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Rating: Twenty-seven songs from Barcelona, Sweden.
The Swedes have this bit of a myth about Spain, and it was this way that the band-orchestra from Jönköping chose the name I'm From Barcelona to promote themselves and stimulate the curiosity of the chilly inhabitants of their beautiful country. Emanuel Lundgren (the founder, lead-vocalist, and primary glue of this group of musician friends) towards the end of 2008 remembered the simultaneous release of the four solo albums by Kiss members in 1978 and had an idea: why can't each of my band's members produce and perform their own piece? Said and done: on January 27, 2010, new songs begin to appear in mp3 format on the official I'm from Barcelona website, one per day for twenty-seven days, by the end of which the twenty-seven tracks will also be released on triple vinyl.
Twenty-seven puzzle pieces, one for each member, in a sort of musical communism that puts everyone on the same level and shows how even those who were relegated to the role of triangle player in an album's credits actually have skills and creativity to spare; helped by the fact that many of the twenty-seven Scandinavian Barcelonans are also vocalists and multi-instrumentalists, this album ends up being more than just a simple group work, it becomes a catwalk on which within the time span defined by a single song appears a unique subject under the spotlight: only him, he presents himself, tells his story, shows his work, and then gives way to someone else. A bit like a graduation exam discussion, where in the end by rising to a slightly higher level you see the group as a whole, the class, the twenty-seven singularities united to form a great organism that lives, arms, legs, mind, heart. Above all, heart.
This conception of the work as a homework assigned to the 26 students by Professor Lundgren gives everyone the chance to express their preferred musical inclination, leading to the presence of numerous musical genres mixed together: it's up to guitarist Daniel Lindlöf to come out first for the interrogation and as his assignment brings "Lower My Head", which turns out to be like a sunny winter morning, a pop/rock ride that somewhat recalls Snow Patrol. Passed. Then away to all the others: "But Hey Even Though Your Horses Went Away" by backing vocalist Anna Fröderberg is a short and fun folk tune that smells a lot like Christmas elves, "Baby Let's Go" by pianist Tina Gardestrand is instead a light and smiling pop song to listen to while traveling. There is room for everyone and everything, the first cheerful and sunny tracks should not make you think of a monothematic work to put in the background like a children's TV show, as there is also space for darker tones: "Silence" by trumpeter David Ljung is a hard rock where the voice seems to come out of a burning cave, "What Should I Do" by singer Johan Mårtensson is rough and scratchy just like the distorted "My BPM Might Be Off, But My Heart Is Running Like a Clock" by drummer Olof Gardestrand, which sounds like a slow grunge enhanced at the end by a curious cover of Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse Of The Heart" and the theme from Sum 41's "Still Waiting". And then there's the electronic: "Pet Duet" by vocalist Cornelia Norgren seems taken straight from the 80s, on "Be the Same" Mattias Johansson forgets his saxophone and toys with synthesizers and drum machines while on keyboardist (and "metallophonist") Martin Alfredsson's "Kosmonaut", the feeling of infinity is in the air. And then there's country: "Make Me a Cowboy Again for a Day" by saxophonist Henrik Olofsson is a rearrangement of a folk song and turns out to be one of the most enjoyable pieces, "Sick of Love" by clarinetist Jacob Sollenberg is a beautiful saloon song seasoned with dobro and slide guitars as in the best tradition of the genre, "Best Days Are To Come" by mandolinist Johan Aineland is a delicate acoustic ballad perfect for autumn by the fireplace, and "Matilda" by trumpet player Jakob Jonsson echoes the slower, traditional country style. There are tracks that recall the playful atmospheres and colorful balloons of the first album from 2006: "UH!OH!" by bassist Kristoffer Ekstrand is a childhood party where everyone, just everyone, has fun and "Nothin Like the Mornin" by flutist Rikard Ljung is one of those songs you play in the background during the end credits after a happy ending that couldn't be happier, when everyone says goodbye and goes home happy, "Troublemaking" by guitarist Tobias Granstrand recalls that cheerful 90s pop where they tried to distract from the grayness that re-emerged once the 80s drug effect wore off. Likewise, there are tracks that instead recall the darker and more reserved atmospheres of the second album from 2008: "Morning Again" by singer Frida Öhnell is a solitary awakening in the middle of nature, "The Wave" by saxophonist David Ottosson is suffocating and claustrophobic, and "The Return of the Ape" by vocalist Mathias Alriksson talks about love again, but in a timid and embarrassed way. There is the heavy and sleepy "Zapatista" by tuba player Erik Ottosson and there's the drunken indie pop of "Göteborg" by vocalist Jonas Tjäder, there's the melancholic pop/rock of "To the Clouds" by another vocalist, Micke Larsson, there's the traditional folk of "Hej Hej Ivar" by backing vocalist Emma Öhnell (with lyrics in Swedish) and there's also space for someone who didn't put in much effort and brought covers as their assignment: vocalist Marcus Carlholt brings "Tour de France" by Kraftwerk (excellent), singer Julie Witwicki Carlsson copes with "Dreaming My Dreams" by The Cranberries while pianist Christofer Olofsson brings a musical theme from "Alice in Wonderland". Barely passing due to lack of creativity, but passing nonetheless.
And the professor? Here he is: Emanuel Lundgren offers "Hang On", a delicate piano ballad with all too banal lyrics but suitable for dark days; pleasant, but in some cases, the students have surpassed the master.
In any case: everyone passed.
Tracklist
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