Motorpsycho's new album is reportedly delayed due to "technical reasons" and will probably not be ready for a March/April release as planned.
Bianca's entire new album "Wasting our time" is now streaming on their website: http://www.biancaband.com/
The initial lineup for the second annual Nordklang Festival in St. Gallen, Switzerland has been announced for February 15-17 and will include Speaker Bite Me, Harald Haugaard & Morten Alfred Høirup, Efterklang and Our Broken Garden (Denmark), Amiina and Pétur Ben (Iceland), Rasmus Lyberth (Greenland), Dánjal and The Ghost (Faroe Islands), Frigg (Finland), Jackman (Norway) and Taxi Taxi (Sweden). The festival won't just promote Scandinavian music either, side-events include a focus on Nordic cinema as well as focus on Nordic books at historical monastery library Stiftsbibliothek. For more info, go here: http://www.nordklang.ch/
The nominees for this year's Manifest Awards, Sweden's alternative Grammy, have been announced:
Rhythm:
Kapten röd - Stjärnorna finns här (SwingKids/Border)
Million stylez - From a far (Bonnier Music/Bonnier Amigo)
Governor Andy – Underhållningsmaskinen (KBC Music/Border)
Livelihood - Sagans Sånger (SwingKids/Border)
Pop/Electronica:
Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala (Service/Border)
The Honeydrips - Here Comes The Future (Sincerely Yours/Playground Music)
Erik de Vahl - Oh! My Spine
The Mary Onettes - The Mary Onettes (Labrador/Border)
Rock/Rockabilly/Blues/Garage:
Murder by Guitar - On Parade (Human audio recordings/Sounds of Subterrania)
Maharajas - In Pure Spite (Low Impact Recordings/Sound Pollution)
Alex Face - Smell Like A Woman (Alleycat/Sound Pollution)
High Hats - Too Much Is Never Enough (Alleycat/Sound Pollution)
Hardrock/Metal:
Arch Enemy - Rise of the tyrant (Century Media/EMI)
Dark Tranquillity - Fiction (Century Media/EMI)
Hardcore Superstar - Dreamin' in a casket (Gain/Sony BMG)
Watain - Sworn to the dark (Season Of Mist/Sound Pollution)
Hiphop/R&B/Soul:
Timbuktu - Oberoendeframkallande (Juju Records/Playground Music)
Adam Tensta - It's A Tensta Thing (K-Werks/Border)
Ken - Äntligen hemma (Pope/Playground Music)
Basutbudet - Startpaketet/Pluspaketet (Devrim/V2/Bonnier Amigo)
Experimental:
Jean-Louis Huhta - Halfway Between the World and Death (Slottet Records/Dotshop.se)
Mårten Falk - Eclectric Guitar Experience (dB Productions/CDA)
Rolf Enström - Quarks (Caprice Records/CDA)
Tape & Minamo - Birds of a Feather (Headz/Dotshop.se)
Dance:
Mikael Stavöstrand - Various productions 2007
The Field - From here we go sublime (Kompakt)
Minilogue – Orglar (Minilogue Rec)
Hug - Heroes (Kompakt)
Folk/Ballad:
Ale Möller Band - Djef Djel (Amigo/Bonnier Amigo)
Various Artists - Poem, ballader och lite blues - Återbesöket (Amigo/Bonnier Amigo)
Lisa Rydberg och Gunnar Idenstam - Bach på svenska (Gazell Records AB/Bonnier Amigo)
Sofia Karlsson - Visor från vinden (Amigo/Bonnier Amigo)
Jazz:
Ludvig Berghe Trio - An unplayed venue (Moserobie Music Production/Bonnier Amigo)
e.s.t. (Esbjörn Svensson Trio) - e.s.t Live in Hamburg (ACT/Bonnier Amigo)
Adåker, Milder, Stenson, Danielsson, Öström - Miles by Five (Touché Music AB/CDA)
Lennart Åberg & Norrbotten Big Band - Up north (Caprice Records/CDA)
Synth:
Emmon - The art and the evil (Wonderland records)
Endless Shame - Price of Devotion (KTOWN Records/Misty Music)
Mr Jones Machine – Återvändsgränd (Progress Productions/Border Music)
Terror Punk Syndicate - Extended Playtime (Progress Productions/Border Music)
Punk/Hardcore:
Wolfbrigade - Prey to the world (Agipunk/Unrest/MCR/Sound Pollution)
The Accidents - Summer dreams (Burning Heart/Epitaph/Bonnier Amigo)
Auktion - Spader ess (Cage Match Federation/Border)
The Mockingbirds - Always late and not even close (HepTown Records/Sound Pollution)
Singer/Songwriter:
Christian Kjellvander - I Saw Her From Here/I Saw Here From Her (Startracks/V2/Bonnier Amigo)
Kristofer Åström - Rainaway Town (Startracks/V2/Bonnier Amigo)
José González - In Our Nature (Imperial/Playground Music)
Mattias Bärjed - Originalmusiken till Upp till kamp! (Razzia/Bonnier Amigo)
Best Live Artist:
Familjen
Säkert!
Maia Hirashawa
Laakso
Digfi-prize (unsigned act):
Cocoanut Groove (Umeå)
Emily McWilliam's Desert Soul (Stockholm)
Cartwall (Piteå)
Knivderby (Jönköping)
Read more: http://www.manifestgalan.se/122.aspx
MP3: Christian Kjellvander - Two souls
I totally blew it with the new Christian Kjellvander album "I saw her from here/I saw here from her". I thought that his solo debut "Songs from a two-room chapel" was fantastic, but his follow-up release "Faya" didn't move me so I lost interest. I gave the single "Two souls" a cursory listen when it first came out and shrugged it off; now I'm regretting it. I don't know if I was in the wrong frame of mind or what, but jeez, something was definitely wrong with me. How could I miss the greatness of that chorus? Such vivid imagery! And with a mere 2:40 run-time, it begs repeated listens. Also, it's such a majestic piece of music with layers upon layers of instruments coming together to create a tiny symphony. Perhaps if the Beach Boys went country, this is what it would sound like. Don't be dumb like me, give this another chance if it didn't grab you the first time 'round.
Christian Kjellvander - Two souls
Congratulations to Jason Fleming, Joakim Näslund and Nimrod Hazan for winning the Universal Poplab CD giveaway. Your prize will be in the mail shortly, courtesy of Wonderland Records. For info on more Wonderland Records acts and a whole bunch of free downloads, check this out: http://www.wonderlandrecords.com/ex/
Stream five tracks from Madrugada's forthcoming self-titled album: http://www.platekompaniet.no/cache/published_575.asp
Idiot Kid
Darkness in our house
Slottet
Somber and brooding, an intimate and intensifying examination of life and its complications, "Darkness in our house" is a bleak effort given warmth and presence from its composers. The strength of Linus Lutti's voice is complimented by its raspy fragility, making it the perfect narrator for the windswept, empty terrains the music explores and expands into, braced when needed by Ann-Sofie Lundin's backing register. The delicate production granted to the record by Johan Berthling (The Tiny, Tape) enhances the personal element of the album, making it all the more confessional and passionate. Not necessarily a record I'd recommend listening to every day during these winter months, but Idiot Kid are definitely worth a few minutes' research if not an investment.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
The cover art and tracklist for the new In Flames album "A sense of purpose" has been made public: http://www.inflames.com/
It comes out in Europe on April 4 via Nuclear Blast. A US release will be confirmed soon.
The new Tingsek single "Let it shine" (ft. Svante Lodén) is now streaming on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/tingsek
Timo Räisänen's new single "Sixteen" will be released on January 30. The previously unreleased track "About you now" is the exclusive b-side.
Just posted online: a brand new Aerial video for the track "Kallisti": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2nG4enFiM4
Copies of the new EP "The legion of dynamic dischord" are on the way and will be here soon!
Taken By Trees, the solo act of ex-Concretes frontwoman Victoria Bergsman, will do a few North American dates in February:
02/22 - Zipper Theatre, New York, NY
02/23 - Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
02/25 - Musée Juste Pour Rire, Montreal, Quebec
02/28 - The Roxy, Los Angeles, CA
03/01 - Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA
03/04 - Triple Door, Seattle, WA
Look her new single covering "Sweet child o' mine" by Guns'n'Roses on February 19 both in digital and 7" format.
Swedish bitpop artist Paza has a new EP for free download: http://www.x-dump.com/news.php?id=192
In-stock and ready for order: Moto Boy - s/t
The debut album from Sweden's newest indie/pop hope! Also now available to order, though not quite in stock just yet:
Britta Persson - Kill Hollywood me (CD)
Commando M Pigg - Decenniet 1980-90 (CD)
Don't Be a Stranger - Frutti di mare (CD)
v/a - Svensk Punkklassiker vol. 2 (2CD)
Freddie Wadling - Klassiker (2CD)
Restocks of Hello Saferide and Laakso on the way too!