The fertile but not right by any means mind of J Gabrielson (Lifelover, Vanhelga) strikes again with a new musical project. Here he provides vocals and lyrics whilst partner in insanity C.J. does everything instrumentally. The debut E.P. does have plenty of recognisable nuances in it reminiscent of the aforementioned bands but then again is also something quite new. It seems highly personal and is described as being an attempt to make something quite unique exploring the world the duo exist in with “music, words and misery”. The big stumbling block is that I and anyone not speaking Swedish will struggle to understand what exactly the words are relating to but there is a wealth of poeticism in their delivery which partly does help bridge that gap I guess. You can also slightly cheat throwing the album and song titles into a translation engine and discover more so welcome to the (un) reality of Eskapi!
Forget looking for any “metal” within this it’s a genre transcending palette of moods and emotions that go beyond convention. Having said that as I pressed play the first time and heard ‘Invant Vansinne’ the objected madness I was hearing reminded a bit of some sort of French urban hip-hop. Sure it’s conveyed in Swedish obviously but that is the effect I got from it stylistically and it is one that has stuck throughout. Vocals babble away over a minimal sounding beat and the sort of quirky guitar melody that I would expect from the likes of Lifelover. It is happy sounding but also depressive too and it is as though it has come from a bi-polar world where emotions are up and down all over the place. Naturally one suspects it has negativity and suicidal expressions at its heart and it gets a lot darker on the second number Vargar & Får (Wolves And Sheep) with the vocals much more desperate and gurgling out incessantly. There are those spoken parts and samples within it all that seem to speak to you from within albums moulded in the DSBM vein but musically again it has both moody synth lines and a beat that would not be out of place within a (non-commercial) hip-hop, rap world, sending shivers down the spine as a wretched angst ridden scream is summoned out the fractured void. Again things are turned around and next its happy time with ‘Narkotiska Känslor’ and with the narcotic feelings conveyed it’s like the drugs have definitely kicked in and we are up on a manic high. Vocals talk and babble away incessantly sounding like they are full of ideas and wonder, being spoken by someone who is not going to let anything stop them but as anyone afflicted in this way is well aware the crash can only come too soon and despite the glistening keyboard sparkling away with joyous melody, when it comes it’s going to come hard. Region Skåne meanders in a caught in a void sort of limbo, voice momentarily silenced till it emotionally comes in crying from within what my mind part interprets as within the confines of a straightjacket. Considering the title apparently refers to the psychiatry division of southern Sweden’s health care, this may not be that wide of the mark.
There is definitely the feeling of being an inmate of such a place and being sectioned with this as voices talk away in the background on ‘Till Dig (När Jag Försvinner)’ with our lyricist calmly now talking over them and some very tranquil, almost lullaby music soothing over things as he disappears into his own head. I could be completely off the mark trying to interpret this all but that is the way this talks to me and I guess to many it may be all too fragmentary. Then again it’s not music designed fully for the listener I suspect but more as a therapeutic means for the players; if anyone can get to the essence of it, all well and good, jump on for the ride by all means is possibly what they are thinking. Skillnader has that hip-hop vibe coming to the fore again, are we back out on the street released into a cold grey world of abandonment, drugs and suicidal notions? Maybe, it’s got a moody urban and gritty downbeat feel to it. Simple piano melody, wretched cries and much more manic and desperate vocals talking at a million miles an hour form ‘Hejdå’ as the band sign of with a goodbye that is teetering on the precipice of life and death at its innovators own hands? Will they survive and deliver more of this in the form of a full length album, let’s hope so.
This is certainly going to be a completely alien listen to many especially if you are (un)fortunate enough to be in a well balanced bubble as far as your mind is concerned. It really seemed to speak to me though and no doubt I have babbled far too much trying to describe it. Equally my mark of 8 here will no doubt be around a 2 for many attempting to tune in on this. Perhaps it’s time for us all to have the psychiatrist on standby now.
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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