review by daniel

The music on “Snorungarnas Symfoni” (Symphony of the Brats) is composed by Gregory Allan FitzPatrick and performed by Samla with guest musicians on sax and trumpet. If you were unaware of the fact that Samla didn't compose the music themselves you would hardly suspect anything though. The "cartoonish" atmospheres and up tempo dance rhythms that you expect from Samla are still present (but were are the silly voices?), as is the more serious stuff. The brass instruments fit perfectly with the sound, especially in the playful and up tempo parts. Samla even ventures briefly into the symphonic field of prog with some beautiful and sublime piano parts scattered around the album. A strange coincident (?) worth mentioning is that the intro to the third track clearly resembles the soundtrack to Super Mario Bros (the underground areas of the first NES version, I believe). I haven't had the chance to verify it by playing SMB again, but anyhow it is a highlight of the record. You will certainly like this one if you like early Samla Mammas Manna, even though it is not quite as good as “Klossa Knapitatet”. I must say I miss the playful improvisations and silly voices that were a trademark of that record.