I’ve been listening to Reform‘s album “Reformed”, an album that was released in 2009. It feels like progressive rock, jazz-fusion and the seventies close to Björn J:son Lindh, Bo Hansson in style, but more based on guitars and with some blues vibes.

“Reformed” is the band’s fifth album since they started, and is maybe more of a music collective than a band, with members coming and going. The only members that have been with the band the entire journey are bass player Jesper Bergman and drummer Anders Bergman. And after having listened to the the other albums I note that the style and sound change a bit between albums.

You can listen to their music on Spotify or on Myspace. Reform also has a Facebook page and on their blog you can listen to some new upcoming tracks. Here’s “Happy Landing” from “Reformed”:

Happy Landing

Here’s a band from Gothenburg that I think many people might like. Their music sounds heavy and groovy, sounds of the seventies. Until the vocals enter, in Swedish and all of a sudden it feels like Swedish progg. The songs have catchy melodies and you will happily listen more than once. A band that I would like to see at a local pub while I’m drinking a beer or two. A pretty high grade in other words.

As all of you know the climate is really harsh among bands that want to be heard, unfortunaetly Ett Rop På Hjälp just has a myspace-page, which you can find here. Myspace has totally bailed out and they don’t have as many users anymore. I really hope that this band will get a proper site plus other services where they can show their music. Ett Rop På Hjälp is an awesome band that I’m afraid will drown if they don’t promote themself in more ways soon.

Josef K

/Stuff

It’s not too often I receive non-electronica instrumental music. It’s nice then to listen to Folkvang’s colourful tones.

The band name comes from nordic mythology and gives us a hint of the music’s ambience. I find their roots in the seventies’ progressive rock, within the softer, ambient and melodic parts of that genre. It’s often enshrouded in a northern Swedish melancholy, which testifies about large unpeopled landscapes, lakes, solitude and the stillness of nature. There is a nordic calmness in the music, which feels pleasant to enter and be inside.

Folkvang released their first album this year, and you can listen to it on Spotify or listen to parts of it on Myspace. You can also meet the band on Facebook. Here is a song from the album:

Ensamhetens Famn

The duo Mackaper consists of the two organ players Markus Hulthén and Per Nyström. In the beginning of February they released their debut album “When All Is Sad and Dawn”.

It’s about instrumental music, where of course the organs are the main attraction, but they are accompanied by strings, drum machines, horns and other instruments. I’m reminded of prog-rock from the seventies but also of minimalistic synth pop, maybe the two strongest influences on the album. But overall it feels quite varied, where elements of jazz and swedish folk melancholy also fit in together with strong melodic themes and a nice atmosphere.

You can find Mackaper on their site or on Myspace. The albumet “When All Is Sad and Dawn” is available on Spotify. Here are a couple of songs from the album:

Spionen
Tale of Tales

Tale of Tales:

Melaina plays an alternative rock that sounds really interesting. Last fall they released their debut album, and you can listen to a track from the record, here below.

It’s an ambient and emotional rock that builds up a nice sound space. A little in the direction of bands like A Perfect Circle, but at the same time with a lot of variation. I can sometimes feel a metal heavyness and also a progressive, experimental feeling that challenges boundaries.

This is music I can listen to for a long time and float along in the almost meditative rock they play. If you’d like to listen some more, you should visit their Myspace page.

Lily