Having apparently resolved their Family Cracks, the members of Samla Mammas Manna's '70s quartet -- guitarist Coste Apetrea, drummer Hans Bruniusson, keyboardist Lars Hollmer, and bassist Lars Krantz -- reunited during the '90s, after well over a decade apart, to play gigs scattered around the globe. In the fall of 1998 they recorded at Hollmer's Chickenhouse studio, and interspersed that material with excerpts from live concerts in Sweden and Norway between 1993 and 1998. The result was 1999's Kaka, a new showcase for the band also heard on the '70s albums Måltid (1974), Klossa Knapitatet (1975), and Gregory Fitzpatrick collaboration Snorungarnas Symfoni (1976). Kaka is actually a fine introduction to the Samlas, nicely balancing their serious musicality and unbridled lunacy. Revisiting material from the band's '70s era with much-improved sound quality, the studio-recorded tunes dominate the proceedings, but the music is presented as a single "concert" with English-language narrator John Fiske (sounding every bit the formal British gentleman) interpreting the goings-on for the benefit of the home listener. "And they're off," Fiske announces, and they are indeed, precisely executing high-energy unison lines and effortlessly shifting gears from punched-up fusiony instrumental rock to Spanish-tinged segments on the studio-based "Lyckliga Titanic," with Hollmer shining on melodica during a tango-ish portion near the tune's conclusion. The wacky vocal hijinks on the next track, the live "Oh Sa Masalana Jämfört Med Ålman River," introduce the Samlas at their most unhinged, as the bandmembers shout, growl, and attempt to engage the audience in a group chant-along. "Well, I don’t think anyone was expecting that," Fiske says, following up with "The pianist asks the question, 'How unstable is it possible to be? Is it in fact possible to achieve total instability?'"

1		Stämma Lite
2		Lyckliga Titanic
3		Oh Sa Masalana Jämfört Med Ålman River
4		Första Ikarien
5		Reptilgärna
6		Satori
7		Vegetariskt Impro, Svar Direkt
8		Frestelsens Café
9		Tung Krupa Tejpraga Tra La La
10		Andra Iakrien
11		Även Oss Får Du Tiden Åldras Spasmodskij Engelbert Humperdinck Blues
12		Hatman
13		Tredje Ikarien
14		0Q