Bring 'Em In. We'll Take 'Em Down

When Gustaf Norén says his debut album “may even be better than many of the Stones' or Beatles' records” he's not joking.

Yes, these twenty-something Swedish guys really rock, and Mando Diao has started a promising career with their 2002 release Bring 'Em In. The album has enough energy and soul, metaphorically and musically speaking, as to attract any fan of pure '60s rock and roll who's tired of listening to the Gods of the past, anybody looking for something original and powerful. Too much ego in Norén words? So what? We want great music, made with passion, and ego drives passion as well.

Gustaf is one of the guitar players and singers in the band. Lead guitarist, Björn Dixgård, also sings, and does it quite well. We don't see many bands with dual vocalists these days.

Gustaf's voice has been compared to Casablancas' (The Strokes) but why that need for comparing everybody? Every new band used to be the next Radiohead, remember? Gustaf has the voice of a real rocker, one of those skinny guys with dark glasses, a black leather jacket and a Gibson Les Paul. Oh yes, that's exactly how he looks.

But the songs I enjoyed the most are those sung by Björn. To China With Love is one fine example of violent passion in lyrics and the right voice for the role. Did you say gospel influences? Perhaps.

An album with twelve songs shared between Gustaf and Björn taking the lead. It's a natural and well balanced mix. Some chorus lines reminded me of another couple of good singers, with similar haircuts, from the '60s. And even if we're not talking Dylan, some songs create interesting connections in our brains.

I've lit up my life with those matches I've got from those who stood by me when I was in pain, boy

I don't know why some critics has labeled Mando Diao as a garage rock band (are they listening too many of them?). I find some of the songs in Bring 'Em In have a raw sound, okay, but these kids have more of a classic rock and roll band than any garage band out there could ever have. They have Motown Blood in their veins, as one of the tracks in the album say.

I liked all the songs in this Mando Diao album, from the fast paced The Band to the mysterious and emotionally charged Mr. Moon. We got yeah-yeah-yeah lines in Sheepdog and blues touches in Lady. It's not one of those albums with one or two hits and half a dozen of fillers.

I wanna love you but I'm growing old. Ten little soldiers screaming in my soul

Their lyrics talk about love, the experiences of young people and some strange references to people the Mandos may have known, or maybe don't mean anything at all, like the name of the band, which appeared in a dream to Björn.

Drummer Samuel Giers mentioned in an interview that somebody wrote "Mando Diao's music sounds like Sex Pistols are jamming with The Beatles". If you are like me, you would kill to see that and will feel at home listening to Mando Diao.

Music was an escape for these rockers, who lived in a boring industrial town in Sweden. You can feel the rage, the joy or the suffering though every Mando Diao song. That's how life it is, that's how music should be. After all, isn't music just another name for life?

Submitted by alexis on Sat, 2006-08-19 04:07. Find more albums

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