Spotlight: Makthaverskan

Welcome to a Weekly5 experiment. Weekly5 is based on a simple formula: five hand-picked new songs, briefly introduced. And personally, I still quite like the format, even after all these years.

But it has its weaknesses. It lacks depth; it leaves no room to engage more deeply with an artist’s entire body of work. In the tradition of music journalism, that’s actually what reviews are for, though naturally the latest release takes centre stage.

“Weekly5 Spotlight” is an endeavour to bridge the gap between individual song recommendations, traditional album reviews and in-depth analysis of an artist’s body of work. It still features five selected songs, but from a single artist. It’s not a chart, but an attempt to present their work across a broader spectrum.

I haven’t exactly made things easy for myself with this first instalment. Because today we’re delving into the work of Makthaverskan, a Swedish post-punk band from Gothenburg whose sound combines the straightforward formulae of post-punk with the rich complexity of shoegaze, a light touch of dream pop and the urgent heaviness of gothic rock.

Led by the unmistakable voice of Maja Milner, Makthaverskan have been honing their art since 2008. The band’s latest album, Glass and Bones, was released on 3 April this year.
Their sound constantly swings between fast-paced accessibility and dark, dissonant complexity. These are songs brimming with intensity; whilst they may not always be immediately catchy, they leave an all the more lasting impression.

So, let’s put a spotlight on the music of Makthaverskan.

Glass and Bones

This track from the band’s new album of the same name strikes a balance between post-punk-esque heaviness and dreamy dream-pop melodies, and marks a perfect entrance into Makthaverskan’s soundscape. The jangly guitars bring to mind The Cure, whilst Milner’s vocal flourishes are reminiscent of Siouxsie and the Banshees. Despite these historic references, Glass and Bones shines with a crisp production without completely removing a certain underground grit.

För Allting

In För Allting, the quartet crafts an exquisite blend of ballad and ambient shoegaze soundscape. Profoundly melancholic, this opulent composition nevertheless offers cathartic solace. Here, the musicians cast aside the conventions of the classic pop song; no recognisable verses and choruses disturb their sonic journey. Thus, För Allting simply flows and drifts along, delightingly immersing the listener in the pain of parting.

Comfort

It’s when Makthaverskan really step on the gas that they’re maybe at their most compelling. Comfort, from their third album III released in 2017, is a whirlwind of unadulterated post-punk thrill. Against this straightforward, high-octane backdrop, wistful, yearning, and pleading vocals create an emotional contrast. The sound clatters and roars; Comfort possesses a raw directness that gets the pulse racing.

Vi Var Människor Från Början

Much like Comfort, Vi Var Människor Från Början (transl. We were people from the start) again picks up a fast pace, only much rawer, more uncompromising, even more aggressive. In this track from their debut album, released in 2009, you can still hear the punk in the post-punk. There is no melancholy to soften this outburst. Maja Milner screams, croaks and groans in glorious ecstasy and anger.

No Mercy

It starts off temptingly innocent and catchy, like a typical indie rock song, but then they really turn it up a notch. No Mercy is rousing and yet somehow peculiar, with that wonderfully wonky melody à la The Libertines played by the guitar, which I’m growing increasingly fond of. Despite the somehow upbeat atmosphere, No Mercy is anything but light-hearted; rather, it’s an angry manifesto, a brutal reckoning: “Fuck you for fucking me when I was seventeen, you knew it all the time, you never loved me, you wanted to own me, your time will come, my friend!”

If you like Makthaverskan and want to support them, buy their music on Bandcamp.