Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. The Radio Dept.
02. Beach House
03. Sambassadeur
04. Moto Boy
05. Jens Lekman
06. Håkan Hellström
07. Shout Out Louds
08. Jonathan Johansson
09. Yeasayer
10. Club 8
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
Dusted reviews the new jj album "jj nº 3": http://dustedmagazine.com/reviews/5579
PopMatters is so-so on the new Sambassadeur album "European": http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/121511-sambassadeur-european/
Direct link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Frzt-be_nI
I saw a preview of this clip about a month ago and was eager to post it, but was told to hold off until they were ready. Now, We Are the Storm are ready. This is the first taste of the band's new material, recorded live in an old theater in Uppsala, Sweden and it is killer. Now I'm eager to hear more.
Jens Lekman contributes guest vocals on the upcoming Tracey Thorn (Everything But The Girl) solo album "Love and it's opposite", singing a duet on the Lee Hazelwood cover "Come on home to me".
Swedish doom act Suffocate for Fuck Sake has finally released the 2LP version of their album "Blazing fires and helicopters on the front page of the newspaper. There's a march going on and I'm marching in heavyboots." via : http://bluegrassrecords.bigcartel.com/products
300 copies only, worldwide distro via and .
Sofia Talvik is giving away her new single at SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/makakimusic/as-we-catch-on-fire
"As we catch on fire" is the first single from the forthcoming album "Florida", due out May 12.
Download a new track from Rigas off his forthcoming record "Let's get gone": http://www.brilliant.nu/helpless/08%20Helpless.mp3
The official release date is March 10 and there will be a release party at Lilla Ukraina in Årsta on the 13th with Conny Nimmersjö (Bob Hund) and Joxaren.
It's no "Italy vs Helsinki", but Peter Jöback's new video for the ballad "Hollow" isn't that bad: http://www.aftonbladet.se/webbtv/noje/musikvideor/article6747054.ab
Rasmus Kellerman is giving a new song called "Five years from now", the first official taste of his forthcoming solo debut "The 24th": http://rasmuskellerman.com/?p=895
This is the sort of release that feels tailor-made for me: obscure Swedish postpunk act records a single demo that gets lost to the ages, only to be resurrected a dozen or so years later by a likewise obscure label for a limited vinyl release. I had never heard of the band Monument before unearthed their lone 4-song EP, but why would I? They didn't do much except make great music in the wrong place at the wrong time, a fatal and inescapable error only apparent in retrospect. It's a shame too, because I think they'd fit quite nicely alongside the current pseudo-goth/synth revival (Zola Jesus, Cold Cave, etc.), though their sound is a bit more streamlined/less overtly indie. So yeah, if you dig on classic dark rock ala Cure or Depeche Mode or are one of those few people like myself who count themselves as fans of Bay Laurel (some strong similarities there in terms of pacing and vocal timbre, though Monument lacks their heaviness), then you'll be way into this. Or if you're like me and you love digging up unknown Swedish postpunk gems, you need this too.
Monument - Monday
Who's got the scoop on The Bombettes' upcoming US tour? I see a show confirmed for April 8 in NYC, but what else?
Tobias FröbergA few years ago, Tobias Fröberg opened for Peter Morén's North American tour. While charming and hilarious, there was a distinct sense of also-ran, as Fröberg's engaging stage persona couldn't quite make up for the fact his songs were, at best, sweetly adequate. However, "The big up" gives us a different Fröberg, one who is ready to step out from behind "big brother Morén's" shadow. For those of us who have been longing to embrace both artist and music, it's about time!
Built around organ, understated strings, and a pronounced sense of melancholy, the songs of "The big up" are bluer, and the emotions a bit sharper than 2008's "Turn heads". Love, it appears, still weighs heavily on Fröberg's mind. Although, from the paean to lost war love "Sandra", to guitar-driven "I wanna hurt like that", to spectacularly understated "When we go to war", pain and violence is never far behind. Even when his self-deprecating charm peaks though on track "I hope that I die before you", it's not without a keen sense that the end is always in sight. So consistent is his theme and care that, by album's end, even the refrain of final track "Baby baby baby" feels indebted with emotion far beyond its simple words. Also-ran no more, introspect suits Fröberg.
- Laura Studarus
is away the new Love is a Burning Thing single as a free download: http://nomethodrecords.bandcamp.com/track/go-back-to-your-cave
Not only will you get the new Robert Svensson single "Runaway" when you sign up for his mailing list, apparently you will also receive a digital copy of his new "Beat EP" as well: http://robertsvensson.com/
