CARSTEN REGILD / VARIOUS ARTISTS – Voice of the Wolf (Gump, 1975)

Swedish vocals, spoken word

International relevance: *

The final and most peculiar album on the collectable Gump label. Actually, it's one the most puzzling progg related releases ever. It features abbreviated versions of tracks from previous Gump albums by Sten Bergman and Joakim Skogsberg, an extract from ”Mr. Smith in Rhodesia” by sound poet and author Åke Hodell, pieces by avantgardists Sten Hanson, Leo Nilson, and J.O. Mallander (of legendary Finnish experimental band The Sperm) plus several previously unreleased recordings including a not very good outtake from Pugh Rogefeldt's not very good 1973 ”On the Rocks” album. (Metronome artist Rogefeldt was a sort of A&R man for Metronome subsidiary Gump.)

The entire second side of the album is dedicated to Hans Anton Knall's ”Merde”, comprising excerpts from all the tracks on side one, electronically treated by Knall into one dizzying electronic composition. The album was credited to and edited/produced by Carsten Regild at Sweden's leading studio for electro-acoustic music, Fylkingen. Regild had previously released the massively rare ”Be My Baby” 7” on Gump in 1970, and provided graphics to several albums in 70's and 80's (among them ”Alla vi barn” by enfant terrible Tom Zacharias).

As a showcase for Gump it's pretty useless as it only includes a couple of edited tracks from previous Gump LP's. It doesn't work as a general representation of the Swedish experimental audio scene either as the selections are so wildly inconsistent stylistically. It's much more of an aural installation piece. Far from a regular spin but undeniably intriguing on its own terms. 

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JOAKIM SKOGSBERG – Jola rota (Gump, 1971)

Wordless vocals

International relevance: ***

 

One of the most original and visionary progg albums of all times, a truly singular statement not sounding like anything else. Released by Gump in an edition of 1,000, only 3-400 copies were sold originally. The album was withdrawn and the remaining copies melted down – the vinyl was recycled for later Gump releases which has only added to the mystique surrounding the album. And it was mysterious already to begin with.

There's no proper way describing this album. The six tracks are built around drones, dictated by Skogsberg's vocals, a kind of a hum somewhere between Sami yoik and Indian classical dhrupad singing, deeply inspired by Skogsberg's love of nature. His repetitous vocals make the music sound shamanic and the tracks overdubbed with cello, guitars, bass, violin and other instruments by Kebnekajse's Thomas Netzler and Mats Glenngård, producer and Gump honcho Pugh Rogefeldt, and Göran Lagerberg are ritualistic.

The best track is the relentless ”Offer rota”, also insufficiently excerpted on Carsten Regild's bizarre ”Voice of the Wolf”, but the entire album has a profound drive that is captivating. Hypnotic. Some have called it psychedelic but ”Jola rota” goes deeper than that. It operates on a primordial level that's got nothing to do with fads or fashion. Is it good? Is it bad? Questions like that are irrelevant because ”Jola rota” doesn't move along that scale. It shouldn't just be heard, it should be experienced.

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