New music from I'm Kingfisher
has posted a bunch of tracks from the new I'm Kingfisher (nee Thomas Denver Jonsson) album "Arctic" for preview at SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/playgroundmusic
Country: Sweden
Penniless talks about their new album
talks to Penniless frontman Pekka Alisaari about the band's new album "A cab to the city", due out September 1: http://www.westsidefabrication.se/news/a-little-chit-chat-with-pekka/
Veronica Maggio to work with Markus Krunegård, Christian Walz
Swedish pop artist Veronica Maggio will be recording her third album with Markus Krunegård and Christian Walz producing.
The Bear Quartet/The Skull Defekts
Millions 7"
Deleted Art/Adrian Recordings
The one track missing from the vinyl release of "89" gets a platter all its own, paired with a cover of the same by Göteborg noiseniks The Skull Defekts and released on the imprint of Malmö-based . Though The Bear Quartet has toned down the antagonistic experimentalism that peaked with 2006's "Eternity now", the lyrical sentiment remains pure contempt, as is most often the case with latter-day BQ tracks featuring words penned by Mr. Mattias Alkberg. Needless to say, I love it, especially when they pair their anger with a refined, stripped-down postpunk approach as is on display here. As for the flip, The Skull Defekts don't remake the track as much as you might expect, though they do amplify the noise and aggression quotient, taking the sublime and turning it darkly sinister. Less subtle, to be sure, but no less effective. Not sure about the pressing numbers, but the glued jacket and heavy black dustsleeve make it a package worth possessing.
- Avi Roig
Slaktattack seeking label
Swedish d-beat act Slaktattack had the label that was set to release their full-length album back out on em, so they're looking for a new one to release it: http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=86163093&blogId=538590869
Labrador in the fall
Upcoming releases in the pipeline from :
November - The Radio Dept. - "Never follow suit" 12" EP
November - Acid House Kings - "Are we lovers or are we friends?" digital single
December - Club 8 - "Closer now" 7" single
Faster Katt - Strange candy (video)
Can't say that there's a direct link between the lyrics of "Strange candy" and the plot of Werner Herzog's "Even dwarfs started small", but I don't care. Good band, good song, worth watching. Direct link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se4bWvWZteM
Imperial State Electric record new mini-album, will tour in October
Imperial State Electric has recorded six songs for an upcoming mini-album to be released on 10" vinyl along with CD/download. No release date yet, but the band is mixing it now and trying to get it out ASAP. Otherwise, keep an eye out for European tour dates to be announced for October.
HighWon - Från hjärtat (video)
Yet another new Swedish hip-hop track featuring a chorus with autotune abuse. Also, very disappointing to see them perpetuating stupid gangster clichés such as aggressive pitbulls and the like. These dudes are way more talented than this; I expect far better.
Check out Mother of the Forest
I have nothing but respect for Swedesplease even though we have vastly different tastes, however, when we do agree on something you can rest assured that it's good stuff. His latest post on Luleå-based electro/goth artist Mother of the Forest is indeed one such occasion: http://www.swedesplease.net/2010/08/25/mother-of-the-forest/
Check out the track that's posted and then hit up myspace to hear more/download the EP.
Mercy Street to get 7" release
Fever Ray's cover of "Mercy Street" by Peter Gabriel will be released on 7" vinyl via with the album cut "Dry and dusty" as the b-side. The official release date is September 6.
New music from Dogsmile (ex-Camouflage)
Dogsmile, the band founded by three ex-members of Swedish postpunk act Camouflage (aka Tapirerna/The Tapirs), hasn't released anything since their 1995 album "Hey, I just wanna say hello", but now they're back and have a bunch of new tracks on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/dogsmileswe
Definitely does not sound like the old stuff, but still worth checking out I think. Also, speaking of Camouflage, the excellent Swedish postpunk blog Tonkraft recently came back to life with an old live set from the band's later period -- check it out: http://tonkraft-sr.blogspot.com/2010/08/camouflage-1988-live-i-umea.html
Night Minutes
Self-titled digital play
self-released
To be honest, I was a little thrown by the lo-fi, analog feel of Night Minutes' "Sweetheart at the funeral" on my first listen, but I've since fallen quite hard for the band's sound: the warm, viscous layers of guitars and keyboards, the slight hint of distortion on the vocals, even the digital drums. If anything, Phil Spector's Wall of Sound seems more at home on Night Minutes' self-titled EP than on more polished recordings, the dense strata of instrumentation providing a fine vehicle for both the strong songwriting and Anna Knutson's and Max J Hansson's wonderful vocal harmonies and tradeoffs. As noted in the mp3 post for "Sweetheart at the funeral", there is something infectious about Night Minutes, and their ability to evoke the summery, 1960s girl group feel without sacrificing depth is one of the band's greatest strengths. Despite only being three tracks long, I've yet to tire of the EP. There's not a weak song to be found, and for such a short recording it is well-paced: the upbeat "Sweetheart..." is followed by the slower, more contemplative "Queens", with the fabulous, building "Lord, I can never be your mirror" rounding out the record. There’s not much more you can ask of a young band. Having set the bar quite high with their debut effort, I am excited to see what Night Minutes have in store for the future.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
Wonderland signs Söderut
has announced the signing of electronic pop outfit Söderut and will be releasing their debut single "Dansande homofober" ("Dancing homophobes") in October. Preview at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/soderut
A funeral for Sir Eric Beyond
Sir Eric Beyond is dead, long live Sir Eric Beyond! Say your farewells on September 4 at Kägelbanan in Stockholm: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=102393383153538