Neutral - s/t

Grapefruit do another sweep of Sweden's recent past with these latest reissues of Neutral's second and third albums. In the accelerated interior history of contemporary Gothenburg, 2016 seems like a long time ago now and much - in and outside of music - has happened since. Neutral's self-titled record from that period was not their first (that would be 2014's Grå Våg Gamlestaden), but it still retains the shock of the new, and when taken as a series with that debut and När, looks in hindsight like a seachange moment. Originally released on Omlott, the now defunct label run from the Musiclovers shop in GTB, Neutral appeared to look to its shared past for its future. Both members of Neutral had previous, Dan Johansson through Sewer Election, and Sofie Birch playing alongside him in Källarbarnen, and their work as a duo certainly spoke to their industrial/experimental pedigree. And yet, they were also heading someone else. A snake that sheds it's skin is the same snake, but born anew... The austere cover of S/T suggests a no wave influence, borrowing an icy sensuality and austerity reflected in the atonal guitars, white noise hiss and Birch's spoken-word intonations, very much in the same camp as Rosa Yemen and Mars, and equally sexy. What extends Neutral beyond genre exercise here is how poised and controlled these compositions are even when they feel totally free, hinting towards anti-formalism, yet holding on to a defined centre. Take the astonishing 6-minute opener of Andas as an example, a kraut-y chug that flirts with ascending into a dissonant fog, but instead grinds itself into a stunted tape collage void of arressted development. It's in here, and elsewhere across the record, where you can hear the first murmurings of the next generation, of Monokultur and Treasury of Puppies, the near-future yet to come. Hot on its heals following a US tour, När showed there was even more to give. Though presented as a mini-album, it might represent their biggest leap forward, guitars now almost entirely absent, replaced with a more obviously cold wave aesthetic, albeit one that feels designed for the dark shadows of the mind than the usual Euro club dungeon. Discreet's Gothenburg is written in these songs, overflowing as they are with avant instincts, obscure references and DIY obstinance. Neutral's contribution to the new sensibilities of the current underground are manifold, but really, i think, that's just a product of them being so determindely themselves. Now that's something to aspire to. Both very limited pressings and replete with very smart artwork (hence the price).