ENSEMBLE NIMBUS

ENSEMBLE NIMBUS from Sweden was the musical project of multi-instrumentalist Hakan Almkvist. I say "was" because this album I'm reviewing is their most recent release from 2000. Hakan actually released a cassette only in 1992 where he did it all, a solo release under the name NIMBUS. He's playing harmonium, accordion, guitar and tablas on that one. Then under the name ENSEMBLE NIMBUS they released three albums.

A four piece of violin/viola, clarinet/bass clarinet, drums and Hakan playing guitar, bass, keyboards, tapes, loops, FX and voice. The vocals are more spoken or wordless. We get a couple of keyboardists guesting on two tracks each including surprisingly Thomas Bodin from THE FLOWER KINGS. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised as the drummer here is Hansi Bruniusson who also plays in THE FLOWER KINGS, but he has some RIO/ Avant credentials having played with SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA for years. So like SAMLA... this is a lot of fun, quirky and complex.

I'm not sure why they used the same cover art as the previous album, although it's a closeup of the dude's head here. The band's name and the cover art makes me think East European, but no! Uppsala, Sweden my friends. This was a long process apparently as it was recorded between 1996 and 1999. Fourteen songs and under 53 minutes. By the way the clarinet player also plays "altered" clarinet. Interesting. The music was written pretty much equally between Hakan and Hasse. So we get jazzy avant music with some humour. The clarinet and violin play large roles here. That 12 minute opener is my favourite. It's all downhill after that(haha).

Seriously though I have a hard time with this one, I can appreciate it for sure, but I just don't connect with it much.

4.5 star actually.

Different from typical swedish progressive music, Ensemble Nimbus hasn't symphonic elements or uses keyboards structure or even sounds like instrumental genesis. Contrariwise, it sounds avant, merging fusion, psychedelia and experimental rock.

Funny songs are found such as "Ducks in Paradise", "The Arrow of Time" and "Spacegoat" (this one is kind diabolical).

The band almost doesn't use vocal but there are lyrics on "Tornado Hunting" and all the uses of vocal are experimental, unusuals.

The best ideas of the band is to use the line clarinet-violin to play jazzy and erudi themes and use electric guitar only on solo or arpeggio.

A non-materpiece but that worths a lot!

This CD will please those interested in progressive rock but also jazz fans and everyone looking for music outside conventional categories. The Ensemble Nimbus, a Swedish band of great performers, uses an interesting array of instruments (from guitar, drums and keyboards to clarinets and sample loops) and blends complex and intriguing arrangements, beatiful melodic lines and occasionally hard rhythm sections and vocals. The result is a haunting and powerful collection of songs and instrumental pieces.

While a logical continuation of their debut album, this sophomore effort is definitely more complex and is has a harder edge. The level of energy is about the sale as on the previous album, but it is less festive/happy and more serious. You might want to compare this album between Von Zamla and Miriodor with a slight Hoyry Koyne twist.

Ensemble Nimbus's debut album is certainly a small tour de force with its mostly instrumental (only two of the 11 tracks are sung) avant/prog displaying a lot of modern classics and acoustic jazz and eastern influences.

The music on this album is very festive and upbeat, with plenty of Gypsy influence - greatly induced via the acoustic instruments, the violin and clarinet - comparing with Finnish Uzva band or even some of the easier Samla/Von Zamla records. Although they can also be compared somewhat to their other countrymen Into The Labyrinth, Ensemble Nimbus is less influenced by world music. The two tracks that have signing are correct, with guitarist/bassist Almkvist's voice being somewhat a bit rasp, even if E S understand it is not their forte. But Almkvist shines as a good bassist and can rip your brains with his deadly guitar lines. Also in the same style of music, Miriodor is not far away, but the Montrealers are more energetic and change rythms more rapidly. Most of the album flies by fairly quickly with all tracks being relatively even in quality and none standing out, until the final track raises your eyebrow: a slow developing 8min+ track which clearly delves into adventurous developments that announces what their next album will be.

Although this album should not be recommended to every progheads (the electric drums are slightly deranging), there are many facets to this album that make it endearing. Greger speaks much better about this band than I do.

ENSEMBLE NIMBUS third album, the second on the Record Heaven label, follows the same musical direction as we're used to hear with elements from Zeuhl and RIO. There are reminiscences to ART ZOYD, ETRON FOU, HENRY COW, SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA and UNIVERS ZERO. If ENSEMBLE NIMBUS weren't signed to the Record Heaven label, they would've been perfect for the Cuneiform label. The music on "Garmonbozia" is recorded, mixed, edited and mastered simultaneously as their previous album "Scapegoat". I think that "Scapegoat" and "Garmonbozio" were intended to be a double album in the beginning. The only disappointment is that the cover art is almost the same as on "Scapegoat". The painting on the last page in the CD-booklet for "Scapegoat" is exactly the same as the front cover of "Garmonbozia". You get the impression that it was quickly put together just before the release. Strange, because to me Record Heaven is known for high quality. But I guess there's an explanation, perhaps it's because of the two albums musical resemblance to each other. The album is all-instrumental, and the highlights are the 12 minute opening track "Three Stories From The Blue Cage", "Ducks In Paradise", the chaotic "Turmoil" and "The Arrow Of Time" where Hasse Bruniusson, known from SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA and The FLOWER KINGS, has the chance to show his talents. I think that Hasse has to be one of Sweden's top drummers today within the progressive genre. Overall this album is more complex than both their previous albums and I guess that's why it has become my favourite ENSEMBLE NIMBUS album so far. Highly recommended!

This is the second album from the Swedish band ENSEMBLE NIMBUS. In the line up you can see the drummer from SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA, Hasse Bruniusson. Hasse is well known in the Swedish progressive scene as well as abroad for his work with SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA and The FLOWER KINGS. Stefan Carlsson was one of the main members on the debut CD, but here he's only stated as a guest musician. This CD was planned for a release through the label APM (Ad Perpetuam Memoriam) but was finally released on the Record Heaven's label. The best track is "Empty Chairs" where you can hear Tomas Bodin from FLOWER KINGS on keyboard. The cover art by Eva Källander is very good and it's suits the album just fine. This is very exciting and intriguing music and very challenging to listen to for those who's not used with this kind of music. The music is at times reminiscent to SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA, and I guess that if you're into SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA you'll love this CD as well. Highly recommended!

ENSEMBLE NIMBUS "Key Figures" are the third release from the excellent Swedish Ad Perpetuam Memoriam label (APM). They are mixing 70's influenced Zeuhl and RIO and obviously there's reminiscences to SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA, UNIVERS ZERO and VON ZAMLA. The interesting line-up includes among others Håkan Almkvist who's responsible for the compositions and the SAMLA MAMMAS MANNA drummer Hasse Bruniusson on Electric Batterie. APM is responsible for many interesting releases and this isn't an exception. Recommended!