| 30 Years of War
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Trettioariga Kriget(Thirty Years War) was formed in 1970
in Saltsjobaden, a seaside resort southeast of Stockholm. They were at the time
all around seventeen and still in high school.
The schools mainhall was in the beginning used as the rehearsalroom.
This first lineup of the band was a sixpiece with two drummers! From the start
the band included Stefan on bass and vocals, Dag on drums and Olle on
harmonica.
1971 some members of the original band left and
Robert joined on vocals and guitar.
1972 Olle quit playing harmonica to concentrate on the lyrics, leaving
the band to concist only of Stefan, Dag and Robert. They decided they needed a
good guitarplayer and started to audition some guitarists. Through these
auditions they found Christer who joined the band in summer 1972.
The band rehearsed intensively for a year and a half and developed a style of
their own quite unlike the main trend in Swedish rock during the Seventies.
Early 1974 they got a recorddeal with CBS (now Sony
Music). Also at that time they got a new rehearsal room in Saltsjobaden. An old
underground disco which they called "Grunden". There they would remain for a
long time....An album was recorded that summer and released in august 1974. The
album was named only "Trettioariga Kriget".
The musical talent and originality of the group was duly recognized in the
reviews.
They also now started to tour extensively in Sweden and also did several live
performances on national Swedish radio.
1976The second album "Krigssang" was recorded in the
summer of 1975 though it was not released until early 1976 . It is commonly
regarded as Trettioariga Krigets "masterpiece". The second side is totally
devoted to the long suite "Krigssang 2".
The band continued touring and gigging in -75 and -76 .
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In October -76 they left for an extensive English tour from Croydon in London to
Cardiff in Wales to Sunderland near the Scotish border. They went down very
well and the English musicmagazine "Melody Maker" chose them as one of the most
promising bands for -77, speaking enthusiastically of their "intense gripping
songs" and saying that "the power of the music is tremendous"!!! Back home
again however they got the boot from swedish CBS, who apparently hadn´t heard
any news from abroad.
Trettioariga Kriget then chose to sign for a small Swedish
independet label called Mistlur.
The first album on this new label was called "hej pa er".It was
recorded in summer 1978in "Grunden", the rehearsal
room, with mobile recording facilties. By this time Mats had joined on
keyboards and saxophone too.
Thealbum was very well received and was to that date their best selling album.
The album was seeing the band moving to a more simple songformat and is seen as
the last album in a trilogy starting with the first album.
The band continued to tour extensively during this time around Scandinavia.
In the summer of 1979 the band recorded "Mot alla
odds" also at "Grunden". It is largely regarded the bands least
successful album though it has its moments, i.e. the title song.
This was the last album with Robert who left in autumn 1979 leaving the vocals
to Stefan.
In 1980 the band played the Roskilde festival in Denmark and continued
the extensive touring. And they also recorded the album called "Kriget"
at "Grunden"
The story then jumps to 1992 when Stefan, Robert and Dag
played an accousitc set at a releaseparty for the CD-release of "Krigssang".
And then in 1996 to coincide with the release of their
mostly live album "Warmemories", the band decided to do two reunionconcerts in
Stockholm.
The album "Glorious war" with recordings from 1970-1971
was released 2004 and the album, "Elden av ar", recorded by
the band during 2003 was released 2004, an album full of good songs and the
bands playing is stronger than ever!!
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| Discography |
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| 1974
Trettioariga Kriget
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Recorded at Europa Film Studio,Stockholm may-july 1974
Stefan Fredin-bass guitar
Dag Lundquist-drums
Robert Zima-vocals,guitar
Christer Akerberg-guitars
TrackList:
01. Kaledoniska Oogenesen[05:20]
02. Roster fran minus till plus[07:54]
03. Fjarilsattityder[05:26]
04. Mina lojen[08:09]
05. Ur djupen[03:46]
06. Handlingens skugga[07:39]
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- In
general what do you think about the first album?
'I think the material is really strong...but the album suffers a little from
bad sound and production. But overall i think its a very strong debutalbum!! '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
' Must be “Mina lojen” ...We still play this song live...and
it still feels as fresh as then...Also this song gave us the record deal!!'
- Any anecdotes /special memories from the recording sessions?
'I remember to this day the great feeling of being in a real studio for the
first time to make an album. Such an incredible feeling of joy!! '
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| 1976 Krigssang
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Recorded at Polyvox Studio,Stockholm
july-august 1975
Stefan Fredin-bass guitar,vocals
Dag Lundquist-drums,violin,vocals
Robert Zima-vocals
Christer Akerberg-guitars
TrackList:
01. Krigssang (War Song)[04:33]
02. Metamorfoser( Metamorphoses)[04:34]
03. Jag och jag och "jag" (I and I and “I”)[03:20]
04. Murar (Walls)[04:19]
05. Krigssang II (War Song II)[17:32]
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- What about your second album , 'Krigssang' ?
'I think this album is our “masterpiece”. Everything worked out as we wanted it
on that album...the material is strong..the sound is perfect..the production is
great..To this day i am really proud of “Krigssang”!! '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'If i have to pick one song it has to be "Krigssang". It has a special
atmosphere about it...both musically and lyrically.'
- Any anecdotes /special memories from the recording sessions?
'We recorded it in the summer...and often had lunch out in “Djurgarden”.A big
park in Stockholm.'
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| 1978
Hej Pa Er
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Recorded at
Grunden with Mobile Studio,Saltsjobaden june-july 1978
Stefan Fredin- bassguitar,rhytm guitar, bass pedals
Dag Lundquist- drums, violin
Robert Zima- vocals
Christer Akerberg-electric and acoustic guitars
Mats Lindberg -keyboards,saxophone
TrackList:
01. Hej pa er[04:30]
02. Natten som alltid[04:00]
03. Stan tur o retur[04:00]
04. Moln pa marken[03:20]
05. Dagspress[05:35]
06. En kvall hos x[02.10]
07. Ser du mig[04:38]
08. En dag om natten [03:14]
09. Andra sidan[05:30]
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- and what do you think about your, third album 'Hej Pa Er'?
'I think its a good album too...We felt that after “Krigssang” we wanted to
make an album with shorter, more direct songs. I think the material on this one
is very strong too...but in a diffent way than “Krigssang”. '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'Definately "En kvall hos x" ...since this album was released we have
always closed our shows with this song...'
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'This we recorded in our rehearsal room with a mobile recordingstudio. It was
also recorded in the summer. And it was a very hot summer!! I rememner the heat
in the bus listening back to what we recorded. Also we worked very much during
the nights... '
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| 1979
Mot Alla Odds
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Recorded at Grunden,Saltsjobaden with Mobile Studio
august-september 1979
Stefan Fredin-bass guitar,vocals
Dag Lunduist-drums,backing vocals
Robert Zima- vocals
Christer Akerberg-guitars
Mats Lindberg -keyboards,saxophone
TrackList:
01. Mot alla odds[03:54]
02. Daliga nerver[02:58]
03. Hur star det till[04:27]
04. Dags att fly[02:35]
05. Alla de dar[02:41]
06. Nar vi anda ar har[02:58]
07. Rapport[04:48]
08. At, drick och var glad[03:30]
09. En rak sak[04:07]
10. Rockgift[03:06]
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- 'Mot Alla Odds' released 1979, feelings about it?
'This album i have to admit I don’t like so much...It has a few good
songs...But generally the material is not up to standard...We should have
waited instead of doing this album...The sound and production is very weak
too..This album was also recorded in our rehearsal room with the mobile
studio... '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'I think the title song “Mot alla odds ” is a good song..Its very well
played too with lots of energy!'
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'I remember that only to try to get drumsound right took 3-4 days...I think
many things went wrong doing this album. '
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| 1981
Kriget
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Recorded at
Grunden,Saltsjobaden with Mobile Studio September-october 1980
Stefan Fredin-bass guitar,vocals
Dag Lundquist-drums,vocals
Christer Akerberg- guitars
Mats Lindberg- keyboards, saxophone
TrackList:
01. Regn (regn,regn)[03:45]
02. Taget[04:50]
03. Moderna tider[01:40]
04. Europa[06:05]
05. En liten man[03:15]
06. Den ratta vagen[01:35]
07. Blues[03:15]
08. Pa jakt efter rock[03:40]
09. 3 strofer[02:50]
10. Som forut[05:00]
11. Tack och adjo[02:00]
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- what do you think about 'Kriget' released 1981?'
'I think that the material, sound and production is a lot better than “Mot all
odds”. The big fault though, is that the material points in too many
directions... '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'"Som forut", "Europa" and "Blues" are three good songs from
this album i think..All three of them have worked out very well live... '
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'It was a kind of special atmosphere during these recordings because we knew it
was gonna be our last album...at least for a long time..smiles.. '
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| 2004
Glorious War(recordings 1970-71)
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Recorded and
mixed by Dag Lundquist at Teaterverkstan, Saltsjobaden, Sweden in the winter of
1970-71.
TrackList:
01. Intro[00:35]
02. Amassilations[08:55]
03. Konserten[18:18]
04. Ontro I[01:11]
05. Ontro II[01:03]
06. Thirty Years War[05:19]
07. From your streets Part 1-3[16:55]
08. Outro[01:03]
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- what do you think about this, your first 'unreleased album'?'
'I think it has a very special atmosphere...I mean we were only like 17 years
old when we recorded it...but some ideas are really good... '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'I think "Amassilations" because it pointed out the direction
which the band later would take...and "Konserten" has really some
impressive pianowork from Dag Kronlund!!'
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'It was recorded right after Christmas 1970...there were a lot of snow falling
i remember..And also i remember the joy of creating something we didn´t think
we were capable of...smiles '
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| 2004
Elden Av Ar
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Recorded and
mixed by Dag Lundquist at Decibel Studios, Stockholm, Sweden during 2003,
except Nightflight -77 recorded at Grunden,Saltsjobaden, Sweden 1977
TrackList:
01. Ljuset[08:55]
02. Nightflight[05:40]
03. Lang historia[07:40]
04. Elden av ar[05:10]
05. Mote[04:36]
06. Molnbudet[02:30]
07. Nightflight - 77[06:50]
08. Gnistor[08:00]
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- what about your latest effort 'Elden Av Ar'?
'I am very,very happy about it...I think its up there with our best albums like
“Krigssång” '
- Favourite Song(and why)?
'I like "Ljuset", "Nightflight", "Gnistor",
a lot...'
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'Mainly this great feeling of being back together in the studio creating music
again!!! It all really went very smoothly in the studio...I didn+t feel like we
had this long break of twenty years...More like a two year
break...smiles.. '
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| Rehearsing
1970 |
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| Stefan,Dag
and Christer recording first album 1974 |
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| Trettioariga Kriget : 01/05/2004 Nalen ,Stockholm, Sweden |
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| Kriget Links
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Trettioariga
Kriget Official Site
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Stefan
Fredin interview April 2004
by Claes Hassel
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| General
Questions:
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| How did you get into the
music business?
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'We started Trettioariga Kriget while we were still in high school...
And of course some years later got a record deal!! '
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| Who has been your main
influences?
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'Beatles,Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Led
Zeppelin to name a few!' |
| List five albums of the
bands/artists that you like the most and why!
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'Sergeant Pepper (Beatles)
In the Court of the Crimson King (King
Crimson)
Please, Please Me (Beatles)
Led Zeppelin (Led Zeppelin)
Dark Side of the Moon (Pink Floyd)
All of these are groundbreaking albums which changed the course of
rock music one way or another. '
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| What time was/is the most
interesting for the rock music, in your opinion and why - 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s or
00s?
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'Without any doubt 60s and 70s.
While rockmusic started in the 50s it was in the 60s that it started to develop
in all different directions.
It all happened so incredibly fast during the 60s!!
In the 70s many of the great classic rock albums were made.
The dark years for me are the 80s.It is very difficult for me to listen to most
of the rockmusic that was made during that decade!! '
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dream band(living or dead ;), who would they be, vocal/bass/drums/keyboard/lead
guitar/rythm guitar/producer?
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'Vocals: John Lennon
Bass: Chris Squire
Drums: Phil Collins
Keyboard: Tony Banks
Lead Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Rythm Guitar: David Gilmour
Producer: Phil Spector'
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| What kind of equipment/gear
are you using on the road and in the studio?
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'For most of the touring during the years and also on most of the albums i have
used a Marshall 100W Bass amp with a Malmberg cabinet. Sometimes with a
Marshall 100W lead amp with custom built cabinet.
My bass through all the years have been a Fender Precision -63 bass. Strings
have always been Rotosound.
For soundeffects I´ve mainly used only a wah-wah pedal. '
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songs that you have composed which of them are your favourites?
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'Very diffcult to say...But i like:
“Krigssang ”
“Mina lojen ”
“En kvall hos x ”
and from the new album “Gnistor” and “Ljuset”. '
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| What
are you doing in your spare time outside of music?
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'I like to ski
really...and to take long walks with Olle.
We try to walk at least once or twice every week!! '
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| If you
dont have been in the music business what have you been doing then?
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'I think I would have like to be in
something with design or layout maybe. '
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| What are you currently up
to?
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'We are
rehearsing for a spring tour which will continue in august/september.
We are also preparing the rerelease of the first two albums.They will come out
in digipacksleeve, remastered, with new bonustracks, never before use photos
and artwork etc.
I think they will be very nice really...and the sound will be better than
ever!!. '
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related questions:
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The Beginning
Your first band, name and when did it begun??
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'My first band was called “Erkson Drive Car”..we started in
1967 and were very heavy inluenced by the psychedelic bands of that time like "Grateful
Dead", "Mothers", "Canned Heat "
etc.
Also in that band was Pocke Ohstrom and Johan Gullberg
who both are of course founder members of Trettioariga Kriget too.
Johan has also of course made almost all the album covers
including the new one, “Elden av ar”. '
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| Trettioariga
Kriget:
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- How did you get together?
'One evening early june 1970 we had gathered at the Person
brothers place in Saltsjobaden.
We were having coffe in the kitchen when Pocke suggested that
all of us who were there ought to form a band. So we did..
The Persson brothers of course didn´t play any instruments,
but they became later very close roadies and soundmixer. '
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| The Concerts with
Trettioariga Kriget:
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- First Concert, where/when?
'Friday the 17th of December 1970 at the Youth Center in Saltsjobaden, our
homevillage. '
- Which songs do/did you like performing live most and why?
'"Mina lojen", "Krigssang" and "En kvall hos x "
I never get tired of..'
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from your Concerts?
'One night late 70s we played a show in Copenhagen..
It was a very noisy guy in the audience..shouting in between songs...Very
annoying really...
It turned out that this guy was Iggy Pop, who was rehearsing
in Copenhagen...
After our show he borrowed our equipment and played a couple of songs with his
band...and he did put on a extremely wild and impressive show..smiles..!!'
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| Fredin
Comp:
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- How did you get together?
'After the break up of the band in 1981, Olle and me
wanted to continue to write songs together..
So we formed this project “Fredin Comp” which was based around
our songs, rather than being a conventional band.'
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| The Recordings with
Fredin Comp:
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| 198? Tystlatna
äventyr:
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- In general what do you think about the album?
'I like the album...After Trettioariga Kriget I felt I wanted
to do this thing based more around the songs...I think the sound is very
good..Maybe the production is a little weak here and there.. '
- Favourite Songs(and why)?
'I like "Minne" and "Andra dagar " very much..
I think they are simply very good songs...both lyrically and musically.. '
- Any anecdotes/speciell memories from the recording sessions?
'The album was recorded and mixed by the same guy who recorded and mixed the
“Krigssang”-album, Peter in De Betou!!! '
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| Many Thanks to Stefan
Fredinfor spending time on this interview AND sharing it with
us!
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