What you might expect is not what you will get on this excellent folk album from Sweden. Emma Härdelin is the striking lead singer from Garmarna, a successful Swedish folk rock band. Janne Strömstedt (harmonium) and Kjell-Erik Eriksson (fiddle) are members of Hoven Droven, a kind of hard-rock-with-brass group with a very heavy sound. These three get together to perform an all-acoustic set of traditional folk songs. The themes are dark: murder, unrequited love, and general human mayhem. Unlike their respective regular bands, they use this trio opportunity to make a direct statement about the music, with no fusion or props--just excellent musicianship, solid arrangements, and a sense of awe for how powerful this material was, and is, on its own. Härdelin is a bold singer whose every nuance colors the stories in these songs. Eriksson"s fiddle is strong, bowed with enthusiasm where needed, graceful where necessary. Strömstedt"s harmonium (a pump organ) offers a dark, sometimes droning presence--a weighty underpinning that suits these songs perfectly. --Louis Gibson