Drakkar Sauna
OriginLawrence, Kansas
GenresCountry folk
Freak folk
Years active2003 (2003)–2015 (2015)
LabelsMarriage Records
Third Man Records
MembersWallace Cochran
Jeff Stolz

Drakkar Sauna was a Lawrence, Kansas-based musical duo active from 2003 to 2015. Their members were Jeff Stolz and Wallace Cochran.[1] Their music incorporated elements of country, bluegrass, and folk.[2]

History

Drakkar Sauna formed when Stolz and Cochran worked together on the soundtrack to Blood Feud, a B-movie that Cochran directed. They subsequently began collaborating on additional music after completing the soundtrack.[3] They released their debut album, Rover, in 2004. Its music reflected such disparate influences as Mandy Patankin and the musical Guys and Dolls.[4] It was followed by 2005's Drakkansasauna and 2006's Jabraham Lincoln.[5][6] In 2008, they released War and Tornadoes, an album of nine Louvin Brothers covers.[7] Stolz and Cochran have identified the Louvin Brothers' music as a major influence on their own vocal styles.[3][8] In 2009, the band released 20009, a space travel-themed album that originated in The Moon For Its Citizens, a book that Cochran had previously written.[6] They broke up in 2015, because Cochran was moving to Maui, Hawaii. Their final performance took place on August 7, 2015.[1] In 2017, the band briefly reunited to release the album Very Much Cologne.[9]

Style

Critics who reviewed Drakkar Sauna's music consistently noted the duo's unusual style and subject matter. For instance, Paste described their songs as "...very idiosyncratic and complicated",[10] and Jason Harper wrote that the duo "...have perfected a merry strangeness while singing rattly, circus-wagon folk songs about bears, spears, wolf tits and obscure historical figures such as would-have-been president-napper John Surratt".[6] Nikki Miller-Rose described their style as "kinda country folk bluegrass and also old-timey" and as "uniquely quirky". She also referred to the duo as "They Might Be Giants meets Alison Krauss".[2] Joshua Klein of Pitchfork wrote that Drakkar Sauna "...embrace the rich traditions of American folk, bluegrass, and country, yet do it as outsiders, sticking to the backroads and playing up the Old Weird America eccentricities with a subversive wink."[11]

Discography

Studio albums

  • Rover (Marriage, 2004)
  • Drakkansasauna (Marriage, 2005)
  • Jabraham Lincoln (Marriage, 2006)
  • Wars and Tornadoes (Marriage, 2008)
  • 20009 (Marriage, 2009)
  • Very Much Cologne (Bandcamp, 2017)

Singles

References

  1. 1 2 Gallagher, Natalie (2015-08-04). "Drakkar Sauna decides to retire". Kansas City Pitch. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  2. 1 2 Miller-Rose, Nikki (2009-07-27). "Drakkar Sauna do the Entry, and do weddings". City Pages. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  3. 1 2 Cashill, Flannery (2008-05-15). "Drakkar Sauna pays tribute to troubled men". Kansas City Pitch. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  4. ↑ Gintowt, Richard (2004-08-06). "Drakkar Sauna basks in sticky musical perfume". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  5. ↑ Kaufmann, Gina (2005-08-18). "Tambourine Men". Kansas City Pitch. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  6. 1 2 3 Harper, Jason (2009-11-05). "Drakkar Sauna". Kansas City Pitch. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  7. ↑ Fiander, Matthew (2008-06-01). "Drakkar Sauna: War and Tornadoes". PopMatters. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  8. ↑ Sue, Edelberg (2007-03-13). "Music Notes: Drakkar Sauna". News and Record. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  9. ↑ Sizer, Simon (2017-07-05). "Terrible Noise: The return of Drakkar Sauna". Yakima Herald-Republic. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  10. ↑ "Nuclear Medicine - Drakkar Sauna". Paste. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
  11. ↑ Klein, Joshua (2008-08-06). "Drakkar Sauna: Wars and Tornadoes Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
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