WEBVTT 00:00:43.586 --> 00:00:53.110 - my dear friend Lars Emil of the accordion please make some noise for him yeah and we're gonna start 00:00:53.110 --> 00:00:56.158 - out with a song called journeys 00:05:20.514 --> 00:05:28.579 - Festival. How are you doing? What a lovely crowd you are. We thank you so much for that. We are Symbio 00:05:28.579 --> 00:05:36.722 - and we have traveled all the way from the dark, dark Scandinavia, Stockholm, Sweden and we are so happy 00:05:36.722 --> 00:05:44.630 - to be a part of this year's festival. We are actually out on a US tour right now. We are just in the 00:05:44.630 --> 00:05:48.702 - beginning of the tour so we are packed with energy. 00:05:51.554 --> 00:06:00.790 - And on my right hand side, we have my dear friend and colleague. He's been sitting there beside me for 00:06:00.790 --> 00:06:09.937 - 15 years, playing his hurdy-gurdy and electronics, and his name is Johannes Kivorkian-Hellman. Please 00:06:09.937 --> 00:06:18.366 - give him some applause. Thank you. Thank you so much. And I have already introduced him once. 00:06:19.138 --> 00:06:28.063 - but he's a man who needs two presentations, at least. He doesn't demand it, but he needs it. So on my 00:06:28.063 --> 00:06:36.812 - left-hand side, from the dark forests of Western Sweden, of the small county called Värmland, here 00:06:36.812 --> 00:06:44.862 - is Lars-Emil Löjeberg on the accordion stompbox and electronics. And as Lars said, we have 00:06:45.090 --> 00:06:51.718 - just started our US tour in the beginning of this week, and I can assure you, everywhere where we came, 00:06:51.718 --> 00:06:58.091 - they asked us, so where are you going for the weekend? And we said, we're going to Bloomington. And 00:06:58.091 --> 00:07:04.465 - all of them said, oh, so you're going to Bloomington. Everyone is so nice there. So nice people are 00:07:04.465 --> 00:07:08.926 - living in Bloomington, and we felt like, okay, yeah, cool. Let's see. 00:07:09.378 --> 00:07:15.628 - And it was really true. We have been so well taken care of here during our day here. So it's really 00:07:15.628 --> 00:07:22.190 - lovely to be here and we're looking forward to share more of our music with you this evening. We started 00:07:22.190 --> 00:07:28.440 - out with a song called Journeys and we would like to continue with another song which we have named 00:07:28.440 --> 00:07:29.502 - Arrows of Light. 00:16:50.434 --> 00:16:57.556 - Thank you so much, everyone. That was Arrows of Light, followed by the song Amnesty. And now we would 00:16:57.556 --> 00:17:04.608 - like to play some music for you, which came to us around two years ago. And both myself and Lars, in 00:17:04.608 --> 00:17:11.451 - that time, two years ago, we were in the moment where a lot of things in our lives were changing. 00:17:11.451 --> 00:17:18.782 - You know, sometimes you are at a place in life when you feel that some things are starting to come to an 00:17:20.354 --> 00:17:27.569 - we have to start to find some new directions or paths in life. Start something new and end something 00:17:27.569 --> 00:17:34.855 - old. And when you're in that moment, maybe it's easy to get a bit afraid because usually we know what 00:17:34.855 --> 00:17:42.356 - we have, but we don't always know what we're going to get. And I don't know about you, but in my weakest 00:17:42.356 --> 00:17:49.214 - moment, sometimes I doubt, am I going to get any more great things in this life or was this it? 00:17:51.234 --> 00:17:57.922 - But when we are in that moment, let's remember that maybe the very, very best things that will happen 00:17:57.922 --> 00:18:04.545 - to us in our lives, they didn't happen to us yet. So they are still waiting for us. So if we dare to 00:18:04.545 --> 00:18:11.496 - take a new direction and start to walk on this new path, soon these new possibilities in life will appear 00:18:11.496 --> 00:18:18.184 - to us. So this song is called Parting Road, and it's about those crossroads that we encounter in life 00:18:18.184 --> 00:18:19.102 - now and then. 00:18:19.586 --> 00:18:26.261 - And this song is especially for the people who are in that situation right now. Maybe there is someone 00:18:26.261 --> 00:18:32.741 - in here who is in that moment right now, thinking of ending something and daring to take a new road 00:18:32.741 --> 00:18:34.750 - in life. This is Parting Road. 00:23:57.954 --> 00:24:11.607 - west part of Sweden, quite close to Norway, in one of those, you know, small little villages that are 00:24:11.607 --> 00:24:25.394 - almost forgotten. And I sometimes think of the silence that only happens in places where no one lives. 00:24:25.394 --> 00:24:27.134 - For example, 00:24:27.362 --> 00:24:36.719 - When I go back to my little home village to visit my mom and dad, I take the car and I do the six hour 00:24:36.719 --> 00:24:46.076 - drive from Stockholm, crossing the country and then ending up in the deep, deep forest in my hometown. 00:24:46.076 --> 00:24:55.070 - And then when I come there, usually it's in the middle of the night, I stop my car and I step out. 00:25:02.690 --> 00:25:14.267 - When it's wintertime and dark I usually gaze up to the sky and then I see all those thousands and thousands 00:25:14.267 --> 00:25:24.986 - of small shiny little dots looking down on me and it's almost like they are singing sometimes. This 00:25:24.986 --> 00:25:30.238 - song is called Starlit Skies and it's about that 00:25:32.834 --> 00:25:33.182 - Thanks. 00:35:12.386 --> 00:35:19.843 - That was Starlit Skies, followed by the title track of our second album, Rising. And Starlit Skies, 00:35:19.843 --> 00:35:27.449 - fun fact for you, it was actually released as a single today. So it was premiere after single release 00:35:27.449 --> 00:35:35.354 - for that song. And if you liked it, please, you are so welcome to have a listen to it again later tonight 00:35:35.354 --> 00:35:40.574 - after you have listened to all the other fantastic concerts going on. 00:35:43.010 --> 00:35:50.092 - I suppose you have all been sitting and wondering how is it like to live and to tour together with a 00:35:50.092 --> 00:35:57.174 - hurdy-gurdy player? Of course! Doesn't everyone think that thought now and then? Or is it maybe just 00:35:57.174 --> 00:36:04.326 - me? Do we have any hurdy-gurdy players in the audience? Shout if you play hurdy-gurdy! Yes! Lovely to 00:36:04.326 --> 00:36:11.478 - be represented, finally! We had to go all the way to America to find hurdy-gurdy players. I'm not all 00:36:11.478 --> 00:36:12.670 - alone after all. 00:36:13.890 --> 00:36:20.655 - That's great. That's great. Well, I can tell you a secret. When you are traveling together with a hurdy-gurdy 00:36:20.655 --> 00:36:27.236 - player, or if you meet a person who plays it, you will notice one thing. And that's that every hurdy-gurdy 00:36:27.236 --> 00:36:33.509 - player always carries around their hurdy-gurdy first aid kit. And it looks something like this. Yeah, 00:36:33.509 --> 00:36:39.659 - something like this. Everyone has it. And what does this hurdy-gurdy kit contain? Well, it contains 00:36:39.659 --> 00:36:40.766 - all the necessary 00:36:40.866 --> 00:36:47.302 - tools and equipment to maintain this crazy instrument. So he's got the pliers. Of course. I've got many 00:36:47.302 --> 00:36:53.490 - of them. Yeah, cutting the strings off when he is like angry of the instrument, yeah. And then he's 00:36:53.490 --> 00:36:59.802 - got the famous Allen key, the big one. The golden one. Yeah, the Allen key, exactly. He got the Allen 00:36:59.802 --> 00:37:06.052 - key. It was included when he bought the Hürdigördi because he bought it in IKEA in Sweden. So then 00:37:06.052 --> 00:37:09.950 - you could, you know, screw it together as well. We are Swedes. 00:37:10.594 --> 00:37:18.323 - So that's what and then the most important part is the little secret bottle. And what does the hurdy-gurdy 00:37:18.323 --> 00:37:25.691 - player has in his secret little bottle? Yeah, it's 98% alcohol for the hurdy-gurdy, but sometimes for 00:37:25.691 --> 00:37:32.914 - the player as well. Well, when I have the early mornings, but but you know, I need this alcohol for 00:37:32.914 --> 00:37:39.198 - the rosin to be able to get sound in the hurdy-gurdy and in Sweden where we come from. 00:37:39.522 --> 00:37:46.919 - Many things are forbidden because, you know, the authorities, they are really aware of us not starting 00:37:46.919 --> 00:37:54.101 - bad behaviors. So you cannot buy 98% alcohol drinks. You know, it's impossible. You can't find that 00:37:54.101 --> 00:38:01.570 - in Sweden. So where do you find this? Well, there is a country called Germany. You know about it? Yeah. 00:38:01.570 --> 00:38:09.182 - And we have been to Germany. It's really great to be touring there because besides nice people, they sell 00:38:09.346 --> 00:38:15.709 - 98% alcohol for one dollar, one liter. And it's really easy to find it. So if you're there, you can 00:38:15.709 --> 00:38:22.263 - buy a lot or you shall buy a lot. And when I'm there, I buy many bottles. I go home to Sweden and then 00:38:22.263 --> 00:38:28.626 - I am king on the black market of alcohol for hurdy-gurdy players in the whole north of Europe. It's 00:38:28.626 --> 00:38:35.116 - a great feeling. It's a great feeling. I mean, it's for a good cause also. Yeah. Everyone has to have 00:38:35.116 --> 00:38:37.534 - some sort of side business, you know. 00:38:38.338 --> 00:38:45.769 - Well, now you know a little bit how it is to travel around with the hurdy-gurdy player. I have come 00:38:45.769 --> 00:38:53.200 - to love this fascinating instrument. I was amazed by it from the first time I heard it 15 years ago 00:38:53.200 --> 00:39:01.151 - when I saw it in the hands of this player. And now, Johannes, it's time to show the audience the different 00:39:01.151 --> 00:39:05.758 - colors of the hurdy-gurdy. Well, mister, play your heart out. 00:39:12.546 --> 00:39:13.150 - I'm ready 00:42:14.434 --> 00:42:15.262 - He'll make it. 00:46:07.746 --> 00:46:15.448 - Thank you so much everyone. So time goes fast when you have fun and we had quite fun today, Lars, right? 00:46:15.448 --> 00:46:22.930 - Yes, lovely evening. So that means we will play our last song for you for this concert. But there is, 00:46:22.930 --> 00:46:30.412 - we will actually play a little bit more on this festival as well. Yes. At 9 p.m. tonight in the first 00:46:30.412 --> 00:46:36.574 - church. So if you want to come there, welcome. One of the shortest distances we had 00:46:36.930 --> 00:46:43.715 - to travel between two gigs yeah so excellent and that was good because we flew 5 a.m. from Atlanta Georgia 00:46:43.715 --> 00:46:50.184 - this morning so it was really nice to just transport ourselves easy before when we play the last song 00:46:50.184 --> 00:46:56.589 - we want to give a warm thanks to Lotus Festival for inviting us yeah what a nice place and it's like 00:46:56.589 --> 00:47:02.994 - they said Bloomington is a lovely place with lovely people and speaking about lovely people the crew 00:47:02.994 --> 00:47:05.150 - at this stage were wonderful Jack 00:47:05.250 --> 00:47:28.717 - The last song of this concert has a Swedish name. Do we have any Swedish-speaking people in the audience? 00:47:28.717 --> 00:47:32.702 - Yes! Scandinavia! 00:47:33.218 --> 00:47:41.029 - Well, but for the other people, I will tell that this is a title in Swedish. And the song is called 00:47:41.029 --> 00:47:49.152 - Genom Mörker. And in English, it means going through darkness. And it's about this wonderful life that 00:47:49.152 --> 00:47:56.963 - we are given. It's amazing to be alive. We get to experience so many beautiful, fascinating things. 00:47:56.963 --> 00:48:00.478 - And I mean, especially an evening like this, 00:48:00.642 --> 00:48:09.235 - being among friends, music lovers. I mean, that's wonderful, right? Yeah, exactly. But as all of you 00:48:09.235 --> 00:48:18.254 - know, sometimes life can be a bit more difficult. And maybe so difficult that we sometimes find ourselves 00:48:18.254 --> 00:48:27.102 - at a place where we feel that everything that we can see with our eyes looks like darkness to the eyes. 00:48:28.546 --> 00:48:36.949 - And we really want to find that energy and determination to get back up on our feet and feel this happiness 00:48:36.949 --> 00:48:44.730 - and energy and gratefulness for being alive. But we are not sure if we can make it because it feels 00:48:44.730 --> 00:48:52.511 - so far away. So what can we do when we are down there in the darkness? One person said once that if 00:48:52.511 --> 00:48:55.934 - you're going through hell, just keep going. 00:48:57.794 --> 00:49:04.033 - So that's quite true. We have to face the darkness and go through it. And that can be really hard and 00:49:04.033 --> 00:49:10.272 - painful to do all alone. But if you do it together with someone hand in hand, it will become a little 00:49:10.272 --> 00:49:16.511 - bit more easy. So we would like to finish off this evening by going through the darkness hand in hand 00:49:16.511 --> 00:49:22.811 - together with all of you, because that's going to make everything so simple and actually quite joyful, 00:49:22.811 --> 00:49:27.582 - I think. So it will be six minutes of darkness. And when we are through that, 00:49:27.970 --> 00:49:34.019 - and you need to hang in there. But when we are through that, there will be a lot of light and happiness 00:49:34.019 --> 00:49:39.836 - there. So, dear friends, thank you so much for being with us this night. We are Symbio from Sweden, 00:49:39.836 --> 00:49:41.406 - and this is Genom Mörker. 00:56:44.674 --> 00:56:50.334 - Have a wonderful festival and see you during the weekend. Enjoy and thanks for your warm generosity.