Kräldjursanstalten -

Kräldjursanstalten was a Swedish avant-rock band that released the 1980 EP Nu är det allvar!! and the 1981 album Voodoo Boogie on Urspår.

Members: Michael Maksymenko (drums, vocals, effects), Stefan Agaton (guitar, vocals), Thomas Agaton (bass, vocals)

Inception

Kräldjursanstalten (The Reptile Institute) formed in Stockholm when drummer Michael Maksymenko teamed with guitarist Stefan Agaton and his twin brother, bassist Thomas Agaton.

Nu Är Det Allvar!!!

Kräldjursanstalten released the 12-inch, 45 RPM record Nu Är Det Allvar!!! [Now It’s Serious!!!] in 1980 on Urspår. The sleeve also presents the title Som Ett Fyllo I Ett Minfält [Like a Drunk in a Minefield], while the spine uses Nu Är Det Allvar!!!. The trio comprised guitarist-vocalist Stefan Agaton, bassist-vocalist Thomas Agaton, and drummer-vocalist Michael Maksymenko. The alternate title is documented on later notes and is also translated elsewhere as “like a drunk in a mine field.”

A1. “Det Löser Sig Atematiskt” [It Will Work Itself Out Atematically / Non-Thematically] (2:47)
A2. “Fet Och Feg” [Fat and Cowardly] (3:25)

B1. “Maratonloppet” [The Marathon Race] (0:22)
B2. “Ta Över” [Take Over] (3:17)
B3. “Tjugo Koppar Kaffe” [Twenty Cups of Coffee] (0:44)

Kräldjursanstalten recorded the release in Stockholm on January 3 and 4, 1980 with Bernt Klingberg and Tomas Gabrielsson. The original issue included a printed inner sleeve with lyrics.

Voodoo Boogie

Kräldjursanstalten released their singular album, Voodoo Boogie, in 1981 on Urspår. They retain the trio format with drummer-singer Michael Maksymenko and the Agaton twins.

Voodoo Boogie runs on a hard, clipped pace and keeps the pressure high with jagged guitar lines, forceful bass figures, sudden drum breaks, and vocals that lattle, bark, or tear across the top of the arrangements. Several pieces pull blues-based shapes into unstable motion: the bass settles into a blunt pattern, the drums cut across it with sharp fills, and the guitar breaks into fast, angular runs.

The shorter tracks compress that tension into brief shocks, while the longer pieces let the parts separate, overlap, and collide over a wider span. “Voodooboogie” pushes forward with a rough, overloaded surface, and “Ibland om vardagarna” closes in a tightly wound passage of rapid rhythmic accents and fractured guitar attack. The playing stays exact even at its most unruly, and that friction gives the album its charge.

A1. “Hon Fångade Min Blick” [She Caught My Eye] (5:37)
A2. “Breda Räfflade Gummidäck” [Wide Treaded Rubber Tires] (4:08)
A3. “Voodooboogie” [Voodoo Boogie] (5:14)
A4. “Att Ta Det Kallt” [To Take It Coolly / To Play It Cool] (4:08)

B1. “Det Enda Raka?” [The Only Straight Thing? / The Only Direct Way?] (1:09)
B2. “Minst Värst” [Least Bad] (7:04)
B3. “Ibland Om Vardagarna” [Sometimes on Weekdays] (4:19)
B4. “Den Stora Coupe-Finalen” [The Great Coupe Final] (6:46)

Kräldjursanstalten recorded the album from January 7 to 19, 1981 near the Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant with Tomas Gabrielsson. The original issue carried front artwork by Kerstin Karlsson, back-cover photography by Karlsson, and a green lyric insert.