King Hobo "King Hobo" 2008 Sweden Stoner Rock, Blues Rock (feat Opeth keyboardist Per Wiberg)
The 2005 Sounds of the Underground festival tour was about as decidedly “un-funky” as they come. Equally put off by the lack of anything remotely “in a pocket,” Per Wiberg of Opeth and Jean-Paul Gaster of Clutch set up shop outside the bus trailers and sent an open invitation to any like-minded musicians. Shortly thereafter, they commenced to fill the void. All told, this happed only a few times, but when it did, great spontaneous jams were pulled from the aether. They were a sorely needed respite from days crammed full with blast beats and monster howls. The good times, however, would inevitably come to a halt when a participant would insist upon “shredding” or “wailing”. This was not the spirit of said jams. The credo was “get funky or get out.” Seeking to further reap the rewards only found in that spontaneity, Wiberg gathered a group of friends in a rented house in Falun, Sweden. It was somewhat of a leap of faith in that the session would rely primarily on the collective writing and recording of one week’s time. But considering whom Per had assembled, there was plenty of reason to be confident. Thomas Juneor Andersson (Kamchatka) on guitar and vocals, Ulf Rockis Ivarsson (Beatundercontrol, countless sessions), Eric Oblander (Five Horse Johnson) harp on “Leaving Letter Blues”, Tomas Agnas on sax for “Mr. Clean”, Jean-Paul Gaster (Clutch, The Bakerton Group) on drums, and finally Wiberg on vocals, keys, and guitar. Prior to the session, Wiberg sketched out a few ideas and Andersson had hummed a tune to him over the phone. But other than that, the session was an honest blank slate. It was recorded together live as a whole by Robert Ekholm. This was not an easy task. The studio was wired into a rented vacation home populated by musicians who love beer in equal measure to music. When all was said and done, the group banged out a full-length album of merciless blues, funk, and rock and roll. Two covers made the cut, “Running”, written by Curtis Mayfield, and a stellar Freddie Hubbard version of Weldon Irvine’s classic “Mr. Clean”. The album documents one week in Sweden when a small gathering traveling musicians threw their ingredients into the collective cauldron, enjoyed the meal, and then departed as quickly as they had come. For this reason, they call the group, and its debut release, King Hobo. ....Neil Fallon.....~ Jean-Paul Gaster from Clutch met Opeth keyboardist Per Wiberg at the Sounds of the Underground Tour. They jammed together and allowed other musicians to join them, with the motto of "get funky or get out". Later, they gathered at a home Wiberg rented in Sweden, and invited Kamchatka guitarist Thomas Andersson and Ulf Rockis Ivarsson, among others, to record an album in one week. The band has thus far released one self-titled album. King Hobo have performed on at least one occasion at Sticky Fingers in Gothenburg on 9 February 2013...~ Guitar, vocals: Thomas Juneor Andersson(Kamchatka), Drums: JP Gaster (Clutch),Bass: Ulf Rockis Ivarsson (Beat Under Control),Keys, guitar, vocals: Per Wiberg (Opeth) Guest: Eric Oblander (Five Horse Johnson).This album documents one week in Sweden when this small gathering of traveling musicians threw their ingredients into the collective cauldron, enjoyed the meal, and then departed as quickly as they had come. For this reason, they call the group,and its debut release, King Hobo.....~ I was sampling music on Amazon.com one day when I came across this band. Hmmm never heard of them, so I listened to samples and thought "sounds good enough to add to my collection". Well when I received it I was blown away with their creative sound. Each song is unique with a 70's classic rock feel. I love the different instrumentation added which fills each song. Turn down the bass as the low end is very powerful.The lead singer on "Running" reminds me of classic Rare Earth. The guitar work is impressive especially how it interacts and flows with all the other instruments on "Mr Clean". Not too overpowering but recognizable. Like Jim McCarty from Cactus. Vocals sound a bit like Leaf Hound. John Popperish harp playing...sweet!.....~ This cd is a great collection of bluesy phsycodelic songs.What I really like is that none of them sound the same.They run the gammit from rock to blues to even a 70's stlye jazz rock fusion (Mr Clean).I am talking about some great musicianship here starting with Thomas Andersson of Kamchatka on guitar(another band a must check them out),some keyboards and harrp also add little something to the mix as well as the firery sax on Mr Clean.If your familiar with grooveyard records(my favorite label)than this cd goes along with all the other great guitar music they have been churning out.This cd is right on the money.....grooveyard gary.....~ Credits
Bass – Ulf Rockis Ivarsson Drums – Jean Paul Gaster Guitar, Vocals – Thomas Juneor Andersson Keyboards, Guitar, Vocals – Per Wiberg Tracklist
1 Running 4:19 2 Leaving Letter Blues 5:54 3 Rolling In From The Sea 4:10 4 Swede 3:13 5 Moonshine 5:13 6 Four Winds 4:24 7 From Me To You 4:52 8 Coffee Break 5:05 9 Best Of Times 3:26 10 Mr Clean 11:46
