VEMOD

Sweden seemed to be the home of 'retro-prog' during the early 1990s, with this album and the debut of Anglagard. This is the only Anekdoten album I have heard so far and it really does sound a lot like King Crimson. Not just the Wetton-era, which is the most obvious influence, but I can hear traces of Crimson's first three albums as well. The bass is very Wetton sounding, while the Mellotron recalls the first three KC albums. You can hear influence from other groups from time to time (Vemod is taken from a song by Swedish group Kultivator, for example). I don't like the lead vocals too much, but they are done in perfect English with no hint of an accent.

After a symphonic opening section, "Karelia" switches to a Red-era rocker. The guitar playing later gets more jazzy. I like the mix of Mellotron, jazzy drumming and distorted bass over halfway. A very good instrumental which is probably my favourite song on the album. "The Old Man And The Sea" sounds like something from the first two KC albums when the vocals start. Gets more Red-era sounding later. Very Fripp-like guitar near the end. You can listen to "Where Solitude Remains" here on PA. This song seems a bit more folky during the verses. Gets jazzier in the middle, followed by some brief start/stop playing. Very symphonic towards the end.

"Thought In Absence" is a laid-back jazzy song with brushes on the snare drum. The vocals here sound very similar to Greg Lake when he was in KC. Nice electric piano sound over halfway. "The Flow" starts with some weird sounds. After a minute of that goes into a mix of Red-era KC and '80s-era KC. The majority of the song is heavy symphonic prog. Later more Red-era again with some cool cello playing. Gets very '80s KC sounding near the end. "Longing" is an instrumental focused on acoustic guitar and cello. Nice song but nothing outstanding.

"Wheel" is one of the better songs. There is a melody here which gets reprised throughout the song which sounds like one of the songs on Lizard (can't remember which one exactly). I like the mix of male and female vocals here. Some '80s KC interlocking guitars at one point. Great trumpet solo. This song sounds like a cross between Lizard and Red with just the right amount of Discipline. A cool effect at the very end when the sound changes to something recorded on a cheap tape recorder. "Sad Rain" is a bonus track and the longest song. Basically it sounds like a more upbeat "In The Court Of The Crimson King"(the song).

This is alright but I might enjoy Nucleus more. It's more highly regarded and supposedly more original sounding. To me this sounds more like a homage to '70s Crimson than most Neo-Prog sounds like a homage to Gabriel-era Genesis. My favourite Scandinavian prog groups generally have their own unique sound. Good but not essential, 3 stars.