Lundin, Hans (Kaipa) (April 2002)

The Past Is Present For Kaipa - An Interview With Hans Lundin

Gone and long forgotten ... destiny seemed so gloomy for great outfits of the past like Renaissance and Kaipa, bands who played prominent roles in the prog community but who were unable to remain intact and see the light of the new millennium ... or so we thought, as both of them are now reborn and apparently in good shape. Is it really time to leave the "notes from the past" on the table, and open a new chapter in the history of the progressive world? We asked Hans Lundin...

II: Hi Hans. So first of all I would like to know if you think Kaipa will play some live shows in the near future?

Hans Lundin: Well, you should know that the band on the record is not a regular one. It was made up strictly for the content of the album, because the collaboration is mainly between Roine [Stolt] and me, the other musicians are guests. They are all working in other bands, like Roine, so ... so far we have not discussed playing live. We should wait and see the reaction about the new album before we make up our minds.

II: But do you think we are living a sort of prog rebirth nowadays or not?

HL: I think that a sort of rebirth already happened in the nineties ... for example, Roine started up the Flower Kings, and he made a lot of records. So, in my opinion, the movement never really stopped ... it slowed down considerably in the eighties, but now it is fully reborn.

II: The last time Kaipa were together it was 1982. How many things have changed, in your mind, from that period until today?

HL: Like I already said, in the eighties this type of music was completely out of fashion. You know, when we worked in the seventies, prog music compelled always the search for new challenges, the avoidance of repeating oneself, but in the eighties this was not the case. Unfortunately I must confess that even today I see a lot of "progressive" bands doing only a reproduction of that period of music, and this is not what the term progressive really means anyway.

II: Hans, I've read that the new material was written by yourself, does this mean that the other members just came in and played or there was some input aside from you?

HL: Yes, Roine is contributing a lot to the songs, especially with his great guitar playing. We worked for so many years together that the chemistry was so solid in the studio, we just knew it would came out something good. The others ... well, in a way they just came in and played, but at the same time they brought a lot of new colours and dimensions to the music that I wrote.

[The version of Kaipa that recorded their latest album includes, aside from Lundin and Stolt, Morgan Agren (drums), Patrik Lundström (Ritual, lead vocals), Jonas Reingold (Flower Kings, bass), Aleena Lundin (vocals) and Tove Thörn Lundin (vocals) -ed.]

II: Now, I think that it's a bit strange that Sweden has produced such a huge number of great prog bands in the last few years ... why do you think this happens?

HL: Well, I think that maybe it is this melancholic feeling that comes from our landscape, deep feelings that we transform into music. Another aspect probably is related to the fact that music is taught from an early age. In Sweden a lot of children start to play when they are infants, and that's very important. I started playing piano when I was 6 years old. I was in a special piano school. However, at that time, I was playing classical music and I was bored to death, [chuckles]. Fortunately, beside these classical lessons I also started playing my favorite pop songs by ear so, in the end, I still enjoyed playing music, [laughs]. The first bands that influenced me were Steppenwolf, Procol Harum ... I was really inspired by their way of using the Hammond organ. Another band that really caught my interest was called Ekseption, and they were from Holland. They really showed me what could be done with classical and folk music together.

II: OK, but on the other hand there are also a lot of black metal groups, so maybe there's a common influence that affects all the genres, or not?

HL: Well, actually I don't know a lot about these other bands you mention to me, but I think that maybe progressive music is the music style more inspired by the land and the weather we have.

II: OK. Talking about the album, I hear small references to the music of Flower Kings, or maybe it's a reverse thing, as Roine Stolt created Flower Kings after the first demise of Kaipa?

HL: I think that Flower Kings are Roine's way to carry on the tradition he started with Kaipa. On the other hand, I returned to my roots in writing this album, and if you consider that my roots and Roine's roots are basically the same, here is the solution to the mystery. You know, me and Roine have so much in common that it's more or less a natural thing for us playing this kind of music.

II: Almost all the songs go into the direction of prog rock meets folk music, yet "Morganism" follows a different path. Can you explain more about this song?

HL: Yes ... most of the songs were arranged very strictly in the beginning, but I wanted one song to leave open possibilities ... so that's why "Morganism" wasn't arranged completely, there were parts we left completely open for improvisation. I think that it was great thing to do for the overall balance of the album.

II: Yeah, I agree. You know, this song recalls to me something of Chicago, too...

HL: Well, using a brass section gave you the idea ... the fact is that Roine suggested to me that I ask some old friends of mine to come to the studio and record something ... let me tell you that Roine had a great proposal in mind.

II: Now Hans, can you tell me something about the vocalists of the songs too, 'cause I think that both Patrik Lundström and Aleena Lundin possess great voices...

HL: Yes. To be honest I didn't know Patrik until we began working on the record. He is singing in another Swedish band, Ritual, and I really think he is a great singer. I was very pleased with his work. The other one is actually two ... one of them is Aleena, and then there is Tove Thörn Lundin. Aleena is a singer I didn't know either, but she is a friend that Patrik brought in on the project. She, too, did a great job singing in the album. Instead, talking about Tove Thorn, you should know that she is my daughter...

II: Oh, but I thought you were all related, 'cause you possess the same surname...

HL: No, only Tove is my daughter. You know, there's one song called "In The Space Of A Twinkle," and she is just reading the words of the song. I thought it was a good idea to let her do this.

II: Hans, in your biography you state that Notes From The Past is your 6th album, but two of the past ones have never been published. Do you think you'll release them someday or not?

HL: Ah, I don't know, because we did the three first albums, and they were all characterized by this type of progressive you still find on Notes From The Past. Instead the other two albums were recorded in 1979 and 1982, and in that period I sensed that the interest for this type of music was decreasing rapidly, and we also wanted to do other things. So these two albums are not really prog rock albums, even if I think they are still good albums ... mmh, at the moment I don't know if we will release them. A lot depends on the interest of the audience.

II: Can you tell me what's the first thing you do when you plan to record a new prog song?

HL: I think ... basically most often the first thing I do is find a great melody, a melody to rely on, and then I've got a lot of ideas coming from the inside ... honestly I really don't know where they all come from, [chuckles] ... maybe the experiences I captured all of my life ... they just appear, and it's my duty to take care of them and do something.

II: Are there other music styles you would like to explore in the future?

HL: I think that progressive is inspired by a lot of other types of music, so maybe I'll slowly employ almost everything that's out there. However I don't think I'll cover it all, because I don't like electronic elements, for example. I love real instruments! You know, a genre that started in the seventies and that still inspires me a lot was/is fusion, with Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return To Forever ... so maybe I'll outline some other elements of this type of music in the future.

II: Hans, do you wish to say something else to the audience?

HL: To all the fans of progressive music ... I really hope that this new Kaipa album will take you on an interesting and pleasant musical journey, with flavours from the Swedish landscape.

II: OK, thank you Hans. Hope to see your band here one day playing live!

HL: Thank you Igor. I hope it, too. Bye.

Discography:
Kaipa (1975)
Inget Nytt Under Solen (1978)
Solo (1978)
Händer (1980)
Nattdjustid (1982)
Notes From The Past (2002)
Keyholder (2003)
Mindrevolution (2005)
The Decca Years 1975-1978 (2005)
Angling Feelings (2007)
In The Wake Of Evolution (2010)
Vittjar (2012)
Sattyg (2014)