The new Lars Winnerbäck album "Tänk om jag ångrar mig, och sen ångrar mig igen" will be released on September 21. In addition to the standard CD, there will also be a limited edition box which will include a vinyl LP of said album plus the "112 Sånger" and a collection of Lars' photographs. The first single "Jag får liksom ingen ordning" comes out August 21.
Hello Saferide's latest fantastic album "More modern short stories..." is getting a German release this fall so there's now a new Deutsch website (with free mp3 giveaway): http://www.hellosaferide.de/
Expect tourdates in that part of the world to be announced soon.
Apparently the new Kings of Convenience single will be called "Mrs Cold" and will be released as early as this week. As for the forthcoming album, it will reportedly be released on October 2.
Check out the video for "Spela mig på radion" from Zacke (feat. Movits!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Izu7Au946eQ&fmt=18
Nice Luleå tees!
Swedish downer alt-country rockers Amandine have a new song at myspace called "Beneath the birches": http://www.myspace.com/amandinemusic
The Radio Dept.Waiting for the next album by The Radio Dept. has been a tedious affair. First it was announced for September, then they pulled back at the last minute without much explanation, only to now, somewhat surprisingly, release this new EP. Generally, I've always found The Radio Dept. to be better at EPs than albums -- compare the longing "This past week"-EP or the stellar "Pulling our weight" for example. Unfortunately, "David" comes nowhere close to these classics. In fact, only the title track manages to combine catchiness with innovation, longing, and a popful dose of kitsch (though opinions on that may vary). The other songs, however, just can't live up to that level. Most are plain uninteresting and have a B-sidish feel. The remix of "David" is really interesting though, but the dramaturgy of it seems counter-intuitive: It only takes off after more than half the track and then doesn't dare to take its clever repetitiveness to the much-needed extreme. All in all, this really seems more the single it's intended to be than like a full-fledged EP. And though I'm still eager to hear "Clinging to a scheme" when it finally comes out, I'm not exactly getting my hopes up for a new "Lesser matters". But then again, who in their right minds would hope for that?
- Arnulf Köhncke
Last week I featured a bunch of new mp3s from National Records, this week I'm going to start off with a few choice cuts from the Swedish hard rock label Transubstans. I'm always excited when something new shows up from them, because even when it's derivative nth-generation rehash, it's almost always done so killer, I barely notice. Some of their proggier acts definitely push boundaries, but screw it; I even dig the most baseline riff-rockers they can churn out. For example: Graveyard? Hell yeah. Glad to see they're getting respect in the US too, though labelmates Siena Root are a touch better for my money (new album very soon, can't wait!). Interested in hearing more bluesy heaviness along those same lines? Check out Mangrove. Not nearly as retro-obsessed as their aforementioned peers, though they bring the rawk just as loud and proud. And actually, the touchstone act for these guys wouldn't be Black Sabbath, Deep Purple or any other oft-cited 70s act of their ilk, rather I'd say it's (mid-to-late period) Soundgarden. There's tons of pentatonic runs as you'd expect, but there's a definite psych-pop thing going on as well. The vocals approximate a reined-in Chris Cornell too, especially on the choruses. He can't quite nail the siren wail, but I always found that stuff kind of annoying, so it doesn't bother me in the slightest. I just like that it's heavy and catchy. And totally killer, 'natch.
Mangrove - River of my soul
PopMatters isn't too crazy about the new Jeniferever album "Spring tides": http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/102201-jeniferever-spring-tides/
Hardcore Superstar are offering their new video "Into debauchery" as a free download: http://www.hardcoresuperstar.com/media.shtml
Catbird Records has informed me that the long out-of-print self-titled album from Swedish act Hemstad is once again available again now that they've recovered a stack of unused CD inserts from the print warehouse and are re-pressing and hand-assembling 'em with super-affordable CDRs. Check it: http://www.catbirdrecords.com/cbr_003.shtml
They also tell me there's a small possibility that the band's shelved follow-up album might eventually see the light of day, but nothing's confirmed yet on that front. Wait and see!
Mew will support Nine Inch Nails for a few US gigs:
08/26 - Terminal 5, NYC, NY
08/28 - Aragon, Chicago, IL
08/29 - Aragon, Chicago, IL
09/02 - Palladium, Los Angeles, CA
09/03 - The Henry Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
Ida Maria did a live session for Daytrotter which includes two unreleased tracks: http://www.daytrotter.com/dt/ida-maria-little-parts-of-a-tornado-all-hoarse-and-glorious-concert/20030724-3738075.html
Check out the new video for "Singing that melody" from Swedish pop/rap artist Swingfly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXX-EBLLvk8
The fine Swedish indiepop act Celestial have recorded a new song called "Sunshine girl" and it's now posted at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/ourcelestialmusic
