ADOLPHSON & FALK VIDARE ALBUM AIR MUSIC RELEASE: OCTOBER 18, 2006 REVIEW: OCTOBER 16, 2006

Adolphson & Falk peaked in Sweden in the eighties with a couple of very successful albums of thoughtful pop music in an electronic setting. The duo whose surnames make up the band's name wrote the songs while early synthesizer enthusiast and importer Gregory Allan Fitzpatrick beamed them into the space age with his gadgetry.

After a comeback album of new material a few years ago (review here) without Fitzpatrick, the band is now reaching back to their old works with an album of acoustical reinterpretations of a number of hit songs. Unsurprisingly, what comes out of it is campfire songs for the nostalgia market. Pleasant in the extreme, many songs on "Vidare" could easily be marketed to the Swedish "mature dance music" audience without much adaptation. Others, like "Blinkar blå", still retain a magical shimmer despite being stripped of their electronic bleeps. Having said that, I realize I would probably beg to differ if I was just five years younger than I am.

The most interesting thing left is in the lyrics department. People didn't sing a lot about artificial intelligence back then, and Adolphson & Falk distinguished themselves with their intellectual and serious themes. I'm sure they have had an influence on bands such as Sista mannen på jorden and Blipp!, and even to some extent on Kent.

MATTIAS HUSS