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Thread: Anekdoten - Kscope reissues

  1. #51
    I Agree that none of Them should be considered good vocalists. They surely aren’t by objective definitions. However I disagree with you that Barkers vocals are worse than Liljestroms vocals. I have a really hard time accepting the timbre of Liljestrom. His vibrato or at least his way to try to make a vibrating effect is one of the most annoying things I’ve heard in rock music. And pronounciationwise I think he’s worse than Barker. He sounds so Swedish it aches in my heart and ears. I love the song writing though and the general sound.

  2. #52
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    Quote Originally Posted by pepetriano View Post
    I Agree that none of Them should be considered good vocalists. They surely aren’t by objective definitions. However I disagree with you that Barkers vocals are worse than Liljestroms vocals. I have a really hard time accepting the timbre of Liljestrom. His vibrato or at least his way to try to make a vibrating effect is one of the most annoying things I’ve heard in rock music. And pronounciationwise I think he’s worse than Barker. He sounds so Swedish it aches in my heart and ears. I love the song writing though and the general sound.
    That sound like you shouldn't listen to them at all then? Just my take on your comment

  3. #53
    Man, this has been an interesting thread to read through. The only Anekdoten I own is that 2-disc retrospective that came out back in 2009, with the picture of the guy in a spooky bear mask in the woods (perfect choice for a cover, imo). Now I want to go back and listen to it again.

    It's not that I don't like Anekdoten -- I've just never listened to any of their actual albums. Now I kinda want to, after reading the discussion here.
    Last edited by aith01; 07-20-2020 at 05:01 AM.

  4. #54
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    Quote Originally Posted by aith01 View Post
    Man, this has been an interesting thread to read through. The only Anekdoten I own is that 2-disc retrospective that came out back in 2011, with the picture of the guy in a spooky bear mask in the woods (perfect choice for a cover, imo). Now I want to go back and listen to it again.

    .
    That Kscope compilation - Chapters - was my introduction to the band, and it's a good way to reacquaint yourself with them before going for individual albums.

    There's a good spread of tracks from all of their albums (except the last one, which came out after), and the liner notes are helpful.

  5. #55
    Quote Originally Posted by Valen View Post
    That Kscope compilation - Chapters - was my introduction to the band, and it's a good way to reacquaint yourself with them before going for individual albums.

    There's a good spread of tracks from all of their albums (except the last one, which came out after), and the liner notes are helpful.
    Thanks for the tip! After writing that post earlier, I went and found my copy on the shelf and I'm currently ripping it to my PC to listen again.

  6. #56
    That's Mr. to you, Sir!! Trane's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Valen View Post
    That Kscope compilation - Chapters - was my introduction to the band, and it's a good way to reacquaint yourself with them before going for individual albums.

    There's a good spread of tracks from all of their albums (except the last one, which came out after), and the liner notes are helpful.
    MMMhh!!!... How many tracks are non-album tracks on that compilation?
    I resisted that compilation because I don't need or want alternate takes of the disc2 and the first disc seemed to be way too insistant on Gravity and Time

    Cos indeed, the band has laid a few bonus tracks, live-only tracks or non-album tracks throughout their career, that they could actually release a full compilation album.

    A Way Of Life (Live Ep)
    Sad Rain (Vemod bonus)
    Luna Surface (Nucleus bonus)I just understood from this thread that there are two more bonus on Nucleus' most recent release?
    Tabatah (Live Japan 99)
    Road To Nowhere (as above)
    Moon Of Mars (Japan 05)
    This too Will Pass (as above)



    .... And I'm sure they've got tapes of their live covers of Crimson (notably Easy Money)
    Last edited by Trane; 07-20-2020 at 06:38 AM.
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  7. #57
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    I once had some of their demos somewhere... There were a few Crim songs they did IIRC. And ofcourse they did them live. According to one of the Japanese liner notes, they did quite a few live back then.
    A glimpse of Crim (sound is not the best)
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  8. #58
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    Anyone here have the extra disc that came with the Japanese A Time of Day release?
    I only have the one discer.
    HuGo
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  9. #59
    Member since March 2004 mozo-pg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Crystal Plumage View Post
    I once had some of their demos somewhere... There were a few Crim songs they did IIRC. And ofcourse they did them live. According to one of the Japanese liner notes, they did quite a few live back then.
    A glimpse of Crim (sound is not the best)
    Thanks for posting. That's a treat. I would have loved to have seen that live.
    What can this strange device be? When I touch it, it brings forth a sound (2112)

  10. #60
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    Kscope reissued Nucleus last week, and it's been nicely remastered.

    Slightly lower in volume, and sounding a bit more open, but losing nothing of the original sound.

    It's missing the original bonus track Luna Surface, but replaces it with demo versions of the title track, Book of Hours and This Far From The Sky. Those demos are already on the Kscope compilation Chapters.

  11. #61
    Profondo Giallo Crystal Plumage's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Valen View Post
    Kscope reissued Nucleus last week, and it's been nicely remastered.

    Slightly lower in volume, and sounding a bit more open, but losing nothing of the original sound.

    It's missing the original bonus track Luna Surface, but replaces it with demo versions of the title track, Book of Hours and This Far From The Sky. Those demos are already on the Kscope compilation Chapters.
    Already have two copies of this one. Also have the Chapters comp., so I dont think I'll need this one.
    I read that A Time of Day has some significant extras, apart from some Chapters stuff, though:
    This CD re-issue contains 5 bonus tracks of demos recorded more-or-less live in the spring of 2006 at Anekdoten's studio Sisu Sound. 'In For A Ride', 'King Oblivion' and 'Stardust and Sand' were lost for many years but found on a hard drive by Nicklas while cleaning out a closet in 2019, then he restored and mixed them in November 2019. The demos for 'Prince Of The Ocean' and '30 Pieces' were previously released on the Kscope compilation 'Chapters'. Nicklas believes some of the demos outclass the studio versions.
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Day-CD.../dp/B08BDXM3H9
    HuGo
    "Very, very nice," said a man in the crowd,
    When the golden voice appeared.
    She was gold alright, but then so is rust.
    "Such a shame about the beard."

  12. #62
    Quote Originally Posted by Valen View Post
    Anekdoten were a highly regarded band in the Scandinavian prog scene in the late nineties, and they released a handful of excellent albums before adopting a lower profile over the last few years.

    But the Kscope label has started reissuing these albums, on cd and vinyl, with newly remastered sound.

    Here’s my take on the first of these reissues, From Within.

    https://momentstransition.wordpress....m-within-1999/
    Nice piece, John...and encouraging me to go back and revisit those albums (though I doubt I'll buy the reissues, I have all of them).

    One question, however. In one paragraph you write:

    The later material, on the other hand, saw the band moving slowly away from that musique-concrete approach, and focussing more on melodic song arrangements, but without compromising the dark ambience and experimental vibe characteristic of Scandinavian prog.
    I am just wondering what about the band's work is "musique-concrete"? Musique Concrète is, as I suspect you know, a specific musical approach where recorded/found sounds are modified using, amongst others things, tape manipulation and audio effects. Classical composers like Varèse, Xenakis, Henry, Stockhausen (Karlheinz, that is) and Henry all employed Musique Concrète as part of their compositional processes.

    Admittedly I've not listened to Ankedoten in sometime (but, thanks to you, I'll be rectifying that..with gratitude!), but I honestly don't recall anything resembling Musique Concrète in their work, nor have I read anything about their using it, beyond what you wrote.

    Like I said, it's been some time and my memory may be failing me (very possible!!), but could you clarify this for me please? If they are using Musique Concrète techniques, could you point me to a good example, so I can check it out?

    Many thanks and, either way, thanks for a very strong article about a band that never got the attention it deserved, at least IMHO, making these Kscope reissues and your article very good things, indeed!
    Last edited by jkelman; 07-29-2020 at 07:10 PM.
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  13. #63
    To be quite honest, I find the band's (early) penchant for playing KC-covers (of the band they were trying to emulate in the first place) one of their least enticing faccets.
    "Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
    "[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM

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    Quote Originally Posted by jkelman View Post

    I am just wondering what about the band's work is "musique-concrete"? Musique Concrète is, as I suspect you know, a specific musical approach where recorded/found sounds are modified using, amongst others things, tape manipulation and audio effects. Classical composers like Varèse, Xenakis, Henry, Stockhausen (Karlheinz, that is) and Henry all employed Musique Concrète as part of their compositional processes.
    It was simply the turn of phrase that popped into my head at the time of writing - the music can be dense, repetitive and uncompromising. It might not be an accurate description, but some you win....

  15. #65
    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    I'm sure some of you have seen that Anekdoten is touring in, I think, Sweden. Great for them and those audiences that they're doing so, but frustrating knowing that there's very little chance they'll be coming to the US. Unless Michael Bennett really pulls a rabbit out of his hat!

  16. #66
    Member since March 2004 mozo-pg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by JKL2000 View Post
    I'm sure some of you have seen that Anekdoten is touring in, I think, Sweden. Great for them and those audiences that they're doing so, but frustrating knowing that there's very little chance they'll be coming to the US. Unless Michael Bennett really pulls a rabbit out of his hat!
    I've had tickets for 3 years to see Anekdoten headline Terra Incognita for two nights in Quebec City, including a night playing Vemod and Nucleau in full.
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  17. #67
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    Quote Originally Posted by mozo-pg View Post
    I've had tickets for 3 years to see Anekdoten headline Terra Incognita for two nights in Quebec City, including a night playing Vemod and Nucleau in full.
    Maybe when they’re finally able to do it they’ll be able to add more NA dates…

  18. #68
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    I think I have seen Anekdoten live 4-5 times. Most recent time was about 5 years ago. They were brilliant. Hopefully they do another record. Last one was pretty good.
    My progressive music site: https://pienemmatpurot.com/ Reviews in English: https://pienemmatpurot.com/in-english/

  19. #69
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    Saw them for their Nucleus tour in Brussels, for From Within in Huy, for Gravity in Verviers (saw them another time then, but can't remember exactly when) and saw them Time of Day in Leuven (the same place where I'm seeing Needlepoint this Thursday).

    Every time with diminishing return until Leuven, which was better than the previous Verviers gigs.

    Did they tour Europe for Ghosts??
    my music collection increased tenfolds when I switched from drug-addicts to complete nutcases.

  20. #70
    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    The only time I've seen them was in the mid-90s, when they only had Vemod, so they're very overdue for another visit to the US.

  21. #71
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    Quote Originally Posted by mozo-pg View Post
    and Nucleau in full.
    The French spelling!


  22. #72
    Member since March 2004 mozo-pg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by moecurlythanu View Post
    The French spelling!

    Merci!
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    Love these guys. I'm not usually that big on neo-prog and have struggled to connect with other Swedish things like Anglagard, but I've always got time for Anekdoten. I'm a little bit late to the party with the album-ranking here but the top 3:
    1) From Within
    2) Nucleus
    3) Until all the Ghosts are Gone
    Below that the albums all run together a bit for me, even though I have them all and like them when I listen to them. From Within and Nucleus have a bit of punch and rawness that got sanded down starting with Gravity -- not hugely so but enough that those albums register differently to me. (Vemod too obviously but I'm less fond of the songs there). It might be that some of the difference comes from "bad" mastering and the new editions sound more like Gravity onward, and I'll probably just hang onto my old copies.

    Ghosts has that same slightly-more-polished quality but it's so good that I don't mind, and in fact was good enough to get me to go back and pick up Gravity and Time of Day, which I'd ignored until then.

    The Church are an all-time favorite of mine and I'd been hoping, when Marty Willson-Piper joined, that he might get involved in the songwriting, and maybe even take some of the vocals (his involvement was why I picked up Ghosts, in fact). I thought that could mutate their sound in a potentially groundbreaking way. Seems like he's more of a live fill-in player though.

  24. #74
    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by EBES View Post
    The Church are an all-time favorite of mine and I'd been hoping, when Marty Willson-Piper joined, that he might get involved in the songwriting, and maybe even take some of the vocals (his involvement was why I picked up Ghosts, in fact). I thought that could mutate their sound in a potentially groundbreaking way. Seems like he's more of a live fill-in player though.
    ? I don't remember hearing about him joining them!

    BTW, I'd call bands like Anekdoten and Anglagard retro-prog, not neo-prog, if we're going to label them. I'm not crazy about the term retro-prog, but neo-prog just makes me think of bands like Pendragon and early Marillion.

    Finally, I always thought the change in sound began with From Within, and I have a hard time with the albums from From Within forward. But based on what you said, I need to give From Within a fresh listen to see if, hopefully, I'm wrong!

  25. #75
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    Quote Originally Posted by JKL2000 View Post
    ? I don't remember hearing about him joining them!

    BTW, I'd call bands like Anekdoten and Anglagard retro-prog, not neo-prog, if we're going to label them. I'm not crazy about the term retro-prog, but neo-prog just makes me think of bands like Pendragon and early Marillion.

    Finally, I always thought the change in sound began with From Within, and I have a hard time with the albums from From Within forward. But based on what you said, I need to give From Within a fresh listen to see if, hopefully, I'm wrong!
    From Within has been my favourite Anekdoten album since it was released. Few subsequent album where little disappointing however. Until All the Ghosts Are Gone was quite nice return to form
    My progressive music site: https://pienemmatpurot.com/ Reviews in English: https://pienemmatpurot.com/in-english/

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