SERSOPHANE

This might be the most rhythmic GOSTA BERLINGS SAGA album to date and one of their better ones too. I still think their "Detta Har Hant" record is their best, in fact I have it right now as my third best from that year. If it wasn't for the three shorter tracks this would be 4.5 stars but 4 stars seems right all things considered. It's a bonus as well that it clocks in at around 39 minutes.

"Konstruktion" opens with deep sounds and it kicks in quickly as the guitar and keys take turns creating a catchy melody over top. This is fairly heavy and a good start. "Sersophane" really speaks to me and I'm really surprised that this isn't the opening track although it is the title track so there's that. I like the atmosphere and keys as it builds. Oh, the guitar sounds great too then it settles a minute in but kicks back in hard rather quickly. The drummer is quite busy before 2 minutes. I like the intricate guitar on this one, especially after 3 1/2 minutes. A nice guitar/ drum section follows. Themes are repeated. Great track! "Fort Europa" opens with experimental sounds as the piano joins in. The guitar starts to get picked over top as we get a rhythm joining in as well. Man this just trips along with different instruments taking turns soloing over top. So repetitive, but so good!

"Dekonstruktion" has these strange sounds that come and go, pulsating and beating away. Not a big fan of this one. "Channeling The Sixth Extinction" is an incredible tour de force. Over 15 minutes of amazing music. A dramatic intro with plenty of drum work and depth as other sounds play over top. It becomes even darker with more depth after 1 1/2 minutes. Great sound here. Check out the guitar starting before 3 minutes but they're back to the previous soundscape fairy quickly. Contrasts will continue though. It kicks into an almost Zeuhl groove after 7 minutes. So cool with the fuzzed out bass as they jam to the end. Awesome! Strangely that wasn't the closing number but "Naturum" is, a 1 plus minute piece of acoustic guitar throughout.

Man those three longer tracks are incredible, they lose me on a couple of the shorter ones but still this is a very good album. A solid 4 stars.

I have been following the band since their debut and each time I listen to their music, I am surprised how good these guys are. The music here is instrumental mixing symphonic, zeuhl and avant-garde in the style of the Swedish tradition that has started with Anglagard and Anekdoten. The band enjoy stretch out the notes and extend the song with some repeated beats that are hypnotic for the listener. The breaks are always spot on with the appropriate moods for each section showing the dark and the light side of the music. The atmosphere created by the guitar lines and the precise and obsessive drums patterns are impressive. You can feel the spontaneity and freedom in the band's music but it never loses his sense of the melody. In this sense, I think it's a return to the raw sound of their album "Detta Har Hänt". The only weakness of this album is that the delightful experience lasts only 39 minutes!