aaamusic | On 20, Sep 2010

It has to be said, just because something is easy on the ears doesn’t make it any less rewarding. Case in point being Dungen’s latest release: ‘Skit I Alt’. Given the dreamy pleasantness of the album’s sound, you may dismiss it as fluffy library music. But instead, this album’s depths run much further.

Opener ‘Vara Snabb’ is a pure and gentle flourish, with swirling yet muted cymbals surrounding the flowing clarinet melody. Piano chords give the piece a deceptively simple surface while the intense and complex rhythmic layers work beneath the melodic surface. Enchantment battles with confusion at this fusion of soft jazz and rock, but ultimately the former wins, as the track reaches a climax with the percussion and melody growing steadily more excitable, before settling down for a soft outro.

The cheerful, handclap-filled ‘Min Enda Van’ reaches closer to a pop sound, employing a sweetly-plucked electric guitar hidden among the lush pseudo-orchestral arrangements featuring piano, woodwind and a string section, as the gently echoing vocals sing in the band’s native Swedish. In spirit, this has all the feel of a pure pop song in its accessibility and sweet tones, but the careful instrumentation proves it to be a much more refined and artful piece. Similarly, ‘Soda’, with its use of dreamy acoustic guitar and largely natural vocals creates a folk-inspired cut of beauty, the melodies obviously very well-thought-out and carefully constructed. As the percussion and electric instruments rise to add more energy – especially the fluttering cymbals – Dungen momentarily transform into your recognisable pop band before the orchestrals re-emerge for a brief lift, and then fade away to flow beneath the main track once more.

‘Brallor’ is where tones of psychedelic rock rear their heads in the heavier sound and use of much more traditional rock instruments: distorted guitars, loping bass, fluidly galloping drums, and keyboards that produce both piano twinkles and spacey atmospherics. All this layered beneath the sugary vocals, and you have a tapestry of rock musicianship to enjoy, producing hints of both Deep Purple and The Beatles all in one.

‘Hogdalstoppen’ combines the two sides of the band: spacey rockers and gentle artists in one blissful track of droning guitar chords and twinkling piano melodies, all held up by the band’s trademark percussive cascades, all gentle cymbals and rattling snares masterfully contained beneath slowly transforming melodies. And then, just to prevent things from getting too easy, a techno-funk break is added, or at least that’s the best way to get a description wrong. The guitars chug in muted syncopation and the drums enter a new level of chaos before once again the track shifts into a riot of cymbals and overdriven string-bends. Thankfully, the title track returns things to sunny pop, perhaps to a new level, feeling like an echo of radio releases from times past in its skipping joyful percussion and sundrenched melodies coming from all fronts. The quick scampers across the drumkits perfectly offset the light and airy vocals, while piano and guitars weave together.

‘Barnen Undrar’ incorporates an almost salsa rhythm, with an old-fashioned danceable bassline hiding deep beneath the droning guitars, all overlaid by energetic drumming and charming vocals. The track plunges from dream to melancholy in a heartbeat, capturing some lost nostalgia in its sweet melodies, before the guitar solo rattles off a series of shimmering notes to lead to the slow outro. And then to lift again, we are treated to the whirling polyrhythms and echoing piano of ‘Blandband’, as the reverb applied to the jazz orchestral arrangements adds to the heartwarming atmospherics of the instrumental. Switching between energy and lullaby, incorporating brief elements of not only European but hints of Eastern folk within the lilting woodwind and guitar melodies, this is a gently inspirational little gem. Then, we travel to Europe and Latin America for the flamenco/salsa undertones of ‘Nasta Sommar’, bleeding sunny afternoons with the soft flutes of earlier in an entirely new style. This song simply oozes bliss in its laid-back feel and languid percussion.

Closing off, we have another piano-driven pop song: ‘Marken Lag Stilla’. Although this is indeed a charming piece of accessible 60s influenced rock, I can’t help but feel it might have been better placed in the album, as it feels a little too radio-friendly to bookend the album, although perhaps this is merely the band’s statement: they have the two sides of inventive artists and approachable pop craftsmen.

Despite the way this album slips with minimal effort into the eardrums, it would be a mistake to think of Dungen as a band with no substance. The instrumental arrangements are clearly the work of true musical talent in their subtle blending of so many genres, and worthy of widespread appreciation. Despite some track-to-track pacing issues, this is an enchanting album to listen to on those upcoming autumn nights in, to settle down and appreciate the simple beauty of it all.

Author: Katie H-Halinski

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If, as Dungen front man Gustav Ejstes suggests, Skit it Allt (literally translated as ‘fuck it all’) is a testimony to carefree living, then the band certainly have hit the nail on the head with this, their latest full-length release. The sound is for the most part a combination of dreamy folk and jazz, although a more tangible rock ‘n’ roll sound does pop up every now and then, particularly in later tracks. This is perhaps most obvious in the entirely instrumental jam session Hogdalstoppen, in which lead guitarist Reine Fiske seems to finally break out and create a solid role for himself on the album, his presence somewhat lacking in the prior opening tracks. Indeed, Hogdalstoppen (and to an extent, Soda) seems to mark a turning point in the record – while the quietly bucolic opener Vara Snabb is undoubtedly beautiful, until a few tracks in, the album comes dangerously close to repetition. Luckily this only seems to effect a couple of songs – not enough to spoil what is essentially a great record, especially in its more energetic moments.  Ejstes’ eclectic use of resources is admirable – guest female vocals, a piano, and in particular, his flute, all serve to build to an effective yet suitably understated and subtle end result.

Author: Katharine Sparks