WAR YEARS

In spite of knowing of Trettioariga Kriget and having heard a little of their 70's relesases, I got into them only with their 2007 wonderful release I Borjan Och Slutet (In the beginning and the end). In 2008 I received from Stefan from the band this first compilation of theirs consisting of live shows of the band on two cd's; one dedicated to shows and songs from the past played in Swededn throughout the 70's and early 80's and the second for shows from 2004 (Prog Day, North Carolina, USA) and 2007 (Nacka, Sweden).

CD 1 presents songs from their various albums and the sound quality, while not the best and sometimes murky, is good enough to make out clearly the different instruments and the vocals (and hear the crowd as well); the quality, unsurprisingly, gets better as the year of recording advances (with the exception of Errolito, the last track, which is from 1980). As I don't yet know too well their albums of that decade and am still "learning" that period of the band, I can't say if they included their best tracks, or whether what was available. I can, however, say that I did like some songs such as Handlingens Skugga (with a good guitar solo by Christer Akerberg), Krigssang (with great bass work by Stefan Fredin), Krigssang II (containing bits with high energy level and nice drum work by Dag Lundquist), En Kvall Hos X and Den Stora Kliniken (with their groovy rhythms) and Mot Alla Odds (with its Rush-like opening). I find some songs to be forgettable and this CD could have done as well without them, such as tracks 12 (Blues) and 13 (Som Forut), but all in all, the selection is quite good and rewarding. Errolito, despite its lower sound quality, is a good closing track for this first CD.

The second cd boasts a better sound obviously, more crisp and fresh and is made up of the band's recent output along with old material. Of note are Lang Historia, Jag Och Jag Och "Jag" and I Borjan Och Slutet . The cool thing here is the option to listen to their old material in good quality and fresh sound.

I have to say that listening to this compilation with the old and new material alongside, reaffirms my initial impressions: I seem to prefer their current "incarnation"; their music nowadays has a punch and power that gets to me much more than their 70's rock does. It also sounds to me more explorative in nature as can be evident from their 2007 release I Borjan Och Slutet and for a more specific example, listen to the song Lang Historia from the album Elden Av Ar.

A note on the booklet - it contains the very detailed and interesting story of the band from the time it was founded and the background of each member to the release of this current compilation. Written by Olle Thornvall, the lyricist of the band, he also appears here playing the harmonica on the first cd on the song Confusions (to which he also wrote the lyrics). This is a great read along listening to the songs and reading about the making of the albums, playing shows and all the hardships they faced.

Now, I will confess I am not a fan of live albums in general (nor of compilations) and I usually don't buy those, with certain exceptions, but I know others do. In this case, this is a worthwhile release for the simple reason that it showcases the band in its different periods and in with its different sounds as it progressed from the 70's until our current decade. The sound quality is more than acceptable for the 70's recordings and the energy of the band comes through those performances quite well. It covers pretty well the various releases of the band and shows their playing skills. And finally the booklet I mentioned above is a great read for those interested to know more about the band. I am not too thrilled about this release but for fans of the band, this is a great opportunity to hear the band perform material live from their various albums.

In PA rating system values: Good, but not essential. 3 stars.