| Reviews Live EP (1997) [CD - Arcàngelo ARC-1035 - 1997] Originally published in Reels of Dreams Unrolled No. 7, November 20, 1998 It's been nearly two years since I gave Anekdoten's debut album, Vemod, a mildly positive review in Reels of Dreams Unrolled. Since then I've warmed up to the album a bit more, and it is has become one of my absolute favorites. Unfortunately, finances and an ever-growing interest in other progressive rock bands and styles has prohibited me from purchasing Anekdoten's second album, Nucleus and their recent double live CD. I did, however, recently manage to snatch up this relatively cheap four-song Live EP. This limited edition EP was produced exclusively for sale on one of Anekdoten's recent Japanese tours. They did not sell all 5,000 of them, so Wayside music was able to make them available to the rest of us. Lucky us! If you have not bothered to purchase this little gem yet, what are you waiting for? The limited number of these available and the quality of the music and attractive packaging are sure to make this a sought-after collectible in years to come. This EP is an amazing display of Anekdoten's live abilities. Most of the tracks on here sound more energetic and exciting than their original versions. "Nucleus" opens the disc on an exceptionally vigorous note which sets the tone for the whole disc. Jan Erik Liljeström's singing seems to have improved since Vemod and his bass has never growled louder. "The Flow" seems to sound better on here as well, again more energetic. The third and longest track, "A Way of Life," is quite a surprise and a real treat. This is an improvisational piece exclusive to this disc. It is beautifully mellow piece of Tangerine Dream-like space rock. It starts very quietly with some softly bowed cello and waht sounds like guitar volume swells. Eventually a bass guitar ostinato joins in and gradually grows in volume and intensity throughout the piece. A beautiful, quavering guitar solo laced with tremolo and reverb becomes the centerpiece of the track. This piece proves that Anekdoten has more to offer than hard-n-heavy Crimsonic noise fests. It's a side of them I'd like to see more often. "Karelia," another instrumental, finishes the CD off. Unfortunately, the band decided to leave off the ultra-somber Mellotron section at the beginning, helping to make this track the only one I think is a little less interesting than the gripping original version. These recordings are not available anywhere else, so even if you already have Official Bootleg: Live in Japan, you won't be wasting money if you buy this. At only 25 minutes in length, Live EP really makes me want to get the Official Bootleg album. It also makes me want to see Anekdoten in concert someday. Maybe someday, but until then, this will satisfy me quite nicely. - Scott Hamrick [November 1998] Click Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info From Within (1999) [CD - Virtalevy - Virta 003 - 1999] Originally published in Reels of Dreams Unrolled No. 10, September 24, 2000 The first thing one may notice about this new CD from Anekdoten is some decidedly bleak artwork on the cover and in the CD booklet. It’s almost all black. Have the long Swedish winters gotten to Anekdoten? Is this CD even more depressing than their previous work? Not really, but From Within does signal a movement in a new direction. It shows the band reaching a new level of maturity as they continue to refine their style. Those attracted to Anekdoten for their tendency toward heavy riffing may find a little less to get excited about on From Within. Sure, the album still has all the trademarks that made Nucleus and Vemod so excellent, but a new ingredient has been added to the mix – subtlety. In the past, the band was fond of frequent instrumental passages which would boil over with energy and complexity. Frenzied guitar solos and heavy, distorted bass stomped through beds of swirling Mellotron as Jan Erik Liljeström bellowed his way through the lyrics. This album takes things down a notch. From Within rarely boils over, instead it simmers. The title piece is a perfect example. The verses, sung with dignified melancholy, are backed by a constant, tension building snare drum roll. This leads to a melodic instrumental section. This is dominated by a liquidy sounding guitar riff which is never too heavy, but is the highest point of energy for the song. Beautiful and pensive, but never really heavy or very intense . The Mellotron drenched "Hole," is one of the last remaining vestiges of Anekdoten’s once unabashed King Crimson affinity. Its long instrumental section is quite reminiscent of Crimson’s "Starless." Another standout piece is the smoldering, goose bump inducing "Firefly," complete with piano and vocal harmonies courtesy of Anna Sofi Dahlberg. Also excellent is "The Sun Absolute," an instrumental dominated by a Magma-esque bass riff. Overall, this album benefits from a stronger than usual effort for detail and a delicate touch. Many of the pieces are artfully adorned with piano, cello and shimmering, sometimes gauzy vibraphone. All are a nice touch. The lovely, ghostly strains of the celebrated Mellotron are even more pronounced on From Within than on past albums due to a decreased reliance on guitar and heavy unison riffing . This album may prompt listeners to wonder: Is Anekdoten poised to mellow and/or sell out? After listening to this album, a degree of mellowing out seems inevitable. That may even be a good thing as long as heavy riffs continue to be replaced by more thoughtful, artful music. Selling out (or more gently put: breaking through) seems less likely, but is beginning to seem like a distant possibility. Songs like "Groundbound" confirm Anekdoten’s influences outside of progressive rock, including current "alternative" rock. One may wonder whether the lure of more trendy styles of music, combined with Anekdoten’s relative success and quickly accessible brand of heavy prog will ever amalgamate to elevate the band’s profile to an alternative radio level. We may not know for years, but for now they play for us. Bless them. - Scott Hamrick [September 2000] Click Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info Gravity (2003) [CD - Virta 004 - 2003] Ten years is a very, very long time in the life of a rock band. Most of rock's most impressive empires have been built and destroyed in less than a decade. Led Zeppelin's entire career lasted just about 10 years. The Police, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream, Nirvana and the Beatles didn't even come close to their tenth birthdays; and of course, all of the most famous progressive rock bands did all their best work in a few years in the early to middle '70s. So here we have Anekdoten's fourth studio album in exactly ten years. The band has lasted a relatively long time considering the statistics above - a very long time for a band that releases its own albums and which operates within the tiny niche of modern progressive rock. And yet they've released relatively few albums during this period. They've had lots of time to sit around and plot each move - lots of time to contemplate changes for the next album - plenty of time to "mature." So anyone who was paying attention should have seen it coming. In case you didn't get the subtle hints on From Within, the band has laid it out on the table for all to see on Gravity. The message is clear and unmistakable: Anekdoten is abandoning progressive rock. "Abandoning" is used in the present tense because the deed is not entirely done, but the act is in full swing on Gravity. The band is caught red-handed here as they trade complex rhythms and long, complex instrumental passages for simplified guitar chord riffs and a new emphasis on vocals. It all makes sense now. In retrospect, it even appears they've wanted to get caught for a long time. Even on Nucleus - the band's most engaging and progressive album to date - the crunchy guitars and bass riffs seemed to hint at the more commercial grunge/alternative rock of the day. Now those once subtle innuendos have become what sound like all-out overtures to audiences of more conventional rock. We're not talking about anything as lowest-common-denominator as Aerosmith or anything like that, but fans of modern European rock á la Coldplay or possibly Radiohead would have no trouble getting into Anekdoten's latest release. Despite this startling revelation, Gravity is generally a pleasant enough listen. There are some very nice songs here. Very nice. Songs. The singing is better than ever actually. Jan Erik and Nicklas have obviously been practicing. "Ricochet" is a fine example of their newfound vocal prowess. Even better than the good vocals though, this track has a lush, polished sound (especially the Mellotron) with infectious melodies and chord progressions. Extremely well produced and dripping with bittersweetness, it somehow it sounds like something bands like The Smiths, Simple Minds or Psychedelic Furs would have done 15 or so years ago. "SW4" and "The Games we Play" show the band reaching out in a promising direction toward ambient music by way of loops and lots of delay, but it's done mostly as decoration rather than as the main focus of both tracks. Had the band really pursued this further, it could have been very interesting, like "A Way of Life" on the Live EP, but they chose the middle ground instead. "The War is Over" is another interesting track that departs from the usual realms of Anekdoten's brand of heavy prog into hand drum and acoustic guitar territory. It again makes use of the band's newfound penchant for good vocals, but as with most of the rest of the album, searing guitar solos, Anna Sofi's cello or anything else you might expect from Anekdoten is missing (except the ever-present Mellotron). As usual, there is one instrumental on Gravity, but it doesn't do very much. It's basically a couple of rumbling bass riffs with repeating melodies for guitar and organ on top. Changes are subtle and few, so it's a long way from past gems like "Karelia". The rest of the album features a lot of similar sounding slow-to-medium tempo tracks. Overall, the album sounds a lot like a rehash of From Within but with most of the really interesting parts surgically removed for the sake of more easy listening. The days of heavy riffs and complex time or tempo changes seem to be a thing of the past for this band. There's nothing particularly terrible about Gravity, but prog enthusiasts will likely find it disappoints more than it delights. Gravity proves it takes more than good production, lush Mellotron chord progressions and an off-the-cuff sounding instrumental to make a good prog album. There's just not much on Gravity that's going to make Anekdoten's fan base stand up and cheer. We've come to expect much more sophisticated compositions and more variation than this. Where Nucleus boiled and From Within simmered, Gravity shows Anekdoten letting their music cool to the temperature of warm bath water. It's comfortable, maybe even relaxing, but ultimately rather safe. If you can only buy one album of Swedish Mellotron prog in the next several months or so, hold out for the new one from the resurrected Änglagård. If the new material they played at NEARfest is any indication, that album will make everyone forget about Gravity in a hurry. - Scott Hamrick [July 2003] Click Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info