The latest release from Peter Bjorn and John is a glimpse inside.
As the calendar year comes to a close, the Swedish pop/rock trio is releasing Endless Play, a short new set of three songs that are the resultant work of a sidelined year. It's also a wonderful way to see inside the machine, as they say.
Peter Bjorn and John began the year with a planned March release of Endless Dream, the band's ninth studio album, an LP intended to anchor a turning point for the band as they concluded their second decade in music. Instead of an anniversary tour across multiple continents, like the rest of us, the members of Peter Bjorn and John were stuck at home with creative energy to burn. Thus we have a few new songs in the form of the Endless Play EP.
What's most striking about this musical triptych is the peek behind the curtain it provides for longtime fans. Each song is the brainchild of a different band member, with each getting its own mixer, and it's fascinating to hear the personalities left on their own. We've come to know Peter Bjorn and John over the last 20 years as a collective unit, but Endless Play allows us to see each artist standing on his own—or at least a snapshot of one point in time.
Endless Play is a fun juxtaposition more than anything else. "Gonggong," the entry from John Eriksson, begins with some "Come Together" propulsion before opening up with some wonderful harmonies. "Gone Gone Gone," from Björn Yttling, is a lovely acoustic sing-along whose disposition belies its subject matter. Peter Morén's "Season of Defiance" opens the EP as a warm, jangly pop/rock song with some Hollies influence.
The disparate parts make clear the band's shared love of melody and their earned experience of serving the song. The restraint is clear throughout even as Peter Bjorn and John also add exciting flourishes to the mix. Even as 2020 was a letdown for us all, Endless Play is time well re-invested.
