The Soundtrack of Our Lives – Communion (2008)

The Soundtrack of Our Lives was one of my favourite bands as a young adult. Their live shows were amazing, their rock sound was melodic yet tough and all of the band members were really skilled in their instruments. Communion didn't come out until 2008 when I had already lost my biggest interest towards the band. By that time, more modern indie sounds and especially indie folk had become more interesting than basic rock sounds. Therefore, I never really got that much into this album even if I bought it quite soon after its release. The album cover is the most absurd one I've ever seen. There's a wealthy looking couple in bath robes drinking green smoothies. It looks like a commercial for some beauty salon or a diet product. I don't know exactly what it means, but I'm guessing it's an ironic portrayal of consumerism saying that capitalist society is our communion in the modern age.



Communion was released after Origin, Vol.1. There never were any other volumes for that album, but I don't think that was going to happen. Apparently the band just thought their new material wasn't a logical progression from the volume 1 so they decided to release something else instead. Communion is an extremely long album on two CDs comprising 24 songs. As often is the case, I feel like this is a bit too long to stay focused and therefore some good songs have been drowned by too many songs. There definitely are some absolute jewels on this album, but I always find it too tiresome to listen to the whole album intently from the beginning to the end.

The album starts with a song Babel On that creeps in with strange clinking sounds and sitar noises and grows into a pounding rock anthem. The long wait in the beginning is rewarded with amazingly raw electric guitars. Next up is Universal Stalker which portrays the neo-psychedelia sound of TSOOL and their terrific talent to pace up the tempo throughout a song. Ra 88 is from the rockier side of their repertoire. There are some excellent drum beats and strange buzzing sounds throughout the song. Second Life Replay is a great example of TSOOL's ability to make catchy ballads that grow into massive proportions and melodrama in the end. This is one of my favourite songs on the album. The ending is phenomenal. Thrill Me is a groovier rock song that reminds me of the band's greatest album Behind the Music and also little bit of the Rolling Stones of the 70's. Fly is a peculiar song that actually sounds a lot like a Nick Drake song. The folky start leads to a more high tempo ending. Mensa's Marauders (Did You?) is an excellent garage rock song with a catchy melody that resembles old The Monkees songs. Just a Brother is a great retro song with 70's sounding rock n roll waltz beats. The Fan Who Wasn't There has some amazing horn sequences and a psychedelic melody that reminds me of later Beach Boys albums. Lost Prophets in Vain is the greatest example of the band's hit potential. The melody of this song is very simple and catchy. Lifeline is another amazingly beautiful ballad where Ebbot Lundberg's vocals show their softer side. The album ends with a terrific singalong song The Passover.

I don't think I've ever seen any music videos from this album before. I was able to find the music video for Without Warning, where the UFOs are exploring couples who are dancing around the world in different everyday locations. The band is in space and they play their songs with masks of their own faces. It's just as crazy as you might expect from this band.

The Soundtrack of Our Lives is a fantastic example of the amazing musical talent that comes from Sweden. It's crazy that such a small country has been able to produce so many amazing bands throughout the years. TSOOL is one of my all time favourite Swedish bands.

Listen to the album on Spotify.