Jonas Lindberg & The other Side – Time Frames

I don't know if you recognize it, but I sometimes have a particular problem with an album, or artist/band. When listening to an album I hear beautiful tracks that make me very enthusiastic and I buy the album on CD and then also hear a number of, often short(er), trivialities. This is pre-eminently the case with the albums of Jonas Lindberg and his musical companions, the other Side. That was true for his previous albums, although Miles from Nowhere is quite consistent, but certainly also for his new release, Time Frames. The music of this extremely talented Swede is often compared to his American counterpart, Neil Morse and I can go along with that to a certain extent. Personally, I have a little more  appreciation for the music of Morse, who has a more fixed line-up, while Lindberg has several guitarists active, all with their own style. With Jonas, however, no preachy texts but often more general contemplative stories that certainly contain some deeper observations. So that appeals to me much more. In terms of diversity and variety, Time Frames is another textbook example. Quiet acoustic tunes are easily interspersed with violent outbursts that sometimes rub against metal. You could even say that we occasionally hear a kind of Swedish country and western, but also very fast and virtuoso guitar solos that would not be out of place with bands in the heavier genre.

End of the Road is immediately a stunner with a beautiful melody as an opening, after which a full-fledged prog rock epic unfolds in just over twelve minutes with many layers of keys and vocals. Raging keyboard solos are interspersed with dexterity on the guitar (Calle Schönning) and apart from Lindberg himself we also hear Jonas Sundqvist on lead vocals and Jenny Storm on background vocals. All three fine vocalists but the many vocals sound very American, so very polished. Still one of the most beautiful songs of this Swedish all-rounder that I know. Then it happens, Someone like Me is of a different order and doesn't stick. Lots of acoustic guitar and sweet vocals that show an equally sweet melody. Even the guitar solo can’t help it.

This is followed by the song Faces of Stone, which could be heard as a single for some time, and that is another wonderful track with a driving rhythm in which the chorus in particular is extremely suited for sing-along. Solos are not lacking, although the technique is a bit dominant, which is at the expense of the emotional charge. A nice track though. In Galactic Velvet, Storm is allowed to take care of the vocals and that fits the mostly quiet track with lovely moments. In that respect, the title covers the load more than perfectly. Soothing keys and lots of acoustic guitar, but fortunately also a nice guitar solo that provides some spice. An instrumental is not missing and on Gruvan the gentlemen go wild sometimes and after a cautious start the flame hits the pan, the dazzling solos buzz around your ears. Let it be clear, the technical level of play is very high. The rhythm section consisting of Jonathan Lundberg on drums and Jonas himself on bass lays the perfect foundation for the frivolities on keys and guitar. It gets quite heavy now and then, but we also hear jazzy parts, so variety is key. Running out of Time is also quite long with eight minutes and we hear a lot of vocal parts again. The melody is sometimes very reminiscent of the song Anima by the also Swedish formation Introitus, but that's where the similarity ends. Heavy chords support very nice solos on keys and guitar but here too I miss some emotion, it is a lot of technique and speed.

As is often the case with Lindberg’s albums, Time Frames ends with a very long track. The Wind rushes past you in just over seventeen minutes and is a true progepic with everything that goes with it. It's quite a lot to take in and not all melodies stick, but there are really beautiful pieces. The resemblance to the already mentioned Morse is quite onvious here and the bombastic passages really pop out.

After careful considerations I have come to the conclusion that Miles from Nowhere just tops this new album but only by a hint. Still, I'm glad I bought the album and will definitely listen to it more often because it's very well played. If you liked the previous albums then this is a no-brainer, if not then you could use Time Frames to give Jonas another chance.

The cover is nice but not very spectacular, the idea has been used quite often.

Music 76

Cover 70