Mississippi John Hurt, Skip James, Blaze Foley, Sleepy John Estes, Blind Willie Johnson, Howlin..Wolf, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, Rev. Gary Davis, Leadbelly, Hjort Anders, De Ford Bailey, Ralph Stanley, The Carter Family, Bob Dylan, Lightnin..Hopkins, Kelly Joe Phelps, Townes Van Zandt, Lucinda Williams, Neville Bros., The Meters, Daniel Lanois, David Lindley, Ry Cooder, Taj Mahal, Bonnie Raitt, Joni Mitchell, Ali Farka Touré, Gillian Welch, Robbie Robertson, Joe Henry, Tom Waits, Väsen, Los Lobos, Rickie Lee Jones, Blind Blake, Hugo Dias, J.J. Cale, Jon Cleary, Giant Sand, John Martyn, Ben Harper, Dr John, Professor Longhair, Snooks Eaglin, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, Balfa Bros., Pete Rowan, Guy Clark, Iris De Ment, John Prine, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Gunnar Nordlinder, Corey Harris, Greg Leisz, Kieran Kane, Little Feat, Jackson Browne, Van Morrison, Steve Earle, Dock Boggs, Per-Åke "Peps" Persson, Pelle "Milkoland" Lindström, Thomas Almqvist, Dan Penn, James Carr, Otis Redding, Toots Hibbert, The Heptones, The Gladiators, LKJ, Babatunde Tony Ellis, Carlos Santana, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Curtis Mayfield, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ahmad Jamal, Thelonious Monk, Wayne Shorter, Bill Evans, Chet Baker, Django Reinhardt, Paco de Lucia, Sol Hoopii, Stelios Kasantzidis, Giorgios Dalaras, Frank Zappa, King Sunny Adé, Eric Bibb, Hank Williams, Gustav Fröding, Arvo Pärt, J.S. Bach, John Hiatt, Allen Finney, The Staples, The Soul Stirrers, Mahalia Jackson, Billie Holiday, Neil Young, James Taylor, Johan Rothstein, Paul Simon, Willy de Ville, Emmylou Harris, Chris Whitley, Lowell George, Maria Muldaur, Roy Buchanan, D..Gary, Tarika, Gabby and the Pahinui Family, Ledward Kaapana, Michael Barretto, Ronu Majumdar, Ravi Shankar, Djelimady Tounkara, Oliver Mtukudzi, Sam Mangwana, Franco, Soul Brothers, Soweto Boys, Abdullah Ibrahim, Joseph Spence, Ballake Sissoko, Toumani Diabaté, Rokia Traoré, Bouboucar Traoré, Orchestra Baobab, Djiwan Gasparyan, Qin, Congotronics no.1 and so many more…
I met Mats about ten years ago in a blues club in Stockholm. We were jamming rather than talking. The music in those days would be quite loud and improvised, I..d be playing the electric guitar, trying to find a space for myself in the music. Many times I left disappointed and frustrated with my ears ringing, felt like I had to struggle just to make myself heard.
I could sense that Mats too was waiting for his moment to play, never pushing himself on anybody. And when he did play his harmonica he would always come across with more of a country sound than the other harmonica players. More of Sonny Terry than Little Walter, if you wish. The Swedish folk roots were always there too in his sound, something that set him apart.
We discovered that we shared a love for the prewar Delta blues music, the spiritual music and old timey mountain music from the twenties and thirties. We would talk about the simple beauty and poetic quality of those early primitive recordings. The atmosphere of those people, what they radiated out. Qualities you have to look hard for today.
There was always a giant gap between the acoustic music I would play in the stillness of my home and the music I had to play live in order to get a gig. I knew that Mats too was longing to take things down to a whisper. It feels like we..ve spent years dreaming about this band and music before we actually started playing and singing in public.
Somewhere along the way we crossed paths with double bass player Björn Lundquist. My first impression of Björn dates back to the winter of 1981 and the jam packed Café Ricardo in the Old Town of Stockholm. He was pumping out steady roots reggae bass lines behind the mighty Babatunde Tony Ellis. On his left side the legendary Bosse Skoglund would be playing the drums, practically sitting in the audience. The room was incredibly small, you could hardly move. I felt I had close to religious experiences some of those nights and learned a lot just by watching the interaction between those heavy players. For some reason it doesn..t seem that long ago.
Björn got us a gig as a trio in late 2003. It was a bit shaky, we played mostly other peoples material, country ballads and blues. I was alone at last on the guitar. With Björns double bass as a backbone I felt really free to play less than ever before. My role as a guitar player has always been a complimentary one, adding parts, never actually carrying the song forward. I have great respect for the art of rhythm guitar. For some reason there was always someone else already doing that, leaving the ornaments to me. Soon after that Björn hooked us up with drummer Kjell Gustavsson.
One of my first memories of Kjell is from the infamous Stockholm club Lilla Maria where he once played a gig with me backing up blues troubadour Eric Bibb with the Needed Time Band. Björn and Kjell have a long history together as a rhythm section, touring and backing up people for years and years.
The first time all four of us got together to rehearse I remember Kjell spontaneously singing sweet harmonies and putting away the sticks and brushes, playing the drum kit with his hands. Mats and I started getting together to work on songs. Sometimes he would have the whole song ready and waiting to be played, sometimes a few scribbled lines leant themselves to a couple of chords I had floating around.
We wanted to play original material but also do our own take on the old timey stuff we love. The ambition was to keep it simple and leave a lot of space and silence in the music. We decided on the name Yonder. Then we started to play gigs, not so often, maybe three or four times a year, but always trying to be well rehearsed. We drew a small but listening crowd of mostly friends. The more we took it down, the more people seemed to pay attention. I would come home from those gigs feeling peaceful and lit up inside.
One day, in June of 2006 we spent 12 hours in the studio, recording the basic tracks for our first record. It was all recorded live and we ended up using mostly the first takes. Four months later, in October, we spent another two days overdubbing some harmony vocals, chord zither, mbira and mixing everything. This first Yonder record has been a long time coming. We hope that it will reach out and touch people and help us get the opportunity to come out and play for you all in the near future.
It’s always good to start a new year with an album you know is going to be among your best of lists in twelve months time. With a simple sleeve design to match the soothing ambience of the music, it’s a wonderful album that fully deserves the plaudits it must surely attract. The quartet are apparently due to play European and UK dates in April/May 2009; I’d suggest you sign up to their mailing list now.
Mike Davies, Net Rhythms (UK)
Stark acoustic soundscapes and back porch sensibilities abound on other self penned tracks such as April Snow, Faith and Foggy Straits all cut through with simmering intensity.
Properganda (UK)
"You'd swear they lived in a backwoods mountain shack, but Younder are
from Stockholm, a city fast becoming a treasure trove of down-home country acts.
Yonder's gospel-infused blues sounds as solid as the hills, like Micah P Hinson
backed by an acoustic Bad Seeds, with Mats Qwarfordt's vocals howling up preachers,
ne'er-do-wells, lost loves & dark nights of eternal winter".
Q Mag.(UK)
"Their songs are as authentic as their performance & Yonder - the
band & the album - are an unexpected treat".
Rock n Reel (UK)
"It..s a miracle of the modern age that a Stockholm quartet such as Yonder can conjure up such a convincing evocation of dust bowl Depression-era country, blues and gospel.
They make it sound so easy and natural too, with a clutch of their own songs delivered with sparse acoustic instrumentation and the frequent howl of piercing harmonica.
It works as a supremely easy listening, background album, but it has an earthiness, grit, humanity and warmth – and an exceptionally high quality of writing – that also makes it a very fine alt country record".
Niel McKay, Belfast Sunday Life(Irl)
“…This is the kind of quiet-without-being-boring type of roots music that some of us welcome with open arms. Personally, I wouldn't have thought to look toward Stockholm to find it, but this band's gospel tinged debut has made me into a believer…”
RANDY BAKER, THE EAST BANK RADIO NASHVILLE
You Rockkkkkkkk!! I was just out in L.A. and performed at the House of Blues. Check out the Video - hope you like it :)
:) :) Any Fun Plans Lately?
xoxo ~Suzi O I'm recording with Rodney Jerkins (Producer of Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and more! ) and also ROY THOMAS BAKER!! The producer of QUEEN, ROLLING STONES, and so many more rock bands its INSANE.) I'm sOoOo Excited! Can't wait 4 u 2 hear the new Album out!!
Tack för ännu en bra spelning igår! Jag har just införskaffat "Cold, cold world" från CdBaby, samt "Cypress Grove Blues" och "Dark was the night" från Ginza -- gissa vilka som bär "skulden till det...
Och i eftermiddags fick min mp3-spelare spatt, och spelade fem Blaze-låtar på raken trots att jag satt den på Random. Hur lyckades ni med det?
How are you, Yonder? Haven't checked in on you lately, so I swung by to wish you a happy holiday season & hope you are feeling well! Listen, I have another track up on my page, "Attack Of The Mushroom People." You can Hear it right Now, if you'd like at: www.myspace.com/psychedelicpablo OK, that's it for the shameless self-promotion.Thanks for being a friend. adios for now! Pablo
After you've finished here, you may like to hear this folk-carol on myspace... Poem 230 of 230, WalkaboutsVerse (see my blog for details): CHRISTMAS SUNG SIMPLY
As gospellers have said, Beneath signalling skies, On land dusty to tread, A trough in a stable Was the strawy first-bed Of a divine baby - The forgiving Godhead.
A season for new hope - There then and here now; The yuletide of goodwill - There then and here now.
In respect of this chance, Beneath bright or dark skies, Faith's the star that we glance Attending Christ's churches And trying to enhance, With singing and ritual, Our God-loving stance.
Christmas is coming soon. Are you looking for a Christmas present and would like to help handicapped children? Than please request the list of donations in kind from HelpCharity, www.MySpace.com/HelpCharity , by sending me an e-mail at Ch.Lamitschka@t-online.de . Many donations in kind are autographed.
If you don't have the chance to request the list of donations in kind, please add HelpCharity to your Top Friends!
Thanks for helping me to support handicapped children!
Christian
Founder of HelpCharity Editor & Journalist for Country Music Christian Lamitschka An der Pfingstweide 28 61118 Bad Vilbel Germany Phone: ++49 (0) 6101 544613 Mobil: ++49 (0) 171 6903352 E-Mail: Ch.Lamitschka@t-online.de Internet: www.MySpace.com/HelpCharity Internet: www.MySpace.com/ChristianLamitschka
Hej Mats .. gick det bra? behöver nog inte alls fråga .. ;) Kunde inte tyvärr, rullar på med monologer och poesiuppläsningar grymt roligt helt enkelt!! ha det bäst!!
Online Now!
