Artist: Folke Rabe
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Folke Rabe is a Swedish composer, probably best known for his piece "What??", an early example of modern drone/minimalism that premiered in 1967. I am not nearly as familiar with his oeuvre as I should be, but after seeing his name in the lineup for May's "Swedish Outsiders" festival in London, I wanted to revisit the one piece of his I do have, "Argh!" (1965). "Argh!" is a work of sound collage, created back in the time of analog tape manipulation. Even without that consideration, this is an amazing piece of editing and layering, long pre-dating the similar, infamous sound experiments performed by Negativland that gained them notoriety. Voices come and go, melodies slip in and out, but it holds your attention all the while. In some ways, I think it works even better now with the added layer of nostalgia as the sound sources are obviously from a bygone era. Also, it's important to remember that there were no sampling laws back then, so anything was fair game. Can you imagine negotiating the clearances on something like this now? No question about it, it just wouldn't happen. So, however you want to listen to this, be it for technical or aesthetic or even historical appreciation, I think all approaches work. It's a remarkable composition.
Folke Rabe - Argh!
Coming to London in mid-May: "Swedish Outsiders", a festival of experimental sound and film: http://www.no-signal.net/
Artists presenting include Hans Appelqvist, Mats Gustafsson, Folke Rabe, Tape, Wildbirds & Peacedrums, Henrik Rylander and much, much more. See a pdf of program notes here: http://www.no-signal.net/swedish/nosignal-SwedishOutsidersFestival-PR.pdf
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I know it probably seems odd to review a free comp with limited availability (it was primarily distributed to subscribers of UK mag The Wire with copies of the December issue), but when you consider how well this collection captures the most exciting aspects of Sweden's current music scene, it should hopefully make sense. Simply put, Häpna, Ideal Recordings and Kning Disk are the top three Swedish labels currently releasing a consistent stream of interesting, forward-thinking music. Even with the few artists I'm not so fond of such as Nicolai Dunger's A Taste of Ra, I would never fault their craftsmanship or imagination. It might not appeal directly to my own personal tastes, but it has my utmost respect and that is of crucial importance. There's always something to admire, even when you are not inclined to investigate further.
As for the styles of music explored in this collection, it's incredibly rich and diverse. There's everything from pop melodicism (Anna Järvinen, Eric Malmberg, Balroynigress) to dark, terrifying drones (Sewer Election, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, The Skull Defekts), fractured experimentalism (Hans Appelqvist, Tape, Folke Rabe) and classical composition (Erik Enocksson, Jerry Johansson and Library Tapes). All in all, a perfect portrait of where to look for the future of Swedish music. Ignore it and get left behind.
- Avi Roig
In case you were wondering, here's the tracklist for that free comp of Swedish music "Whispers from the forests, screams from the mountains" that comes with the latest issue of UK mag The Wire:
01. Hans Appelqvist - Jag en gök (Häpna, from the album "Sifantin och mörkret")
02. Eric Malmberg - Milda döden hämtar oss alla till slut (Häpna, from the album "Verklighet & beat")
03. Anders Dahl - Hundloka - percussion, guitar, bouzouki (excerpt) (Häpna, from the album "Milieu")
04. Tape - Augustan chateau (Häpna, from the album "Sifantin och mörkret")
05. Anna Järvinen - Helsinki (Häpna, from the album "Jag fick feeling")
06. A Taste Of Ra - Morning of my life (excerpt) (Häpna, from the album "Morning of my life")
07. Christine Ödlund - Lightning & voices (Ideal, from the upcoming album "Phenomena")
08. Nash Kontroll - All muzzles look the same (Ideal, from the "Must be destroyed" 7")
09. Mokira - Skaka hund skaka (Ideal, previously unreleased)
10. Sewer Election - White Golgotha (Ideal, previously unreleased)
11. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Heaven is the notion that all this will end (Ideal, previously unreleased)
12. Skull Defekts, The - Finding your way through the forest by settng it on fire (Ideal, previously unreleased)
13. Erik Enocksson - The state the sea left me in (Kning Disk, from the album "Farväl Falkenberg")
14. Dan Fröberg - We'll never be the same again (song) (Kning Disk, previously unreleased)
15. Jerry Johansson - Next door conversation part II (excerpt) (Kning Disk, from the album "Next door conversation")
16. Folke Rabe - Swinee river (Kning Disk, previously unreleased)
17. Library Tapes - Fragment VIII (Kning Disk, from the "Fragment" EP)
18. Balroynigress - Shampo and champagne (Kning Disk, from the album "Shampo and champagne")
The playlist for my radio show this week:
01. Mattias Bärjed - 99 pounds
02. TALK 1
03. Piroth - Waltz for prima ballerina
04. Hyacinth House - Swedish signs on Monkey Island
05. Aerial - Secret goddess
06. Icos - Fly away
07. TALK 2
08. Robyn - Konichiwa bitches (Trentemøller remix)
09. Folke Rabe - Argh!
10. Him Kerosene - Ladybugs
11. TALK 3
12. Audionom - In the streets
13. The Alpine - Trigger
14. Immanu El - Astral days
15. TALK 4
16. Nina Ramsby & Martin Hederos - Jag har en vän
17. Logh - Thieves in the palace
18. Galento - Gunnar Hardings paraply
19. TALK 5
20. Promise and the Monster - Antarkis
21. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Heroica
22. Anchor - In the throes of passion
23. TALK 6
24. Repoman - Valley of snakes
25. Ulver - Shadows of the sun
26. Bobby Baby - Do not twist
27. TALK 7
28. Superfamily - Warszawa
29. The Fine Arts Showcase - Modern love
30. Sinikka Langeland - Sus i myrull
31. TALK 8
32. Graveyard - Thin line
33. Mai - Snowing downtown
34. KVLR - Abomination
35. TALK 9
36. Säkert! - Sanningsdan
Swedish experimental label Kning Disc in association with Håll Tjäften have announced the release of "ARGH!", a new disc of collaborations between pioneering artists Folke Rabe and Jan Bark. Samples and more info: http://kningdisk.com/02_releases_kd006.asp?id=23
Various Artists