Anekdoten - A Time Of Day

Year of Release: 2007
Label: Virta
Catalog Number: Virta 005
Format: CD
Total Time: 45:02:00

After three years of songwriting and four months of recording Anekdoten's fifth studio effort is finally with us. With their previous album Gravity the band had left its well loved distorted Red-era King Crimson adoration in exchange for a more accessible approach. For sure it would be na?ve to think that the main idea behind this move should be to obtain more radio airplay, as I'm convinced very few of Anekdoten's music has so far found its way on the airwaves except of course for the few scattered prog stations around the globe. Contrary to a lot of bands, the line-up of Anekdoten is still the same as in their humble beginnings, which also shines through their sound. This is a bunch of friends thinking along the same lines in order to strive towards the same goal: creating true progressive rock in the literal sense of the word!

Anna Sofi's cello is back for a little while whilst the mighty mellotron remains the backbone that has proven to be so strong for the last sixteen years! Jan Erik's voice still sounds uncertain in places, which might just be that extra gimmick the band uses in its favour. The powerful opener "The Great Unknown" lets great washes of mellotron gush out of your speakers. "30 Pieces" is a little more modest with a slightly psychedelic organ blending in nicely with the heavy bass and distorted guitar. Meanwhile flute and mellotron battle it out towards the end. More laidback and based around a simple structure is "King Oblivion," a song that follows the mood of the previous Gravity album.

"A Sky About To Rain" has an acoustic feel over it until the mighty mellotron is back in business, which together with the guitar and synth results in a rather hypnotic song. In turn this song evolves into "Every Step I Take," which is a repetitive pattern that swells towards the end. I'm sure that live the power of this track will literally bring the house down! Caught between Pink Floyd and Anthony Philips, "Stardust And Sand" is your ideal companion when you feel the urge to have a deep dream. Harking back to the early days of the band "In For A Ride" holds all of those typical King Crimson characteristics, maybe even coupled with a slight hint of National Health. If this doesn't get you hooked I'm afraid nothing will! The album closes with "Prince Of The Ocean," including some nice cello moments resulting in a soothing end of yet another superb Anekdoten release.

With A Time Of Day it's as if the band has taken the best ideas from their entire output and has built new songs around those ideas. You get the best of both worlds, as some tracks still contain that early magic whereas some of the shorter tracks aim more towards more accessible compositions. Full marks also for the lovely digipack and the use of recycled paper for the booklet. Especially for those who don't have anything by the band in their collection so far (shame on you), A Time Of Day might well be your best pick to start as you can listen to it, well, any "time of day" really ?

Tracklisting:
The Great Unknown (6:22) / 30 Pieces (7:14) / King Oblivion (5:02) / A Sky About To Rain (6:29) / Every Step I Take (3:06) / Stardust And Sand (4:30) / In For A Ride (6:47) / Prince Of The Ocean (5:30)

Musicians:
Anna Sofi Dahlberg - mellotron, organ, moog, Rhodes, cello, piano, voice
Nicklas Berg - voice, guitar, mellotron, moog, vibes
Jan Erik Liljestr?m - bass, voice
Peter Nordins - drums, cymbals, percussion, vibes

Discography:
Vemod (1991)
Nucleus (1995)
Official Bootleg: Live In Japan (1998)
From Within (1999)
Gravity (2003)
A Time Of Day (2007)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin SE

Added: October 14th 2007
Reviewer: John "Bobo" Bollenberg

Artist website: www.anekdoten.se
Hits: 3200
Language: english