Customer Reviews

Till the Light of Day

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Ranarim create an atmosphere of fun & frolick, of freedom & exploration, of creativity & beauty ... a step back into childhood, when the imagination was alive and active. The music itself is pure and distinct and very very Swedish: along with the guitar and mandolin, the traditional "nykelharpa", receives highest honors. It is also called the "keyed violin" which provides the "other-worldy" charm to this very excellent and purely delightful music. Add to this, the Swedish umlauts and wonderful language and pronunciations of words by the female vocalists: it is truly world-class traditional music comparable and a rival to the more world reknown and highly acclaimed Celtic style. Without the liner notes ... I would be lost just in the lovely sounds of the vocalists and wonderful rhythms and musical stylizations. Very thoughtfully, the liner notes give a brief synopsis of each songs contents; although, I would rather have the words provided *both* in Swedish and with an English translation, then I could follow along and perhaps learn a word or phrase, plus know what I am saying! Who wouldn't want to know more about "Proud Ingrid's" beloved Loman who went to sea, and while he was away, her brother schemes to marry her to the rich Tor, for whom she has no affection, I wonder, what is the ending? I would love to read the verse, about the medieval ballad, in which it is the "fair maiden" who saves her brother --who had been kidnapped by the Black Count and she even defeats 5,000 men!!! Most interesting for me is the song which is described as "early morning music": it is a medley, the last of which includes a rhyme containing the 22 most popular names for a goat. (As a child I had a fascination for goats so I would love to hear the Swedish names & then read them translated to English). This is truly a remarkable folk music collection that is highly enjoyable and an absolute treasure. This CD is an adventure worth exploring ... I also highly recommend the Northside (Nordic) sampler CDs volumes 1 and 2. They were my introduction to the pleasures of "Nordic music". Erika Borsos (erikab93)

I'm new to Swedish music, traditional or otherwise. I first heard Ranarim on a Northside sampler and I just had to get this CD. At first I thought, oh, folk music, how nice. But the more I've listened to it the more I hear and what I hear is marvellous! Simple catchy tunes. And then surprising rhythms, incredible unexpected harmonies, and above all beautiful, beautiful voices and rolicking instrumentation. I'm hooked! Think I'll spend this winter with the Swedes!

Having studied a little bit of Scandanavian folk music, I have found it to often be quite alien to American ears. Ranarim, however, whom I had the good fortune to see perform live, is very accessible. Yet they by no means abandon that distinctive Swedish flavor, which in my opinion is ripe with the some of the most ancient, haunting melodies and stirring, rich harmonies I have ever heard. If you want to get interested in Swedish folk music, this CD would be a very fine beginning, although it stands alone quite well, and I'm sure it would be enjoyable to all listeners. It's full of rousing dance melodies and chilling ballads of medieval heroes, and it is well executed by a very skilled group of musicians. If you like music, then get this CD, because on it I find everything that is to be desired in the entire art.

I'm a classical musician and pretty snooty about music. The genre isn't important, but the quality - of the music itself and of the performance - is. I'm absolutely crazy about this CD. These four musicians are wonderfully talented, and the music is really interesting: harmonically, melodically and rhythmically. I can hardly wait to see what they do next.