Global Domination talks to Secthdamon of Zyklon and Myrkskog: http://www.globaldomination.se/interviews/zyklon-secthdamon
Finnish music blog Lupatarkastaja on new tracks from Lolita Stasi: http://lupatarkastaja.samizdat.info/2006/05/09/lolita-stasi-new-songs/
Check out Swedish post-hardcore act Vi, yet another amazing act featuring a member from Iisole: http://www.myspace.com/vi2006
MP3: Hell on Wheels - Come on
Ask any Swedish music biz type about Hell On Wheels and they'll probably all tell you the same thing: nicest band ever. It's true, they are probably one of the nicest bands I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. Too bad being nice in rock'n'roll gets you absolutely nowhere - it's a good thing that HoW are also a damn fine band. The trio has been honing their sound for quite some time now and their latest record "The odd church" is easily their best work yet. I had some delays getting my copy thanks to the US Dept. of Homeland Security opening my mail, but I've been listening daily since it arrived late last week. (Insert cheap pun about worshipping at the altar of the Odd Church, yadda yadda...) So enough about how nice HoW is, let's talk about their music! The most easy/obvious/lazy comparison would be The Pixies and I think that's a fine place to start. Bassist Åsa provides excellent counterpoint vocal melodies to frontman Rickard's lead when she isn't leading on her own. They don't usually reach The Pixies' heights of bombast, but they don't need to. HoW's songwriting and arrangements are much more intricate and involved. Not that I would accuse The Pixies of merely banging out chords, but How has more subtlety. They pack a lot of meat into everything they do. And don't forget how nice they are.
Hell on Wheels - Come on
Of all the original Norwegian black-metal acts, Enslaved has always been one of the best, most progressive bands. While others like Darkthrone refuse to change and bands like Emperor reverted back to exploring their tech/death-metal roots before breaking up, Enslaved consistently expanded on their so-called "viking metal" sound by incorporating even more grandiose melodies, clean expressive singing (and the use of English as opposed to their insistence of only speaking in old Norse) and weird psychedelic parts. I wasn't too stoked on the last two albums "Isa" and "Below the lights" since I considered them a bit of a regression following the brilliance of "Monumension" and "Mardraum", but the new record "Ruun" is a return to form. They've ditched the recycled Darkthrone grim/necro/kvlt-style riffage and gone back to what makes them great: more Voivod-esque syncopation and dissonance, less atonal droning. I had a hard time deciding on a standout track since the whole thing flows really well as an album, so I've posted the title track for you today. It has all the traits that make Enslaved great, so I think it's a good place to start.
Got a HUGE stack of merch from Danish label PonyRec that just arrived on my doorstep. Besides new CDs from both Munck//Johnson and Halph, I also now have beautiful 12" vinyl copies of most everything they've put out. Sound quality arguments aside, nothing beats the sight, feel and smell of fresh vinyl. Look for items to be added to the webstore shortly.
Check out a brand new previously unreleased track from Swedish crusties Dödsdömd: http://sylen.tddm.se/mp3/De_Hangdas_Visa.wav
This week's Nordic Rox playlist from Sirius Satellite Radio: http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/Page&c=FlexContent&cid=1146347242424
Pretty much the same stuff they played last week, but whatever. I didn't expect anything different.
IAT.MP3 artist and "Reader's companion" contributor The Grand Opening has signed with German label Tapete Records. The debut album "This is nowhere to be found" will be released in September. A 7" single featuring "Don't drop off" b/w "So be it" will be released on May 15 and you can peep the cover art here. You can also preview both tracks at myspace along with TGO's brilliant song "Slow motion" from the aforementioned "Reader's companion" comp: http://www.myspace.com/thegrandopening
Of course a German label also means a German tour and here are the dates:
05/14 - Gleis 22, Münster (GER) w/Okkervil River
05/15 - Grüner Jäger, Hamburg (GER)
05/17 - Magnet Club, Berlin (GER) w/Polarkreis, Ter Haar
05/18 - Reil 78, Halle (GER)
05/19 - Energiecafe, Zossen (GER) w/Wa:Rum
05/20 - Popup Festival, Leipzig (GER)
05/21 - Lades, Copenhagen (DK)
Updated dates for The Spectacle's final tour:
05/10 - Hunstad Kultursenter, Bodo (NOR) w/Oceanism
05/12 - tba, Skeleftea (SWE)
05/13 - tba, Umea (SWE)
05/14 - tba, Gavle (SWE)
05/15 - help! (SWE)
05/16 - help! (SWE)
05/17 - tba, Malmo (SWE)
05/18 - Flensburg (GER)
05/19 - AZ Conni, Dresden (GER) w/Greg MacPherson, Austin Lucas
05/20 - Klub007, Prague (CZ) w/Lakme
05/21 - Ludwigstrasse 37, Halle (GER)
05/22 - Baracke, Munster (GER) w/Black Waves
05/23 - tba (NL)
05/24 - help! (GER/DK)
05/25 - help! (DK/SWE)
05/26 - Lillehammer or Goteborg (NOR/SWE)
05/27 - Blackeyedbean, Oslo (NOR) w/Animal Rights Festival
05/28 - Metropolis, Stavanger (NOR)
05/29 - Kvarteret, Bergen (NOR)
05/30 - Kaihuset, Orsta (NOR)
05/31 - UFFA, Trondheim (NOR) w/Dominic, Jimbo Jones
06/02 - Gimle, Bodo (NOR)
06/03 - tba, Harstad (NOR)
06/04 - tba, Tromso (NOR)
06/06 - tba, Kabelvag (NOR)
06/08 - Rødskolen, Sortland (NOR)
06/09 - Sinus, Bodo (NOR)
Fujasaki is offering up his latest single "Boys like you" as a free download in lossless FLAC format: http://www.sudd.org/fujasaki/
Don Juan Dracula is officially back in full effect! I've been aware of it for a little while now since they are one of the many fine contributors on "Reader's companion volume two", but they've finally made it official. Read more at their newly relaunched website: http://www.donjuandracula.com/