Musique Machine reviews the rarities/live boot collection "Project Bluebook - Decade Of Endeavor" from Norwegian avant-rock group The Third and the Mortal: http://www.musiquemachine.com/reviews/reviews_template.php?id=656
Shelby Cinca (Frantic Mantis/Frodus) posts on the Medication/Buddyhead mp3 blog about The Soundtrack of Our Lives: http://buddyhead.typepad.com/medication/2005/08/the_soundtrack_.html
Swedish post-rockers September Malevolence on tour in October:
10/12 - AZ Conni, Dresden (GER)
10/13 - tba (GER)
10/14 - Amalgame, Yverdon Des-Bains (SWI)
10/15 - Alternative Kulturekolektiv, Kranj (SLO)
10/16 - tba (AUS)
10/17 - tba (AUS)
10/18 - tba (AUS)
10/19 - Shoto Klubb, Izola (SLO)
10/20 - tba (ITA)
10/21 - Peter Pan, Bellinzona (SWI)
More info and dates in Sweden for late September coming soon.
Finnish experimental/noise label Some Place Else has released a new limited live CDR from label mainman Niko Skorpio entitled "To give light to that which is without". The recordings took place in Turku and Helsinki last spring and are said to be leaning towards the "meditative, dark ambient, electro-acoustic end of [his] repertoire." More info and a sizable mp3 sample: http://www.someplaceelse.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=203
The new Le Sport (nee Eurosport/Eurospot) CDEP "Tell no one about tonight" has been confirmed for an August 31 release via Songs I Wish I Had Written.
I wouldn't normally indulge in such a blatant novelty tune, but I'm gonna say screw it and do it anyways since I'm actually a fan of Children of Bodom's own original material. Covering Britney Spears isn't even close to an original idea, but this is definitely one of the better, more entertaining versions of her material that I've heard. And face it: covering a song that's already been a hit has got to be the cheapest, most crass thing a band can do to get attention. Look what it did for Alien Ant Farm fer crissakes. Anna Ternheim, too. Puff Daddy and The KLF both made entire careers out of it. Anyhow, CoB are a metal band from Finland that often skirts of boundries of ridiculousness. They're one of the few heavy groups that doesn't shy away from fun and they do it without irony. They're a true metal band, but they realize that virtuostic keyboard lines are both totally silly and still, totally awesome. You can't hear it on this track unfortunately, but the dude goes off. One thing you can hear though is that amazingly tight rhythm section. It reminds of Anthrax, one of the all-time thrash greats. They're another band that doesn't hate fun either. Indulge yourself. It's a good way to start off the week.
Hey, look - it's me in Vertex, the Umeå University student paper: http://www.vertex.umea.com/nr5-05/e4.html
PS, the carousel picture just happened to be one of the only recent photos I had on-hand. Honest!
This week's MTV UpNorth video chart:
01. Apulanta - Pahempi Toistaan
02. Division Of Laura Lee - Dirty Love
03. Laleh - Live Tomorrow
04. TwoPointEight - Red Eye
05. Peshi - Hush Hush
06. Darin - Why Does It Rain
07. Midnight Monkeys - Monkeys On Attack
08. Alcazar - Start The Firt
09. Röyksopp - Only This Moment
10. Hellacopters - Everything's On TV
11. JR Ewing - Fucking & Champagne
12. Tingsek - Egoflow
13. Brandon - What U See
14. Timbuktu - Det Löser Sig
15. Jori Hulkkonen - Lo Fiction
16. Madrugada - Stories From The Streets
17. Östermalm - Le Åt Allt
18. Soak The Sin - Hands Up
19. Looptroop - Chana Masala
20. Lene Marlin - How Will It Be
Challengers:
01. Svenska Akademin - Du Vill Så Du Kan
02. Oscar Sharp / Melo - Runaway
03. Marion Raven - Break You
04. David Sandström - Here Is For Summer
05. Firefox - What's That Sound
Go here to vote for your favorite: http://www.mtve.com/article.php?ArticleId=4753
Download a new track from Sibiria called "Christian Olsson": http://www.hybrism.com/files/sibiria-christian_olsson.mp3
Swedish indie/post-punk act They Live by Night has signed to Razzia Records and will release their debut EP in September. Download some demo tracks here: http://www.theylivebynight.com/
The Drawbacks have posted a new mp3 for the song "Celia" on their website: http://www.thedrawbacks.tk/
The track will also appear on the band's upcoming album "Aluminium".
The Isten fanzine has relaunched with a series of metal confessions: http://www.isten.net/fanzine/
Good reading methinks. Not all Scandinavians, but that doesn't matter.
The Buddyhead mp3 blog Medication posts some tracks from Frantic Mantis, the sideproject of Per and Håkan from Division of Laura Lee with Shelby from Frodus/Decahedron: http://buddyhead.typepad.com/medication/2005/08/frantic_mantis_.html