SNAKES IN A HOLE

Being recorded im 1969 means that the sound is very dated, but for this kind of psychedelic music, so jazzy and blues influenced I can't imagine it sounding differently. The lineup includes Georg Wadenius, later with the Finnish genius Pekka Pohjola.

The album scores around 30 minutes only, but it's time well spent for the listener. The opener and title track has the singular characteristic of crazy vocals closing each phrase and is mainly a blues with the inclusion of an electric violin with a sort of wah wah. The bass is remarkable too. Clean, it doesn't do anything special but itperfectly fit for purpose, and also the guitar riff is very good.

It looks like in 1969 nobody could record an album without including a Bob Dylan's cover. The band chose "Lay Lady Lay", arranged as instrumental. Honestly, this one is skippable. Good as soundtrack for a TV documentary or something like this. Nothing more.

Discotheque People is very interesting, instead. Vocals are almost speeched on a slow funky base. Good solos by guitar and violin for an excellent instrumental part. Give Me Whisky is a Hendrixian song based on a bass riff. A sort of acid blues interrupted by a psychedelic part quite similar to the final of Pink Floyd's Bikem then it reprises with vocal and guitar in synch as typical in rock-blues and in jazz. It's the kind of song that I liked to listen in some "situations" when I was young.

If you are wondering why this band is featured on PA under "Jazz/rock Fusion", "Kristallen Den Grymma" tells you why. It's a very nice jazzy track on which all the players find space for their virtuosity. On this track I find the bassist particularily remarkable. Since now on the album is Jazz-rock. "Little Cloud" is a very good rock-blues while Big Cloud is more funky.

So it's a very enjoyable album. Nicely, my one is the second review of this album and reading the other one I think it's funny that the track which I say "it's skippable", is the favorite of the other reviewer and vice versa. It demonstrates that our reviews shouldn't be taken too seriously, but we agree about the overrll rating.

4 stars