Most recognize Jose Gonzalez for his work as a solo artist, but his Swedish band Junip is also worthy of your attention. The story begins in the 1990s in Gothenburg with Gonzalez and Elias Araya, who began collaborating when they were 14 years old in the band Renascence. Later joined by Tobias Winterkorn, the trio completely swapped their hardcore rock sound for the gorgeous, haunting folk style we associate with Junip today. Taking the scraps of songs that Gonzalez presented them, the group improvised drawn-out pieces, then re-recorded the best in DIY fashion on 4-track cassettes. The recordings were released in 2000, but the group never managed to piece together a full-length album until now.
Another five years since the release of the band's Black Refuge EP in 2005, Junip has finally obtained its teenage dream with Fields. Lining its raw but soft sound with haunting melodies, hypnotic psychedelia and Afro-beat inspired rhythms, it's clear that the time it took to piece together the album was well worth it.
Playlist:
| The Slip | Children of December | Eisenhower |
| Belle & Sebastian | I Want the World to Stop | Write about Love |
| The XX | Crystalised | XX |
| Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood | Some Velvet Morning | Nancy & Lee |
| Junip | Always | Recorded Live for the World Cafe |
| Junip | It's Alright | Recorded Live for the World Cafe |
| Junip | Howl | Recorded Live for the World Cafe |
| Junip | In Every Direction | Recorded Live for the World Cafe |
| Richard Thompson | Haul Me Up | Dream Attic |
| Nick Lowe | Half A Boy and Half a Man | Basher: The Best of Nick Lowe |
| Spoon | Written in Reverse | Transference |
| Johnny Flynn | Kentucky Pill | Been Listening |
| Counting Crows | A Long December | Recovering the Satellites |
| Paul Simon | Getting Ready for Christ | So Beautiful or So What |
| Gorillaz | Stylo | Plastic Beach |
| Bobby Womack | Woman's Gotta Have It |
Lookin' For A Love: The Best Of Bobby Womack 1968-1975 |
| Grace Potter & the Nocturnals | One Short Night | Grace Potter & the Nocturnals |
| Old 97's | Every Night Is Friday Night (Without You) | The Grand Theatre Vol. 1 |
| The Stone Roses | She Bangs the Drums | The Stone Roses |
| Matt Costa | Witchcraft | Mobile Chateau |
| Justin Townes Earle | Harlem River Blues | Harlem River Blues |
| Pete Townshend | My Baby Gives It Away | Rough Mix |
| Sharon Van Etten | One Day | Epic |
| Wilco | Impossible Germany | Blue Sky Epic |