Hashish ’‘A Product Of’’ 2016 Swedish Psych,Electronic Minimal Synth

Hashish  ’‘A Product Of’’ 2016 Swedish Psych,Electronic Minimal Synth

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watch review by psychedelic baby

http://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2016/07/hashish-product-of-2016-review.html

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Swedish psych outfit Hashish, headed by Subliminal Sounds honcho Stefan Kéry, bring us their debut full-length A Product Of. If the clever combination of album title and band name doesn’t imply a kaleidoscopic experience, then fear-not; from start to finish the record provides, or perhaps provokes, a dream-funk out-of-body journey. 
Opener ‘Bliss’ begins with the calming pulsing of ocean waves, feeding slowly into modulating synths and doing so sounds like the beginning of some New Age meditative retreat. Indeed, this effect remains throughout but thankfully is explored through less ambient avenues. Repetition is one of the key trance-inducing effects employed by the band, as with the looping of funk-infused bassline and yodelling flutes that hark back to late-Sixties experimental jazz on ‘Fly Away’. This track continues the therapeutic energy of the opener, with a soft vocal lead assuring us to ‘Touch the sky, you’re beautiful’. 
Things aren’t angelic for long however, and take a dark and abstract turn as the muddy, Kraut synths of tracks like ‘The Light’, ‘Revel’ and ‘Outer Spaced’ come into play. 
But interestingly, whilst the up-beat drive of funk has been often been used as an energetic counterpart to the stupefying chaos of psychedelia, Hashish layer elements of lounge-jazz to weird effect. Indeed the biggest but welcomed surprise of the record is its closer ‘The Light pt. 2’, which is reminiscent of Bonobo with its jazzy snare rolls and soundtrack-esque emotive chord progressions. 
A Product Of treads the line between music and musak very finely, and perhaps borders too close to the latter at times, but this is of course done consciously given that the record seems to have a dissociative agenda….By JOHN BELL…~

The label says: “The long awaited debut album from Hashish This is top notch psychedelia that both challenges the genre and takes it to a whole new level. Inspired by the 60s and 70s psychedelic scene and by creating the perfect combination of retro baselines and kraut drums layered with an all over crisp electronic lounge sound, Hashish has managed to create a record that is both genre crossing, experimental and top modern. Hashish is the finest kind of occult Scandinavian psychfunk, a project that by some has been said to pick up what GOAT started. “A Product Of Hashish” could go hand in hand with Salvador Dalís dream sequence in Spellbound. It could be a sibling to Bulgakows The Master And Margarita or Stanley Kubricks 2001 Space Odyssey. The album is a dream inspired way of expressing and expanding the mind. Call it psychedelic, call it conceptual or arty. When everyone is throwing todays reality back in it’s face, or stripping off social problems and injustice in our society, Hashish is a dream to escape into. Hashish is the answer. 

”Hashish sound like the lovechild between a 70s soft porn soundtrack composer and a wide-eyed teen experiencing hallucinogens for the first time” ”Get ready to feel like dropping some acid and going bowling” – Noisey/Vice/UK
”. Welcome to tomorrow. The sounds transport you into a forgotten world where the future looked different from what it became. On his soft subtle island capped with clouds of cool fire, Pan weaves his teachings with the wind and the sun. Raining sacred melodies on the hearts and minds of man, driving him with desperate loves and yearnings by songs of Sainthood and madness. Transient temples of the flesh, laughing at death, clothes our lives in fire. On rippling altars of skin we sensual magicians worship bright burning desire…..Subliminal Sounds …..~

After last years 7" the Swedish Prog-Rock-Band HASHISH are finally releasing their debutalbum now. “A Product Of” is a thrilling trip into the depth of the 60/70s. It comes on CD (COLLINE NOIRE) and LP (WOAH DAD!). Psychedelia and Progressice, mixed with a fairly touch of Afrofunk and a lot of Groove. This ingrediants form the base for this awesome release from sweden. Supported by full synthsizer soundscapes and vocoder effects the band manages to create a sureal appearing album with a great retro-charm. HASHISH mastermind Stefan Kery, who is known as the labelowner of the swedish psych label SUBLIMINAL SOUNDS, held his hands firmly over this project. Altogehter (lyrics, sounds, videos) an experimental, krautrock-like, occult album emerged. This one is definetely “outer space”. HASHISH easily combined all this so genuine that they can hardly be distinguished from the originals 40 years ago…..~

The long awaited debut album from Hashish. Top class psychedelia that definitely takes the genre to a new level with a sophisticated approach to an afro-funk groove accompanied by dreamy and playful melodies that goes by a spectrum from Scandinavian Occult Psychedelia to Minimal Synth and Surreal Electronic Soul Disco with rare groove. Hashish is a project that has been described by some to pick up what Goat started, this is not the time to sleep kiddies! Welcome to tomorrow. The sounds transport you into a forgotten world where the future looked different from what it became. On his soft subtle island capped with clouds of cool fire, Pan weaves his teachings with the wind and the sun. Raining sacred melodies on the hearts and minds of man, driving him with desperate loves and yearnings by songs of Sainthood and madness. Transient temples of the flesh, laughing at death, clothes our lives in fire. On rippling altars of skin we sensual magicians worship bright burning desire….~

Credits 

Stefan Kery - guitar, vocals, vocoder, keyboard 
Moussa Fadera - Drums, Percussion 
Lisa Maria Isaksson - Lead Vocals, Harp 
Erik Lundin - Flute 
Anna Emilia Nilsson - Vocals 
Fredrik Swahn - Bass, Keyboards 
Mattias Uneback - Vibraphone 
Jason Urick - Voice

Tracklist 
A1 Bliss
A2 Fly Away
A3 The Light
B1 Revel
B2 Outer Spaced
B3 Make It
B4 Miracles
B5 The Light Pt. II 

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Motvind "Känn Dej Blåst!“ 1976 Swedish Prog Hard Rock

Motvind  "Känn Dej Blåst!“ 1976 Swedish Prog Hard Rock

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There’s been much debate over the years as to what is progg and what is not. With the renewed interest in progressive music in the 90’s and the emergence of neo-prog acts like Änglagård, Anekdoten and Landberk, the politically inclined music and the out-and-out rock bands of the 70’s were pushed even further back in the public’s mind than before, even though they originally were as much part of the progg movement as, say Kaipa, Fläsket Brinner and Trettioåriga Kriget (all of which reformed in the 90’s and 00’s). Truth is, progg is a nebulous term for a nebulous movement, and saying that the Bob Dylan and The Band inspired Hoola Bandoola Band or the straightforward rock sound of Nationalteatern weren’t progg is just revisionist nonsense. Progg refers to the politically progressive every bit as much as the musically progressive. Of course, one can choose not to listen to the political bands but the Swedish progg music must be perceived as the broad palette of expressions it was, otherwise we end up in the wrong spot historically. 

That said, there was a heated debate going on already in the 70’s, especially towards the tail end of the decade as the more politically oriented groupings of the progg movement re-positioned and moved closer to the fore. There were bizarre discussions if it was OK to even play music inspired by American rock'n'roll which by some was considered counterproductive to the socialist struggle against imperialism. A book of essays and articles was published by Oktoberförlaget in 1977, ”Folket har aldrig segrat till fiendens musik” – ”the people has never conquered to the sound of the enemy’s music”, and that title perfectly reflects the general zeitgeist. 

Some bands had pejoratives like ”stone crusher rock” thrown at them, among them Gothenburg’s Motvind. Musically speaking, they were anti-progressive, much like several other Gothenburg progg bands. Then again, Motvind weren’t overt propagandists and didn’t like the progg movement at all, calling it ”a fog-minded sect with too many theories and tea drinking on the agenda”. Nevertheless, they and Nationalteatern possibly had the greatest appeal to the sometimes less fortunate youth, addressing concerns and problems of the everyday life growing up in the suburbs, acknowledging their existence in a way few others did. Motvind gained a reputation as a reliable live act, often performing in youth centres in the Gothenburg area.
Hearing debut album ”Känn dej blåst!”, it’s easy to understand why Motvind struck a chord with the under-acknowledged, marginalized youth of the day. It’s outspoken and down-to-earth lyrics set to hard edged rock for a hard edged life, well enough exemplified by the Rolling Stones infused ”Skolanlåtan”, the guitar driven ”Öppna gårdar” (very similar to fellow Gothenburg band Nynningen’s ”För full hals”) and the updated Chuck Berry rock'n'roll of ”Solidaritetslåten”. The gusto of ”Känn dej blåst!” is what makes it Motvind’s best album, but what made it great to people of a certain age in a certain time is what makes it hard to sit through today. Motvind’s brand of socially aware and simplistic rock simply hasn’t aged very well…..swedish prog blog…..~

Bio
Juris Salmins and Göran Ekstrand met in 1974 at Vårväderstorget. Göran, who was then politically involved, sold political journals. The grumpy and minor Juris cheated on Göran that he would buy a bottle of Bell’s whiskey from the system. Surely he could, but only if Juris hung on to a left-wing team to watch the World Cup and discuss politics. Now it was probably not so much football or politics but most festive and guitar-playing. The friendship lasted and after a few weeks, then it also moved home and some junk Juris into the collective. Göran was then a member of a band called Stalin organ. There also Janne Johansson was a member. Juris heard them but was moderately impressed. Juris had played in various contexts, including Clas Yngström and in a band called Vrålkapellet. Juris and Göran began to write texts and music together. The result was that Motwind was formed and that the prowess movement, possibly, to many despair, had a band with a genuine working class background and with members who might not be the most well-educated…..~

Credits 
Backing Vocals – Pekka Lunde, Sam Westerberg 
Bass – Krister Jacobsson 
Drums – Leif Mårtensson, Mikael Gyllenstig 
Guitar – Janne Brynstedt 
Guitar, Vocals – Juris Salmins 
Keyboards, Backing Vocals – Olle Nyberg 
Organ, Synthesizer – Staffan Dahl 
Vocals – Göran Ekstrand 

Tracklist 
A1 Skolanlåten 3:27 
A2 Öppna Gårdar 6:31 
A3 Anna 5:57 
A4 Solidaritetsrock 3:54 
B1 Känn Dej Lurad 3:20 
B2 Dra Åt Helvete 6:27 
B3 Kalle 5:58 
B4 Fem Fina 3:43 

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