RALPH LUNDSTEN
from EMS to Andromeda
the early works of Ralphus Rex

by Alan Freeman.

Ralph Lundsten is one of those enigmatic characters in new-music, in that he's pushed-on with his unique avenue in music regardless of style, fashion, or even a logical progression in his own career. He's an explorer, an eccentric, an individual unique talent. The thing is, though, that when someone follows their own vision, that vision will change throughout their life based, not only on the advancements in technology, but also on their state of mind, emotional and social development. Thus, as with the music of Tangerine Dream, what Edgar Froese & Co. played in their early days is nothing like what they do now. This is also the case with Ralph, and (similarly) what we're interested in at Audion is the early works of Ralph Lundsten, the avant-gardist...
Ralph Lundsten was born 1936 in Ersnäs, Sweden. At a young age he started exploring the avant-garde, and was obviously fascinated with the new technology installed at the Stockholm Electronic Music Studios (aka EMS). He started electronic sound exploration in 1959, and found an aid in Leo Nilsson, with whom he collaborated for a number of years. These formative experiments involved use of oscillators, early studio-based synthesizers, along with extensive use of tape-collage and echo/delay techniques. Also, (quoting original LP cover notes) Ralph "became famous as a visually creative artist through his prize-winning motion pictures, his noted exhibitions at home and abroad, and his exciting experiments with electronic pictures and sound sculptures" - yes, Ralph proved to be a man of many talents!
It didn't take long for Ralph to discover unique techniques instantly recognisable as his, these involved clusters and patterns of notes/tones, seemingly sequenced or looped, all in a very odd, quirky style. Based on early studio photos all this was done with tape trickery using a hybrid of musique-concrete and Terry Riley type "feed-back" or "Frippertronic" techniques. Nowadays a similar effect can be achieved using a digital pitch-shift delay in tandem with other echo and delay devices, but to create the complexities of what Ralph Lundsten did in the 1960's is still not easy. And, to do it with his unique panache is nigh-on impossible! Back then digital effects didn't exist, and even solid-state echo devices were rare. So, the mind boggles as to how he did it. A clue is probably given on an LP cover, where he is holding two Stylophone type pens over (and connected to) some sort of metal transducing plate. I can imagine that many of the early works took weeks and weeks of intensive studio work, experimenting with and modelling waveforms, cutting and splicing tape, setting-up tape decks with extra record and play-back heads, passing the sounds back and forth through all sorts of filters reverb, and obscure processing devices, etc., etc. Actually, it seems he was spending too much time in the EMS (Stockholm was a prolific centre for new avant-garde talent), so Ralph set up the first independent electronic music studio in Sweden. He built his Andromeda Studio at his home (a fanciful painted wooden house) in Saltsjö-Boo near the coast, east of Stockholm. There he could spend as much time as he liked experimenting and recording, developing the unique Lundsten sound.

The majority of Ralph's early recordings (1964-73, plus a few later works) are now documented in the 4CD set ELEKTRONISK MUSIK. In this set we have what would amount to around seven vinyl LP's worth of material, and thus it's a great value introduction.
Each disc has a focus...
ELEKTRONISK MUSIK (ACD 27) 76'30
This explores most of the purely electronic creations (some with Leo Nilsson) from the period 1968-70. These are works with buzzing tones, rasping modulations, and stark non-melodic textures. The opening Through A Landscape Of Mirrors is one of Ralph's coldest, brutal works. It slices through the stereo fabric, and plays a surreal dance in the air. Sonically comparable to the early works of Morton Subotnick, this 1970 work is purely Ralph Lundsten in the bizarre use of tone and sound patterns. The TELLUS/FÅGEL BLÅ LP is documented next. In these works Leo's more conventional use of electronic sound counterpoints the underlying cheekiness of Ralph's "springy" looping effects. Whenever I listen to this, I'm reminded of Louis & Bebe Baron's "Forbidden Planet" soundtrack, but it has the form of progression closer to Conrad Schnitzler's ROT. For 1968-69 this is pretty remarkable and innovative stuff, bleak but vivid in sonic textures. Also aptly cold is the 4 part Vintermusik a mini-prelude to Ralph's later "Nature Symphonies", followed by the 1968 Lundsten & Nilsson single Feel/It which is pretty close to some Pierre Henry (from the same period), and Mizar a solo Lundsten work involving strange oscillator tones and sonic intermodulations.
ELEKTRONISK MUSIK (ACD 28) 77'37
Apart from the opening EMS Nr 1 this disc is made up of shorter works and suites. I'd long wanted to hear the "innovative" EMS Nr 1 from 1966, and I wasn't disappointed. It has to be the most extreme and intense of his creations. Five other collaborations with Leo follow this, and all are strange spooky stuff, ideal music for weird psychedelic or Science Fiction movies. The earliest work in the set Atomic Twilight (1964) is very "Forbidden Planet" with its gliding tonalities (at the opening) building into a cyclical montage of instrumental sounds and voices. In later times Ralph got involved in scoring ballets for various people, and purely for fun he did the little suite På Vigliga Tår "On Tottering Toes" the first piece in the set to really show the underlying humour in Ralph's music. Finally, the "Suite For Electronic Accordion" takes us closer to Pierre Henry's darker works of the era, but due to the unlikely instrumentation it remains bizarre and unique.
ELEKTRONISK BALLETTMUSIK (ACD 29) 77'41
So, onto Ralph's ballet scores, the commissioned works that further stylised Ralph's musical development. These are the material that correlate more with those of Igor Wakhevitch (see Audion #40) notably as some are compositions for Carolyn Carlson, and she obviously knew exactly what sort of feel she wanted. This is a uniquely visionary style of Ralph's, in that he includes story elements of the works in the music, adding to the drama by sound association and mood. In "Erik XIV" Ralph's bizarre use of electronic looping is developed to great effect - a major development in the distinctive Lundsten sound - with the textural elements gaining in complexity. With "Gustav III" keyboards and other instruments feature much more extensively. I suppose this period can be seen as the transitional phase of Ralph the avant-garde experimentalist to Ralph the musician. It's still rather strange stuff, however! The lone track Ristingar "Rock Carvings" centres on cosmic flutes (and unfathomable instrumental textures), and counterpoints a strange rhythmic element, before it flutters off with serene voices. 1973's "Gunnar pa Linderände" works on elements of the previous ballet scores and also his other major work (not featured in this set) FADERVAR. It's a really creative and beautiful opus that can almost be experienced as a musical painting.
HORRORSCOPE (ACD 30) 76'17
This is also, largely, commissioned works, but with the focus on Ralph's "Horror Music". This disc starts with the rather out-of-place 1979 track Horrorscope, a groovy kind of synth-funk number dosed with horror sound effects (in the vein of the tongue-in-cheek DISCOPHRENIA). The major works here are surreal spooky suite "Midnattstimmen" full of creaking doors, ghoulish voices and all sorts of weird electronic textures, one of my favourites, and the great opus Nattmara which ends the set with crazed electronic abandon. The other pieces here are oddments from various vinyl releases, largely strange stuff, excepting the "Heaven By Night" trilogy which is more
sci-fi/fantasy, and the cosmic synth Waves Of Darkness from 1983.
In all, an excellent set, but with one major omission: the classic Cosmic Love, which doesn't seem to be documented on CD presently.
Above I mentioned FADERVAR, a classic of Ralph's from 1972. Various CD reissues have appeared to date, but the only ones I've been able to get are unfortunately co-billed with another work of inferior calibre. A strange one really, in that it's subject matter (FADERVAR means "Our Father" and relates to the "Lord's Prayer") is not really of any interest to me. But, like many Pierre Henry works (for instance) the concept can be taken as superficial. Judging it as just music, it's a cosmic opus of breathtaking originality, featuring ethereal flutes, otherworldly chanting echoed voices, organ, and lots of those uniquely Lundsten trade-marks, like sonic/textural transmutations, and brilliant use of echo/delay and cyclical patterns.
Ralph Lundsten's "Nature Symphonies" started as two album-long suites made in 1972 and 1975. Based on mythological fantasy and a relation between Ralph's music and the sounds of nature, these are very complex, feature guest musicians, and are more "musical" than much of what I've described before. It all amounts to a fascinating cross-pollination of genres. The CD release JOHANNES & HULDRAN/STRÖMKARLEN unfortunately omits a few tracks from these (3 are included in the ELEKTRONISK MUSIK set). Later "Nature Symphonies" would seem to be a cash-in on this "franchise" but bear little relation to the 70's pioneering works.
As polyphonic keyboards came in and Ralph's Andromeda studio became more advanced, he increasingly worked with other musicians, played synthesizers, and gradually moved away from the bizarre studio techniques that made his early work so special. He established a supersession group: Ralph Lundsten's Universe, who were (in a way) his "Cosmic Jokers", stars of Swedish rock, jazz and pop, doing something more outlandish. The album RALPH LUNDSTEN'S UNIVERSE is still not bad, in it's mixture of electronic music, progressive rock and fusions, and (occasional) craziness. It's follow-up DISCOPHRENIA was much better than the title suggested, but proved (from my viewpoint, that is) that the classic era of Ralph Lundsten was over. The third "Universe" project ALPHA RALPHA BOULEVARD marked the end of the 70's, and a new phase.
Ralph has since become the purveyor of lush and atmospheric new-age musics, and has increasingly created a whole new genre of his own again, a kind of offbeat easy listening music, often very sweet and soundtrack-like. Apparently he's quite famous in his homeland now for these later works, and apart from still being prolific and highly active in music, he tends to turn-out rehashed samplers by the bucket-load!



edited from AUDION #43. Autumn 2000

Hills - Swedish underground meets Krautrocky sounds

HILLS - HILLS
(Sulatron 1002) CD 52m

This is the CD reissue of the debut LP by one of Sweden's top up-and-coming space-rock acts, the uninspiringly named Hills. But, despite such a name, the music found here is anything but uninspired.
The opening track Death 1 is paradoxically lively, with breathy echoed flute over an early Ozric Tentacles type groove, it is sadly all over too soon. With Istikial Street we descend into wonderful echo guitar sludge territory as first explored by Pink Floyd (Dave Gilmour), close to some early Ash Ra Tempel or Günter Schickert in improv mode, growing almost mid-70's Popol Vuh like, yet not - this is quite an original concoction, with the flute and twisted guitar. Totally unexpected though You Talk The Talk! takes us back to early Kraftwerk and Neu! territory with the best Florian Schneider flute impersonation I've heard. Rainship finds the band clapping along with solo guitar whist being drenched with water, and again goes Neu! like, but with other elements at play, like it's the best Stereolab I've heard as interpreted by Electric Orange!?. The mood tones-down a little with Ex Oblivione which is kind of moody Hendrix with an air of Fleetwood Mac's Albatros. But they can't keep the Neu! groove away it seems, and again we trundle along with Schlaraffenland this time more in the Mushroom vein, or Kollektiv sans the jazzy edge, adding odd vocal expressions, dub echo effects and some slight phasing (a sonic art largely lost since the 1970's). And finally, we have a different Neu! type mood to end it all, Messias with drawn-out fuzzy echo guitars over a light metronomic rhythm. Really the guitar reminds me mostly of Chrome on their READ ONLY MEMORY, but few of you will know what I mean by that.
In all then - highly derivative - but very good with it, and with enough ideas of their own to make it worth having!

Hills

from Audion #57, page 28 (Autumn 2012)

A web p.s. Hills have issued at least to more classics since, before changing style when breaking the international market. Unfortunately this one is o/p at the moment.

More Swedish gems that I have stocked when I can get them

Hills - MASTER SLEEPS (Transubstans TRANS075) CD 36m

Last Audion I made a point of reviewing the debut by this top new Swedish band. So, no reason to not sneak this one in ahead of queue! The reason? It's great, of course, and quite a different beast to the debut. In the debut review I quoted: Ozric Tentacles, Pink Floyd, Ash Ra Tempel, adding many a Kraftwerk and Neu! reference. There's some of those influences here as well, but they've gone for less of the homage factor here.
The opening track Rise Again adds vocals and sounds very much like Sun Dial circa their classic OTHER WAY OUT, heavy groovy neo/retro defined in 7 minutes. Next it's
freak-out time with Bring Me Sand sounding like a mad hybrid of Black Sun Ensemble and Hazchem, or is that Tangle Edge meets Saddar Bazaar? Whatever, there's lots of ethnic flavour here, in a land where Turkish, Indian and Mexican cultures meet! Maybe they thought a whole album at that intensity would be too much, so with Claras Vaggvisa we get a reflective Bo Hansson like passage before the high-flying The Vessel and the Krautrocky Master Sleeps itself, in which they seem to distilled the essence of Can, Neu! and early Kraftwerk into hypnotic groove that's all and none. Finally Death Shall Come takes a time-trip back to the early days of Swedish psych-prog - well at least to me it does as I'm reminded of International Harvester for sure.
An extraordinarily good second album, with lots of new ideas, some that I hope they'll take further in the future. The only it could have been it better is if it was it longer.



Kama Loka - KAMA LOKA
(Kommun 2 K2-22) LP 33m
(Transubstans TRANS118) CD 33m

Some cultures are so distinctive, and very often it's that culture that makes something so special. Sweden is no exception. Bo Hansson's music, for instance, would not have had such a unique character. Of course back in the early 1970's such concoctions were new, and then came along a plethora of other bands doing their own adaptations of the Ganglats and Polkas of Swedish folklore. The last band I knew of in this genre was Grovjobb, an excellent but very obscure outfit that released three great albums, and there's the one-time 1970's masters Kebnekajse who came back recently with two more such albums bringing the old sound into the 21st Century.
Add to the list this new group Kama Loka. A short album, but quite a gem. It doesn't start so distinctly Swedish. Yet Skovsøen does feel a little Landberk like. Elements too many to mention get mixed into Øjesten a lilting ballad with many a quirk and charm to it. Trold I Bakke reminds me of the great Kvartetten Som Sprängde with shades of Kebnekajse and/or Flasket Brinner and a Pink Floyd touch at one point. Quite obviously a traditional adaptation Ganglåt Till Floalt takes us closer to the aforementioned Bo Hansson, and bolted on top of the rich organ is a majestic groove, wah-wah and sizzling lead guitar, and an amassing array of sonic fizz, returning to whence it came. Finally När Lingonen Mognar gets closer to the legendary Älgarnas Trädgård, adding chanting vocals - ah, who let International Harvester in?
Classic stuff indeed. And sometimes 33 minutes is enough!.

Two reviews from Audion #58 (from 2013)

web update: Hills have released more excellent material, and Kama Loka kind of transmuted into the also excellent Agusa

Swedish band whose first 4 albums I really love, and would stock if only they issued them on CD...

Flowers Must Die
FLOWERS MUST DIE
(Rev/Vega Rec RVR 017 / Kommun 2 K2:21) 2LP 77m

A new Swedish experimental prog outfit. Well, new-ish, doing some research I found out that they debuted in 2009, and this is their fifth album (actually the third proper album, the others are a demo and a live recording only ever sold at gigs). Confusingly though, like all 4 previous releases, this is untitled - so I can imagine this being referred to in the future as "the double album with a girl holding a skull on the cover" or No.5 or "Jamfota" after the album's opening track. Officially though, it's referred to as "Album No. 3".
To me "Flowers Must Die" would seem to be a reference to lyrics from the second Ash Ra Tempel album SCHWINGUNGEN, and there is a Krautrocky touch to these, but there's also lots of other things at play in their highly creative blend.
The opening track Jamfota ("Both Feet") feels a little bit like Norwegians Tangle Edge meets someone like Harvester, quite distinctly Scandinavian, whereas the second track is more out there early Hawkwind type fare. With the third track Spindlarnas Tråd (that's "The Spider Thread") the style of Flowers Must Die seems to focus more into something of their own. It's a hard thing to quantify, as in the next track Köket Brinner the riff strangely recalls an early Black Sabbath number, but as if it were performed by some Swedish 1970's outfit (there's a clue in the title!) - wigged out and floaty, with ethnic flavours galore.
Other Krautrock references are heard in further tracks, where they "wig out" even more, Amon Düül II, early Kraftwerk and Neu! especially, but all ravelled up with that Nordic mystique and a new daring do that makes it feel so alive and now! In that way I'm also reminded of another current Swedish act, namely Hills. I'm well impressed, but think it's a shame that only 500 people worldwide with the cash to spare for an expensive double LP will be able to get it. I'm hoping there'll be a CD reissue sometime.
After getting this I managed to track down copies of their earlier studio albums, which both also turned out to be excellent. These revealed their more heavy rock roots (hinting at what some related bands that I've been unable to find may sound like), still really freaky out-there and well trippy albums, if less obviously Krautrocky. More Hawkwind rooted I guess, starting as heavy improv trippy stoner jamming, becoming more cosmic on the second. All excellent stuff, and well worth seeking out.  [Audion #58 review]