As the title Retrospektiv implies, this is a collection of tracks recorded by the Swedish experimental rock collective
Audionom, in various lineups, over the period 1999 to 2002.
Audionom are largely an instrumental unit, one that constructs simple guitar riffs and keyboard lines and sets them to driving rock rhythms for tracks that range from less than two minutes ("Det Var På Den Tiden Vi Bodde i Skogen och Hade Svans") to nearly 15 ("Horisont"). To Anglo-American ears, the group bears similarities to 1970s punk bands such as
the Buzzcocks (particularly on the one English-language vocal, "And You Said I Was the Only One"), although its sound also goes further back than that.
The Velvet Underground are definitely a touchstone, and "Spindlar" combines a synth line reminiscent of "Peter Gunn Theme" with the harsh, austere sound of
Gang of Four. You might say that
Audionom sound like what
the Ventures might sound like if they tried to take on the punk and post-punk eras. ~ William Ruhlmann