07/21/08
Text: Alex Kish
Sweden has been coughing up some pretty awesome musicians lately—Jose Gonzalez, Lykke Li, El Perro Del Mar—and it seems like the little country can do no wrong! With Dungen's newest LP, 4, Scandinavia has scored yet again.
The psychedelic rock quartet, probably best known for combining poppy melodies with intricate guitar work and the spacey vocals of lead singer Gustav Ejstes, has decided to take an entirely new approach creatively on their latest album. With the addition of a new a drummer and Ejetes’ decision to play mostly piano rather than guitar on the record, the band hopes to find a more delicate, orchestral sound with 4, according to their MySpace. (Sounds like they’re going for an old-school Sigur Ros sound before the Icelandic artists did the whole “Gobbledigook” thing!)
Although we haven’t been able to get our hands on the full album yet, the first single, “Satt Att Se,” has been on endless repeat. It starts off with a jazzy piano melody that sounds straight out of a 1970s lounge bar before getting swept up by a reverberating, psychedelic guitar line that blends perfectly with Ejstes’ dark vocals (which sound eerily similar to Sigur Ros’ lead vocalist, Jonsi Birgisson). Like other Dungen tracks, it sounds like it was record forty years ago, but its driving string samples and laid-back drum solos keep the overarching aesthetics modern.
The album won’t drop until this fall, but the band is releasing “Satt Att Se” on limited edition, 12" vinyl via Subliminal Sounds and Mexican Summer sometime soon. In the meantime, you can always play the new single on their MySpace page (or stream it in the media player to the right) to your heart’s content.
