FRIA PROTEATERN – Vi blir fler / Tänk dej ett Stockholm (Folksång, 7", 1973)

  
Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Despite my deep disdain for Fria Proteatern, this is such an interesting release that it needs an entry of its own, not being lumped in with other 45s in one of my singles specials. This is a symbol for a lot more than music alone, why the background story is all important.

When José Feliciano entered the San Remo Festival (the Italian forerunner to the Eurovision Song Contest) in 1971, he came in second place with ”Che sarà”, a song written by the two Italians Jimmy Fontana and Franco Migliacci. The song became very popular and was translated into several languages across Europe. The Swedish lyrics were written by ABBA manager Stikkan Andersson, a prolific lyrics translator in his day and one with a certain knack for storytelling, more often with humanist (even feminist) political overtones than the he was acknowledged for. ”Che sarà” became ”Aldrig mer” which means ”never again” in English, a song that dealt with the often debated regional depopulation in Sweden at the time. The song gave Björn Ulvaeus's pre-ABBA band The Hootenanny Singers a huge hit in 1971.

However, the progg movement was quick and happy to mock Andersson's lyrics for being too nostalgic and resigned – ”we can't change what's happening, it's no use trying”. Especially as Stikkan Andersson was the capitalist devil himself to the progg cognoscenti who rather arrogantly thought only themselves to have the ultimate truth at hand. Then, in 1973, Fria Proteatern wrote their own lyrics to it and released it as a standalone single. Their words are clearly based on ”Aldrig mer” but turned the original message on its head. ”Vi blir fler” argues that the more people unite the greater the possibility to stop the negative process. Same song, same topic but coming to the opposite conclusion: you can improve society if you get together and fight for it. I don't object to that particular assertion, but I say that both sides make valid observations. 

Fria Proteatern of course represented the politically progressive phalanx, but I think Stikkan Andersson's sentiments towards the depopulation problem were closer to what people outside the affected regions thought. The Social Democratic Party governed at the time, and it was their aim to concentrate the population to the large city areas, thus emptying the smaller cities, many of them situated in the north. And I'm afraid a lot of people believed that Olof Palme, then Sweden's prime minister, knew what he was doing and that there wasn't anything that the so called 'ordinary people' could do about it anyway. That's resignation.

We mustn't forget that Stikkan Andersson grew up in a sparsely populated area and kept his pathos for what happened in such places. I believe that ”Aldrig mer” was a heartfelt lament. Add to that that ”Aldrig mer” wasn't an exception. There had already been a significant number of Swedish hits through the decades with lyrics looking through the rose-coloured glasses of safe nostalgia, celebrating the good ole days when life was easy (conveniently forgetting it really wasn't).  

But contrary to popular belief, quite a few Swedish commercial songs in the 60s and 70s had social concerns, a fact that the politically toughest proggers would never have admitted to. And if they did, they would have written them off anyway as cynical attempts at capitalizing on the zeitgeist. Much of the commercial music was crap, no doubt about it, but not all was. There are examples of commercial songs with genuinely concerned lyrics, albeit not phrased for a Proletärkultur or Oktober release. But you don't have to applaude Stalin to have honest intentions. Actually, I prefer if you don't.

My point is, there are nuances. Not all so called commercial music is inherently bad and meaningless, and not all progg is inherently good and meaningful. There is no such law of nature. It's just not that simple.

From this perspective, this is Fria Proteatern's most interesting effort. It's firmly dependent on the context, even if that hardly will make any sense to a non-Swede even if you know about its background. I happen to like the melody myself even if it's a bit of a tearjerker, but that is really irrelevant as the value here doesn't lie with the music, but what their version symbolizes in relation to the version it alludes to. It's a talking point where the music itself is subordinate.

The B side ”Tänk dej ett Stockholm” (=”imagine a Stockholm”) has strong environmental concerns, with lyrics painting a utopic picture of a Stockholm without pollution, noise and unfriendly atmosphere. It's very much like an afterthought to the elms battle, but musically it's just as chunky and lyrically blocky as your typical asinine Fria Proteatern original.

Vi blir fler (through kallelind.se, scroll to the end of the article and click the link)

FIENDENS MUSIK – Complete singles 1978-1981

Fiendens Musik were one of the finest groups to bridge progg and punk in a time when genres blurred. Centered around singer Mats Zetterberg, they released two albums but also several singles with non-album tracks/takes.

 

En spark rätt i skallen / Du går aldrig säker (för Fiendens Musik) (Bellatrix, 1978)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: ***

”En spark rätt i skallen” appeared as one of the key tracks on the ”Fiendens Musik” LP in 1979, but this is an earlier, rawer take. It's more desperate than the album version which suits the song's lyrics against senseless street violence perfectly. A great song in its best version! The B side is a Swedish version of Iggy Pop's ”The Passenger”, not as great as the A side but amusing and charmingly semi-chaotic.

 

Pappa har alltid haft rätt... / Tredje tåget (Bellatrix, 1979)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

Recorded late 1978 and released early 1979. ”Pappa har alltid haft rätt” is co-written by Zetterberg and Lars ”Ferne” Fernebring (Risken Finns), and an early example of Zetterberg's knack for engaged storytelling (this time about the generation gap) with suitably pissed-off vocals and a great use of Mats Bäcker's sax -- always crucial to Fiendens Musik's trademark sound. ”Tredje tåget” is a straightforward rock track in a Stonesy pub rock vein with rough edges. The title was later recycled for Mats Zetterberg's record label Tredje Tåget.

 

A Boot Right In The Face / Goalgetter (Slyngel, 2014; rec. 1979)

English vocals

International relevance: **

English language versions of two tracks otherwise found on the debut album. ”A Boot Right In The Face” doesn't work quite as good as ”En spark rätt i skallen”, while ”Goalgetter” is actually better than the Swedish equivalent ”Kulan i luften”. Originally intended for a British release, the single got stuck in the archives until 2014 when finally released on Slyngel Rekords, a Swedish label specializing in 45s with unreleased material by domestic punk bands.

 

Moderata brudar / Slutna sällskap / Arabisk bonus (Bellatrix, 1979)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

A slightly more polished outing from Fiendens Musik compared to their earlier singles, with two pretty catchy tracks ”Moderata brudar” and ”Slutna sällskap” as the main attraction. The most interesting track though is the third one, the semi-instrumental ”Arabisk bonus”, an oddly jouncing number with loads of echoed sax. An atypical Fiendens track but an odd favourite of mine.
 

 

Musik mot gryningen / Stadsbo (Tredje Tåget, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: ***

”Musik mot gryningen” is probably the most sophisticated track by Fiendens Musik with a slightly snaky melody and an unsettling mood underscored by Bäcker's nervy sax. A great one and a pity it was their swansong (not counting reunions). B side ”Stadsbo” is a humorous upbeat track, more of a throwaway compared to the brilliant A side.

En spark rätt i skallen full single playlist 
Pappa har alltid haft rätt full single playlist 
A Boot Right In The Fave full single
Moderata brudar full single
Musik mot gryningen full single  

FILARFOLKET – Utan tvekan (Amalthea, 1982)

Instrumental, Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

The second album from Filarfolket is an overall better effort than their debut ”Birfilarmusik från Malmö”. The format is largely the same: folk music with an open-eared approach, but they had become a stabilized unit by this time, and as a result, they had earned a greater self confidence which in turn made Filarfolket's vision clearer. It's emotionally more compound, with a few darker accent colours that makes ”Utan tvekan” a fuller experience. The high point is the vocal ”Magdalena” which would have fitted nicely on any Folk & Rackare album of your choice, in an arrangement featuring the deep, scary sound of Dan ”Gisen” Malmquist's contrabass clarinet.

If you choose between this one and the debut, the answer is hands down ”Utan tvekan”.

Gryningspolska 
Bosse Buses marsch  
Solpolska 

FILARFOLKET – Birfilarmusik från Malmö (Amalthea, 1980)

Instrumental, Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Originally named Birfilarna, they released one album as such, ”Än svänger det” in 1978. After reorganizing the group, they adopted their new name Filarfolket, and eventually enjoyed quite some success in the 80s. Maybe they're best known for properly launching the career of multi-instrumentalist Ale Möller who for a long time has been a go-to musician when you've needed any odd stringed instrument. Other notable Filarfolket members include Dan ”Gisen” Malmquist and for a while also first class fiddler Ellika Frisell.

Filarfolket have always been a good-natured lot, rarely digging into the darker side of Swedish traditional music. Instead they've always had a broad musical outlook, gladly interweaving musical elements from the entire world, from the Balkans all the way to Africa and Asia. Their curiousity for how musical traditions are connected and compatible was seemingly endless, and with high level skills to combine them seamlessly, they truly were a creative outfit.

With ”Birfilarmusik från Malmö” being their first album under the Filarfolket moniker, they hadn't yet developed their unprejudiced approach in full, but the typical Filarfolket moods are already set. The music's extremely well played, enthusiastic and warm at heart, but as I refer my folk music darker, it gets a bit too rosy-cheeked and cheerful for me.

Opp å ud å å

FREEDOM – Freedom (Bellatrix, 1978)

 

 Swedish vocals, English vocals

International relevance: *

Dan Tillberg's Bellatrix label was a confusing one. Anything could come out on the label – punk, progg, jazz, garage rock, polka (!), choirs and religious music. This one fits the last two categories.

Released as Freedom but actually performed by Kyrkans Ungdom I Finja Pastorat (=”the church youth of the Finja pastorate”, Finja being a small town in Skåne in the south) to the benefit of the Church of Sweden International Aid. Seemingly appealing to collectors of Jesus pop, it does have some progg characteristics. A few tracks would actually have been quite good hadn't it been a youth choir singing. The best track by far is album opener ”Vem var han?” which wouldn't have been out of place on Obadja's great album ”Testa”. However, it was resurrected on the "Frälst!" compilation – a good choice making "Freedom" redundant. As it stands, it is a youth choir album sounding like one.

Vem var han? (Bandcamp)

MONGEZI FEZA & BERNT ROSENGREN QUARTET – Free Jam (Ayler, 2004; rec. 1972)

 

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

This is a double punch knockout! Recorded around the same time as trumpeter Mongezi Feza's albums with Johnny Dyani and Okay Temiz, this is miles above them all. (It should be said that Temiz is present here as well, but in a much more appropriate context.) The secret weapon here is Bernt Rosengren's quartet who really goes for it, and his band is a much better match to Feza.

Double CD ”Free Jam” was recorded during two shows in mid and late November 1972, and the title explains it all: this is collective improvisations. A dangerous game if you can't find the flow, but these five gentlemen sure do. They touch on multiple jazz styles, or more like referencing them, because it's all free jazz in the best sense of the word. Powerful, energetic, symbiotic, osmotic. It's so exhilarating when it happens and this is an exhilarating release.

The sound quality isn't top notch, it's a slightly distant audience recording from a somewhat echoey venue, but the force of the music still comes through with crystalline focus. If you're used to listening to free jazz it shouldn't be much of a problem, as many obscure free jazz albums aren't any hi-fi experiences anyway. And this is one of the finest examples of the style recorded and released in Sweden.

Selective album playlist (Bandcamp)

FRIA TEATERN – Bruket ska leva (Teaterlåtar, 1979)

  
Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Fria Teatern began in the 1968 and was active at least well into the 2010s. The name means ”The Free Theatre” and that says it all. ”Bruket ska leva” is a selection of songs from three of their plays about the closure of the local ironworks, unemployment and depopulation in the fictious town of Hyttefors. A couple of songs have a rock setting but most songs are in a Swedish old-timey style similar to "Stjärnsmällar & tjuvnyp". A truly horrible album in every way.

No links found

FLÄSKET BRINNER – The Swedish Radio Recordings 1970-1975 (Mellotronen, 2003)

 Instrumental, English vocals
International relevance: ***

The Mellotronen label has a long history of impressive reissues. Their ability to dig up forgotten recordings and unissued material of some of the most stellar Swedish 70s bands is almost unrivalled. But of all the great stuff they've released over the years, this is still their most impressive effort, in size as well as to content. Four CDs of radio shows from Fläsket Brinner's golden era, with some portions never even aired back in the day. One show from 1970, two from 1971, and one from 1975. The sound quality ranges from good to excellent and in both mono and stereo. Also several songs not available on any of their other albums. 

The 1970 disc was recorded two months before the earliest recordings on their eponymous milestone of a debut album and is brimming with all the youthful energy a newly formed band can offer. At this point, few had heard Fläsket Brinner, and even if only one song from the session was broadcast, it must have made a lasting impression on all who heard it on the radio. Their vision was clear in their minds already from the start, well structured, but they sound loose in a way they no longer do on the two 1971 sessions. That's not meant as criticism; on the contrary, the boldness of the performance is highly value in itself.

With the addition of Bo Hansson, Fläsket Brinner had become a tighter unit as proven by those 1971 dates. The October recording is as close as they ever got to 1968 The Mothers Of Invention, even on Bo Hansson's ”Sagan om ringen” medley and the three Maffy Falay compositions/arrangements.

The December set has again a different feel, less ”underground” and closer to jazz rock (in the most positive possible sense). If the other 1971 set is The Mothers 1968, this is much more ”Hot Rats” Zappa, but more open and spontaneously explorative. This show also has the greatest style span as exemplified by a very touching ”Gånglåten” being contrasted to a for-the-hell-of-it cover of ”Red River Rock”!

Fläsket Brinner didn't quit until 1981, but not too many post-1972 recordings have surfaced, why the last disc of the Mellotronen set is particularly revealing. ”Grasse” is definitely jazz fusion, but in the moodier moments, such as ”Kinaspel” and the reflective version of Mort Garson's ”Acquarius”, they have a lot in common with Ragnarök. It's my least favourite of the four CDs here but as a token of Fläsket Brinner's constant forward motion plus being a document of an underdocumentet period of the band, it's most valuable.

Taken together, ”The Swedish Radio Recordings” is a powerful testament to how Fläsket Brinner evolved over the years and what made them so great. Few bands were as adventurous and skilled without sacrificing passion and emotion as they were, and few could extract so much energy from their own music as they could. Needless to say, this is an absolutely essential collection.

Full album playlist

SJUNNE FERGER'S EXIT – Childrens Mind (Strangelove Music, 2021; rec. 1979-1982)

Instrumental

International relevance: *

Sjunne Ferger had a long history. Originally a blues drummer and one of the original members of Örebro band Blues Quality famous for backing Peps Persson on one album before evolving into Nature, he switched to jazz after meeting Don Cherry. He was in obscure late 60s organ/drums duo Takt & Ton before founding nebulous outfit Exit by the beginning of the 70s, but it wasn't until the end of the decade he first used the name on disc. ”Childrens Mind” is a New Zealand release compiling the two singles Sjunne Ferger's Exit released in 1979 and 1982 respectively, adding two previously unreleased tracks to flesh out the album.

It's not at all what you might expect from soneone with Ferger's past. Instead of blues and jazz, ”Childrens Mind” sounds more like an artsier Ralph Lundsten, heavy on electronics with a touch of new age. Only ”Beginners Mind” reveals a jazz influence in the fusion-y guitars but that's not praise. It's not a good album at all; the only mildly interesting track is ”Romance” from Exit's self-released debut 7”, a recording slightly reminiscent of Steve Reich's minimalism.

With only one Takt & Ton track released officially (on Caprice Records 4CD box set ”Jazz Cosmopolit”), I'd much rather hear a compilation of their archival material, or something from Exit's early years. That would surely be much more interesting than anything on ”Children's Mind”.

Full album playlist (Bandcamp)

FAGERSTA STADSMUSIKKÅR & BERÄTTARGRUPP – Norbergs-strejken 1891-92 (no label, 1980)

Swedish vocals, spoken word
International relevance: -

A virtually unknown double album documenting a stage play written by Sture Karlsson with music composed by Anders Lindström, and first performed in 1977. It deals with a miners strike in 1891-92 which is one of the labor movement's biggest conflicts. It started when the workers in Kallmora iron ore mine suddenly got less wages than promised and quickly grew to a nationwide concern when Sweden's then Prime Minister Hjalmar Branting came to Kallmora to appear for the workers. Military forces were called in against the strikers, but the soldiers surprisingly sided with the miners. The workers eventually settled for an agreement that didn't entirely fulfilled their claims.

It's a historically relevant incident, and so is the theatrical description of it as it inspired several more so called ”workers plays” around Sweden in the following years. But that doesn't mean it's fun to listen to on record, especially not a double album. It's virtually impossible to sit through ”Norbergs-strejken 1891-92” with its amateurish acting (I don't think any of the actors was a professional) and the terrible music. The songs are all in the typical vein of all acoustic political progg albums from the 70s. The message is the all-important thing here, so the songs are merely meant to carry the narrative and not necessarily to entertain. And they certainly don't. I can't see anyone getting a lot out of this album, except for possibly one or two local Norberg scholars wanting to dig deeper into the area's political history. 

Marie Selander also sang about the strike in the appropriately titled "Norbergsstrejken" on her fine album "Från den svenska vildmarken".

No links found.

FRIA PROTEATERN (NJA-GRUPPEN) - Koncert I København Okt. 1973 (Demos, 1973)

 Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Fria Proteatern, known for having given me permanent brain damages by being the third worst band I ever sat through for the sole purpose of this blog, here recorded in concert in Copenhagen and released on Demos, Denmark's equivalent to MNW. This is the same kind of drivel as on their studio albums, only with poorer sound.

Side 1
Side 2

FLÄSKET BRINNER FEATURING BO HANSSON – LIVE AT PISTOLTEATERN 1972 (Mellotronen, 2023)

Instrumental
International relevance: ***

This is exactly the kind of stuff I want to see excavated from the dust-covered shelves of history's archives, by a band that needs more releases out! True there's the great box set of Swedish Radio tapes released in the early 00's, there simply can't be too much prime Fläsket Brinner in this world. At the same time, it's a Bo Hansson release, as this show taped at the legendary Pistolteatern in Stockholm in 1972 documents his short stint with the band.

It's a rare recording, and the copy that has circulated among collectors was really bad sounding, so the discovery of the first generation tape is a Holy Grail find. It remains an audicence recording with plenty of room ambience, but the sound has been cleaned up and the nuances brought out as much possible.

But the most important thing is of course the music. The performance is explosive. Fläsket Brinner provides the perfect backdrop to a particularly inspired Bo Hansson who travels the organways with equal parts of precision and curiousity. He sounds as if he discovers new melodies all the time, explore them, moves on, returns to them again, constantly pushed on by a band firing on all cylinders. I must especially point out Erik Dahlbäck here. Captain Dahlbäck is just about a flawless drummer in any given situation, but here he really shines like a supernova. His playing is incredibly intense, precise down to a molecular level, following every minimal shift in the music, creating new possibilities. What a powerhouse he is!

So I have no objections to the music pressed on this disc (500 copies in black vinyl, 500 in 'water blue' which more looks like glow-in-the-dark green if you ask me), but I do have a few towards the presentation. There's one ugly midtrack edit that breaks the flow brutally. Other tracks fade out early, others again fade in. It's like going to the loo amidst a concert and hear the music grow in volume as you return closer to the stage. It's actually pretty annoying. It's been decades since I heard the inferior tape dub of this show, so I can't remember whether the music was chopped up, and I can't vouch for what the source tape used for this release is like, but there was definitely more music recorded at Pistolteatern than what's on this disc. Why not make it a double album with the entire show, or at least how much of it was recorded? And why only make it a prefab raririty in limited edition vinyl? Skip the coloured vinyl kollektor skum nonsense and focus on a proper unlimited release instead. And if the songs are cut on the original tape, please let us know in the liners so we don't have to wonder where the rest of the show has gone.

One more Pistolteatern track can be found on the FINALLY reissued first Fläsket Brinner album. True to Silence Records' lazy treatment of their own massive back catalogue, there hasn't been a proper reissue of that monolithic album until now, 2024. Apart from being nicely remastered, the original album has almost doubled its length with three long tracks added as bonuses. ”Gulan” is from Pistolteatern and is to be honest a messier recording than anything on the Melltronen disc. ”Mr. Beautiful” has better in terms of focus and sound quality, but is only a so-so latin-inflected track. The real tour de force among the new stuff is ”Collage från Konserthuset” which is a complete ten minute monster, ending with variations on a theme by Bo Hansson. Those ten minutes would blow The Mothers Of Invention off the stage any given night from the same period. I promise that you've rarely heard Fläsket that dangerous, not even on the Pistolteatern album!

Full album playlist

KIM FOWLEY – The Day The Earth Stood Still (MNW, 1970)

English vocals
International relevance: **

Genius, svengali, entrepeneur, exploiter, starmaker, talent predator... Many are the words you can use to describe Kim Fowley but not all of them are positive. And what descriptions are used probably depends on who you ask. People who got in the way of his exploitative behaviour will most definitely have a few pejoratives to share.

Born in California in 1939, he worked in the sex industry in the 50's before becoming a self-made music manager, producer and songwriter in the 60's. Notorious for having created The Runaways in the mid 70's, and all along releasing bubblegum garage rock albums that walk the thin line between absolute crap and cheapo excellence. Unfortunately, the darker side of his mind and genitals too often came to the fore, and he was accused of unwanted sexual advances and rape by several women who worked with him. Ask the girls in NQB, the Swedish band that Fowley tried to pull his Runaway trick on (without succeeding), I think they have some stories to tell.

Fowley moved to Finland in 1970, produced the album ”Tombstone Valentine” by Wigwam before leaving for Sweden. He teamed up with young band Contact and produced their debut album ”Noboby Wants To Be Sixteen”. According to one member of the band, much work was done against their will, and hand to heart, it might be more of a Fowley album than a Contact album. Consequentially, he used them as a straight-up backing band on his own album ”The Day The Earth Stood Still”. Probably much to Contact's chagrin, I think ”Sixteen” is their best album, and they sound excellent supporting Fowley's Lou Reed drawl complemented by occasional grunts and groans. You could easily mix the tracks from the two albums and they'd sound great together. Especially if you cut away nonsense like ”The Frail Ocean”, ”Prisoner Of War”, ”I Was A Communist For The FBI” and the eight minute studio jam ”Is America Dead?” from Fowley's album.

But the band sounds absolutely great on most of the tracks. I even like the cover of ”Cadillac” where they manage to sound like T. Rex with Lux Interior of The Cramps in the place of Marc Bolan. And the driving beat of ”Night Of The Hunter” and the self-satisfied autobiographical romp of ”The Man Without A Country” isn't something you'd ever hear from Contact again. Some songs are even downright pretty, like the title track (a distant relative to The Velvet Underground's ”Pale Blue Eyes” and ”I'll Be Your Mirror”) and ”Pray For Rain”.

Despite some duds, this is one of Fowley's most consistent albums, and you can thank Contact for that. Perhaps they hated their sessions with this American trashcan Spector (as outrageous as the more luxurious original counterpart), but maybe that's the very reason why they have such a spark to them. ”The Day The Earth Stood Still” is a hidden gem in Swedish progg history, even more overlooked than ”Nobody Wants To Be Sixteen”, and a curious but excellent complement to it.

Full album playlist

DYANI, TEMIZ, FEZA – Music For Xaba, Vol. 1 (Sonet, 1973) / Music For Xaba, Vol. 2 (Sonet, 1980) / Rejoice (Cadillac, 1988) (all recorded in 1972)

Instrumental, English vocals, other languages
International relevance: ***

Turkish born drummer Okay Temiz is a true legend to me, partly for his involvement with the amazing Maffy Falay-led Sevda, and partly for his own ensemble Oriental Wind which like Sevda took the Turkish musical traditions into jazzy territories with great grandeur. But he also collaborated with other musicians as these three albums prove.

The twin volumes of ”Music For Xaba” were recorded one evening in November 1972 at Theatre 9 in Stockholm, with South African pianist/bassist Johnny Dyani as leader. Mongezi Feza was also of South African descendance, and a trumpet player who made his mark on Swedish music with Bernt Rosengren among others.

I'm not too fond of the ”Xaba” releases. The trio uses a lot of force to drive the music forward but it's as if there's something keeping the musicians apart despite the best of intentions. The best moments occur on the second volume, in Feza composition ”Mad High” and Dyani's ”Witchdoctor's Son”. I've heard these albums a fair bit over the years, but they still don't make real sense to me.

”Rejoice” is recorded less than two weeks before ”Music For Xaba” at The Modern Museum of Art in Stockholm (and not released until 1988). The sound is a tad lesser here but it's a superior date, with the three musicians connecting much better, creating a flow and an intensity lacking from the other releases. ”Mad High” makes another appearance here, as do ”Makaya Makaya Makaya”, and even though the former was a high point on ”Xaba”, this one tops it.

”Rejoice” demonstrates what this trio was capable of, ”Music For Xaba” that these guys also had lesser nights.

Music For Xaba Vol. 1 full album playlist
Music For Xaba Vol. 2 full album playlist
Rejoice full album

FERNE – Ferne (Bellatrix, 1978) / Clown på allvar (Bellatrix, 1980)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Ferne, or if you prefer his real name: Lars Fernebring, was one half of Risken Finns along with Gunnar Danielsson, releasing two satirical albums in the early 70s. When the duo split, Danielsson moved to Gothenburg to start Ensamma Hjärtan while Ferne remained in the southern city of Lund where he launched his solo career some years later.

One could expect his first albums of his own after the demise of Risken Finns to be, well, if not masterpieces so at least better than they actually are. Well, they're not particularly bad but not particularly good either. His self-titled first one from 1978 is the better of the two reviewed here. Falling somewhere between Thomas Wiehe (who also appears on the album) and – shudder! – Björn Afzelius musically, it has a more serious vibe than Risken Finns. But at the same time, it's as if Ferne can't fully let go of the past, and it ends up being something of a half-measure. And as with all half-measures, it ends up being unsatisfying.

The title of his second album ”Clown på allvar” means, roughly, ”clown for real” or ”serious clown”, and that's explanatory enough. In some ways it's closer to Risken Finns than his solo debut (even referencing back to Risken Finns song titles), but whereas they were fresh and funny, ”Clown på allvar” feels stale. As always, The greatest thing here is Jan Gerfast who shines on guitar (as he did on the first album), but the songs are simply not good enough on neither of the albums.

Ferne made one more album, the concept album ”Snapphanar”, in 1982 before dropping out of record making. He worked for the southern department of Swedish Radio for many years, and held lectures on local history. He suddenly return to music in 2003 with an album of Dylan covers in Swedish, followed by two further solo albums in 2006 and 2013 respectively, the latter one being another Swedish Dylan tribute.

No links found

PER FORSSELL – Hantverk (PBF, 1981)

Swedish vocals, English vocals
International relevance **

Perhaps one of the most peculiar albums included herein. Not because it's 'difficult' or complicated music – on the contrary, Per Forssell's songs are highly accessible – but because it's hard to say what his idea with this, his first of two privately released albums, actually was. It's side B in particular that is confusing, consisting of a series of pastiches/parodies/paraphrases, mocking various genres. ”My Sweet Sugar Baby” makes fun of the silliest 50s rock'n'roll clichés in a Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band fashion. ”Punk-plonk” is a rather funny and decidedly over the top pisstake on punk that outpunks it with truly bizarre lyrics and manic drumming. ”Sören's Skåne” might be a poke at Peps Persson but sounds exactly like a Ronny Åström throwaway. ”La-La-Lajla” can't be anything but a well-deserved send-up of typical Swedish commercial dance bands of the 70s.

Some of the send-ups lose their comic effect after some time (a joke can't be repeated too without losing its impact). But the thing is that Forssell has a highly developed songwriter's instinct, not only able to satirize over a diversity of style typicalities but also write convincing and sometimes even great pop songs. This is proven by ”Hantverk's” first side which is chock full of tasty numbers pointing to both Paul McCartney and Mikael Ramel. This spills over to the first song on the second side – I'm sure the animal-rights conscious ”Vem tänker på djuren?” would keep Sir Paul awake of envy at night had he heard it. Same could be said of ”Låt dina vingar få flyga” which sounds like the best track never released on ”Ram”. The album title ”Hantverk” means ”craftmanship” in English, and that's in fact a very appropriate word for the album. Forssell certainly ranks among the best D-I-Y craftsmen of the progg era, much better than the self-absorbed Erik Aschan and lightyears ahead of unlistenable nincompoops such as John-Erik Axelsson and Prefix.

The songs were recorded over the course of four years, from 1977 to 1981, and were taped on a reel-to-reel machine in Forsell's living room in Björnekulla Hed in the Swedish south (although his dialect suggests he wasn't Skåne born and bred but rather from the Stockholm area). True to McCartney's early modus operandi, he plays all instruments himself including drums which is an achievement in itself. Being a private pressing, it must have been a tiny edition (500 copies? Less?) but it's not as expensive as some other albums in that category. Possibly because it's still rather unknown, and possibly because of its partly parodical nature. It's hard to say if ”Hantverk” will ever creep into the realm of artifacts that will push you over the perpendicular steep of destitution, but it's nevertheless an album ripe for wider discovery.

Per Forssell released another album, presumably in the late 80s, called ”Dagbok” (”diary”), partly recorded at home, partly in the studio and partly at the facilities of Swedish Television where he also works or worked. In 2013, he snuck out newly recorded music to his YouTube channel, including several Beatles covers to confirm his infatuation with the Fab Four.

Full album

FABRIKSFLICKORNA – Makten och härligheten (MNW, 1980)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

It's hardly a secret that there's an endless stream of absolutely terrible albums in the field of progg, and what unites them is often the politics. It's message over music, and if it's music from a theatrical play with an agenda, they're usually so bad they're bound to give you a slight brain damage. I still suffer from having heard Bruksteatern, and I doubt I will ever fully recover from that traumatic experience.

”Fabriksflickorna – Makten och härligheten” (”the factory girls – the power and the glory”) falls into that same category, and dealing with the factory seamstresses situation in Sweden at the same, it comes with the mandatory feminist angle. The music is written by Gunnar Edander, best known for ”Jösses flickor”, and performers include feminist stahlwarts Suzanne Osten (who wrote the actual play) and Lena Söderblom. That should tell you all exactly what it sounds like: the one perky tune after the other sung by too many voices at once in the bloated righteous spirit of collectivity. I don't hear even one passable track here; if there is one faintly decent song among the lot, it's immediately ruined by the suffocating atmosphere of pompous smugness.

No links found

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.

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 occasional peak moment.

No links found

THOMAS FRYKBERG – Väderkvarnsväder (A Disc, 1980)

 

Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Most A-Disc albums are best described as 'just another A-Disc album'. A bitter few of them has anything to distinguish them; at best it's mediocre artists with mediocre talents to match the label's desire for mediocrity. ”Väderkvarnsväder” is no exception.

Thomas Frykberg was a decent songwriter, somewhere at the end of Mikael Ramel's spectrum with a dash of Blå Tåget's cabaret-like moments, but his qualities are dampened by a boring studio mafia sound. As a lyricist, Frykberg isn't even on the same planet as Ramel; the lyrics are a yawn, riddled with bland politics and the occasional toothless satirical edge. Frykberg vocal delivery is less than inspiring too. He's a dull singer with a rather weak and non-descriptive voice, and the semi-jazz fusion backing provided by fusion royalty like Jan Tolf (Häxmjölk, Resa) and Ulf Adåker (Egba) is obviously competent, or if you prefer a more honest phrasing: typically bloodless. Best song in the lot is the slightly melancholy title track with an appealing melody, laced with a fairly elegant string arrangement and a few amiable flugelhorn lines. Best song, yes, but not good enough to save the rest of the album from being destined for oblivion.

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