MEDIA AND PRESS

New Raucous Project from the Eskobar Duo

by Jesper Almén

When indie pop icons Frederik Zäll and Jocke Brunnberg from Eskobar unleash their creativity in the side project ‘The River,’ raucousness and raw energy take center stage. With The River, they’ve left behind Eskobar’s polished sound, opting for a more unpredictable and unrefined approach.

PTS, or Post-Tour Syndrome, is a fictional but widespread condition among rock musicians—a restlessness that emerges when they’ve been away from the stage for too long, making them eager to play again.

Frederik Zäll and Jocke Brunnberg started feeling this PTS some time ago. They are two-thirds of the indie pop band Eskobar, which has enjoyed a successful career since their debut 24 years ago, including world tours, performances at Melodifestivalen, and eight full-length albums under their belt.

In recent years, however, the band’s activities have been on hold. A new single, “She’s Coming Home,” was released in February this year, but their latest album dates back to 2020, and it’s been even longer since the band played live. Although both Frederik and Jocke have kept busy in various ways, they both felt this spring that they wanted to write new music and, most importantly, play live. But Eskobar’s third member, singer Daniel Bellqvist, wasn’t as eager.

“Daniel is in a phase right now where he doesn’t want to play live or tour, so Jocke and I started brainstorming about doing something together,” says Frederik.

“I had already started recording a bit with Skuggboxare here in Staffan’s studio, so it made sense for us to be here,” says Jocke.

The studio is Ljudibacken, centrally located in Åkersberga, owned and operated by musician Staffan Atling, an old childhood friend and bandmate of the guys. It’s become a natural hangout and adult playground where the new project has taken shape through sound and recording experimentation, allowing Jocke’s drumming and various overdubs to come together.

Raucous and Grandiose

Frederik handles most of the songwriting, both music and lyrics, and also takes on vocals—something he’s not used to doing with Eskobar. But there are many differences compared to the main band.

“It’s been a fun challenge to sound completely different. In Eskobar, we’re known for always sounding well-produced and polished. Here, it’s much more raucous and rough, but at the same time quite grandiose,” says Frederik.

“Lots of minor chords, and I get to really pound on the drums,” adds Jocke.

The music has come together spontaneously, with the focus on joy and creativity, and the fun of playing and creating with their best friends.

The River and the Storm

But where does the band name come from—is it perhaps a nod to Bruce Springsteen and his album of the same name? No, not at all.

“It just sounds cool, really. A bit of a country feel, even though the music isn’t like that at all. We have a track called ‘The River Runs’ on the album, and the album itself is titled ‘…And the Storm,’” says Frederik.

The album is almost finished. They might release it independently or catch the interest of a larger label; the guys have many connections after all their years in the music industry. A possible release date is set for early next year.

“Above all, we want to release a physical product, preferably vinyl. And, of course, get out and play live. The big dream is to have a proper festival summer,” says Jocke.

“Since it’s just the two of us, it won’t be a huge project to take on tour. It just feels so joyful, that we can go out and have fun and play whatever we want without any pressure,” Frederik concludes.

Link to the original article in Swedish>>