KEBNEKAISE III

Kebnekaise were off to a hot new start with the folkier direction they took with ''II'' and the band was performing about a hundred times per year, establishing themselves as one of the most popular bands in Sweden.Recordingwise they did not change a single factor, heading for a third album, they still were part of the Silence label, they revisited the Decibel Studios in Stockholm and the brand new album, simply entitled ''III'' was launched in 1975.

With this work they deep more into a Folk Rock style, influenced by the Scandinavian tradition, the strong psychedelic elements start to fade away and the sound is based on the full violin-driven sound, backed up by the electric textures and the very tight and consistent rhythm section.''III'' is filled with romantic tunes and full-blown violin-driven themes with lots of solos and rhythms on strings, sometimes supported by heavy use of percussion and the always solid work on electric guitars, which find a comfort between psychedelic and jazzy moments.As expected, much of the material has this strange melancholy of Scandinavion music taste, but there are also extremely joyful parts with quirky and playful instrumental interactions.Vocals are pretty limited, of course all sung in Swedish, while the 13-min. ''Balladen om bjornbar och natmelon'', the only composition written by Ingemar Bocker, is the most progressive effort of the band, no doubt.A return to their early roots and a Heavy/Psych mood with doomy and dark rhythm guitars, dramatic Scandinavian music colors and melodies and lots of abstract electric solos, featuring some beautiful mandolin parts by Mats Glenngard and even some slight bluesy touches.Very good piece and a bit out of the general direction.On the other hand the acoustic/percussion-heavy ''Mariama'' shows edges of African Music and comes as a new addition to the band's ethnic repertoire.

Solid attempt on combining Scandinavian Folk and Heavy/Psych.Some great instrumental tracks, a generous and attractive long piece and several optimistic tunes.Recommended.