Sagor & Swing--Orgelfarger (H.5)

“This CD is striking for its charming naivete and insouciance. Sagor & Swing is Ulf Moller on drums and Eric Malmberg on a good old organ with a Leslie cabinet, the exact same one that Bo Hansson used to record his LP Lord of the Rings. The 11 short instrumental pieces all feature a delicate melody, light accompaniment from Malmberg's left hand, and soft drumming, usually with padded mallets. It recalls Procol Harum, Hansson of course, but also Alain Goraguer's soundtrack for La Planete Sauvage, the music of '70s Italian groups like Celeste and Goblin (at their softest), and the post-rock stylings of the Boxhead Ensemble. Each piece has been carefully written and arranged, kept to its bare essentials to let the melody hypnotize the listener. Orgelfarger is as intrusive as can be, the pieces flow effortlessly, and upon first listen you might be tempted to dismiss the whole thing as lacking substance. After the second or third spin, the melodies stick and the bucolic mood becomes addictive. It may seem like a cliche, but this music holds something of the essence of Scandinavia's landscape. Furthermore, it is timeless, exempt of any element that could attach it to a period — it could have been recorded in the '60s, the '70s, the '80s, or in 2031. If you like the sound of a Hammond organ and want to hear something pleasant, charming, and easy without being syrupy, then go for it.”
Rated 4/5, Francois Couture, All music Guide

“Swedish Hapna is a real special label, as it can easy release an album with only field recordings by Japanese artist Toshiya Tsunoda or another one with the rarefied improvisations by veterans such as Rudiger Carl and Sven-Ake Johansson. Or even its most recent CD's by fellow-contrymen Sagor & Swing and Sheriff.
First we find the gentle, simple and deeply interesting psychedelia of "Orgelfarger", sounds from another time outlined by Eric Malmberg organ and moog and punctuated by Ulf Moller discreet percussion interventions, authentic pastorales shaped on the example of the legendary swedish duo Hansson & Karlsson (maybe somebody remembers their musical transposition of "The Lord of the Rings" by Tolkien, as well as the seminal role of Bo Hansson for the development of Nordic jazz-rock at the end of 70's). And it's just Malberg, an old Hansson pupil and author of all the music on this record, as well as a skilful comic strip writer (his serial dedicated to Hansson & Karlsson and titled "H & K in outer space" ran in the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter at the end of 2000), to guide the inspiration of Sagor & Swing into meanders of enchanted agrestic melodies inspired by autochthonous folklore and paintings of John Bauer, with the countryside of Dalarna as a right background and counter-attraction to panic west coast acidity of compatriot Bjorn Olsson (cf. "Instrumental Music… To Submerge In… Or Disappear Through").”
Rated 9/10, Nicola Catalano, Blow up