BACKGROUND AND METHOD USED TO CREATE "PJÄXERÖD 2.0"
Pjäxeröd is the name of the farm were I grew up, learned to drive a tractor, use a knife and play the drums.
It is located ca 18 kilometres Northeast of Hedekas, still in the county of Bohuslän but only 1 kilometer from the border to the county of Dalsland. The name Pjäxeröd was defined already in 1391 but at that time spelled "Piegs Rudi", meaning the Beggars Place.
It is located ca 18 kilometres Northeast of Hedekas, still in the county of Bohuslän but only 1 kilometer from the border to the county of Dalsland. The name Pjäxeröd was defined already in 1391 but at that time spelled "Piegs Rudi", meaning the Beggars Place.
A majority of the music created in "Pjäxeröd 2.0" comes from a close collaboration with musician/composer Arve Henriksen starting in January 2021 and has been going on since then. I have been inspired both by myself, Arve Henriksen and my other collaborators to go often a long way outside my comfort zone when working with this concept. For example playing instruments that are not my main ones and experimenting with what comes out of that. I have also tried to use the drums and percussion instrument in ways that are new techniques, playing modes and sometimes "wrong" to me.
I decided from the beginning of the project to not use any form of notation in the composing work. This way of working is in several ways inspired from different projects I have done in the past 10 years. One example of this method is my recording project Disturbance - "Tribal Elektronix".
I decided from the beginning of the project to not use any form of notation in the composing work. This way of working is in several ways inspired from different projects I have done in the past 10 years. One example of this method is my recording project Disturbance - "Tribal Elektronix".
The basic workflow is either recorded sessions where we played, improvised, discussed, experimented together with different sound sources/instruments etc and then it continued with sending audio files, edits and remixes of the recorded work. It can also start with someone of us sending a soundfile or another type of idea and then the music evolves from that exchange.
After that I have invited different musicians to add what they feel can contribute to the music. With few or no guidelines I left it to them with full artistic freedom.
Then the puzzle with sound files, effects and more recordings has resulted in the music presented here. Each piece has a connected title and stort story that connects to different places and/or things that has happened in my home village Hedekas. I have divided the works into three categories: Places, Waters and People/Machines/More.
The music is complemented with diverse pictures from Hedekas, taken by me during different visits in the areathe past year. These visits has been important for the artistic process and for me as a person. Meeting and speaking to people living there now. They have been giving their view, thoughts and visions which has brought new perspectives for me to bring into the music and the work.
Experiencing the nature with a different view than when I was young has been the most influential thing as I can see it now.
NORDDREAM SERIES
Some of the pieces are part of a series of works that I call "Nordream Series", spread over the different categories mentioned above.
The foundation of these pieces are one or several improvisations on the instrument Norddrum. This instrument is one of my most used electronic instruments when recording and creating music. It has a huge amount of possibilities for tweaking sounds and a very short and intuitive workflow from idea to a concrete result.
I have after recording the Norddrum started editing, cutting and processing the material until I felt I had a good idea to pass on to my selected friend. I send the files with few or no instructions and ask the musicians to just react to what they hear and add their ideas to this. Then they returned their audio files and I started the final editing. This is the common workflow for more or less everything I have done in the process of making the music in the Norddream series.
PLACES:
"THE END OF THE ROAD"
Johan Björklund - drums
Arve Henriksen - trumpet
Thomas Gunillasson - guitar
John Lönnmyr - organ
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
If you drive 3-4 kilometers into the woods from Pjäxeröd the road ends at Kantorn and the Forest takes over all control. This Forest is one of the imaginary Darkthrone Forests where I spent a lot of time as a kid. Building, playing, hunting, cutting down trees, planting tress, picking berries and fungus. A very inspiring place to be in and to treat with great respect.
"HUNTING KANTORN"
Johan Björklund - drums, electronics
Arve Henriksen - trumpet
Thomas Markusson - double bass
Armand van Wijck - harmonica
Maria Palmqvist - voice
John Lönnmyr - organ
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Kantorn was the place where the morning gatherings before the annual Moose Hunt took place. Adrenalin and excitement mixed with tension and some nervous feelings. A rough but also friendly place, especially when you are just a child/teenager.
"ENTER THE WHITE LIGHT"
Johan Björklund - drums, keyboards, norddrum
Arve Henriksen - trumpet
Mixed by Johan Björklund at Studio Eternal Darkness, Gothenburg, Sweden, April 2022.
Ekbacken.
I lived here 1978-1980. Memories in phragments. The neighbour Åke and his dog, the garden with all the trees. The place was after us bought by a young man and his family. He died a couple of years later, way to young. I can recall some strange things happening here that I can´t explain. Life is fragile.
"GHOST OF PJÄXERÖD"
Johan Björklund - drums, fender rhodes, electric bass
Arve Henriksen - trumpet, voice, electronics
Maria Palmqvist - voice
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Abandoned houses that no one took responsibility for…they are still here 30 years later, just even scrappier.
They were called locally Sandbergs, One-eyed Gunnars house etc.The stories about their previous owners I know very little about and that makes me a bit sad.
"SCRATCHING RIGHT BACK AT LERSÄTER"
Johan Björklund - drums, electronics, keyboards
Arve Henriksen - electronics
Maria Palmqvist - voice
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund August 2021 at Studio Zen, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Lersätersbacken - when you had never visited the amusement park Liseberg in Gothenburg and could compare, this was the great excitement. Insanely dangerous road, luckily adjusted to greater safety nowadays.
"NUCLEAR HIGHLANDS"
Johan Björklund - plastic objects, peas, keyboards
Arve Henriksen - trumpet
John Lönnmyr - keyboards
Maria Palmqvist - voice
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund August 2021 at Studio Zen, Gothenburg, Sweden.
In the 1980s the Swedish Government wanted to testdrill to see if this area was a good storage for Nuclear Waste (for the coming 100000 years).
The locals didn’t like this at all and blocked the road and guarded the mountain Kynnefjäll 24/7 for 20 years. Then the Government gave up and went for other solutions."PIÆKKER/NOMAD" (Norddream Series)
Johan Björklund - NordDrum, drums
Arve Henriksen - trumpet, electronics
Armand van Wijck - harmonica
Maria Palmqvist - voice
John Lönnmyr - organ
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Piækker means nomad/beggar and the farm I grew up on called Pjäxeröd in modern times had from the beginning the name Piægs Rudi meaning the beggars place.
I am no beggar but definetely a nomad. Dedicating my life to be a traveling musician is sometimes tough but also very rewarding and inspiring. I have seen places I most probably never would have seen if I had chosen an other path in life.
WATERS
"FROZEN"
Johan Björklund - guitar, electronics, keyboards
Arve Henriksen - trumpet,electronics
John Lönnmyr - keys
Thomas Markusson - double bass
Armand van Wijck - harmonica
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
This is reflecting the sometimes really low outside temperatures appearing locally in the area during winter.
Especially during my childhood, causing cancellations of the schoolbus and some quite dangerous situations in the cold.
It is also dedicated to the mighty frozen lakes in the area, taking lifes when people went out on way to thin ice not being careful...
"THIN ICE"
Johan Björklund - drums, guitar
Arve Henriksen - trumpet
John Lönnmyr - organ
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Sannesjön (The lake of Sanne)
A beautiful lake close to Pjäxeröd. Important for many children (including me) learning to swim but also a dangerous place if not handled carefully and with respect. A horrible drowning accident occured when I was around 15 years old. A couple of older boys in a boat that capsized out in the middle of the lake. They all swam to shore but 2 of them didn´t make it and was taken by the water.
"MÅNSTJÄRN"
Johan Björklund - bass drum, keyboards, drums, samples, stylophone, percussion, drum machine
John Lönnmyr - keyboards
Arve Henriksen - electronics
Maria Palmqvist - voice, whistle
Thomas Gunillasson - guitars
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund August 2021 at Studio Zen, Gothenburg, Sweden.
”Don’t go there, it´s bottomless and you might fall in to it”. A dangerous and beautiful small lake in the forests surrounding Pjäxeröd (close to Kantorn). I have only been there once...
"TRAPPED UNDER WATER" (Norddream Series)
Johan Björklund - NordDrum, synth, sampler
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
I can swim but I don’t like it so much. Not comfortable…
Young lives taken by the lakes, rivers and other incidents comes back in memories. Especially one thing comes to mind regarding our neighbour farmer Leif who accidentely got a heartattack when driving his tractor really close to Lerdalsälven (pictured). The tractor tipped over into the water (upside down) and he was found when it was way to late.
PEOPLE/MACHINES/MORE:
"NORWEGIAN WHISTLEBLOWERNEIGHBOR"
Johan Björklund - piano, percussion, guitars, NordDrum, electronics
Arve Henriksen - trumpet/Ipad
John Lönnmyr - keyboards
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
The Norwegian journalist etc Odd Lindberg lived 5 km from where I grew up. He later became a controversial person in his native Norway when acting as a whistleblower through his work with filming the hunt for seal and whale in Northern Norway. Odd Lindberg passed away 8th November 2021 at the age of 76.
"CHAINSAW IN YOUNG HANDS" (Norddream Series)
Johan Björklund - NordDrum, keyboards, triggers, electronics
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
Putting a chainsaw in the hands of a 12-year old boy so he could make his own money.
Smartly invested into a drum kit, this was of course a very good idea.
"SLOW VEHICLES" (Norddream Series)
Johan Björklund: NordDrum, keyboards
John Lönnmyr - organ
Thomas Gunillasson - guitars
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund April 2022 at Studio Zen, Vänersborg, Sweden.
One of the most significant things on the Swedish countryside is all slow vehicles on the roads. Tractors, mopeds etc all having an important value of freedom, ability to make a living and as an identity marker.
No stress...
"TRIGGING HEDEKAS - WHO ARE YOU?"
Johan Björklund - drums, electronics, keyboards
Arve Henriksen - trumpet, electronics
Armand van Wijck - harmonica
Thomas Gunillasson - guitars
John Lönnmyr - organ
Mixed by Kristofer Göransson and Johan Björklund August 2021 at Studio Zen, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Trying to make money selling ”Jultidningar” as a young boy wasn’t always the nicest thing. This specific title refers to a quite unpleasant encounter with an older customer changing his mind and behaving really rude (under heavy influence of alcohol).
