The Rains
The Rains. Nostalgia, failing love, wine, catchy tunes and a lot of reverb. A new star born in the skies of Swedish indie rock, for the misty-eyed girls and boys to dance the night away and fall in love to? Doubtless. Upbeat guitar-driven melancholy and euphoria in the vein of The Cure, Broder Daniel, Tiger Lou, perhaps even Kent; lovely, don’t you think?
The history of The Rains is actually a rather long and winding one. For a few years, they tried out various genres under various names, most of them pretty angry and somewhat pretentious; those who were there remember so let’s leave that. What does matter is the core duo of Mikael Magnusson and Joel Alexandersson, who’ve been making music together since childhood, taking somewhere in 2007 their new name.
Around 2007 they started working on their four-tracked EP, comfortably named ”I don’t want this, this good life, maybe it’s about time, you’ve spilt more than wine”; recording it at the Old Pharmacy.
Mikael and Joel also spent quite some time trying to find a suitable rhythm section They found Jakob Strand, as the drummer and Kristoffer Lidengren, the band’s second guitarist. With the line-up almost completed, and the EP finally released, the next two years consisted of a series of appearances at both large and small venues. Some songs were played on local radio stations and the band soon got a reputation of always doing everything with great feeling and always very seriously.
2010 the recording of “I Love The Sound Of You Talking Me Out Of Trouble” began with a thought to once and for all come to terms with the feelings of people and places that have long been a big part of their lives. The album has a bolder approach in which the lyrics are in focus and the music waiting to explode. With the autumn approaching, the bittersweet truth emerges in songs like “I Wish That Everyone Was Wrong” and “Relationships Of Rust And Hope”.
The music has evolved greatly, with its hints of muted synths waiting to break out behind the gentle guitar loops. It sounds grandiose, with its exciting contrasts and color-rich shades that leave few senses untouched. This is a album that not only demonstrate the expressive lyricism The Rains possess, but also how warm tones may appear out of something before so regretful. The music may, in its most remarkable simplicity be described as atmospheric, nuanced and very well thought out.
This is also the album where The Rains once and for all come to terms with the past and the emotions that have long been preserved. Now set free for your sake and for them to be erased.
The Rains