Exposé Online banner

Exposé Online

Not just outside the box, but denying the existence of boxes.
Covering music from the fringes since 1993.

Reviews

King of Sweden — Interregnum
(Eclipse Music KOS001, 2026, CD / LP / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2026-08-14

Interregnum Cover art

The band Asia is not actually from Asia, Japan wasn’t from Japan, and Texas is actually from Scotland. Bands pick names for a multitude of reasons, or maybe even sometimes for no reason in particular. In the case at hand, the band King of Sweden is not from Sweden, and I am reasonably sure that no one in the band is an actual king. King of Sweden, however, is a really good progressive rock band that builds their sound out of the classic building blocks of prog, but does such a good job of it that they don’t sound retro or nostalgic. In the four tracks on Interregnum, which is their second full-length album, they remind me at times of the French band Atoll, Peter Banks’ Flash, and (for current references) Moon Letters. Given that Yes, Genesis, and Pink Floyd are much more common influences, King of Sweden stands out simply by not sounding like any of them. There’s a side-long epic called “Recursion” clocking in at nearly twenty minutes, plus three shorter tracks in the five to nine minute range. “Movie Night” starts things off with a high-energy riff that reminds me of “Paris c’est fini” off Atoll’s Tertio album, and maybe a touch of Starcastle in the brightness. It’s a blast of fast guitar lines, string synth, aggressive bass, and tight drums with solid vocals. Plus a fun synth solo towards the end. Great tune! “Breath” starts out much quieter with acoustic guitars, but ramps up slowly with lovely organ, bass, and eventually an electric guitar on a countermelody to the vocal line. “Father of Soup” has an odd title, but is another winning track, starting with a fast guitar part in 11/8 that works its way into some really fun rhythmic interplay between guitar, bass, and drums. As for “Recursion,” I’ll just say it earns its length and never loses my interest. Interestingly, it’s not really cobbled together from differing sections, but really develops from the same set of ideas put together in different ways and with different emphasis. Prog fans of the world take note: King of Sweden rules!

Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases

Related artist(s): King of Sweden

More info
http://kingofsweden.bandcamp.com/album/interregnum

 

What's new

These are the most recent changes made to artists, releases, and articles.