Dungen Master

Just like Saturday's Wilderness show, last night at Neumo's was a major sausage fest, this time for the 70's folk-tinged psychedelic rock of Swedish boys Dungen. Not much has changed since we saw the band last fall: they still insist on singing in their native tongue; lead singer Gustav Ejstes continues to remind us of Robert Plant (though his hair's a little shorter now); they again played a relatively brief set (only ten songs), primarily from 2004's highly-acclaimed Ta Det Lungt; the band is still prone to ending their songs with the extended hippie jam; and Ejstes remains in command of an arsenal of instruments, including acoustic and electric guitars, keyboard, organ, flute, and his near-constantly used tambourine.

Though the jamming can be a bit much at times---after all, we ain't no hippie---we were glad to see Dungen again. Gustav Ejstes is always entertaining to watch, since he shakes his tambourine with gusto and puts a lot of energy (not to mention hair-tossing) into his performance. It was also terribly endearing when he pronounced the opening one-man band Tiny Vipers as "Tiny Wipers." Swedish accents are sooooo cute and totally charming, as evidenced by the girl in the crowd who repeatedly requested that Ejstes should "marry [her]" or at least "just touch [her]." Lady, keep your pants on. Other audience members tried out their best Ballard-speak by yelling indecipherable Swedish phrases to the band. Dungen, while gracious, didn't bother to dignify the assuredly butchered Swenska with a formal response. Probably for the best. You don't want to rile up a crowd of lonely fellas.