DAN BERGLUND´S TONBRUKET

I'm not at all initiated in this artist's background as a jazz musician, but there are certain 5 star reviews you don't want to ignore. That's how the seeds of yet another new discovery were planted...

The Dan Berglund's Tonbruket album is a wonderful collection of instrumental music spanning a wide range of influences and styles, going from Floydian post-rock to light lounge jazz and even Swedish folk music. The opening Sister Sad is a winner and lists amongst the most progressive music (outside avant) that I've heard from the last 10 years. The roots are undeniably in blues, jazz, post-rock and psychedelic music, but something entirely new is crafted from those ingredients, very modern, atmospheric and still quite accessible. Simply beautiful, a work of art.

Stethoscope serves as a short interlude for the next epic Sailor Waltz, a masterfully crafted slow jazzy waltz with deeply moving piano and cello. It's very sad but far from depressing, working like a truly cathartic experience. To lay down the intensity, Gi Hop contrasts the mood with a bit of Swedish polka fun that could have been from a Samla Mammas Manna incarnation.

Moody acoustic guitars, violin and accordion take the lead in the short The Wind and the Leaves. Just like Gi Hop, it is nice but not as stunning as the first three tracks, and unfortunately, the combination with the slow-paced opening minutes of the ensuing Wolverine Hoods creates a sort of lull in the album experience. The leisurely intro of that song has its purpose though, and gradually builds to a noisy electric explosion.

Monstrous Colossus picks up the restored momentum. It's a monumental post-rock blues that really towers above the quiet landscapes around it. The main riff is virtually the same as ZZ-Top's Sharp Dressed Man but the effect created couldn't be more contrasting. It serves as a nice demonstration of how an arrangement can be more important and characterizing then the actual riff or melody behind it. A weird, dissonant and percussive section concludes this impressive piece.

After the storm follows the calm. Song for E works quite convincing for that purpose but it is just a bit too long and too lounge/soundtrack jazz for my taste. The chamber rock of Cold Blooded Music works better. Near its end it goes smoothly through a transition from peaceful folk melodies to abrasive post-rock noise. Brilliant. The sad country of Waltz for Mathilda echoes the mood of the earlier Sailor Waltz. This is as Floydian as a waltz can get.

Dan Berglund's Tonbruket is the sort of eclectic album that reminds us of the lost art of making truly great albums, works of art full of balance, sense and purpose. There are a couple of light jazzy tunes that don't suit my taste entirely but apart from that it's a near masterpiece.