Syreregn

Skabt Værk Består

Written by: BV on 12/05/2014 17:29:14

My fascination with psychedelic rock and Danish psych in particular could be said to originate a number of places, really. Whilst Ppobably starting somewhere around the time my dad introduced me to Pink Floyd, it never really quite got a hold of me before I was introduced to Spids Nøgenhat and a brave new world of Danish lyricism in the psychedelic musical territory. Then managing to stumble upon Syreregn, at that time a promising young band that had just released their debut album “OCD”, one could say that the tone had been set for what would essentially become an insatiable yearning for new psychedelic music. Returning now, quite a few years after their debut, Syreregn have managed to finally complete their sophomore album “Skabt Værk Består” – in spite of various lineup changes, financial difficulties and the ever-existing problem of not having more time than there actually is. Now consisting of Thor Boding (bass/vocals), Rasmus Kurdahl (drums) and Casper Gyldensøe (guitar), one can argue that the sound on “Skabt Værk Består” is a major step away from their origin as a blues-rock band. More on that later, though.

Opening with a melodic and spacious intro, “Skabt Værk Består part 1” is a clear departure from the naïve and straight-forward blues-rock of Syreregn. Granted, “OCD” did open with the instrumental whopper “Overture” but it still retained a concise, Cream-inspired riff upon which the whole thing was centered. This is not the case with the repetitive, phaser-laden bass-riff of “Skabt Værk Består part 1” – constantly seeking to hypnotize, one could say it manages to do so. However, it also quickly becomes quite evident that the change of guitarists has affected the soundscape in a rather noticeable way. Long gone is the gritty, lo-fi Big Muff howls of Jakob Møller’s guitar – instead replaced by a virtuosity-dominated playing that is as pristine as it is wholesome. The notable list of guest musicians featured on the album make their appearances rather early here, as William Kaae’s swirling, 70’s inspired organ playing quickly takes over as a dominating part of “Skabt Værk Består part 1” towards the end of the track before a sample from the original Planet of the Apes film concludes the track with ”You maniacs, you blew it up! God damn you! God damn you all to hell!” - however corny or cool as that may be, although I might be leaning a bit towards calling it relatively corny.

Then proceeding into the front-running single of the album, “Hypnokongen”, the tempo is remarkably sped up to awaken the listener from the trance of the opening track. Featuring a rather Hendrix-esque riff (complete with massive usage of the so-called Hendrix chord), the track is uniquely successful when lumped in with the album in general. “Hypnokongen” is, in terms of how memorable the riff actually is, surprisingly effective as a single. However, the lengthy drum-solo in the middle of the track – however cool Rasmus Kurdahl makes it sound – hinders the groovy flow when it comes to being as concise as possible. It may very well work in the relatively prog-rock inspired soundscape that Syreregn are seemingly trying to achieve, but it lacks the instant hooks of tracks like “Mirror, Mirror” or “Sol Over Reykjavik” that made these tracks so uniquely successful.

With “Marana Tha”, a 12-minute eastern-inspired opus, Syreregn places the final nail in the coffin that was their sound of old. – At least in terms of what is on this album, as their set-lists may very well still incorporate older material. “Marana Tha”, with its use of sitar-drones, saxophones (courtesy of Mads Tamborg), wide arrays of percussion and multitudes of sounds (courtesy of Scott ‘Dr. Space’ Heller), signifies the polar opposite of what I really dug about “OCD”. Yes, the tracks were lengthy but they had a strange sense of instant recognition surrounding them – almost making them psychedelic blues-pop (although that concept seems a bit farfetched). “Marana Tha”, as well as the rest of “Skabt Værk Består”, is indeed quite an epic journey. However, it is a journey that takes an audience which is accustomed to psychedelic blues-rock on a trip that is far away from what many might have expected this to actually sound.

In essence, Syreregn have neither created a better or worse record than “OCD” – the two can hardly be compared. “OCD” was concise blues-rock of the vintage-flavor, whilst “Skabt Værk Består” marks a new direction for the band that will undoubtedly divide their fan-base. Will they possibly gain a new, wider audience? Perhaps, seeing as the craftsmanship is impeccable. I just think I’m still a bit too stuck in the grooves of their older material to fully appreciate this. – For now.

Download: Hypnokongen, Marana Tha, Skabt Værk Består part 1
For The Fans Of: Fuzz Manta, Highway Child, Cream, Deep Purple
Listen: Facebook

Release date 16.05.2014
Blue Beetle Records & Booking


Related Items | How we score?
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

Legal

© Copyright MMXXIV Rockfreaks.net.