Dungen


Dungen's epic 2004 album Ta Det Lugnt got it's US release a few weeks back, courtesy of Kemado Records - expanded with a second disc of 5 songs. They are essentially the brainchild of one man, Sweden's Gustav Ejstes. He wrote, recorded, produced and mixed the record, and it is a stunner. It's an album of late '60s/early '70s classic rock styled music that sounds as if it was recently dug up from a 1969 time capsule. Musically it runs the gamut from blues rock stomp to folky pop filtered through psychedelic fusion, space jazz, ambient chamber music and twee pop. And it's all sung in Swedish. It's breathtakingly good. I've been listening to it for weeks and I still hear something new every time I play it. The arrangements are so big, and everything sounds so authentic that you don't even notice that you don't have a clue what Gustav is singing about. I think that my words can't do it justice. Listen to these two very different tunes, go and buy the album, settle down with it and be prepared to be sonically blown away. Panda kicks off the album in spectacular style, serving notice of what's to come with it's huge drums and psych-rock riffs. Det Du Tänker Idag Är Du I Morgon is a fantastically groovy, spiralling, spaced out instrumental with a breezy '60s California vibe - love the flutes, baby. Destined to be in my top 10 best of the year list for sure.