It was the spring of 2000 and I was at a show at Mosebacke (a classic venue in the south of Stockholm). I was sitting there and found myself sighing with biased boredom upon hearing that a debuting "batch of indie pop brats singing in English" was to entertain us with some acoustic numbers in between the announced acts. For some reason I stayed at the venue. And was completely blown away. By the time the first chorus of "Good Day For Dying" started I had developed goosebumps from the combination of childlike innocence and sullen melancholy of singer Daniel Bellqvist's voice; backed by guitarist Frederik Zäll's accompaniment and drummer Robert Birming rhythmically tapping his knees. They radiated a certainty and authority in their short and stripped down set that I have seldom seen in such a young band. Giving and receiving compliments is, as we know not a well enough practiced activity - so afterwards I wanted to drum up the courage to go and tell them how much I enjoyed their performance. But I never had the chance as they had disappeared by the time I felt brave enough. So it feels good now eighteen months after their debut "T'il We're Dead" to finally get the chance to thank them for that gig.
At the same time I think that Eskobar in their short career have been a little too fast not only for myself but also for large parts of their potential audience. Such a quiet band with such a loud name as Eskobar weren't set up to break big overnight. Furthermore I am afraid that I am not alone in feeling certain prejudices towards those that in theory are "yet another batch of young indie pop brats that sing in English". Eskobar's audience took some time to grow and it was gratifying to see that in such a fresh produce industry as the music business their album steadily sold more and more after it's release. The constantly growing audience probably has a lot to do with their excellent live reputation but above all with the fact that Eskobar is a great example of how good music will prevail regardless of the immediate and constant attention of the media.
When flipping through the Eskobar press from the time of "T'il We're Dead" one finds in addition to the universally positive reviews, the humble and sympathetic interviews. "In the early days we used to copy our favourite English bands and never dared to let our true selves come out" - is an often recurring quote. I never believe that Eskobar really had to face the issue of daring or not daring. Rather they were destined to follow a quick, natural and logical progression.
Because they are talented. The truly talented never have to worry about how much they copy their icons - their own unique artistic qualities will always shine through and characterise their expression. In Eskobar's case it was fragile, introverted, Scandinavian male melancholy and rough prairie desolation glued together with burned sugar, resulting in something very personal and unique."Everything has to take its time. We don't want to rush. We want to do things well" they commented on their future after the debut. And that of course turned out to be humble nonsense as well. Because they are talented.
The truly talented often do not need a lot of time. That is why the second album was ready even before we inert types had barely had the chance to get the debut.
If the quiet "T'il We're Dead" was reminiscent of how early Cowboy Junkies and Chris Isaak, the sparser side of Suede as well as the British and American rock poets of the early 70's all meeting up in some type of Blue Moon landscape for 21st century - then the new album will make such already skidding references even more questionable. The opening track on "There's Only Now" is symbolically entitled "Move On" and it surprises with a new felt cockiness and proves that Eskobar has developed enormously during their short hiatus. On tracks like "Why London?" - the melancholy side of Eskobar is still apparent but clad in a new suit. And when you've heard "On the Ground" with it's proud and strong chorus and the single track "Into Space" you can only come to the conclusion that the band has broadened their range as much as anyone can without loosing their unique expression. Especially when it comes to the choruses Eskobar have become much more clear and to a layman like myself there are at least a further half dozen tracks that could be singles than the above mentioned gems.
"Something is lost" starts with a minimalist machine accompaniment that evokes thoughts of the early 80«s, but one hardly has time to register it before the song blossoms into a radiantly proud but sad chorus, elegantly dramatic somewhere between The Associates and Suede.
The same thing holds true for "Someone New" - a duet with Heather Nova - and "I Worship You" but now the candour of the dark themes are more noticeable than before. Both musically and lyrically.The most introverted boyish sadness has grown away and the quiet has been subtly turned up. One could say things like Eskobar have let in light and air into their music, one could use awful expressions like "maturity" and "dared to change". One could speak of Daniel's heart-breaking voice in "Skyscraper" or babble on about the strong choruses in my favourites "Something is Lost" and "On The Ground".
But one can also just make it childishly simple for oneself and look at the length of the songs. On the debut they were between 3.00 and 3.58 on the follow-up they're between 3.19 and 4.02.
A proof as good as any that Eskobar are a very focused band. How often hasn't it happened that artists with a love of the dramatically sad have become arrogant and pretentious and become much too bombastic on their follow up albums?
But Eskobar keep themselves on the right side of that line. The truly talented can be epic in under 4 minutes. The big gestures become strong contrasts to the moderations instead of mannerisms. Theatrical but sharp, sad but demanding. That is probably the way I would describe the trio if someone just as sluggish as I was last spring were heading out of the venue instead of seeing a short acoustic set with Eskobar. On the other hand I think Eskobar's days as the filler set in between the regular program are over. As well as the days when the biased called them "young indie brats" without having heard a single song.
Per Hagman Stockholm, Sweden, June 2001
Source: http://www.eskobar.com
