Bror Gunnar Jansson - People!

Isn't the bluesman right out in benharperization?
With vocals that have mutated a bit and are no longer hoarse at all, even eyeing Bill Withers ("A Refugee").
With little cries à la Ray Charles ("People!").
With a touch of reggae. Actually soft reggae ("Refuge"). Sometimes close to the rhythm 'n' blues of yesteryear ("At the Diner, Pt. II", "Blood").
With a predominant organ. Adjoining the cocottes of the guitar, the breath of the hi-hat, the stroll of the bass. That's due to the (new) band that accompanies it, called the Escapism. Here, like They Call Me Rico... & The Escape!

But also, still, blues, good blues, to which this brand new forty-year-old had accustomed us: slow and ternary ("At the Penitentiary", "A Beggar"...) Is it not on this ground that he is the best?
However, we are faced with a music that has a soul, this soul supplement completely wanted by the artist, who nevertheless refuses to give in one genre or another. These will depend on the paths and colours he takes, different from one composition to another, from one album to another, surrounding himself with the right musicians. The name that follows Bror Gunnar Jansson on the cover (here "and the Escapism" so) is a clue.

Political and social consideration, on the other hand, remains constant. As in his first albums, whose protagonists, invented, looked like characters in detective stories, our Dantesque Nordic continues to explore the dark side of the human being. The lyrics, very dense, are marked this time by wars – the 1st word pronounced in this record is "Taliban"! – and a strong interest in all those social outcasts in the world: displaced people, refugees, beggars, convicts and... broken hearts ("A Generic Breakup Ballad"). We could almost go from one song to another like pieces of the same life. As if we were dealing with a concept album.

With this new string to his bow, if circumstances were to smile on him, the man from Lerum (near Gothenburg) could very well become a key player internationally. Isn't Ben Harper right out in brorgunnarjanssonization?