Wednesday 6 May 2009

DARK MATTERS (Modryn 1995)




My love for British folk music is firmly rooted within me on a molecular level. The musical grammar of the English folk songs is one that I intuitively understood when I first heard it. (I also have an infatuation with Turkish folk music, whose scales seem perfectly natural me, but I've never been able to express myself within the realms of that tonal language.)

My obsession with UK folk had its most obvious outlet with Modryn, an acoutisc duo I had back in 1995. I played the guitar and Caroline Fritzon sang. We performed traditional material along with covers of folk rock bands we liked and the occasional original sing in the traditional vein. We played a couple of gigs to welcoming audiences, something which surprised me as I had very little experience in playing live and didn't expect such an immediate warm reception. Our first show was held at Kulturdepartementet, a tiny place with a curiously high ceiling. It almost looked as if someone had pushed the place over. The place was jam packed, and we even saw people standing outdoors in the warm summer night looking in through the open window. A show less pleasant as far as the weather goes was performed outdoors in a cave. Despite being the summer solstice, the weater was incredibly cold causing my fingers to grow stiff. The audience was equally cold and we had to cut the show short!


A reminder of the Swedish summer...

Modryn never made any proper recordings with the intention of releasing, so when Domestica asked for a Modryn album, I had to piece it together from live recordings, rehearsal tapes and the very first recording we did, on a 4 track. That's why "Dark Matters" is a bit patchy, but it is more of a charming souvenir to those who were there to know us while we were Modryn, and to those who might be interested in my musical activities prior to becoming Peter Scion.

MP3:
DOWNLOAD

WAV:
DOWNLOAD

2 comments:

  1. I admit that this record has got my attention like few others. The guitar and the spontaneity so full of musical poetry, emotions rise naturally and easily.
    Peter Scion Thanks for this wonderful sensation.
    CHAPEAU!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, thanks so much! It seems that Modryn managed to strike a chord with a lot of people, maybe because of the directness you mention. If you wish, check out the live EP posted here, recorded at our one-off reunion show some years later. And thanks again!

    ReplyDelete