Following up on my ExCubus review, here's another that found its way into a drawer marked "to sell". Hmmm... how about one more listen? And like ExCubus, I had another +2 moment (mind you I'm weeding out albums in my collection at a fairly healthy clip (and not reported here on UMR), so it's not the best environment to be successful - I just have too many CDs of the same type). I've said this before, but it seems every hard rock band from Sweden is trying to be the next November, a relatively obscure early 70s outfit that defines the movement for many musicians back at home. The problem here is that most bands from Sweden cannot eliminate modern influences - if even they are trying to. So what most of the hard rock bands from Sweden I've heard sound like are November meets... Stoner. Yeeuckk. I just cannot absorb that style no matter how hard I try. There's a pattern, and what seems like unbendable rules, to stoner music. The part that sounds like November is the lyrics are in Swedish - and that's about it.
For whatever reason, I think I was predetermined to put Svarte Pan in that bucket. But that's not right. These guys really do make a sincere attempt at a 70s Swedish hard rock sound. Language plays a key role, as does the analog production. It's a bit heavier and meatier than November, but that's not a problem at all. Certainly it's not metal though. Albums like this are going to only draw a certain kind of fan, and it's understandable why it rates lower (and probably sold less) than other bands who did embrace more modern sounds and techniques. Naturally I have to be the oddball. Story of my life.
Ownership: CD: 2004 Ant Nest. Not sure why they reissued this title as it never was really out of print or hard to find. Ah, I just remembered I'm the one who added it to Discogs. In any case, I picked this up in a bulk buy about 5 years ago, and it just now found its way into the collection.
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