Kaipa, who were first formed in 1973, and went on to become legendary within the Swedish music scene and further afield, here they return with their 15th studio album Sommargryningsljus. This is the follow up to their last release Urskog which was reviewed for TPA by our much missed Jez Rowden (RIP).
The helm of Kaipa is firmly under the direction of Hans Linden, who after some sixty years has not lost any of his songwriting skills, in fact I believe it has constantly improved with age and experience. There is a consistency now to the band line up and all the musicians appear to play with and off each other with skill and feeling. Couple this with lush melodies, wonderful textures and amazing vocal delivery you have a heady mix of enjoyment and excitement.
This release contains eight tracks plus a bonus track with four of them over ten minutes in length, the longest track clocking in at fifteen and a half minutes. Production was handled by Hans Lunden assisted by Per Nilsson, recorded and mixed by Hand Lundin at HGL studios Uppsala, Sweden and other instruments were recorded in various places namely Sweden, Austria and London. The final mix and master was by Martin Igelström at MI Sound Design Uppsala, Sweden. All the songs were written by Hans Lundin except Sommarskymningsljus and Sommargryningsljus, with words by Hans, music by Hans and Aleena Gibson.
Hans has always had the theme of the dawn close to his heart within his songwriting, and here the albums tracks represent the nocturnal journey from dusk to dawn, with the opening two representing dusk or twilight and the final two the dawn and birth of a new day. Two of the tracks here Seven Birds and Spiderweb Train were basic song structures from the late Nineties but never used at the time. They were both long instrumental songs that Hans liked, and after getting them off the old recording method of the times, he began to build up the songs again, editing, removing parts and adding new bridges.
The opening track is a beautiful keyboard piece, gentle and atmospheric, and sung in Swedish which invokes images of dusk over a landscape. Short on length it leads us to the next full track Seven Birds. This is a track that has all the hallmarks that you would expect from this classic line-up of Kaipa, opening with keyboards creating an atmospheric feel before the drums and bass join with the introduction of Patrick Lundström’s vocals the song progresses. The vocals are then taken over by Aleena Gibson, the lyrics dealing with the fading light of the evening painting a picture of the beauty of dusk which is reflected in the music with some great guitar work from Per Nilsson. The interchange between Patrick and Aleena’s vocals is excellent, each taking the lead and supporting the other with harmonies.
Like Thousand Dawns opens with some great drums and bass work with Per’s guitar running over the top, before a sudden stop, allowing the keyboards and Allena’s voice to take over, with all the other instruments joining back in to drive the song forward with shifts and changes in mood and feel throughout.
These first three songs demonstrate what this band delivers, and that is immersive symphonic pieces of music, with all the players dealing well with the complex and lush melodies, with added Swedish folk touches giving them a unique sound which is instantly identifiable as Kaipa. They are not afraid to add different instruments to the sound, for example Revelationview makes wonderful use of violin, and elsewhere in the album saxophone, recorder and whistles are used.
The longest track is Spiderweb Train, and as previously mentioned the basic structure is from an unused song from late Nineties. The work Hans has put into this song to revive it is impressive, with a beginning in which Patrick’s voice accompanied by Hans’ keyboards is somewhat gentle, drawing you in. The band join in to fill out the sound, and they make use of the addition of recorder which gives a nice Swedish folk feel to the proceedings. Include some great rhythmic contributions from the violin, and the song becomes filled with wonderful sounds and textures.
The following Songs in Our Hands is one that appears full of hope for the new day, both lyrically and musically, the opening lines demonstrate this:
The sun’s on its way
Out of the shadows of night”
The album ends with the title track Sommarsgryningsljus (Dawn Summer Light) which again is sung in Swedish by Aleena accompanied by Hans’ keyboards, and a bright positive feeling is given off here. Halfway through Per’s guitar comes in to introduce the rest of the band and the song gently soars towards its conclusion. This version closes the album, followed by a bonus track titled as a “single edit”, but which is longer than the album version and which initially confused me, however this version is the entire song as it was originally written (Sommarskymningsljus and Sommarsgryningsljus).
An album of classy, immersive symphonic prog by these Swedish masters, with lush, complex melodies and textures throughout, which has beauty within the depths of the music that draws you into their wonderful melodic world. This is an involving album that requires you to invest some serious listening time, for which you will be richly rewarded as each play reveals many different layers.
Released on all formats to suit individual tastes (Ltd. CD Mediabook, Gatefold 180g 2 LP+CD, and as a Digital Album). If you like your prog melodic and symphonic with touches of Swedish folk this is the one for you.
TRACK LISTING
01. Sommarskymningsljus (Summer Twilight) (1:30)
02. Seven Birds (9:50)
03. Like Thousand Dawns (11:08)
04. Revelationview (9:28)
05. Chased by Wolves and Burned by the Sun (10:17)
06. Spiderweb Train (15:29)
07. Songs in Our Hands (13:00)
08. Sommarsgryningsljus (Summer Dawn Light) (3:58)
~ Bonus track
09. Sommarsgryningsljus (single edit) (5:24)
Total Time – 80:06
MUSICIANS
Hans Lundin – Keyboards, Vocals
Per Nilsson – Electric & Acoustic Guitars
Jonas Reingold – Bass
Darby Todd – Drums
Patrick Lundström – Vocals
Aleena Gibson – Vocals
~ With:
Elin Rubinsztein – Violin
Fredrik Lindqvist – Recorders, Whistles
Olof Åslund – Saxophone
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: InsideOut Music
Country of Origin: Sweden
Date of Release: 28th June 2024
LINKS
Kaipa – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp (InsideOut Music)