The Setting Son
Copenhagen, Capital Region, Denmark | INDIE
Music
Press
Wenn Kopenhagen das neue Mekka der europäischen Hippie-Gemeinde werden sollte, hat man mit THE SETTING SON auf jeden Fall schon einmal die passende musikalische Untermalung vorbereitet. Ein junger schüchterner Mann namens Sebastian Kristiansen ist das musikalische Gehirn und wird durch langjährige Veteranen von THE AIM, THE UNTAMED und BABY WOODROSE unterstützt. Lorenzo Woodrose war auch derjenige, der die Demos zuerst hörte, sich bereit erklärte, die Produktion zu übernehmen, nebenbei den Deal mit Bad Afro in die Wege leitete, und im Gegenzug darf er sich hier am Schlagzeug austoben.
Seiner Begeisterung kann ich nach Genuss der Platte nur zustimmen. In den psychedelischen Weiten der Sechziger Jahre Garage Rock-Kultur angesiedelt, präsentieren THE SETTING SON leicht melancholische Stücke, die auch auf dem Nuggets-Sampler neben den Klassikern eine vertretbare Figur abgegeben hätten. Die hohe Stimme von Sebastian Kristiansen zeigt sich dabei durchaus variabel und bringt die Songs mit leichter Verzerrung und naiv lyrischem Anspruch wie bei "I wanna be your boy" auf den Punkt. Hey, um solche Themen ging es damals fast ausschließlich! Ob die Hippie-Gemeinde allerdings mit den Uptempo-Rockern wie "Running demons" oder "I'm down" etwas anfangen kann, weiß ich nicht, die Flöte in "Desperate soul" wird ihnen aber sicherlich gefallen. - Blueprint-Fanzine
**4/6 stars**
Musik: The Setting Son: »Spring Of Hate«
Af Thomas Søie Hansen
Mandag den 20. april 2009, 22:30
Ind i bilen, i afspilleren med de nye toner fra Sebastian T.W. Kristiansen alias The Setting Son, og så ellers bare ud over stepperne uden endemål med volumenknappen i bund. »Spring Of Hate« er nemlig et allerhulens godt soundtrack til fod på pedal, frihedsfølelse og solbriller. Det er en genoplivning af den farverige, fritsvævende rockmusik, som den blev lavet med kantet lyd på popmelodier og usleben produktion. For anden gang ud af to spores slægtsskabet til kollegerne i Baby Woodrose ganske tydeligt, men der er mere hippie, mere romantik og mindre knytnæve i Kristiansen fra Østerbro i forhold til den hårdtslående trio. Det lyder fint, rigtig fint. Hvem der havde en bil.
http://www.berlingske.dk/article/20090420/musik/704200073/ - Berlingske Tidende (Major Danish newspaper)
**4/6 stars**
Anmeldt af ERIK BARKMAN
GAFFAs anmeldelse:
4 stjerner
Albumdebuter bedømmes ikke kun på kvalitet, men også på potentiale. Samme kredit gives ikke til opfølgere, hvilket er en del af baggrunden for den gamle kliché om ”den svære toer”. Spring Of Hate er et af de lykkelige tilfælde, hvor en fin debuts løfter om noget større opfyldes til punkt og prikke. Talentfulde Sebastian T.W. Kristiansen alias The Setting Son startede musikertilværelsen som ensom kunstner på kvisten, men han har med tiden lært at udnytte potentialet i et stærkt backingband. Spring of Hate er hippie-rock af fuldfed karat – skæg, smuk og sårbar. The Setting Son boltrer sig lystigt i de psykedeliske cannabis-tåger til tonerne af klokkespil, Farfisa-orgel og californisk sommersound. Med en vokal som en skæv Billy Corgan spænder Kristensen bredt – fra Out Of Tunes kitschet-humoristiske kineserier og Depressions løsslupne feststemning til Mama Babys ømt lyriske kærlighedserklæring. De charmerende naive tekster fuldender blot billedet af en dansk ener, der for alvor har fundet sin stemme på Spring Of Hate.
http://www.gaffa.dk/anmeldelse/31614 - Gaffa - Largest music Magazine and website in Denmark
**4/6 stars**
The Setting Son albumdebuterede for halvandet år siden med en håndfuld veldrejede 60’er-psychpoppede sange uden helt at få den fortjente opmærksomhed. Forårets komme i år bebuder også deres anden chance.
Guf Lorenzen (Baby Woodrose) har igen produceret og ageret mentor for projektet, og toeren er da også essentielt mere fra samme skuffe. Men The Setting Son er i mellemtiden koaguleret til et regulært band, nu med tre ud af fem medlemmer hentet fra The Aims oprindelige bemanding, og frontmand Sebastian T. W. Kristiansen er modnet som sangskriver.
Det mærkes med et nummer som ‘Obsession’. Hang til repetition og trummerum erstattes her af klassiske pophooks og redder prisen hjem som den mest catchy sang fra hans hånd til dato. En oplagt sommersingle som fortjener decideret landeplagestatus. ‘Girl of Sorrow’ og ‘Demons in My Head’ er melankolske åndehuller, hvor afslappede twang-toner fra Adam Olssons surfguitar stryger lytteren blidt over ørerne.
Lyrikken er desværre fortsat lovlig todimensionel. Titelnummeret må fremhæves som lidt af en udflugt, der henter inspiration fra rydningen af Ungdomshuset. Man kan faktisk drage direkte paralleller til ‘Chasing Rainbows’ fra Baby Woodroses seneste album af samme navn. Æblet falder ikke langt fra stammen, fristes man til at sige, men udover det luftes lidt for mange af Kristiansens sædvanlige hjerte/smerte-bagateller. Sammen med hans utrænede og kvækkende nasale sangstemme sætter det en stopper for karakterens himmelflugt. Den positive udvikling bør dog ikke gå upåagtet hen, og helheden er absolut også mere end godkendt.
http://www.soundvenue.com/anmeldelser/2009/04/11/the-setting-son--det-forsoemte-foraar
- Soundvenue - Major Danish music magazine and website
(Bad Afro Records)
The Copenhagen based 60’s styled garage, psych rock outfit, the Setting Son are back with their 2nd record. The record was produced by Lorenzo Woodrose, who also played a big role on the debut as well. The record is quite short and to the point, 12 tracks, 36 minutes. The CD starts with the title track and is quite dreamy, trippy and right away you have to adjust to the falsetto vocals of Sebastian. Fool my Heart features a lot of the same signatures of the previous song, with the dreamy, high pitched vocals, garagy drums, and organ. This track is a bit faster though. Soulmate starts with this classic Doors like organ sound and a real 60’s sounding guitar.
Obsession is more garagy with a real 60’s styled tortured guitar solo and this bouncy rhythm. Girl of Sorrow slows things down and the opening lyrics are great, “She got eyes like the ocean and the mouth like a herring”… A nice dreamy song, a bit Doors meets early Pink Floyd feel. Out of tune features a quite special sounding organ sound and has this like 60’s movie soundtrack feeling and is one of the more psychedelic tracks on the album. Creepy Crawlers sounds a lot like a track from the first record. Maybe it is the way that he sings it. Wrong from the Start keeps the pace, fast and the organ lines fluid and a great short organ solo by Heinz. Mama Baby lets the lead guitarist lay down a nice solo. The band does not leave much space for solos in these 2-3 minute tracks but I love the organ on in Depression. It also has really low fi drums and is a more uptempo track. I can see the hippies dancing now.. Demons in my Head features an acoustic guitar and is not so organ dominated and more laid back. The album ends with I lost Control. This starts of slow and spacey and then suddenly shocks you by really going fast. This is a good psych number to end the album and maybe the longest track at just over 4 minutes.
Well, that is Setting Son. If you like their sound you will dig this. There is more variety on this record than the first one but still a lot of it sounds alike. Enjoy, with a spliff, blacklight and the lava light burning bright..
http://www.badafro.dk
http://www.myspace.com/thesettingson
If you dig: The Golden Dawn, The Doors, psychedelic Beach Boys, early Pink Floyd
http://www.lowcut.dk/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=696:the-setting-son-spring-of-hate-bad-afro-records-afrocd036&catid=29:album-reviews&Itemid=54
- Lowcut - Danish music website
**5/7 stars**
Der Dänische Songwriter SEBASTIAN T.W. wurde eher per Zufall vom BABY WOODROSE-Drummer LORENZO entdeckt und an Bad Afro vermittelt. Unterstützt von THE AIM-Gitarrero ADAM OLSSON und THE UNTAMED-Basser MARCO BURRO hat SEBASTIAN nun mit Hilfe von LORENZO WOODROSE sein selbstbetiteltes Debüt aufgenommen. Klanglich wird sich eindeutig an den 60ern orientiert. Psychedelisches Garagen-Gerocke, das locker als TARANTINO-Road-Movie Soundtrack durchgehen würde. LSD-Farben springen durchs Gehirn und bringen das Tanzbein in Aufruhr, wilde Beat-Eskapaden geben sich die Tüte in die Hand. Die DOORS lassen grüßen und verschwinden im Nebel...
http://www.flamingyouth.de/index.php?id=view&cid=&tid=1327&dovote=1&bewertung=7
- Flaming Youth (DE)
Discography
Spring of Hate (Album) - 2009
Soulmate (Single) - 2009
The Setting Son (Album) - 2007
In A Certain Way (7") - 2007
Photos
Bio
In the Spring of 2007, The Danish Government tore down a popular youth house in Copenhagen that had served as an underground venue for music and rendezvous point for varying autonomen and leftist groups since 1982 - inciting violent riots across the city. More than 600 were arrested after turbulent clashes with the police. The riots left a bitter taste in the mouths of Danish youth that grew up with the house, including Sebastian T.W. Kristiansen, who retreated with his band, The Setting Son, to their underground-bunker-converted-practice space and wrote the song "Spring of Hate," the title track of what would become their second full length album of infectious psychedelic pop.
Kristiansen began The Setting Son years ago, recording songs alone in his bedroom on a four track. In 2006, after much persuasion from friends to record a proper album, including Adam Olsson (the Good the Bad), who later joined the Setting Son as guitarist, Kristiansen entered the studio. Their self-titled album was released in early 2007 on cult garage-rock label, Bad Afro, and received rave reviews from the Danish media. Soon after its release Sebastian and The Setting Son were nominated for the Danish music award, Steppeulv in the Category Årets Håb (Hope of the Year). The album made waves while crossing the pond and iTunes in America listed it on their front page under "Albums We Love." As the record gained momentum Sebastian realized he needed to form a permanent band instead of asking friends to play live with him when they could. Olssen was a natural choice for guitar and together they recruited Gregers Boye (Bass), Henrik Malm aka Heinzz (Keys) and Adam Winberg (Drums). Heinz was secretly living in a World War II bunker in the middle of Copenhagen, which quickly became the band's rehearsal space, as well as a general hangout for friends who would drop in and out all day long.
On the heels of the debut album's success and following the riots of 2007, the band began writing the rest of "Spring of Hate." Tracks like "Soulmate" instantly stick in your head as you find yourself singing along out loud to it - even though the guitar line is too high to repeat and the voice is too nasal to emulate. The mix of psychedelia, pop and garage rock, especially considering the political climate from which it was derived, finds "Spring of Hate" reminiscent of '60s counter culture, anti-war escapism; The sentiment resonates well with today's youth who, like the Copenhagen rioters, are just looking for a place to play and only want to get away from the shit for a moment. Through the fuzz, through the noise and the chaos, through the high pitched vocals and away from the rest of the world you will find wildly addictive and hypnotic pop that makes you want to retreat to your underground bunker and hang out with it until the storm clouds blow over.
The Setting Son are currently working on their 3rd album!
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