#anders holmquist

[kitsunetsuki]

Anders Holmquist - Vogue Paris (Dec. 1970)

[bea-lele-carmen]

[digitalfountains]

Photography by Anders Holmquist

[equatorjournal]

The free people, 1969. Photo by Anders Holmquist. "The Free People is a photo essay about a new generation of young people and the quality of openness and sharing that permeates their life. It is a book about their music, their work, their mobility, what they read and what they buy, their styles, about why they are free people and how they live. Much has been made of the Woodstock Music Festival. This is not a book about that festival; it is a book about the people who went there." From "The free people" by Peter Marin. https://www.instagram.com/p/CqTYlURNsA8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[simple-bird]

The free people, 1969. Photo by Anders Holmquist.

"The Free People is a photo essay about a new generation of young people and the quality of openness and sharing that permeates their life."

[elipticherries]

Anders Holmquist

[quindirecords]

Testbild! - Bed Stilt [QUI014]

Songs recorded in Malmö 2005-2006, with additional overdubs in 2023 and 2024.

Cover art - Amanda de Frumerie Cover design – Juliana De Nicola Mastering - Tomas Bodén

Matching breezy, Bossa nova-tinged sophistication with softly spiralling psychedelia, Testbild! arrive in the Quindi lounge as though they've always been there. On their 12th album, Bed Stilt, the Swedish collective cast their attention back to the earlier days of their 25-year trip through sweetly mysterious pop-not-pop rendered in warm tones and shot through with surrealism.

It's tricky to get a precise fix on the story and structure of Testbild! The project was spearheaded by Petter Herbertsson in his hometown of Malmö in the late 90s, although the story on their website credits the inspiration and source material to a chance meeting and unpublished manuscript from a retiring scientist. The collective's evolution since then is a tangled web of facts and fiction spun by a revolving cast of collaborators including Siri af Burén, Katja Ekman, Rikard Heberling, Douglas Holmquist, Mattias Nihlén and Petter Samuelsson. Along the way, their music has touched on chamber pop, post-punk and modern jazz with the elaborate harmonies and catchy songwriting charm of the Canterbury scene.

The tracks which make up Bed Stilt were in fact track recorded in Malmö back in the mid- 00s, lying in wait for the right opportunity to be brought to light with some delicate overdubs and finishing flourishes in the here and now. The core musicians working on the record were Herbertsson and Douglas Holmquist on a similarly expansive list of vocals, guitars, bass, synths and keys, Siri af Burén on lead vocals and Mattias Nihlén on synths and additional mixing. Meanwhile Tomas Bodén — better known as Civilistjavel — lent some additional synth work as well as mastering the record. Musically, Testbild! stay true to their idiosyncratic approach on Bed Stilt with six immaculately rendered sojourns through lilting harmonies and brushed rhythms, feeling nostalgic but beguiling in equal measure. Theirs is a luxurious sound, not least on the opening strains of 'The First New Years Eve,' which purrs to life draped in silky Rhodes and chiming vibes. Behind this comfortable veneer the enigmatic lyrical themes unfurl through Herbertsson, Holmquist and af Burén's vocal harmonies like fractalised puzzles waiting to be solved. The finger-picking delicacy and languid harmonica of 'Streams' strike a pastoral mood neatly countered by the elegant slide into dislocated ambience for the track's final stretch. By contrast, 'And Her Eyes Are Red' surges with a big beat urgency which plays beautifully with the mellow jazziness of the chord sequences, boldly toying with song structure to dart down curious tangents without losing the immediate impulse of a great pop record. Somewhere in this tension between clarity and chaos we can understand the addictive charm of Testbild! — a band steeped in the considerable craft of making accomplished and unconventional music so very easy to sink into. If that doesn't make for a perfect addition to the Quindi catalogue, we don't know what does. 

On these recordings Testbild! were:

Petter Herbertsson - lead and backing vocals, guitars, electric bass, piano, vibraphonette, Fender Rhodes, Roland SH-1000, Mellotron Mikro, Moog Voyager, banjo, ukulele, harmonica, percussion

Douglas Holmquist - lead and backing vocals, guitars, synths, vibraphonette, percussion, drum programming

Siri af Burén - lead vocals

Mattias Nihlén - synths, remix

Guests:

Tomas Bodén - synths Peter Jackson - synths

Thanks: Anders Hansson, Ann Jäderlund, Nic, Marleen Nilsson

Released September 27, 2024

[thegentlemansexcuseme]

Anders Holmquist - Skirt & Tunic by Baccarat (The Telegraph Magazine 1970)

[undergroundrockpress]

The Free People! Photo by Anders Holmquist (1969)

[thecaftanclique]

Anders Holmquist for Vogue Paris, 1971

[kitsunetsuki]

Anders Holmquist - Vogue Paris (Dec. 1970)

[bea-lele-carmen]

[digitalfountains]

Photography by Anders Holmquist

[equatorjournal]

Anders Holmquist, The free people, 1969. "The free people is Swedish photographer Anders Holmquist's documentation of counterculture across America in the late sixties. "Munch has been made of Woodstock Music Festical. This is not a book about that festival; it is a book about the people who went there." https://www.instagram.com/p/CIeDGZkA8L_/?igshid=1pu9atknk6gao

[pcgamesdaily-blog]

Ubisoft Massive's response to criticism of The Division's server infrastruture doesn't exactly impart confidence

[playstationdaily-blog]

Ubisoft Massive's response to criticism of The Division's server infrastruture doesn't exactly impart confidence