Wrong Side of the Room

Album Review

Fans of Kristoffer Ragnstam will be happy to find that he hasn't lost his wry wit or self-effacing songwriting on his second full album, but there's even more power and drive to his songs circa 2008 compared to his debut. The opener, "Stop on Top," definitely pulls out all the stops; it's heavily guitar-oriented and distorted, displaying the chops of drummer Per Eklund. The instrumentation and sound don't vary widely from the debut, although this is a smaller group, basically just Ragnstam with partners Emil Carlsson and drummer Eklund. The sound is as kaleidoscopic as ever, with musical ideas exploding out of nearly every song. Although Ragnstam's production is tight and driving nearly all the time, there are still occasional light and nimble touches, enriched with bells or timpani or handclaps. His vocals are also full of energy, but he's in solid form even when he's working all-out. Listeners may think he's gotten bitter when he delivers certain lines on "2008" ("Nothing bores me more than an overrated poet with an acoustic guitar and way too much to say"), but finding out that it's full of New Year's resolutions makes for an intriguing turn of face, directing the criticism inwardly. Really, the only thing it lacks compared to the debut is the irresistible one-two punch of "Breakfast by the Mattress" and "Man Overboard."