European tourdates for Rentokiller and Set My Path:
08/26 - Bunker, Greifswald (GER)
08/27 - Besetztes Haus, Erfurt (GER)
08/28 - Caveau, Mainz (GER) w/Thedatabreak
08/30 - All Area, Köln (GER) w/Callejon, A Death Through Confession
09/01 - Die Haidt, Hof (GER)
09/02 - Buntes Haus, Forst (GER) w/Hellström & From the Ashes
09/04 - Cassiopeia, Berlin (GER)
Norwegian singer/songwriter Ane Brun is coming to the US - her album "A Temporary Dive" will be released over here in early 2006. And to help build the antipation, Ane will be playing some shows on these shores in late October. So far all that's booked are two nights (October 25+26) at the Living Room in NYC, but more will probably be on the way.
JR Ewing is currently compiling a video for their next single "Change is nothing, everything is" with skatefilm producer Erik Berg. The clip will feature assorted footage from the band's past seven years.
Chalksounds has finally confirmed that the long-awaited debut full-length from The End Will Be Kicks will be out on September 28. This record has been on my most-anticipated list for over a year now (!!!), so I'm stoked it'll finally be coming out.
Backyard Babies have officially signed with new Century Media offshoot Another Century Media for all territories outside of Scandinavia and Japan. ACM will rerelease a special double-disc edition of the "Tinnitus" best-of comp with "Live live in Paris" this coming fall, just in time for another tour. Dates soon.
This week's MTV UpNorth video chart:
01. The Rasmus - No Fear
02. Midnight Monkeys - Monkeys On Attack
03. HIM - Wings Of A Butterfly
04. Apulanta - Pahempi Toistaan
05. TwoPointEight - Red Eye
06. Östermalm - Le Åt Allt
07. Darin - Why Does It Rain
08. Lene Marlin - How Will It Be
09. Division Of Laura Lee - Dirty Love
10. Firefox - What's That Sound
11. Peshi - Hush Hush
12. Röyksopp - Only This Moment
13. Laleh - Live Tomorrow
14. Hellacopters - Everything's On TV
15. Marion Raven - Break You
16. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Station To Station
17. Svenska Akademin - Du Vill Så Du Kan
18. Alcazar - Start The Firt
19. JR Ewing - Fucking & Champagne
20. Oscar Sharp / Melo - Runaway
Challengers:
01. Kaizers Orchestra - Maestro Kaizerecords
02. Håkan Hellström - Gårdakvarnar och Skit
03. Thomas Dybdahl - If We Want It, It's Right
04. Kent - Den Döda Vinkeln
05. Musikk & John Rock - Love Changes
Go here to vote for your favorite: http://www.mtve.com/article.php?ArticleId=4753
Candlelight Records will release Khold's latest album "Krek" in North American on October 18. The label will also release both Grimfist's new album "Ten steps to hell" and 1349's "Hellfire" over here on October 4.
Fredrik Fagerlund (Facer, Diamond Dogs) will be releasing his debut solo album "International" on Smilodon Records in the near future. A number of guests from the bands Isolation Years, Deportees, Perishers and Diamond Dogs join him on the recording and the sound is said to be "like a meeting between Tom Petty, Coldplay, Radiohead and Chris Isaak."
This isn't original in any way whatsoever, but it's charming, inoffensive, non-subversive, and innocent, just like toddlers making crazy faces, kittens going nuts, puppies yawning, and really old people trying to dance. A whole album of this stuff would be too much, I guess, but I can easily stomach four songs, especially since none of them are over two minutes long. If you're a hardcore twee fan, and scared of the dark, I think you will find that the The Budgies could be your wettest (i.e. pretty dry) dream come true, if you're not this sort of person I still think you should go to their website and check some of their songs out since I bet you, just like me, will find their soothing and pleasant songs great for playing violent video games to.
- Simon Tagestam
If you didn't know it, twee is pretty goddamn big in Sweden, and Edson – Pelle Carlberg's band – are one of most adored bands in this sugary sweet genre. I never liked Edson, I always found them way too twee for their own good, but this solo EP from Mr. Carlberg has, after a few rounds in my CD player, managed to win me over. The main track got some brilliant lyrics where Pelle tells the story of how he calls a journalist because she's given him a bad review, only to be blatantly rebuffed and taken for being intoxicated (although he "wasn't even drunk"!). It's a nice little creepy song, and I like it a lot, and I'm not saying this because I'm scared that Pelle will write a song called something like "I hate you goddamn, Mr. Tagestam".
- Simon Tagestam
This is Laakso's first release on a major label, and they sound just like when they were on Adrian Recordings, only better. It's as if they've all of a sudden had some sort of epiphany and realized what all their shortcomings were and instantly scrapped them while totally utilizing all the stuff that makes them such a great band. All the four songs here are catchy, melodic, and great – it's quirky indie rock to its fullest (even better than The Shout Out Louds). Hopefully their major label deal will make Laakso as gigantic as their music.
- Simon Tagestam
Everything I've reviewed this week has been surprisingly excellent, but this disc is way too boring for my sensitive ears. There are six tracks on this EP but I can only find one proper song ("Lofi referee" which is quite a fine pop song, I must say), the rest of them are all nice and cute but way too fragmented and they sound more like song ideas than actual songs. The Mexicos did some super alright electronic versions of two Håkan Hellström songs earlier this year, but that fact only makes this EP more of a disappointment I'm afraid.
- Simon Tagestam
Munck//JohnsonMost people I know wouldn't make it all the way through a disc as somber and musically sparse as this debut by Danish duo Camilla Munck and Moogie Johnson, but I suppose I'm a musical masochist. I like to suffer for other people's art, and all I ask is that it stir my emotions sincerely and have enough going on to hold my interest when I'm in one of my receptive moods. "Unlike you" bobs and drifts uncertainly toward that goal, and JUST makes it over the rope. That's mostly due to Camilla's unabashedly emotional, upfront singing (there's no denying the genuineness of her potently sad delivery) and the weird snatches of distorted keyboards and other stuff here and there that add sort of an alien atmosphere (though the primary accompaniment is simple acoustic guitar). Some tunes such as "The sky", "Ease me" and "Lilies" are merely quietly pretty and melodic. Others dive straight to the murky depths like "Sister Mine" which really creates a funereal atmosphere, but I love the blend of organ and acoustic guitar. And it takes a genuinely focused/emotionally committed artist to conjure the utterly spooky vibes of "Ghostdance" and "For my sweetheart", which out-Low the lowest of, uh, Low, this group's nearest comparison. Nothing here to rev you up for the hardships of life, but as a soundtrack to same, this is often gripping stuff.
- Kevin Renick
Norway seems to be adept at exporting quality singer/songwriters these days. Both Sondre Lerche and Magnet seem to be doing quite well for themselves abroad and now there's upstart Robert Post to contend with. While I don't find his album as consistently good from beginning to end as the other aforementioned artists' most recent work, Robert is still a formidable entry into the genre. He's got such an amazingly effortless singing voice - just listen to the way he nails that high note on the final chorus of the song I've posted today. That kind of performance is simply undeniable. He sounds so natural and at-ease - he's a power-pop sensation just waiting to happen. Even though his just-released debut album tends to be a bit heavy on filler IMO, the three or four standout tracks do a fine job of making up for it. Definitely recommend for fans of Jason Falkner, Brendon Benson, Ben Christophers and the like.
