Kent -- Du & Jag Döden

10/10

Du & Jag Döden is the quintessential Kent album. Most of the five albums Kent released before Du & Jag Döden are great, but when a Kent fan thinks of the "Kent" sound, they invariably imagine how Kent sounds on this record. Unfortunately, describing how a band sounds is one of the most abstract tasks on the planet. I can't exactly onomatopoeia five instruments playing together for four minutes. Kent are a rock band. They have a pop-leaning, but a bit of a darker tone to balance it. Their music is driving, and consequently great for driving. The bass has a dominant presence in the music, as the bassist is instrumental in writing the band's songs. The singer has a pretty unique voice, both strong and weak at the same time. He sings primarily in Swedish (Silly for me to be breaking Kent's sound down this many reviews in). However, this is the most important aspect of Kent's music: they sound really cool. Of all their albums, Du & Jag Döden sounds arguably the coolest. Rather idiosyncratically, here is visual proof. Kent's guitarist took the band's $50,000 video budget, flew with a cameraman to Vegas, bet the entire $50,000 on black, won, drove off in a limo. This looks as cool as it sounds, and the band gave all the winnings (not spent on the limo and champagne) to a charity that helps treat childhood cancer.

I love you, Kent.

2005 RCA/Sony BMG
1. 400 slag (400 Blows) 4:58
2. Du är ånga (You Are Steam) 3:51
3. Den döda vinkeln (The Blind Spot) 4:19
4. Du var min armé (You Were My Army) 3:30
5. Palace & Main 4:05
6. Järnspöken (Iron Ghosts) 3:48
7. Klåparen (The Bungler) 5:25
8. Max 500 3:35
9. Romeo återvänder ensam (Romeo Returns Alone) 4:03
10. Rosor & palmblad (Roses & Palm Leaves) 4:05
11. Mannen i den vita hatten (16 år senare) (The Man in the White Hat (16 Years Later)) 6:38