I’ve always described Kent as a cross between Radiohead and Oasis and I meant it.

As the latter two bands have progressed/digressed/etc, so has Kent; the result of which is a collage of sharp and flowing anthems, that are just far too well-produced and Professional to be considered indie.

2005’s Du Och Jag Döden, Kent’s fifth studio album is a rolling, crashing tide of intricate, but sweeping power. This album features galloping drums and lightning-quick guitar strums feathered by sliding solos, as pyramidic songs crash and swell with oceanic rhythm;. Adrenal and neurotic, the storm rolls and bursts with dense orchestration and vocals that I, personally, would endure hell for.

Widely scattered between 3:00 and 6:00 long, the songs keeps an uneven, but perceptive cadence.

Charming post-rock featuring the vocalist as soloist, Joakim’s aching, polished choir-haunt overshadows any trembling drumbeat or caramel horn. Pianos and guitars duel cascadingly, an adaptive, fluid foundation of unsettled melodies and sanguine lyrics.

They’re better than Coldplay, more forceful, more sincere, more comprehensive. They have the experience and means to mold an album guitars, pianos, and a holy voice into such a collection of striking cohesion. This isn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last. God help us if they ever make another English album.

Scandanavianally overlooked, Kent is rarely seen or heard from in America, something which pisses me off to no end. I’d go to Europe to see them, and there are a lot of bands I wouldn’t do that for. Just sayin’.