The Swedish Underground’s Long-Lost Dream: After 20 Years, Grovjobb Rises With a New Album
The progressive Swedish underground of the 1990s was a particularly fecund, if localized, ecosystem, and few groups managed to capture its anachronistic spirit like Grovjobb.
After twenty years spent in the deep freeze of history, the instrumental collective has broken its silence, returning fully formed. Their re-emergence at Psykstämman, which is a pilgrimage for the faithful outside Gothenburg in 2023 was not just a reunion, but a re-ignition of an esoteric circuit, proving the band’s core constituency remains fiercely dedicated to the strange, moss-covered corners of their sonic world.
Now, following that rapturous re-introduction, the true, unexpected event is upon us: a brand new LP, ‘Nallebjörn är död’ (Teddy Bear is Dead), set to land with an air of mischievous finality. Grovjobb’s initial run yielded three coveted artifacts on Garageland Records, praised in the era’s psych journals like Ptolemaic Terrascope for their hypnotic elasticity. These were works that, even then, felt beamed in from a parallel dimension of Nordic psych-prog, where pastoral folk melodies met the disciplined beat of of 70’s German experimental bands.
At the core of Grovjobb’s enduring magic is the visionary work of guitarist and composer Jerry Johansson. A dedicated sitar master, Johansson’s framework remains utterly unique, filtering Scandinavian folk currents through a distinctly Raga-tinted lens. It’s an approach that creates a captivating tension: the warmth of traditional Swedish melody is simultaneously elevated and estranged by the complex tonality and cyclical rhythm of Indian classical music.
Today we are sharing part of the album with the ‘Nallebjörn är död’.
The new work promises a continuity of this idiosyncratic vision. Bassist Jesper Jarold, keyboardists Thomas Nyström (on Fender Rhodes, Piano, and Keyboards), and percussionist Ola Wolfhechel Jensen lock into place with Johansson’s intricate, illuminated compositions, providing the earthy foundation for his sitar’s transcendent spirals and guitar’s luminous calls. The shadows may thicken and the forest may call out, but Grovjobb’s 2025 return promises that their deeply textured, ever-changing timbres are perhaps more vital and compelling than ever. ‘Nallebjörn är död’ is a continuation of the myth, far beyond where the troll mother eternally smiles.
The album is out November 28 2025 via Sound Effect Records.
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