Beardfish
Sleeping in Traffic: Part Two

4.0
excellent

Review

by i guess i'll just do it all again differently the next time. USER (1 Reviews)
December 4th, 2020 | 27 replies

Release Date: 2008 | Tracklist

Review Summary: "The rhythm's got me by the balls, so to say."

Progressive rock, for the most part, is a pretty earnest genre. In tackling grand lyrical themes, 20-minute-runtime operatic epics, and complex instrumental wankery, prog artists tend to lend a very serious tone to their music; this tendency applies even more so to neo-progressive revival acts, intent upon matching the scope of majesty accomplished by the great masters of old. In doing so, however, they often sacrifice a quality endemic to much simpler genres: fun. Sure, they could be having all the fun in the world playing, recording, and performing said music, but more often than not this aspect does not translate as readily to the listener. A notable exception to this trend is the now-defunct Swedish neo-progressive group Beardfish and their 2008 album "Sleeping in Traffic: Part Two."

The album works as a follow-up to Beardfish’s previous effort, aptly named "Sleeping in Traffic: Part One." Both records follow the joint concept of a man’s journey during a 24-hour period; the former goes through his day, the latter through his night. Here, Beardfish takes the listener across the staples of night life: hooking up in bar bathrooms, drug-fueled benders, one-night stands, and wild dreams of crossing the globe. The fairly simple rock track South of the Border even has the band toying with the racy, Zappa-esque subject matter of a man who unsuspectingly sleeps with a drag queen.

Throughout the entirety of the record, Beardfish maintains a undeniably fun and bouncy tone. Frontman and musical mastermind Rikard Sjöblom’s impassioned vocals take center stage but never overshadow the skillful performance of his bandmates. An abundance of head-bobbing grooves and unsuspecting, amusing moments has the listener with a smile on their lips for a great portion of the runtime. The title track - at a whopping 35 minutes in length, and a worthy experience unto itself - sees the band combining gentle acoustic passages, Southern rock riffs, hasty Western symphony, short bouts of disco, sea shanties, and an accordion-driven ballad. The band plays with laudable cohesion and pacing and sound like they’re enjoying the hell out of it.

Flaws are certainly present, most notably the album length. A couple of the tracks leading up to the climactic title track can feel somewhat sluggish in comparison. More than a few moments have the band leaning a bit too hard on its prog influences as well. However, these imperfections hardly impede the listener’s enjoyment throughout the experience. Beardfish have more well realized albums, sure, but their clever fusion of the liveliness and lack of pretension of rock n’ roll with the ambition and complexity of progressive rock makes "Sleeping in Traffic: Part Two" a worthwhile slice of fun for any fan of the genre.

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