Βerits
Halsband were an obscure band from the small coastal town of Hudiksvall, in
central Sweden. Their relative isolation allowed the group an artistic freedom
that ultimately created one of the greatest progressive jazz rock albums...
ever.
In the mid
1970s, Sweden was harboring a handful of jazz bands looking to push the
envelope beyond the usual bebop standards or electric noodling. These groups
were very much influenced by the North American freaky fusion of Miles Davis
and Herbie Hancock. Collectives such as Ibis, Ablution, Egba, Kornet, and
Archimedes Badkar were bringing that same kind of kinetic creativity up to
Scandinavia. And one has to figure those long, dark winters played a role in
creating hallucinations even among the most puritan of Lutherans wandering
about in their show shoes.
This was
the creative environment that Berits Halsband were operating in. Their artistic
contribution to the scene, and most distinctive mark as it were, would be the
musical crossover to the indigenous Scandinavian folklore of the local wooden
dance hall. Berits Halsband's brand of progressive music wasn't dished up
through the Zappa blender (like the popular Samla Mammas Manna for example),
but rather more of an introspective art school approach. As with other large
scale ensembles, the 8 piece Berits Halsband makes full use of its entire
membership in unique ways. To underscore this point, consider the prominent use
of trumpet, which is often filtered and heavily effected through a wah wah
pedal. Their second lead instrument of choice is the lovely flute, often in
unison with the trumpet, or as a peaceful solo alternative. And while Side 1
sounds like the best soundtrack to your dream Stockholm vacation, side 2 takes
us closer to home, near the Arctic Circle, for some serious deep funk grooves.
And here we find some added ring modulated electric piano combined with amazing
fuzz electric guitar soloing. All this layered on top of a trance-like bass and
a very busy percussion section. While the musical ingredients are familiar, the
end result is entirely Berits Halsband - one of a kind.
In
conclusion, Berits Halband's sole album is a strange bedfellow meeting of 1974
electric era Miles Davis, combined with the Swedish ethnic rock of Kebnekaise,
and the psychedelic pyrotechnics of Flasket Brinner. Yes... it’s that good!
(Tom Hayes)
The rare 1975 LP of BERITS HALSBAND is officially reissued from the original masters in both LP and CD on COSMIC EYE's parent label
MusicBazz Corporation (http://www.musicbazz.com).
Listen to the album.
100
coloured vinyl + poster + CD € 27.00
100
coloured vinyl + poster € 24.00
160 black vinyl + poster € 22.00350 custom discfolio digipack CD € 16.00
Release Date: 23 Nov. 2015
