bob hund
Stenåldern kan börja
Silence Records

My favourite Swedes are back! bob hund - one of the best rock bands around Scandinavia presented their new album, Stenåldern kan börja (English: The Stone Age May Begin), just before Easter. A lot of energy and fun, plus moments of thoughtfulness, inside songs of quality, which make you grin before you'll start dancing like a madman. Let's be cavemen!

bob hund's musical bag has always been alternatively coloured, picking inspiration from 'old school new wave'. Pere Ubu, for sure, plus others. However, bob hund sound very bob hund. Thomas's vocals, the musical and rhythmical drive within their guitar-drenched pop-rock. I find the opening of Stenåldern kan börja rather similar to their 1998 album, Jag rear ut min själ! Allt skall bort!!!: the starter 1002 is a "cinematic" sounding instrumental (Ja rear ut... also opened with a movie/TV theme-ish instrumental, bob hunds 115:e dröm), before jumping into the catchy, upbeat Dansa efter min pipa (which reminds me of Jag rear ut..'s 2nd track, Tralala lilla molntuss...). Excellent! Then Sista beställningen bounce out, an energetic song made for wild dancing. As usual the lyrical world of bob hund add something extra to the music. You simply need to hear it, and preferably understand some Swedish, to understand it. Cunning naivety, or something like that.

Stenåldern kan börja flows with great songs, of both speed and calmness. Of their quieter (and stranger) moments you'll find Papperstrumpeten, the sad and lonely Glöm allt du har lärt, and Våffeljärnet (including discreet horns), the latter is one of the ace songs on this album. Think Neutral Milk Hotel mixed with Will Oldham. Another instant favourite is Ner på jorden, simply being an excellent pop song, driven by a ghost (friendly!) sounding synth. bob hund give "Foot and Mouth" a new, positive meaning: your mouth opens up to sing along, while your feet start dancing.

There are of course other songs to mention, but I'll just say a short, loud 'Buy!' instead. This could be bob hund's best so far. Enter Stone Age!

Copyright © 2001 Tore Håvard Hund