As neat, clear-cut subgenres continue to go the way of the dodo, bands like Dödaren will thrive. Building on the unique sound of their 2011 EP Flyttar In, the Gothenburg group’s debut album blends classic rock, stoner and post-rock with groovy, grungy goodness and meatier metal moments to cook up an almost unclassifiable sonic soup.
Moody and even melancholic at times, then suddenly full of swagger, pumped up by primal rock thrust, it’s both human and animal. “Modern retro-based punk-stoner-hard rock” is the band’s own best attempt at a label, but the bottom line is that it’s not your usual old bollocks, it’ll keep you guessing and, above all, the riff rules.
The lyrics are interesting too. At first you think, “What the fuck is this guy on about? Are those even words?” Then you find out he’s singing in Swedish and it all makes sense. Except that it doesn’t, unless you speak Swedish too. So, to sum up, the lyrics might be interesting; we just don’t know at this stage.
