Swedish progressive rock act Kaipa burst on the scene back in 1975 with this self-titled debut album, signaling the arrival of a band firmly in the Yes/Genesis/ELP mold and featuring the line-up of:
Roine Stolt - electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocals
Hans Lundin - Hammond organ, lead vocals, Fender Rhodes and grand pianos, Yamaha SY1 synthesizer, harpsichord, Logan string-machine, glockenspiel
Tomas Eriksson - bass, backing vocals
Ingemar Bergman - drums, backing vocals, percussion
With vocals sung by Lundin in their native Swedish language, Kaipa never really caught on broadly, but time has been very kind to the band over the years, their music not only an example of classic symphonic '70s prog, but Stolt has gone on to prominence in bands such as The Flower Kings, Transatlantic, and a few others, while Lundin still mans the helm in Kaipa to this day. Tempus Fugit Records has recently reissued and remastered the first five Kaipa albums, so for those that haven't scooped these up previously, now's a great time to do so.
This debut is arguably their finest album, chock full of vintage keyboards from Lundin, who really is a special, and vastly underrated player, as well as tasty lead guitar work from the then very young Stolt. As the lyrics are in Swedish, there's not much I can say about the lyrical imagery here, but the songs are quite atmospheric, with velvety bass from Eriksson that isn't far removed from what Chris Squire was doing with Yes, and Lundin's wide assortment of keyboards that added a somewhat classical flair at times. "Musiken Ar Ljuset" is classic '70s symphonic prog, while the energetic "Ankaret" is possibly the most compelling track on the album, the bass grooving, the guitar sizzling, and the organ lovely. Instrumentals "Allting Har En Början" and "Förlorad i Istanbul" show off the incredible talents of Stolt on the guitar, while "Se Var Morgon Gry" and "Oceaner Foder Liv" offer up additional epic styled prog, Lundin's vocals soaring over a wealth of luscious keyboards, tricky rhythms, and biting guitar leads. This remaster also contains two bonus tracks, a couple short instrumental pieces recorded in February 1975 prior to the actual recording of the debut for Decca, and again display the talents of the band.
This Temput Fugit reissue contains a great booklet packed with photos, and essay on the band, and Swedish lyrics. It's a nice job on a '70s prog rock classic.
See more about this release on our recent YouTube show!
Track Listing
- Musiken Ar Ljuset 7:04
- Saker Har Två Sidor 4:34
- Ankaret 8:40
- Skogspromenad 3:40
- Allting Har En Början 3:12
- Se Var Morgon Gry 8:53
- Förlorad i Istanbul 2:24
- Oceaner Föder Liv 9:28
Från Det Ena Till Det Andra 2:49 (bonus)
- Karavan 2:54 (bonus)
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