ALBUM REVIEW: Sagan Om Rymden – Kingnomad

A band conceived in a small forest village in Sweden, KINGNOMAD take all the tropes of 70s stoner-psych that we know and love, and blend them with oriental flavours which help them to stand out from the pack. There is still something missing however, in their nevertheless promising and extremely ambitious work, Sagan Om Rymden.

Their sound is an interesting one, fittingly nomadic as it wanders between different tones, tempos and time signatures in a prog odyssey. This album tackles with the concept of the multiverse, drawing upon themes first explored by bands such as BLACK SABBATH (in Planet Caravan mode) and, more recently, INTRONAUT and HALLAS. 

Unfortunately, this promising sound is let down time and again throughout the record by Mr Jay’s less-than-powerful vocals and delivery. There are falsetto passages at times where they don’t seem to fit – they are there because he is struggling to belt. There are a lot of really interesting sounds and elements in the mix here which show this band to have a lot of promise, but there is a considerable amount more that this band could be doing to push themselves – something only mentioned here because they do really have potential.

All that being said, Tillbakablick The Usurper King as the centrepiece of the record is a genuinely great song, an eight and a half minute epic which traverses the realms of psychedelic and proggy space travel. This time round, the band aren’t afraid to get weird with their sound, and it definitely pays off.  Lead single Multiverse is a great example of the melting pot of instrumentation, cultures and sounds which this band marries together. Oriental-influenced guitar lines and drumming patterns blend with stoner-psych rock flourishes to perfection – but again, there seems to be something missing as the chorus repeats and does, in fact, grow a little old. 

Overall, the concept is ambitious and it may be that this is just more than what KINGNOMAD can handle at this point in their journey together. It shows a lot of promise, however, and we do look forward to hearing more from these guys in the future. 

Rating: 6/10

Sagan Om Rymden is set for release on July 10th via Ripple Music.

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