Search - Harv :: Must

If you think the fiddle is unhip, then you haven't heard the Swedish duo Harv. Magnus Stinnerbom of Hedningarna and Daniel Sandén-Warg offer both traditional and contemporary music that's often meditative but also sprightly, as on "Olov," which cuts to the very heart of Swedish music. Backed up by percussion and guitar, the two show that this sound can also appeal to the children of the rave generation. It is lovely to chill out with or fill your head with polskas, waltzes, or polses. That two people can create such a joyous noise is marvelous in itself; that they can make traditional music seem so alive, as if it were just composed yesterday, is little short of miraculous--even when they trespass on neighboring Norway's turf, as they do on "Svempa." Harv put their own original stamp on this music, turning it into something that while ineffably Nordic, transcends any geographical boundaries. --Chris Nickson