A brief aural history of (heavy) Swedish Progg

You’re absolutely right, I’ve got an overwhelming amount of music from the folks of Pärson Sound, and you’re also right in saying that they were by far the least overtly political in their lyrical content, BUT I think their musical style (particularly as Pärson Sound) is overtly political. Wow! I love it!

Then, we head out of the land of Bo Anders Persson, Torbjörn Abelli, Arne Ericsson, Thomas Mera Gartz, Urban Yman, and Thomas Tidholm (artists involved in Pärson Sound, International Harvester, Harvester, and Träd, Gräs och Stenar), and into Middle Earth with organist Bo Hansson’s Lord of the Rings concept album.

Next, short-lived heavy modal psych-lords Baby Grandmothers (BG) freak out on Being Is More than Life, followed up by BG guitarist Kenny Håkansson’s next band, Kebnekajse. Then a group of young Swedish anarcho-punks, Gudibrallan, break the aural tapestry thus far woven to ease you into the Garden of Elks (Älgarnas Trädgård) with the title track off their debut album.

From there we jump ahead 38 years to catch a glimpse of the contemporary Swedish (heavy) progg scene. Linköping psych-rockers Flowers Must Die blend Swedish traditional musics with “krautrock” and space rock inflection while Hills brings us full circle with their new album, Frid, bringing Pärson Sound into the present.

Outro – Flowers Must Die with the Finnish band Horst Quartet and a B-side that quotes Ökenvandring from their third album.

Turn on. Tune in.

Pärson Sound . Pärson Sound . Sov Gott Rose-Marie . ti’llindien, Subliminal Sounds . 1967

International Harvester . Sov Gott Rose-Marie . Deis Irae . Love Records . 1968

Harvester . Hemåt . Hemåt . Decibel/Silence . 1969

Träd, Gräs och Stenar . Gärdet 12/6/1970 . Satisfaction . ti’llindien, Subliminal Sounds . 1970

Bo Hansson . Sagan om ringen . The Grey Havens . Silence . 1970

Baby Grandmothers . S/T . Being is More than Life . Subliminal Sounds . 1968

Kebnekajse . Resa Mot Okant Mal . Resa Mot Okant Mal . Silence. 1971

Gudibrallan . (Gudibrallan) T-Doja . T-Doja . Silence . 1971

Älgarnas Trädgård . Framtiden Är Ett Svävande Skepp, Förankrat I Forntiden . Två Timmar Över Två Blå Berg Med En Gök På Vardera Sidan, Om Timmarna … Alltså (Two Hours Over Two Blue Mountains with a Cuckoo on each Side, Of the Hours… that is) . Silence . 1972