Differnet

A Swedish trio that started with the new millennium, Differnet had at their start two performers: Tomas Bodén, general mastermind and arranger with keyboards as his main instrument, and Peter Jackson -- nothing to do with the noted New Zealand film director -- on guitar, flute, and vocals. As with many groups of the century's first decade, Differnet's approach was an exploration of the ground between restrained, low-key indie rock and electronic approaches derived from Warp Records and similarly experimental techno labels and performers. Also in common with other bands, Differnet initially eschewed seeking a formal record company in favor of self-released CD-Rs and MP3 releases via their website, www.differnet.tk. With the assistance of some other friends, the group began their recorded life with Kabelsalat in 2001, followed later that year with We Are Difference, How Are You?, a further collection of edited improvisations, which included the help of Niclas Wiklund on santoor, a Persian/Indian instrument. Style Telegraphique appeared in the summer of 2002, followed later that year by a key EP, Affections, a mostly solo affair by Bodén that also featured the vocals of Anna-Karin Brus, who ended up becoming the third permanent member of the band. The first full effort featuring all three, In Advance of the Broken Sound appeared the following year. At this point the band had been receiving greater attention beyond their self-release program thanks to an appearance on the Friendly People Making Noise compilation on the Swedish label Friendly Noise -- this was followed by a full album on that label, Come on and Bring Back the Brjokén Sounds of Yore, toward the end of 2003. A compilation and overview of the band's various self-released work of the previous two years, it became the trio's first release to earn wider attention outside of their homeland.