). Issued as an EP, its six original tracks — plus the cover makes seven — were culled from demos for the band’s 2005 album, Through the Eyes of Heathens (discussed here), recorded by close ally Bengt Bäcke, whose history with the band helming their first sessions has meant they’ve always sounded way better than “demo” might imply.
Vultures was never a live-to-tape-in-the-rehearsal-space kind of affair, and eight years after its original release by the band, tracks like “The Blood is Cold” and “To the Fallen” have no trouble holding up. Bassist Johan Rockner talks below about the band having a glut of material and wanting to get it out in some form, with Vultures enabling them to do that. Then newly signed to Small Stone Records, the four-piece already had three records to their credit in 2002’s Call it Conspiracy (discussed here; also discussed here), 2001’s Madre de Dios (discussed here) and 2000’s In the Tail of a Comet (discussed here), as well as sundry tracks from earlier splits that continue to beg for an early-works compilation. When it arrived, their fourth album would continue a progression toward more aggressive, harder-hitting grooves, and Vultures represents the moment between Call it Conspiracy and Through the Eyes of Heathens as Dozer sought out the places they wanted their sound to go.
It is entirely to the band’s credit that Vultures is anything more than a fan-piece or curio for the converted. Guitarist Tommi Holappa, guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Nordin, Rockner on bass and Karl Daniel Lidénon drums bring a full sound to these tracks and in its substance it’s less a demo than a series of alternate takes. Dozer posted a short while that they were in the studio for a yet-unnamed reason. The fact that Vultures holds up as well as it does even for being material that didn’t get released when it was recorded, only serves as another example of why the possibility of their doing something new is so exciting.
Interviews with Rockner about Through the Eyes of Heathens and Beyond Colossal will follow this week.
In the meantime, enjoy and thanks for reading:
Vultures Q&A with Johan Rockner
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Tell me about the demo process for what became Vultures. Even when the songs were first released in 2013, they seemed remarkably finished. Did Dozer always do this kind of preproduction?
At this time we’re really creative. We had a lot of songs, and these demo songs were a part of the demos for Through the Eyes of Heathens. We had 16 songs to choose from for the Through the Eyes of Heathens. And we made demos of all of them.
We had a studio in the building where we used to rehearse. Same studio where In the Tail of a Comet and Madre de Dios were recorded. So, when we had three-four, good and ready songs, we recorded them as a pre-production/demos for ourselves.
What did you learn from these demos that you took into the recording/writing for Through the Eyes of Heathens?
I think we’ve always felt that it’s good to make demos, to be able to listen to the song over and over and see if it works or needs more love. It’s a good working progress.
Is there more material from this session or where these songs it? Obviously you and Daniel Lidén already went back a long time. What were these sessions like?
No, this is it! :) That’s why we released Vultures in the first place. These songs are too good to be laying around. We also think that our music should be out there for people to hear. That’s why we also release “Vinegar Fly” (the Sunride cover) for this vinyl/digipack release.
The sessions were great, Daniel is such a great guy with a good music ear. He brought in some new fresh energy into the band which I guess reflects the creativity at this time.
Dozer was appearing at Desertfest around 2013 when these songs were released. What did it feel like to see the response to these tracks when they came out?
It’s always nice to see and hear people’s reaction to something the band does. Good or bad, it’s a matter of commitment and interest in the band, and that’s why we do this. To make music we love and hope others do as well.
Anything in particular you’d like to add about Vultures? Any other standout memories to share about this time in the band?
Posted in Bootleg Theater on February 19th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Today, Feb. 19, Swedish progressive fuzz rockers Skraeckoedlan release their new single, Universum. Well, new-ish. The song originally appeared as “Universe” on 2011’s Äppelträdet (review here), the band’s debut album, and below, they talk a bit about their original reasons for recording it in English — as well as a few other tracks they’re redoing to celebrate the debut’s 10th anniversary (they grow up so fast!) — and why they’ve gone back to it now. I think it’s safe to say that if the four-piece were on the road doing 100 shows this year, it might not be happening in this way, but more Skraeckoedlan is not a gift gila-monster I’m about to look in the mouth. They’re welcome around these parts anytime.
You’ll by now be familiar with the format of the pandemic-era performance video. Thus we see the four members of Skraeckoedlan — guitarist/vocalist Robert Lamu, guitarist Henrik Grüttner, bassist Erik Berggren and drummer Martin Larsson — in individual boxes, each playing his part of the song in sync with the studio version of the track. Much to their credit, they have some fun with that beyond the simple playthrough. Lamu takes advantage of a break to water the plants behind him. Larsson gradually builds his pillow-kit as he goes and likewise seems to defrock from business-casual to headbang-ready in terms of attire. And, well, Berggren is there live and he’s… he’s ready to proceed. He’s not a cat.
I’ll admit, I kept hoping that at some point Grüttner would get in a quick game of ping-pong, but alas. Can’t have everything. And does the swap from English to Swedish make the song any less catchy? Nope. Still a Rampage-worthy stomp ready to get stuck right in your brain — precisely the sort of fare that’s become a specialty of House Skraeckoedlan over the last decade. They kill it and don’t look back and one would expect no less. Way down at the bottom of the post, I’ve included “Universe” so you can do a compare/contrast with “Universum” if so inclined, but while you’re spending time, take the opportunity to dig into 2019’s Eorþe (review here) again as well, if only to remind yourself how far Skraeckoedlan‘s journey has taken them.
I wonder what they mean by, “In April it is Sunrise?”
Enjoy the clip:
Skraeckoedlan, “Universum” official video premiere
SKRAECKOEDLAN – ÄPPELTRÄDET 10 year anniversary
“If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” – Carl Sagan
A decade has passed since we in Skraeckoedlan released our debut album.
The year before, we released two demos: Flykten från Tellus and Världarnas fall.
It was on these two demos that we built the songs for what later became the album Äppelträdet.
We were then faced with a choice: Would we continue to have all the songs in Swedish, or would we rewrite some of the songs with English lyrics. We thought that we might limit ourselves as a band, if we only had songs in Swedish.
We cowardly wrote three songs with English lyrics, because we simply did not know if it would work to play heavy, groovy rock in Swedish and still be able to get out and play around the world, something we all had as a childhood dream.
We were wrong.
It has turned out that the Swedish songs have absolutely worked even outside of Sweden.
Due to our cowardly decision, we have almost never played any of these three English songs live. We want to change that.
Now that Äppelträdet turns 10 years old, we therefore are releasing a new version of the album, entirely in Swedish. The release has been re-mastered by Magnus Lindberg (Cult of Luna).
In order to bake an apple pie from scratch, we have had to first invent the Universe, which will be released on February 19th.
In April it is Sunrise.
Skraeckoedlan: Robert Lamu – Vocals/Guitar Henrik Grüttner – Guitar Erik Berggren – Bass Martin Larsson – Drums
