Grift Interview
”Kinnenkulle consists of no less than six different types of rock. Urberg is the lowest layer and then follows Sandstone, Alum shale, Limestone, Clay shale and finally Trapp (Diabase). There are similar mountains with the same composition but Kinnekulle is one of few with a preserved top layer. Usually it has been eroded by the forces of weather”.
- Erik Gärdefors
Text and photos:
Hinsides Magazine
July 2022
The top of Kinnekulle
We meet in Hällekis, a small community located between the towns of Mariestad and Lidköping in Västergötland, whose history has been shaped by this unusual mountain. Many traces of past times still remain here, more or less preserved, which makes the beautiful surroundings interesting also from the perspective of industrial history. Add to this that the area has been portrayed recurrently through the musical explorations of Grift and the reason behind our visit should be unnecessary to explain. The plan is to visit some of the nearby places of particular importance and the day will be spent by literally walking in the footsteps of it´s originator; Erik Gärdefors. A hike in three acts that will prove to open up some of the layers that lies hidden beneath the surface.
After a short drive, we park the car and get ready for the first part of our ramble that will take us to the southeastern shore of Lake Vänern. At this point we are located on the west side of Kinnekulle and on our way down to the water, Erik explains that the part of the shore we are heading to can be seen in the last scenes from the video for the song ”The great silence”.
- I thought we could start here and then take a trip up the mountain.
We walk along a path that takes us into a dense mixed forest and suddenly the inland sea opens up. The last bit down to the shore is quite steep. Erik points out where the filmed material was recorded and on the horizon we can spot a full-rigger that slowly moves out of our field of vision. The camera is picked up and the conversation slips into film and directors. Erik mentions the Hungarian film director Béla Tarr.
- He works with very long takes, and of course always in black and white.
Lake Vänern
The walk continues along the rounded stones on the shore and then up into the forest again where we cross a stone wall. In the old days it marked the border between two estates. The rock types that previously shaped life on the farms and mills in the area have been mined and utilized in a number of different ways and Erik has a lot of knowledge to share when it comes to how these activities have affected the biosphere in the surroundings. Soon we arrive at an old quarry where stone taken from the mountain previously has been processed to be transported further out into the world along various water ways.
- There are still some old men here who know the craft, but today there is no large-scale handling of the mountain’s valuable raw material left.
The mill was closed down in 1949, but the buildings remain in all their glory. We linger a bit just to take in the place and the ongoing conversation has ended up in today’s information society and how this evolution in many ways can be compared to the industrial revolution. A revolution which in its time created similar tensions in society as those we can see today and whose remnants now is watching us as we go by further on our stroll. The exchange of thoughts connected to the ongoing development of technology continues to bounce between us as we walk along the same route that all the stone taken from the mountain once were transported. Soon we end up in the forest again and the sun is beaming down on us from a clear blue sky. The promised rain is delayed and the conversation continues to revolve around society’s rapid development and how it has affected the countryside and the people who live there. How centralization is controlled by economic interests and how different individuals, regions and countries have had to adapt to new conditions.
- My father, for example, remembers life without electricity and when his uncle told him that in the future it would be enough to press a button if you needed light!
The beautiful weather still greet us as we proceed towards the starting point of this first leg of our jaunt and we note that much has changed in our time as well. That the youth of today are growing up in a completely digitized world that did not exist in the same way when we grew up.
Back in car, we aim at Österplana church and its heath. Erik tells how the pandemic extended the process of releasing music on vinyl and that the new EP ”Vilsna Andars Utmark”, recorded during the late winter of 2021, originally was supposed to be available on the tour that Erik completed earlier this year. After a period without live performances Erik felt that he did not care if there were only eight people allowed in the audience.
- I wanted to do something anyway, and that’s when I started developing a pared down acoustic set completely without any amps or PA. I posted a message on social media that said that I wanted to visit places I hadn’t been before. Places outside the major cities.
Soon Erik had received several interesting proposals which together resulted in a tour around the Swedish countryside. A smaller tour where Erik, among other things, got to perform in a blast furnace and in a monastery ruin on Gotland right in the middle of the pandemic. Something that, of course, was greatly appreciated by the few who got to witness Grift under these special conditions. The concept was then taken further down Europe earlier this year. It thus became another solo tour which again resulted in many interesting meetings and experiences. A good example of that is when Erik ended up far out in the Czech countryside where he got to experience performing for a group of children.
- It happened completely spontaneously when these kids were playing outside the church where I was going to play. Someone asked if they too could sit in the audience. It was my first time performing in front of almost only children and I didn’t really know what to expect, but it was very moving and beautiful. Someone fell asleep, another got bored and a third was completely into the music. Children are very honest in their reactions.
In front of the church, Erik shows an old building that now functions as a shelter for those who are passing by and needs a roof over their heads. The door is always unlocked and when we go in, Erik tells that an old pedal organ used to stand here. The same instrument that he plays on in the video for ”Svältorna”. The dimly lit interior suits perfectly to stage Grift’s music and it is easy to understand why this shelter was not only used to house lost hikers.
Outside the Pilgrim shelter
Österplana Church
Back at the parking lot, it’s about time to eat something and we decide the next stop to be a restaurant located a little bit further up the mountain. In order to replenish our energy and look at the view. When we reach the plateau we notice the expected change of weather and later while enjoying our lunch the landscape below us disappears under dark clouds.
When lunchtime is over we go back to the car and change gear to get ready for the last distance that will take us further up the mountain. Halfway up, Erik shows an overgrown passage that leads us to a wind shelter. Another place that can be seen in one of Grift’s videos. The location is rarely visited and Erik has not only used this place to shoot film.
- I recorded some songs live here as well. Music that my label Nordvis then released on cassette in a limited edition.
The hidden wind shelter
The forest protects us and the camera from the rain while we use the opportunity to capture the moment in some photos. When we get out of the forest and onto an open meadow, the rain pours down and it becomes difficult to stay dry. Soon we reach the top of Kinnekulle and yet another shelter where we continue to talk about both this and that. Like the importance of being surrounded by people who understand what it means to engage in creative processes.
Being shown around the places that has inspired Erik and Grift feels like an honor, and that the turning point of our excursion in Grift’s footsteps takes place right here at the top of Kinnekulle while a dense fog rises from the ground feels nothing but a worthy end to our expedition.
You’ve just read the mere part of an interview available as a whole in the printed version of Hinsides Magazine. Order your copy here:
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