Party Ends

   Dear God, why can't I seem to get these songs out of my head? No matter how much other stuff I listen to lately, I just can't seem to shake the infectious pop ditty's of Sweden's Suburban Kids With Biblical Names from my throbbing gray matter. With a lineage of mishmashed influences from They Might Be Giants to Euro-Techno to 60's-70's Xanadu-Esq progressions, along with a reckless abandon of almost all convention when it comes to instrumental pairings and song structure, it's a testament to the magic in these musicians that the music didn't just turnout as a jumbled mess of omnichords and banjos; strangely, what seems to draw me into the music the most is that the entire record feels as though it's on the verge of doing just that. Every song has that home-made feel (due, I'm sure in part, to the fact that they recorded most of it in the house of one of the duo's parents), with the self-taught charm of your high school rock band, and many consist of layer upon layer of drum machines and vocal harmony seeming as though it's all about to topple over in it's own momentum, like running with a twenty foot stack of plates in your hands.

   Their recently released full length, #3, is a masterwork in 'overdoing it' the right way. In anyone else's hands, such a big sound would probably come off as too much, but the lo-fi recording and the non-traditional voice of Peter Gunnarson just make you happy that very little restraint seems to have gone into the songs. And, due to the instrumental efforts of Johan Hedberg, everything on the disc only helps to ingrain the remarkable hooks into your very soul, when so many records muddy the melodies with layers of strings and guitar riffs, everything on #3 seems to be rhythmic and driving. That's not to say that there is no subtlety on the record, there are some nice lazy numbers in there, as well as lots of bits you won't catch until you have listened to the songs many times over, but there is an energy to every note, even that distant glockenspiel.

   All in all, I think this record is solid, original, and a great first album from some guys who have the potential to become something great in the near future. I expect that their next album will have quite an impact, but for now, check out these tracks, buy the CD, and try to appreciate the fact that perhaps no one, in the history of music, has used a kick drum sample quite as prolifically as these two young men.

MP3: SKWBN - Loop Duplicate my Heart

MP3: SKWBN - Rent a Wreck