Unlike the buoyant pop combos and sweaty garage rock ragers who've emerged from Sweden in recent years, Citizen Bird has explores the thrills of driving dissonance and swirling psychedelic textures. It figures that they're an art school crew. Founded in Gothenberg in the late '90s, Citizen Bird initially did base their sound on the fearsome balls-to-the-wall dark rock energy of late '60s Detroit (they called themselves Silverbullit at the time) and that's an element they've never abandoned. But a restless desire to innovate and explore led them to expand their sound by the dawn of the new century. A big part of that has involved the introduction of what in stoner parlance you'd call "a trippy vibe:" in other words, lots of vocal delay, guitar effects, spooky keyboard washes, and eerily delicate parts intercutting the full-on sonic assaults. The group's 2002 self-titled debut album married the best elements of classic psych, shoegazer, dream pop, and rock and roll muscularity into a spooky and exciting cocktail that evolves with every listen. The record was a modest success, leaving many eager to see what Citizen Bird does with their follow-up, due in 2004.