Anekdoten - Chapters
If you like prog rock then you are going to be in heaven with this mammoth double album from Swedish four piece Anekdoten. 'Chapters' is a collection of songs from this hidden gem of the bands previous five albums, with a few rarities and unreleased tracks thrown in for good measure. Whilst the band admit they have not been the most prolific in the world by only having five albums since they were formed in 1991 but on this collection it shows they are all about quality not quantity.
Right from the very first track of the first CD, 'Ricochet', you could tell that this was going to be a wonderful journey into the bands past and half way through the first CD I was in love. The music collectively spoke out and touches as all good prog rock should and Niklas Barker’s vocals fit in perfectly with both harmonic style as in 'The War Is Over' and rockier style in 'Monolith' showed.
All four members of the band are talented in what they play and with so many different instruments used on this collection, no more so than Anna Sofi Dahlberg who plays the classic Mellotron amongst other keyboard instruments and then swaps them all for a cello on both 'Wheel' and 'Nucleus'. While some bands may have recently made cello’s a cool thing to have in a band, Anekdoten had there’s over a decade ago. Drummer Peter Nordins has plenty of percussion instruments to keep him happy too. Opeth’s Per Wiberg is also seen lending a helping hand on quite a few of the tracks with his piano playing skills.
The two CD’s contain over two hours worth of songs of epic proportions. With only two of these being under the five minute mark, you get an idea of what is in store. The longest song, 'Sad Rain', at just over ten minutes is a slow building which majestically bursts into life half way through. All the songs are done with different variations to keep it fresh throughout, which for an album this size is astounding.
It is fair to say that to many people prog rock is pretty much hated but for those that appreciate this style, there is hardly going to be a better album this year, maybe decade.