SKIT I ALLT

I've only recently discovered Dungen but doing so has been one of my great pleasures of the last few months. Skit I Alt is a real gem of an album which sits at the proggier end of the SpaceRock/Psychedelia spectrum. The overall sound is very retro and more than a little reminiscent of the Canterbury scene. Mellotrons, organ, electric and acoustic guitars, that very dry, almost intimate production that I associate with the albums like "In The Land Of Grey And Pink" ? it definitely has that whimsical feel to it although all the lyrics are in Swedish so I haven't the foggiest idea what the songs are about, but then you could say the same about Yes.

The mood ranges from jazzy rock to psychedelic wig out (Hogdalstoppen ? track five ? is a good example of this) to pastoral fluffiness to glistening seventies style pop and the longest song is less than five minutes long although I suspect they may be longer in a live context as instrumental passages seem to hint at room for improvisation. The musicianship is superb, especially the lead guitar work which may not go in for much in the way of dive-bomb histrionics but is tasteful and imaginative. The bass playing is complex, funky (in a sixties way) and entirely appropriate, indeed one of things I love is the way that the playing and arrangements exist to serve the song rather than vice versa ? it really is a joy to listen to!