INGET NYTT UNDER SOLEN

Always on the lookout for more classic seventies prog, I was very interested in hearing what Kaipa sounded like. Their CDs, however, were not cheap, and so I chose this one only because it was the least expensive and easiest to order.

This album reminds me of some other prog albums of a few years earlier where a band would write a side-long song and use up much of their good ideas on this one track and then fill up the other side with shorter songs of varying interest. "Meddle", "Tarkus" and a couple of others that come to mind are all subject to praise for the epic number and criticism for the mixed bag of tricks on the other side.

The side-long epic track here, "Skenet Bedrar", goes through a few phases and changes and at times the band really cruises in the progressive "rock" field. When they are in full swing, I can't help but feel that they are simultaneously an excellent Swedish version of Yes and a long lost older incarnation of the Flower Kings (a young Roine Stolt contributed to the composing and plays guitar). The lyrics are all in Swedish with Ingemar Bergman and Hans Lundin providing the vocals. I don't know which one sings what, but the first vocalist sings in a register similar to that of Jon Anderson but seems to require more force to get the sounds out. The second vocalist sings a little lower but almost seems to shout his head off and on occasion he strays from the note. Though this adds a rock feeling of energy and power, I also feel it shows that he hasn't yet developed his talent as a singer. Vocals aside, most of the music is composed and performed as good as any classic Yes material. For my taste, there are still a couple of parts in the song that I don't really enjoy and I cannot say this song is worthy of ranking next to classics like "Close to the Edge" and "The Revealing Science of God". I bought this album a year ago and didn't listen to it much then; however, it recently has attracted my attention and I've been listening to this side-long track a few times more as well as the rest of the album.

Side two is composed of shorter pieces including two instrumentals, one of which, "Korstag", is rather good and the very short "Stengrodornas Parad" being slightly comical and sounding like one of those short compositions that fill the gaps between the good music of a Flower Kings album. In a way it sounds like an idea that was either shortened due to time constraints on the album or the idea didn't go or fit in anywhere. A third track, "Omson Sken" begins which a short lyric and then changes into an instrumental passage that sounds like the music in a voice-less Scandinavian children's animation. In an interview with the lead member (I've forgotten who that is) I read that Swedish folk songs were an influence in their compositions, so that might explain this part of the song. The title track is perhaps the best of the vocal tracks on side two, sounding like a more traditional song in structure and having more of the Yes style of music, even including a good chunky bass sound.

The reissue I bought is like a mini-record album that opens up with all the original text (in Swedish) and photos. A second bonus disc includes a re-mix of some of the tracks sung in English and some live performances of songs from this album and others. I thought I might like the English versions a little better but actually I don't. The original Swedish recordings have a better bass sound and the style of the vocals sound really different as the singers adjusted their approach to suit the language and audience. The live tracks are interesting for the music but the sound quality is not top notch and I find it a bit of a chore to get through listening to all the live songs.

I've had this CD for a year as I said and though I like it enough to consider buying at least one more 70's Kaipa album, the high price of imports and the songs and music that I didn't warm to have kept me from making that follow-up purchase. For prog effort I would give this four stars but for my own personal taste I give it three.