This week's top 20 Norwegian album chart:
01. Kurt Nilsen - Rise To The Occasion
02. Espen Lind - Army of one
03. Åge Aleksandersen - Katalysator
04. Return - Best Of Both Worlds
05. Kathrine Moholt - Sweethearts
06. Vassendgutane - Xo
07. Too Far Gone - Livåt
08. Knutsen & Ludvigsen - Dum og deilig -beste
09. Madrugada - Madrugada
10. Ida Maria - Fortress Round My Heart
11. Harald Heide Steen jr. - Musikalske Minner
12. Maria Haukaas Storeng - Hold On Be Strong
13. Malin - Pang
14. Sogns - Det koster å vara kar
15. Kaizers Orchestra - Maskineri
16. Svein Østvik - Kongen Av Mallorca
17. Morten Harket - Letter From Egypt
18. Åsmund Åmli Band - Panorama
19. Hovedøen Social Club - Que Viva Noruega
20. Ane Brun - Changing Of The Seasons
This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:
01. Lasse Stefanz - Rallarsväng
02. Patrik Isaksson - 10 år en snäll mans bekännelser
03. Takida - Bury the lies
04. The Refreshments - Jukebox - Refreshing classics
05. Sten & Stanley - Det känns när det svänger
06. Nordman - Djävul eller gud
07. Rongedal - Rongedal
08. Brolle - Ett hjärta som glöder som en gång brann
09. Lisa Miskovsky - Last year's songs - Greatest hits
10. Amanda Jenssen - Killing my darlings
11. E.M.D. - A state of mind
12. Robert Wells - The best of Rhapsody 1998-2008
13. Evert Taube - Mästerverk!
14. Miss Li - Best of 061122-071122
15. Caroline Larsson - In the moment
16. Sanna Nielsen - Stronger
17. Maia Hirasawa - Though, I'm just me - New edition
18. The Real Group - Håll musiken igång! The Real Group sjunger Povel
19. Kleerup - Kleerup
20. Hammerfall - Rebels with a cause
Ambolthue is offering up a free download an old Origami Republika EP that was originally slated for release as a 10": http://www.ambolthue.com/trassmp3_releases/ambtrass7.html
If you're into weirdo Norwegian noise/experimental/electronica, you should check this out.
It's taken them a long while, but Tiger Tunes has finally gotten around to posting all of their various demos for free download: http://www.tigertunes.dk/rooock.htm
Dreaded black-metal warrior Gaahl from the band Gorgoroth is starting a decidedly un-metal fashion line: http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=101511
Gaffa reports that Sune Rose Wagner of The Raveonettes is working on a solo album: http://gaffa.dk/nyheder/view.php/news_id=22675 (in Danish)
Hear samples of demo tracks: http://www.myspace.com/sunerosewagner
Aftonbladet is streaming the new Backyard Babies single "Fuck off and die", which unfortunately is nowhere near as good as the Darkthrone or Black Uniforms tracks of the same name: http://www.aftonbladet.se/webbtv/noje/musikvideor/article2969526.ab
The Fader has live footage of Dungen performing songs from the new album "4" in a stripped-down "jazz" setting: http://www.thefader.com/articles/2008/7/21/fader-tv-dungen-performs-their-new-album-jazz-style
2
No use sugarcoating it, this record isn't good. Furthermore, the free download version on their website is even worse. What's up with the useless splash page? And the background music you can't turn off? Gratuitous animation you can't skip? And then to download one track at a time? Oh, and don't try navigating to another page while it's working, it'll cancel out leaving you to begin the whole damn exercise all over again. What I'm saying is, don't bother. Sometimes free isn't really free.
As for what you're "missing", Dogday plays post-punkish indierock hampered by a weak vocalist and a lack of melody. They aim for detached cool and end up boring. The shit mastering job doesn't help, it's just as flat and lifeless as the songs. Avoid.
- Avi Roig
Okay, so I'm browsing through records in Stockholm and I come across the LP pictured above and hell no, there is no way in hell I'm gonna pass on this. Most of you out there are probably unaware, but besides Scandinavian music, I listen to a heckuva lot of country and a lot of that country also happens to be trucker music. My collection is by no means exhaustive, but I do have at least 7-8 CDs of the stuff and I'm always on the lookout for more. I'm not sure exactly when the trucker country genre came to be, but it sure took the world by storm with "Convoy" in the late 70s and it seems that even Sweden was not immune. Hence, Viking Truckers and their sole (?) full-length album "Love on the road". Just look at that cover! Those shirts! Those beards! Those bandannas! That Volvo bigrig! The band was actually a short-lived sideproject of Bob Lander from The Spotnicks along with Stefan Ericsson as co-conspirator/co-writer, a man whose background I am clueless about.
As for the music, well it's mostly straightforward early 80s country (very countrypolitan, not totally coked-out yet), except it's kinda weird in new, unexpected ways. I mean, I knew it wasn't going to sound like Red Sovine or Red Simpson, but listen to that bagpipe! On the very first song and title track! WTF?! But on the other hand, the pedal steel solo is solid and the lyrics are properly sleazy, just as it should be for the style. This is the sort of record where I can't really tell you that it's "good", but I sure am glad I bought it.
Viking Truckers - Love on the road
The video for the new Vapnet single "Inga fåglar" is now on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0BZ7RC8oX0
Superfamily will be going back into the studio with producer Espen Berg in October to begin work on album #3.
New international dates for Those Dancing Days:
08/07 - New Slang, Kingston
08/08 - Underage Festival, London
08/09 - Roadhouse, Manchester
08/10 - Summer Sundae Weekender, Leicester
08/15 - Karrea Club Party, Berlin
08/15 - Pukkelpop Festival, Hasselt
08/16 - Dockville Festival, Hamburg
08/17 - Blue shell, Colognee
10/21 - Kings College, London
10/23 - Cardiff, Barfly
The new Negative album "Karma killer" is confirmed for release in GAS on September 5 and in France, The Netherlands and Luxembourg on September 8, all via Edel Music.
Dogday