The Riven
High-flying, Power Rock quintet The Riven, hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, draws their musical influences from a wide array of Rock and Hard Rock genres. Combining lyrical themes from everyday life to fantasy-inspired, with a late 70’s and early 80’s hard rock sound, the group has forged their own path and done things their way.
The group was founded by members Charlotta Ekebergh, Max Ternebring and Arnau Diaz in London in 2016. The drummer Olof Axegärd, was added to the band shortly after its formation
and the gang wrote and recorded an EP in the fall of 2016. It was recorded at Buffalo Studios London, and at the helm was JB Pillon, who also did the mixing of the EP. ‘Blackbird’ consisted of 5 songs and was released in April 2017. In support of the EP, the band toured the UK and Finland. The ‘Blackbird’ EP was somewhere in the borderland of Stoner Rock, Power Rock and traditional Hard Rock. The artwork was drawn by the much-celebrated artist Maarten Donders.
In the middle of 2017, the band decided to move to Stockholm, Sweden, which was two of the member’s hometowns. After the relocation, writing sessions for the upcoming debut were done on the road and in Stockholm. The self-titled album ‘The Riven’, recorded at Cuervo Studios in Madrid, would in the end, comprise of 9 songs and clock in at just above 40 minutes. For this album, the band made use of much more fantasy-oriented lyrical themes such as ‘The Serpent’ and ‘Fortune Teller’, whilst still being true to some of their more bluesy inspirations in ‘I Remember’. After having finished writing the 1st album, playing a few shows in Sweden and finally recording the 1st album, the band was signed by the Swedish record label ‘The Sign’ for a two-record deal. The self-titled album was released in March 2019 and got some excellent reviews. Everything from the smaller blogs to the more significant traditional music magazines, such as Sweden Rock magazine, favoured the album and the band. The buzz around the group did not go unnoticed, and a heavy tour schedule was drawn up. The touring schedule and the hard life of a band on its way up, took its toll on the group. Founding member Olof Axegärd decided to step down from the drum stool at the end of the hectic year 2019. The band found themselves playing with the talented drummer, Johan ‘Jussi’ Kalla.
At this point, the band had come to develop a more driving sound, much like early NWOBHM. They wanted to record something fast with the new drummer, and the 7-inch single ‘Windbreaker/Moving on’ was written and recorded at Studio Lur in Stockholm. The 7-inch was released on The Sign Records in May 2020. At this point, the band had started to elaborate on how to further enhance their sound. Guitar slinger and wild child Joakim Sandegård was a friend of the band and had been featured in some of the band’s videos and even on their shows. He was invited to the group as an extension, but it turned out that the twin guitar sound was just the thing that they had been looking for, so he too was made a permanent member of the band.
‘Peace and Conflict’, recorded in a log cabin in southern Sweden, is a representation of a band that has done a lot of growing up, it is a much more mature album. The lyrical themes have gone on to more existential questions on songs such as ‘Death’ and ‘On Top of Evil’. The twin lead sound was explored on songs like ‘On Time’ and ‘Sorceress of the Sky’, while a hymn to a rock band on the road was found on ‘Fly Free’. Shortly after the release of ‘Peace and Conflict’, the band was to undergo yet another line-up change. Johan ‘Jussi’ Kalla had to step down from the drum stool, and the band found themselves in yet another search for a drummer. This was conducted shortly after the release of the second album and just about a few weeks of yet another tour. Drummer
Elias Jonsson found his way to the band’s heart and joined in the early days of 2023. The rest of the year would continue in the same way as it started, with lots of touring and lots of writing.
Towards the end of 2023, the band decided to record their 3rd album. Writing was done in Stockholm, but the band was at that time invited to record at the highly prestigious studio Fascination Street in Örebro. This was because the band was selected for an international studio residency as part of the Swedish national arts association, Konstnärsnämnden. The band lived for a few weeks in the studio and were able to finish the album ‘Visions of Tomorrow’.
‘Visions of Tomorrow’ is a more co-merged album than any of the groups‘ previous releases. It features a more ‘complete’ song writing. The songs might be shorter than earlier, but they are more action-packed and nuanced. ‘Visions of Tomorrow’ showcases a band that is frustrated about how the world is run, who’s in charge and what is about to happen to the rest of us. It showcases a band that can handle their instruments and is willing to explore and go on musical journeys. The band members themselves claim that “It is a fine example of rock n roll being played at its best – it’s honest, it’s fast-paced, i’s calling you, and it will make you shake your fist and bang your head – all while thinking about where we are and where we are going”
After recording the 3rd album, the band signed to German label ‘Dying Victim’. Sara Barajas drew the cover . The Riven is poised to take over the big stages all over Europe right here right now!
