Folk-pop is the name of the game on the self titled debut of Bakers At Dawn. For the most part, the thirteen tracks contained within meet their mark; they’re melodic and pleasant—everything we know Swedish pop to encompass. Swedish pop is, at least in terms of its homogenous nature, kinda like 90s US alternative—it is easily recognizable as Swedish pop and the same is true for Swedish folk-pop.
The instrumentation, at times, can be likened to Neutral Milk Hotel, while Bakers At Dawn front-man Marcus Sjöland comes off somewhere around Son, Ambulance’s Jeff Koster. Tunes like “Endless†and “Oh No†and “Silly Gun†live up to these similarities. The finger plucked guitars in the latter hint at early Son, Ambulance, while the former is somewhat reminiscent of NMH.
But, it’s in songs like “Hopeful†and “Lay It Asideâ€, when these similarities are minimal or even nonexistent, where Bakers At Dawn appears most comfortable. The latter moves away from the folk to almost become electro-pop, and also proves to be one of the best tunes on the album. It is this album’s “Electronic Renaissance†(from Belle And Sebastian’s Tigermilk). While I would hardly call Sjöland a Stuart Murdoch, I would give Bakers At Dawn two thumbs up.
Bakers At Dawn: Hopeful [mp3]
[audio:0902_bakers_at_dawn_-_hopeful.mp3|titles=Hopeful|artists=Bakers At Dawn]
Series II Records [CD, 2008]
Tomorrow
Endless
Hopeful
Oh No
Wrestling Bears
Better And All
Building Material
Demise Machine
Lay It Aside
In A Jar
Get Togethered
Silly Gun
Raining Dogs
