Skaburbian Collective: Reggae Music From Sweden

The Skaburbian Collective is a reggae, rock outfit that calls Sweden their home base.  Yes, I know it sounds a little strange to think that the sunny vibes and reggae music is coming from Sweden but the Skaburbian Collective is much more than just a reggae band.

The Skaburbian Collective is a reggae rock band from Sweden.

I had the opportunity to  ask the guys from Skaburbian Collective a few questions to find out how they became a band and what pushed them into this genre of music.  One thing you’ll notice is that their musical backgrounds cross a lot of genres that have nothing to to with reggae yet somehow when they blend their sounds together reggae rock is what comes out.

Skaburbian Collective

Q: Tell us a little about Skaburbian Collective. Where are you from?

SC: We all come from the city of Luleå located in northern Sweden, close to the polar circle. Our base has always been situated in the the suburban village of Sunderbyn and it still is. The band is made up of Kribbe Börlin – Vocals and Guitar, Jonas Andersson – Vocals and percussion, Fredrik Andersson – Drums, Johan Tieva – Bass Guitar, Johan Börlin – Guitar.

Q: How did you meet?

SC: Me (Johan, bass) and Fred (drums) met in school long before we had any plans on making music together. Fred and Jonas (Vocals and Percussion) are brothers and Jonas told us he had a friend from high school that was an awesome singer: Christopher (Vocals and guitar). We had written a few songs and started playing them at Jonas and Fred’s parent’s house. That was where we started the band, at their porch, with acoustic guitars and a case of beer in the sunset. We later tried some different band members but it wasn’t until we got Christopher’s younger brother Johan(Guitar) to the rehearsal studio that we felt that we were complete.

Skaburbian Collective members Kribb and Jonas.

Q: How long have you been making music together?

SC:We have been playing together as a band since 2003 but we’ve jammed together long before that.

Q: You have released several albums. How has your sound changed from the earlier days until now?

SC: It was really rough in the beginning, not that much thought and I guess you could hear that we were not that skilled musicians. The production and sound quality has also improved over the years and so has the song writing.

Q: When most people think about Sweden I’m sure the first thought that comes to mind isn’t reggae music. What is it about reggae that drew you as musicians to that style of music?

SC: There’s actually nothing special about Reggae, we could play any music style but that is just the we sound. To us, its just music.

Skaburbian Collective on stage.

Q: Many reggae artists have a social or political message to deliver with their music, is there a message that Skaburbian Collective is trying to get out?

SC: I guess that is peace, love and understanding(and a hint of enjoying life).

Q: Who is one musician or songwriter that Skaburbian Collective would like to collaborate with and why?

SC: Thats a hard question. We don’t have a single main musical influence since we all come from different musical backgrounds but the one thing we have in common in the band is that our influences don’t come from reggae artists. Me and Fred are into metal/punk and classic rock, Johan loves blues music and Christopher takes his influences from folk music and singer/songwriters while Jonas is more into world music. I guess that is what makes the Skaburbian sound, rock/punk/folk musicians playing in a reggae rhythm.

Q: Do you have a new album in the works?

SC: We are currently working on a studio album and hopefully it will sound a bit different than our previous. We are working with producer Patrik Heikenpieti (Mando Diao) and this will be our first album that is not produced by ourselves. The first single drops soon and the album will be available in late fall/winter.

Skaburbian Collective draws a crowd.

Q: Is Skaburbian Collective going out on the road soon?

SC: We are doing some summer shows but only in Sweden this time. European and U.S tour will hopefully be booked after our album is done.

The Skaburbian Collective is on the road in Sweden and you can check out the schedule on their website.  Hopefully they will make it to the States soon so we can catch a show.

For now you can keep up with the band on their facebook, twitter, instagram and on their website.

About Dave Abrams

Dave has been eating, living, and breathing music since before he could talk. This makes Dave perfect for his role here at Guitar News Daily.