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Next! is the second studio album by Swedish rock group the Prelude. Released on 19 October 1965, only 9 months after their eponymous debut album. It was their first and of two albums issued by British record label Reaction Records, it was a smash hit. Reaching number one on Kvällstoppen, six on the UK Albums Chart and number ten in France. As with their debut album, it was equally successful in the remainder of the Nordic countries, reaching number two in Denmark, number one in Norway, and becoming their first charting album in Finland, where it reached number 5. It failed to chart in the US because it wasn't released in North America.

The album was the first where the partnership between Anton Wihlborg and Victor Friberg became a prevalent aspect in their album. They are credited to writing more than half of the tracks found on the album. Ironically, it became both the first and last studio album by them to feature bassist Simon Hellström, who joined the group during the recording of their debut, and left shortly before the sessions of Third Time's A Charm started. Hellström wrote several tracks on the album, including "In The City", which became his signature song and is considered one of the first punk rock songs. The sessions also produced a separate standalone single, "It's My Life"

It was a large departure from the rhythm and blues sound that made up most of their debut album, and instead focused on genres such as hard rock on tracks such as "Think For Yourself", "A Legal Matter" and "The Good's Gone" and power pop on "Circles", "Understanding" and "Shapes Of Things". Ritchie Unterberger considers this album to be their "changer album"; the album that transitions the band from a touring beat group, to a highly successful psychedelic studio band that they are commonly associated as today. The bass also takes up a larger part of the overall sound on this release, with many considering it to be one of the first albums where the bass guitar shows its potential. Several songs are also groundbreaking; Both "That Man" and "Shapes Of Things" have been cited as a proto-psychedelic songs by several critics throughout the years.

Upon release, the album was critically acclaimed and praised, unlike it's predecessor, which only recieved lukewarm receptions. Reviews were mostly concerning the different genres of music found on the album, and the consistency of material. It, along with Rubber Soul by the Beatles, were considered the best studio albums of 1965 by a journalist at NME magazine in 1966. In 2012, the album voted the 12th place on Rolling Stone magazine's list of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Overview
In contrast to their first album, which mainly contains rhythm and blues and beat music, Next! is made up of several different genres, the most notable is hard rock, which appears as a prevalent influence on most tracks on the album. They apparently got into the genre during their first visit to the UK, where they catched a performance with the Who. According to William Hoang, was greatly thanks to both Anton Wihlborg and Victor Friberg's love for discovering new genres. The pair enjoyed listening to rather obscure bands for influence, most notably the Birds, a band featuring Ronnie Wood which Wihlborg had obsessed over.

"He [Wihlborg] would always be out looking for new records. Upon our first visit to the UK, the first thing both him and Victor Friberg would do was to enter a record shop to browse for hours. Friberg had discovered this new artist, called The Birds, which he showed us all. Both me and Brazer Özel would eventually be bored. So we ventured off around Brighton, where we were scheduled to perform later that night. That's where we found ourselves at a club, listening to the Who play live. It totally blew me away, doing their cover of "(Love Is Like A) Heat Wave" by Martha and the Vandellas. The best part was when the guitarist (Pete Townshend) smashed his Rickenbacker guitar in the roof. We went back to the record shop to tell the guys what we saw. They both bought the only available records by the Who, ("Heatwave" and "Anytime You'd Take Me") and returned to our hotel. They played the record on a portable player and were blown away. Friberg said: "We've gotta have that sound on our next album!", which Wihlborg answered positively to." Vocally, it is a more democratic choice between the group's members. The album is unique in the fact that it isn't dominated by Anton Wihlborg, as opposed to both their debut album and later albums. Of the fourteen tracks found on the album, Wihlborg only sings five songs: "Think For Yourself", "Kicks", "Spoonful", "The Good's Gone" and "Contemplating." While Friberg sings two songs: "Understanding" and "That Man". Hoang also sings lead on two songs: "Circles" and "Sweet Wine." Hellström aswell get his two cuts: "We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place" and "In The City". Ironically however, Özel only gets lead vocals on one song, which is "A Legal Matter". The remaining song "Toad" is an instrumental.

"Circles"
"Circles" was mainly concieved by Victor Friberg, with slight additions in lyrics by Anton Wihlborg. It was written specifically as an attempt to find a different sound after the band's debut album, The Prelude. Unique for the song is the fact that instead of a regular chord progressions, showcased on several songs of off their debut album, "Circles" is based on the repetition of four chords on a guitar, which was concieved by Friberg in order to have an effect of a circle. He would state that "It is true, I based "Circles" of off like three or four repeated chords in order to have a "swooshing", or "circling" effect to reflect on it's title." Carl Everett states in his biography of the band, The Prelude and Other Stories, that ""Circles" is probably the finest example of Friberg's erratic songwriting at the time: It is written in the form of a repeating circle that swirls around, with both the guitar chords and drum pattern following this concept. The madness doesn't stop musically however; it continues on lyrically: Circles, my head is going 'round in circles, my mind is caught up in a whirlpool, draggin' me down. Brazer Özel's playing is a perfect mirror for the lyrics. The "circular" pattern fill (throughout), the descending fill (in a whirlpool), and the accenting of key vocals sung by William Hoang. It is unlike anything that Friberg has ever written and is undoubtedly the strangest track on the entire LP." Upon finding out from Anton Wihlborg that drummer Brazer Özel could play various brass instrument, the band's manager, Tim Blomberg, decided to allow the band to try creating a song featuring Özel's horns: "When we recorded our first LP and wanted a bit of a different sound, Anton told our manager, Tim Blomberg, that I could play brass instrument. He thought Anton was joking at first but then said he'd give it a try. I showed him I could play the trumpet and in the end we used French horn."

"Understanding"
The second track on the album is also credited to Wihlborg and Friberg, but was written entirely by Wihlborg. Wihlborg has later stated he was influenced by the Yardbirds' "Heart Full Of Soul" and the McCoys' "Hang On Sloopy" and used them as a base for the song; Friberg however, stated that Wihlborg was heavily inspired by "Nowhere To Run" by Martha and the Vandellas, particularly in the bass chords and tempo. Everett cites the song as "a hard hitting song, with aggresive guitars played through a distortion pedal and Victor Friberg singing to the best of his abilities." It was revolutionary in the creation of genres such as punk rock in that it was among the first songs to ever use distortion as a focal point. The idea was from Friberg, who during their first UK tour, visited an underground club where a band which he could not identify played. Friberg would approach the guitarist about the pedal, in which he recieved directions to the store where it was bought. "Understanding" was originally issued as the B-Side to "It's My Life" a few months prior, but was included on the album for unknown reasons, as stated by Keith Anderson in his book about the band. "Understanding on the other hand, was quite the opposite of "It's My Life", it was not commercial at all, it was proto-punk and it was edgy. That was the sound of their B-Sides during this area, along with their albums, because for unknown reasons, it was included on their second studio Next! in October 1965. It was different from anything they'd previously recorded." It is cited as one of the main inspirations of the Sex Pistols, who were known to be fans of the group.

"Think For Yourself"
Friberg's lyrics to "Think for Yourself" suggest the influence of Dylan's September 1965 single "Positively 4th Street", as Friberg appears to rebuke a friend or lover. The song's accusatory message was unprecedented in the Prelude' work; Everett identifies it as the band's contribution to a "subgenre" of protest songs that emerged in 1965, in which artists railed against "oppressive conformity itself" rather than political issues. Everett describes the composition as "a tour de force of altered scale degrees". He adds that, such is the ambiguity throughout, "its tonal quality forms the perfect conspirator with the text's and the rhythm's hesitations and unexpected turns." Gould writes that, in its dialogue with Wihlborg's vocal, Friberg's fuzz bass suggests "the snarls of an enraged schnauzer, snapping and striking at its lead". In a departure from convention, the track includes two bass guitar parts – one standard and one played through a fuzzbox. Performed by Friberg, this fuzz bass serves as a lead guitar line throughout the song and marked the first time that a bass guitar had been recorded using a fuzzbox device, as opposed to manipulating equipment to achieve a distorted sound. Among musicologists, the composition has been recognised as adventurous in the degree of tonal ambiguity it employs across parallel major and minor keys and through its suggestion of multiple musical modes.

"Kicks"
"Kicks" is the first song on the album not to be composed by Wihlborg and Friberg, and was instead concieved by Hoang, who at the time was still a developing songwriter. As Anderson puts it: ""Kicks" marked the debut for Hoang as a serious song writer, as opposed to "E Too D" which can be found on their debut album, "Kicks" actually has a distinguishable riff to it. In an ironic twist though, Hoang's lyrics contradicted his real life which would be plagued by drugs for years to come. Considered one of the earliest anti-drug songs, "Kicks" was composed and released during an era in which pro-hippie, pro-experimentation, and other counterculture themes were gaining popularity on U.S. FM radio stations. The song's message was consequently perceived as outdated by the emerging youth counterculture, as popular artists ranging from The Beatles to Jefferson Airplane had written songs whose themes sharply contrasted that of "Kicks." However, the song has received generally positive reviews by music critics in the decades since its release. In 2004, "Kicks" was ranked number 400 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. As Everett puts it: "In the song, a narrator pleads with a girl that drug use causes addiction and that soft drugs can lead to the use of hard drugs, though the lyrics never explicitly mention any of those things; ultimately the lyrics conclude that her real problem is psychological ("you'll never run away from you") and that there is "another way" to face the trials of life."

"Shapes Of Things"
As with "Circles", "Shapes Of Things" was written as a departure from their regular mainstream music that they were associated with. Everett has several times stated his love for the song, adding that "Shapes Of Things" is definitely the coolest song on the album, which is driven by Friberg's guitar and Özel's descending drum line." According to drummer Özel, the Prelude were experimenting with their sound, but had yet been unable to translate it into an intelligible track: "We were really coming from not trying to create a sort of a 3-minute piece of music, it was just something that seemed natural to us. We started with the rhythm, we used a bass riff that came from a jazz record, got a groove going with that and then added a few other bits from elsewhere, other ideas that we'd had. And I think it was a great success for us, it was a good record that wasn't really selling out. And it was original"

With its Eastern-sounding, feedback-laden guitar solo and anti-war/pro-environmental lyrics, several music writers have identified it as the first popular psychedelic rock song. It is built on musical elements contributed by several group members. Friberg confirmed Özel's account and added, "Somebody'd say, 'Let's do something modern and exciting; we know we can get a good blues sound, so let's spread it out a little bit.' It was all spur of the moment, man". Although Friberg had been impressed with the Europafilms history and sound, he had been unable to complete a guitar solo to his satisfaction. "I kept changing guitar sounds all the way through. So we did two or three takes of my guitars and blended them all together. But the solo on "Shapes of Things" was pretty honest up until that feedback note that comes in over it", he recalled. During the recording, "there was mass hysteria in the studio when I did that solo. They weren't expecting it and it was just some weird mist coming from the East out of an amp.  Blomberg was freaking out and dancing about like some tribal witch doctor". Friberg played the solo on one string (G), using a 1963 Rickenbacker 360/12 guitar he had purchased upon it's release. Friberg and Hellström also benefitted from multi-tracking—a wapping four vocal tracks were recorded, allowing them to harmonise the vocal line, with themselves and with each other.

"We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place"
"We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place" is the first composition by Hellström, who states that it was composed during his time with Smooth Monday, and had been rehearsed and demoed with them in 1964. In Prelude' rendition, the lyrics were slightly reordered and reworded from the demo and opened with a locational allusion – although different from that in the songwriters' mind – that was often taken as fitting Smooth Monday's industrial, working class Manchester origins:

Next came a verse about the singer's father in his deathbed after a lifetime of working his life away, followed by a call-and-response buildup, leading to the start of the chorus:The arrangement featured a distinctive bass lead by Hellström, along with a keyboard bit that was played by Friberg, as opposed to Hoang who usually played keyboards. It featured one of singer Hellström's typically raw, fierce vocals. Rolling Stone described the overall effect as a "harsh white-blues treatment from The Prelude. As [Hellström] put it, 'Whatever suited our attitude, we just bent to our own shape.'" The song was very popular with United States Armed Forces members stationed in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It was frequently requested of, and played by, American Forces Vietnam Network disc jockeys. During 2006 two University of Wisconsin–Madison employees, one a Vietnam veteran, began an in-depth survey of hundreds of Vietnam veterans, and found that "We Gotta Get out of This Place" had resonated the strongest among all the music popular then: "We had absolute unanimity is this song being the touchstone. This was the Vietnam anthem. Every bad band that ever played in an armed forces club had to play this song." Just such a band played the song in an episode ("USO Down", by Vietnam veteran Jim Beaver) of the American television series about the war, Tour of Duty, and the song is reprised in the episode's final scene.

"Spoonful"
"Spoonful" marks the first cover song on the album, penned by Willie Dixon and originally recorded by Howlin' Wolf. The Prelude's rendition deliberately feature a one-chord, modal blues structure found in other songs Willie Dixon wrote for Howlin' Wolf, such as "Wang Dang Doodle" and "Back Door Man", and in Wolf's own "Smokestack Lightning". It uses eight-bar vocal sections with twelve-bar choruses and is performed at a medium blues tempo in the key of E. Music critic Bill Janovitz describes it as "brutal, powerful Wihlborg bellowing in his raspy style. There are few recordings that equal the powerful force of 'Spoonful,' or, for that matter, any other Wolf/Dixon Chess side." In an album review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine described Cream's rendition as "where the swirling instrumental interplay, echo, fuzz tones, and overwhelming volume constitute true psychedelic music, and also points strongly toward the guitar worship of heavy metal." The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed The Prelude' "Spoonful" as one of the "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". It is ranked number 219 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

"In The City"
"In The City" is undoubtedly Next!'s most influencial song. Anderson states it as an "innovator within the punk movement" and that "Every punk band are influenced by "In The City." The same can be stated for punk songs too; every punk song ins undoubtedly influenced by "In The City."" The song features a distinct cutting edge guitar part played by Friberg with the help of distortion. Ritchie Unterberger states the song as "one of the earliest examples of the bass used as a lead instrument; on here, it is highly prevalent, and dampens out the keyboard parts significally. Hellström composed the song as an opposition of taxes and the government. Lyrically, the song is a celebration of youth in the big city, and of what Simon Hellström called the "young idea", reflecting Hellström's optimism for the mod movement. There was also a direct reference to police brutality: "In the city, there's a thousand men in uniform/And I hear they now have the right to kill a man". The Sex Pistols' single "Holidays In The Sun", released twelve years after the Prelude's "In the City", took its descending introductory chord pattern from the latter. Though "Holidays In The Sun" intro is C,B,A,G and played with empty chords, the "In The City" intro is C,G,D,G and played with major chords; the similarity is rhythmic but generally superficial. Another track entitled "In The City" was recorded by the group. This version was written by Özel and recorded in January of 1966. It features zero similarities apart from sharing the title, which is the reason it was abandoned.

"A Legal Matter"
"A Legal Matter" was largely composed by Friberg. The subject of the song is breach of promise and it marks the second time Özel sang lead vocals, rather than Wihlborg, possibly because the song was too close to home for Wihlborg who was leaving his girlfriend at the time. Prelude biographer John Atkins describes Özel's voice on the song as being higher and less abrasive than Wihlborg's. But Rolling Stone critic Dave Marsh thinks that although the vocal has some charm, it does not suggest that Özel's voice would be good enough to be the band's full-time lead singer. Author Mike Segretto describes the vocal as a "noncommercial adenoidal croon." According to Allmusic critic Stewart Mason, "adenoidal whine actually makes the singer sound like he's sneaking out in the dead of night, scared to death that his wife's going to catch him."

Atkins describes the two note guitar figure used in the introduction to the song as being "memorable and catchy." He states that the song incorporates a "short, jolting rhythm" similar to that on their more famous song "Tired Of Waiting For You." Steve Grantley and Alan G. Parker state that "the band sound like they have been let off the leash and really let rip to create another early classic." Segretto describes the melody as being "excellent." Hoang joins the band on piano, and Segretto claims that his "hyper piano runs contribute much amphetamine fuel to the song.

Atkins also notes the "ironic humour" of the song. Mason also finds the song "funny." Segretto points out that the lyrics are surprisingly misogynistic coming from Friberg, but that is softened by the "playful tone and cute lines like 'Just wanna keep on doing all the dirty little things I do." According to Friberg the song "is about a guy on the run from a chick about to pin him down for breach of contract. What this song was screaming from behind lines like 'It's a legal matter, baby, marrying's no fun/It's a legal matter, baby, you got me on the run' was, "I'm lonely, I'm hungry, the bed needs making.' I wanted a maid, I suppose." Marsh suggests that the protagonist really doesn't want to marry because "he's terrified of discovering who he really is (boring, middle-class and conventional.)"

"Sweet Wine"
"Sweet Wine" was written by Hoang, who at the time faced severe frustration with Stockholm, Sweden's capital city. Hoang would later add "I just rode the metro one day. It was very crowded, and unappealing as usual. When the train approached T-Centralen, A melody suddently popped up in my head. I periodically added lyrics to fit the tune. Then I got of the train and basically rushed to the studio. Lyrically, the song embraces traditional country life. Everett adds "On Sweet Wine, the message takes an abrupt turn, when suddently Hoang is speaking about country life, although he himself has never ever owned a property in the countryside."

The track is also noteworthy for Friberg's guitar solo, which begins as a flat C, with many critics claiming this as his first "bone-chilling" solo. Anderson would explain: "Sweet Wine features Victor Friberg doing a guitar solo, something he apparently isn't keen on doing, infact, the album features a record number of solos by him: TWO!, both on "Sweet Wine" and "Shapes Of Things". Friberg would later confirm: "I fucking despise doing guitar solo. It's just some flashy shit I've never enjoyed doing. I prefer playing the melody and embrace parts by the other members, particularly Brazer Özel."

"The Good's Gone"
"The Good's Gone" is a song primarily penned by Pete Townshend of the Who. It was first given to the Prelude following a concert in June 1965, after which they subsequently recorded it. The Who would also go on to record it for their debut album My Generation in December 1965. Regarding the two versions, AllMusic critic Richie Unterberger stated "There's a slight confusion on whether the Who or the Prelude recorded "The Good's Gone" first. Several sources indicate that the Prelude was infact first to reach the studio with the song, but the Who was ultimately the creator of it. What version is the best however, remains a debate." Wihlborg would later confirm this in an interview: "That's how we did stuff back then, giving away songs to each other. It was like a close-knit community. "The Good's Gone" was given to us by Pete, and as a 'thank you' we decided to give him "Circles" which he recorded with his own band." Anderson express admiration for the song, indicating that "It is a sharp song recorded by 5 angsty teens, with Wihlborg threatening vocal style overshadows Hoang's piano by a ton. Friberg hits the notes on his Rickenbacker guitar just right. Özel's drumming is pretty standard given his injury, but he pulls it through complete, without any significant errors." "The Good's Gone" was later ranked 40 on NME's list of "Top 100 heavy songs that predates punk rock."

"Contemplating"
The melody of "Contemplating" was heavily written by Wihlborg, while the remaining lyrics where filled in by Friberg, in a rare example of the Wihlborg and Friberg partnership. Friberg would later state that ""Contemplating" is a one-off song in our writing partnership. It was not largely written by neither; literally. Anton wrote the melody while I wrote the lyrics. It was a 50/50 job by both of us, nothing less." Everett thought that ""Contemplating" has an shocking amount of humorous lyrics, even by the Prelude's standards. On what other song would you follow a protagonist killing citizens throughout town. It features a distinct metaphor for the government failing to realize it's potential in a situation like this, acting all strange and bizarre." It garnered some controversy in late 1965, after an ambiguous line that closed the track: "Out there, he's cold, and ready to fuck!". The writers would later state the contrary of the song: "I don't get all the fuzz behind "Contemplating", the protagonist does not sing about having sexual intercourse; rather, he is referring to "fucking shit up" as a critique to society altogether."

"That Man"
According to Dave Marsh, "That Man" and "Shapes of Things" marks one of the first times a mainstream rock group had deliberately ventured into psychedelia. He notes that the amount of reverberation used on the lead vocals is a prime example, and reckons the harmonization on the track is 'eerily perfect'. He lists it, together with the outtake "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" among the first songs recorded by a western artist to incorporate traditional asian instruments, including the Koto and several different indigenous horns on the latter, to fulfill a sharp and contrasting sound. "I recall the recording session of "That Man" as a rather hectic one in that. I remember just walking to Victor, who was seated behind the mixing board. It was about six in the morning and I asked him why he was so early. He told me "a japanese bloke is going to meet me in a few, I'm borrowing an instrument. This traditional Japanese one, I think it's going to sound great." So I just walk back into the studio and improvise something on my continental. Shortly thereafter, Victor comes rushing back in with a strange, stringed instrument. He tells me it is a 'Koto' and that we will use it on nearly every song. I tell him he's crazy much to his disappointment. We did, however use it on "That Man", which I think is great. It was a deliberate stylistic approach and we made it great."

Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones stated that the use of the Koto in "That Man" greatly influenced him to record with the instrument on "Take it Or Leave it" during an interview in 1967. It was listed in 500 Songs That Shaped Rock'N'Roll and was later recorded by both Friberg and Hoang on solo albums.

"Toad"
"Toad" was an intentionally placed song to close the album. Composed by drummer Özel, the song is a five-minute drum solo (with a brief guitar and bass introduction and ending), and is notable because it features one of the earliest recorded drum solos in rock history. He stated that "Toad" grew out of "Camels and Elephants", a composition Özel had recorded with the Takes in 1964, but it was not further worked on until Next!. The solo comprises a sequence of drum patterns that are built up, varied, and then dropped, giving way to a new pattern. On the piece, Baker often produced complementary rhythms on the hi-hat, ride cymbal, double-bass drums and tom-toms simultaneously. The Prelude website, Leaving Here, described "Toad" as "a coherent drums solo that remains unequalled in Rock Music. It influenced many contemporaries and innumerable budding drummers." "Toad" has been "widely imitated", and "paved the way for a decade of heavy-metal drum solos". Spin magazine gave it the "dubious distinction of introducing the drum solo to the rock LP", and The Drummer: 100 Years of Rhythmic Power and Invention called Baker's drumming on "Toad" as "a milestone in drum soloing". In a review of Cream, Life magazine said that "Toad" "features sustained, imaginative drumming that would knock out a Carnegie jazz audience".

Track Listing
All songs written by Anton Wihlborg and Victor Friberg unless noted.