Bengtsarvet to support Mono
Swedish instrumental/postrock act Bengtsarvet will be opening for Japanese genre legends Mono for a leg of their upcoming European tour. Dates and a sample tune at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/bengtsarvet
Viola - Heart breaks into a song
A new month means a new song for free download from Viola and their latest is called "Heart breaks into a song": http://www.violamusicclub.com/
Galaxy Safari
Star of the masquerade
Granat Records
The type of music that Sweden's Galaxy Safari play can often fall into the abyss of boredom that only a handful of bands have successfully managed to escape. Big players like Queens Of The Stone Age, Foo Fighters, Unida and, to a lesser extent, Liberty 37 and Galactic Cowboys are all referenced here in one way or another and show that Galaxy Safari are adept at mimicking their outer influences and stamping their own initials on the outcome. However, an essential aspect that's quite often lost on a great number of bands attempting to follow this path is the concept of tempo variation and this is also a problem on "Star of the masquerade". The vast majority of songs on here follow the mid-upbeat tempo characteristic of this genre and it unfortunately detracts from an otherwise pleasing album. It's not so much that the album isn't enjoyable, rather it loses its potential impact by failing to address the need for variation in this area. Sure, tracks like opener "Save me" and "Far too long" kick the speed up a tad, but that's not exactly what it's about. It's about more divergence within the songs and without it we have an album that is disappointingly generic in feel and quickly tiring. It also, however, shows a band with the potential to pull a great recording out of the bag if they knuckle down and take some time to be creative instead of going for the quick fix.
- John Norby
Morbus Chron demo coming in February
Old-school Swedish death metal revivalists Morbus Chron report that they'll be releasing their much-anticipated demo tape via in February with their proper full-length debut following sometime later via .
Lords of Metal interview Opium Warlords
The Lords of Metal webzine talks to Sami Albert Hynninnen of bizarro Finnish doom/black metal act Opium Warlords: http://www.lordsofmetal.nl/showinterview.php?id=3091&lang=en
More new interviews here: http://www.lordsofmetal.nl/interviews.php?lang=en
New Kiki Pau album confirmed
Kiki Pau's new album "White mountain" is officially confirmed for release on March 3.
Nikola Sarcevic - Tro
Nikola Sarcevic is streaming the brand new song "Tro" at his website: http://nikolasarcevic.com/start/?p=300
The Sound Projector Invasion Table
The Sound Projector rounds up a batch of recent releases from the always-excellent label, including stuff from Tsukimono, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words and more: http://www.thesoundprojector.com/2010/01/30/invasion-table-vacant-stare/
Nice Idiot confirm debut album
Swedish punks Nice Idiot report that their debut album "This is no party" is done and will contain 15 songs, all recorded "mostly live" in the studio. will release the CD version in March/early April and the vinyl edition (with bonux track) is still being worked on.
Lo-Fi-Fnk - Marchin' in (video)
In case you missed the Facebook unveiling, here's the new Lo-Fi-Fnk video for the single "Marchin' in": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPgkz4zAHM4&fmt=18
Apparatjik album is out
As mentioned the other day, international all-stars Apparatjik have unveiled their debut album "We are here": http://www.theoutland.com/
The Grand Opening in mixing mode
The Grand Opening report that their new album, their 3rd overall, is 98% finished and is currently being mixed by Christoffer Roth.
Skrammel streaming new tracks from upcoming split
is streaming new tracks from Ignatius and The Nature at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/skrammelrecords
Look for the bands' split 7" to be released soon.
Taxi Taxi! to tour Europe
Taxi Taxi! will be heading out on the road across Europe in March:
03/11 - Fundbureau, Hamburg (GER)
03/12 - Pretty Vacant, Düsseldorf (GER)
03/13 - Haus Ungarn, Berlin (GER)
03/14 - Paris Syndrom, Leipzig (GER)
03/15 - Chelsea, Vienna (AUS)
03/16 - Rockhouse Bar, Salzburg (AUS)
03/18 - House Concert, Milan (ITA)
03/19 - Papiersaal, Zurich (CH)
03/20 - Kulturladen, Konstanz (GER)
03/23 - Upstairs at the Garage, London (UK)
03/24 - Vooruit, Gent (BEL)
03/25 - Witloof Bar @ Botanique, Brussels (BEL)
03/26 - Ifsm @ Swedish Culture Center, Paris (FRA)
03/27 - Les Trinitaires, Metz (FRA)
03/28 - Paradiso, Amsterdam (NL)
04/07 - Cinema Nimas, Lisboa (POR)
04/08 - OMT, Coimbra (POR)
04/09 - Cine-Teatro de Estarreja, Estarreja (POR)
04/10 - Centro de Artes e Espectáculos, Portalegre (POR)
Efterklang track review at Pitchfork
Efterklang's new single "Modern drift" gets a track review at Pitchfork: http://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/11745-modern-drift/