Heres a review I wrote for my friends site:
Karaboudjan
Sbrodj
Relapse Records
2001
What is music to you? To some it means comfort in familiarity. To others it represents an opportunity to experiment with sonic textures, moods, and abstract ideas. To unhinged lunatics like Dan Swano, it's the chance to break down music as a whole and rebuild it according to your own warped blueprints.
After leaving Edge of Sanity in winter '96/'97, Swano entered the studio to work on several of his endless line of projects, most notably his phenomenal Moontower album. By '98, however, a strange track by a group called Karaboudjan had surfaced on a Relapse records sampler CD. The track, entitled "Plan 714 'Till Sydney", was at once mind-blowing, supremely ridiculous, and strangely beautiful. And my initial reaction was one of almost physical sickness. What were these weird noises and tones coming out of my speakers? Could they be of this world? Well, they're not of this world. They're from Sweden, where Dan Swano (known here as Dr. KrollSpell, for whatever reason) recorded the one-off Sbrodj sessions in mid '97.
With a variety of instruments, including Moog synthesizers, saxophones, guitars, Caribbean steel drums, keyboards, drum machines, drums, and the most distorted bass ever, Swano has put together what acid-jazz would sound like if the musicians actually took acid. Instruments play off each other in a bizarre symphony of complex arrangements, tripped out melodies, and advanced harmonies, over a backdrop of Swedish language samples. It's Praxis without the accessibility. John Zorn without the unbearable noise. Bill Laswell without the pretension. And you know what? Three years after hearing the initial track, I have learned that I really enjoy this totally crazy, off-the wall project. 3 songs of some of the strangest stuff I've ever heard.
Verdict: Is progressive just not progressive enough for you? Amaze your friends with this neo-progressive masterpiece! Only problem is 3 tracks leave you wanting MUCH more!
Grade: For the open minded: A
For the average metal fan: F
For the guy in the back corner of the club in the Darkthrone shirt screaming "Jagrmeister!": What the hell is this? Put on Nothing But Death Remains!
-Sadistik
