FROM WITHIN

Dark, dense and destructive within severe mellotron storms and relentless sonic siege, the music of Anekdoten reveals itself to be a beacon of creativity, constantly searching new tonal playgrounds albeit often finding itself winking towards a once glorious past (namely early King Crimson) but never too overtly. Everything is always contrasting with this northern drakkar crew, as delivered on the opener "FromWithin", a deep cry from within, a rousingly hypnotic bipod that soothes then aggresses in a constant ebb and flow that conjures up deep feelings of once unreleased pleasure. The mighty mellotron heaves and gurgles despicably , the edgy guitar and the bruising bass pack a mastodon punch while drummer extraordinaire Peter Nordins bolts down the traps as on the delectably engaged "Groundbound". With such fluttering angst pervading the horizon, how can one become oblivious to the rage! This is a monstrosity that defies description. Therefore its hard to grasp just how fantastic the next piece is, the scintillating 11 minute "Hole" with its majestic mellotron phases, symphonically sublime one minute and shimmering in serenity the next and thus crowning itself immediately as an Anekdoten standard (perhaps even their acme) but spicing things up with an Islands-era King Crimson upgrade and slinging the unsuspecting audience into the stratosphere. When bassist Liljeström underlines the main theme on his brazen Rickenbacker , the jubilation is complete. Prog doesn't get often this good, an enticing and sensual tempest of mood, style and atmosphere that, for some yet unexplainable reason is specific to Scandinavia and its legendary masterful school of Prog. Yes it can be soporific but they have also grasped the essence of early Pink Floyd, in that music is also about time and not just space. There is no hurry and it only makes the arrangements breathe even more intensely. The brash and abrasive "Slowfire" is certainly fiery but not quite slow, in fact the opposite is in early evidence, fuzzblasting the path for some abysmal introspective melancholia (another Swedish specialty) and then falling back to some comfortably numb ambience with the 'trons glowing like hot coals. I mean this is heavy prog, in more ways than one. Niklas Berg is not the greatest vocalist but strangely (and this has been oft quoted) it fits nicely within the context of this ascetic brand of progressive rock. But his guitar interventions are brutal and deadly. "Firefly" is actually close to pensive Porcupine Tree in that the bass lays down a groove that slowly amplifies into a major reflection on psychedelia and the quest for some kind of personal freedom. Another brilliant display of the Anekdoten kitchen's prowess, cooking up some tasty and solid comfort recipes and getting the job done! The instrumental "The Sun Absolute" is actually nearer to classic Space Rock, sounding like an obtuse version of Eloy or Ozric Tentacles via the Gongsters and Hawkwinders but with the added dimension of an imperial mellotron handled by the lovely Anna Sofi Dahlberg. This is another colossal piece of prog. The closer "For Someone" is a pastoral promenade , intensely acoustic and fragile , again very near the Islands King Crimson record but more reflective and ponderous. I hang about undecided on the previous album "Nucleus" which I cannot seem to get into but this is a definite clear- cut killer that prepared the balanced road they have displayed on subsequent jewels "Gravity" and the recent "A Time of Day". For you John 4.5 internal punctures

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