Published by Davide Pappalardo on July 21, 2018
SWEDISH ELECTRO SCENE is a Facebook page and community dedicated to Swedish electro music, moving between synth-pop, EBM, industrial, ambient, and many more genres. Starting from 2013 it has published a series of free compilations on Bandcamp, in order to showcase the variety of acts coming from a pivotal country in the history of music as a whole. Now this series has reached its fifth volume, presenting us 49 tracks from bands like Machinista, Red Cell, White Birches, Vogon Poetry, Bete Noire, Lucifer’s Aid, State Of The Nation, Johan Baeckstrom. As already said, different genres and atmospheres are here to be found, even if we can recognize an unmistakable taste for synthetic melodies and retro sounds in many of the tracks. Many of the artists contributing to the compilation are unsigned or relatively obscure, so this operation can be considered as a means to spread the knowledge about them and their music.
Ogre Heat Backpackers start our journey with Glorius bastards and its evocative electro vibes made of suave soudscapes and enthralling rhythms, setting the mood for many of the episodes we will encounter. Machinista play with future-pop tinged sounds in Let darkness in, displaying EBM bass-lines and melancholic atmospheres enriched by ethereal synths and melodic vocal refrains, while Ironic Sweden use in Player more minimal patterns achieving a crawling mantra made of groovy arpeggiators and steady rhythms. White Birches present Howl and its post-punk atmospheres with sombre sounds, looping drums and fascinating female vocals, a retro pastiche for any lover of this sounds, and Red Cell follow their synth-pop style in The ladder, employing piano sounds and elegant choruses.
Johan Baeckstrom offers Utopia and its italo-disco soul, full of nice synth melodies and enthralling lines, once again recalling the sounds of 80’s in their more melodic and straightforward form, and Esselbon show their taste for minimal synthwave sounds in Shine and its moody analog movements which explode in new wave-inspired refrains. Indie pop artist Linn Öberg and bit-pop project 047 join forces in Wilderness, a suave affair with melodic keys and driving female vocals recalling in its sounds the more pop-oriented efforts by The Knife. Vogon Poetry and Dangers of space give us their space-inspired minimal-pop modus operandi familiar to the listener of Swedish synth-pop, complete of throbbing synth-lines and orchestral elements, and Elektrodepartementet deploy in Sa javla less frantic synths and energetic dancefloor moments full of electro qualities and riffing loops.
Denormal fuses darkwave elements and steady electronic rhythms in Conditional love, reaching a liquid atmosphere with charming vocals and sparse glimpses of sound. EleKtroFish evokes electro-clash soundscapes with The void and its grooving lines, displaying groovy rhythms and sudden strings. Niels Gordon showcases in Noon his downtempo style made of sombre synths and leftfield structures, a dreamy piece based on few ethereal elements, while Rana experiments with marching minimal beats and synth-sounds in Infested, a track enriched by narrative vocal patterns and syncopated broken rhythms. Death By Varta surprises us with Cyborg operator and its fusion of modern sensibilities and old-school electro sounds made of samples and looping rhythmic motifs, showing us a sound which experiments with energy and beats.
Maybe the greatest surprise is offered by Lucifer’s Aid and Control yourself, a crawling electro-industrial affair recalling Dive and its minimal style full of sharp elements and steady snare-sounds. Harsh vocals and industrial hard beats are added during the crescendo of the track, reaching imposing bass mantras and grim atmospheres. My Own Sorrow end the compilation with dark ambient motifs and spiraling drones, thanks to Daemonolatry and its claustrophobic landscapes enriched by eerie passages and majestic ambiances.
A compilation showing to the world a plethora of underground realities linked to the Swedish electro scene, with a fondness for melody and synth-pop atmospheres and some more experimental episodes. A commendable initiate by music lovers, which will let you know a little bit more about that scene and some of its hidden gems. Feel free to listen and download it.
Label: SWEDISH ELECTRO SCENE
Rating: 7