I've been waiting for a band like this from Umeå for a long time. Seems like good indie bands were all over the place in Norrland about 15 years ago and then just disappeared. I like the emotional content here, the refrain for the first song, "Always too late", is sooo good. I knew they were gonna do something good after "Slow wind", I was surprised they were so quick to get an album out. Sundsvallstidsningen thought the record sounds like it's out of phase. I thought that was really funny. There was a lot of moments like that in the music press around the indie wave of the 90s. Some Lundell-nut at DN had to review the first Brick record and struggled to reference Sebadoh, and then struggled to reference 'country' when he has to review the new Sebadoh. As a teenage indie-geekasaurus, there was the sense that the adults were blowing it. Now the kids are blowing it instead. Anyway this is a brilliant pop-record which has a lot of great great moments, my particular faves being the opening track, "Slow wind" and the title track, a moody instrumental that builds. And no, the record is not out of phase. In fact, it sounds perfect. - Mathias Rask-Andersen
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:
01. Bastard Priest - Power of death
02. TALK 1
03. Mindy Misty - Dead pan frenzy
04. Mother of the Forest - Kingdom
05. Säkert! - Fredrik
06. TALK 2
07. Pistol Disco - Pool
08. Obstacles - Rorschach
09. Radar - Paradigm shift
10. TALK 3
11. The Bear Quartet - Fist or hand
12. Niels Nielsen - Dpend
13. Adam Tensta - Young black boy
14. TALK 4
15. I'm Kingfisher - Willing night plants
16. Joel Alme - No class
17. Dear Euphoria - Coming down
18. The Genuine Fakes - When reality hits you
19. TALK 5
20. Brick - Call Batman
Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.
A new Wildbirds & Peacedrums video, directed by Patrik Instedt (NEI, Brick). Still not all that into this band, but their new choral-enhanced stuff is a step up.
Culkin played an extra special show at Club Probation/Snövit in Stockholm on Friday and you missed it. I would've been there for sure if I wasn't halfway around the world, but hey, that's life -- at least I had the honor of second-handedly providing guest vocalist Nandor Hegedüs a mp3 of his old band's song so he could refresh his memory before hitting the stage. That's the kind of odd international world we live in now.
There's a nice noise-hardcore-scene vibe going around Stockholm with some amazing bands gigging in basements and bars and such, under the radar of -- or underestimated by -- the established clubs; these bands are getting their gigs by themselves and getting together a group of friends in a hole in the ground serving beer. Anyone paying attention will recognize that most members tonite are the usual suspects and this one featured, among others, members of Traktor, Emerson Fittipaldi, Seven Feet Four and Bruce Banner, on stage and in the audience.
Axe kicked off the night with some ferocious hardcore-noise-punk in the vein of Brick and that old hardcore band from Sigtuna that I can't remember the name of right now. They were really cool. They've got hooks! Check out their myspace and you'll see what I mean (the song "Firmafest" is an amazing stand-out!). They also are not afraid to go mid-tempo for some noise-intensity. The live-experience was great, yet lacking some volume and conviction, but hopefully they'll iron this out. If they do, this band will be a force to be reckoned with.
EL-SD were a bit more heady, recalling early Unwound, Sonic Youth, even early Quagmire (!) as well as sporting "Yank crime"-era Drive Like Jehu song lengths. I was blissing out ofc, with the amazing gzzz-ing and no-wave picking guitars of David Fried right in front of me and bumping into Frippe going crazy wielding the bass. Good shit, this.
Karpis went metal on me, taking noise-rock down drop-tuning with growling even. They were bringing it, but I was kind of done unfortunately, trying to flirt, drink beer and stuff instead. I'll catch more of your set next time guys, promise!
So, fellow travelers, when in Stockholm, I humbly suggest you forgo established venues, constantly applying the one-size-fits-all-indie-dancefloor after every damn concert, for the basement jovial hardcore-scene-experience. Get your promille up and cheer for your new-found favourite underground band! You can even pogo a bit if u'd like. - Mathias Rask-Andersen
Flattery will get you everywhere: seeing my name (or even just It's a Trap!) in an album's thank-you list is a surefire way to put a smile on my face. So thank you to NEI for making my day a little brighter. However, it's not as if I'd be tempted otherwise; I've been looking forward to their album for a long, long time and can confidently say that they deliver as-expected. As said before, these guys make the sort of quality angular rock'n'roll that dudes like me in their 30s and above still recall with extreme fondness. Still, I have a friend complain that he thought NEI were a bit lazy sounding, especially when you consider that these dudes formerly played with monster acts such as Brick, Breach and Fireside. While I understand his point, let me counter with "40 rabbits": a rager of a track that recalls those bands' finer moments. Patrik Instedt's vocals are especially maniacal here as he recalls a story that's as confusing to his own (fictional) experience, as it is for the listening. Blood, rabbits, an empty room, the woods, an abandoned car...? It's a distressing portrait. I like it.
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU featuring special guest Mathias Rask-Andersen from the band Culkin:
01. Culkin - Payperfist
02. TALK 1
03. Him Kerosene - Raceday
04. Park Hotell - Happy love
05. Neil Halstead - Paint a face
06. TALK 2
07. Culkin - Glow
08. Scraps of Tape - Drink forever
09. The Bear Quartet - Northern
10. KVLR - Capitol city child
11. TALK 3
12. Brick - I
13. Blithe - Allegiance
14. Giant Boar - Jessica Hell
15. Suburban Kids with Biblical Names - Marry me
16. Popsicle - Not forever
17. TALK 4
18. Culkin - Insomniac
Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.
01. Detektivbyrån - Partyland
02. TALK 1
03. Björn Kleinhenz - At night we die
04. Hjertestop - Illegalt signal
05. Idoru - Chase
06. TALK 2
07. Fever Ray - If I had a heart (instrumental edit)
08. Champagne Riot - Scandinavian warfare
09. Caesars Palace - Only you
10. José González - How low
11. TALK 3
12. Alarma Man - Nightwolf
13. Adolf Filter - 1982
14. Brick - Ha ha ha
15. TALK 4
16. Auton - El Dorado
17. Gutted String - Feeling small
18. The Bombettes - It ain't me babe
19. Tiger Lou - Trust falls
20. I'm from Barcelona - Headphones
21. TALK 5
22. Kite - Ways to dance
Reminder: my show airs on Sirius Left of Center (channel 26) at 11pm ET with repeats on Monday at the same time.
I do believe I've covered all the new music I'm genuinely excited about, so I'm going to use today's mp3 post to promote my show on Sirius tonight (11pm ET, channel 26) since I'm doing a special guitar-rock feature. Now when I say "guitar-rock", bear in mind that I mean indie guitar-rock, not classic rock, or 80s rock or anything like that. Generally speaking, I'm talking about the kind of stuff that draws influence from bands such as Sonic Youth, Fugazi or even Quicksand, the kind of bands that Norrland pumped out in the 90s, bands like Starmarket, KVLR, Blithe, Fireside, Brick, The Bear Quartet... the list goes on and on. One of my absolute favorites though has got to be Him Kerosene. Niklas Quintana plays guitar like no other man except for those he inspired and his riffs are so amazing, so unique. The melodies are instantly recognizable and they point north -- there's no way this sound could originate anywhere other than northern Sweden.
"Whatever gets you by" isn't quite a ballad, but it is one of the more downtempo tracks on their masterpiece album "Start. Stop." (1997/Telegram Records). As is typical for bands from the far north, the music is seeped in heavy melancholy and resignation, though the huge guitar melodies provide a triumphant counterpoint to the sadness. The way the guitar lines twist and turn around each other is absolutely incredible. And the rhythm section is sharp too, like the album title implies, starting and stopping on a dime. I actually have a different HK track lined up for tonight's show, but they're such an amazing band, I feel compelled to share more. Too bad Warner (Telegram's parent company) hasn't been interested in doing a reissue or keeping the album in print. It's a lost gem.
01. Franke - Jag älskar dig
02. TALK 1
03. White Knives - Welcome transplants
04. Bobby and Blumm - Drow a bow
05. Anna Leong - Guillotine
06. TALK 2
07. Juvelen - Don't mess
08. Eucharist - The Eucharist
09. Sophie Rimheden - Go away (ft. Aaron Phiri)
10. TALK 3
11. Form One - Money (ft. Vincent)
12. Tape - Augustan chateau
13. Moneybrother - They're building walls around us
14. TALK 4
15. Lapko - Killer whales
16. The State of Floral Beings - Bad broker
17. Opération Zéro - Grand Pere
18. TALK 5
19. Pistol Disco - Beat of the tune
20. Kusowsky - Jonny
21. Motorhomes - Into the night
22. TALK 6
23. They Live By Night - Endless summer
24. Cleaning Women - Clean up your body
25. Kaka - What a frame
26. Gorgoroth - Krig
27. TALK 7
28. Markus Krunegård - Samma nätter väntar alla
29. Snöleoparden - Waterpuppet theatre
30. Oskar Schönning - Stoner
31. TALK 8
32. Tellu - Tuulet
33. Convoj - Cultural legacy
34. Lukestar - White shade
35. Silver - The personal decay
36. TALK 9
37. Brick - Labrador
38. Callisto - Anastasis
39. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - When she's GONE
40. TALK 10
41. Magyar Posse - Singlesparks are spectral fires
"Great Northern Recordings compilation nr. 3", the latest edition of the short-run comp series focusing on some of Sweden's best experimental indie acts, is confirmed for release on March 1. This new one features eight previously unreleased tracks from the bands Nei (members from Breach, Fireside, Brick, The End Will Be Kicks), Giant Boar (members from Seven Feet Four), White Knives (members from Skull Defekts, Cut City) and Happiness (members from Tar... Feathers, Fuglesang) and will be amazing, no doubt. Hand-numbered, 167 copies and yes, I'll definitely be getting a few for resale. Celebrate the release with Nei's debut show at Debaser Slussen in Stockholm on March 1.
01. Jan Johansson - Visa från Utanmyra
02. TALK 1
03. Annika Norlin/Säkert! - Generalens visa
04. Don't Be a Stranger - Mon-chi-chi
05. Audionom - In the streets
06. TALK 2
07. Elias and the Wizzkids - Fourth of July
08. C.Aarmé - Golden retriever
09. Kasper Bjørke - Humming song
10. The Carny - Bestseller
11. TALK 3
12. Marybell Katastrophy - Hip
13. Flyphonic - The truth is
14. Universal Poplab - Heart apart (Timo Räisänen acoustic remix)
15. TALK 4
16. E.S.T. - Tuesday wonderland (live)
17. Rigas - Dead like you
18. TALK 5
19. Bröderna Lindgren - En hund som jag
20. Springfactory - Swedish folk highschool
21. Loud Pipes - Don't you ever
22. Sophie Zelmani - To know you
23. TALK 6
24. The State of Floral Beings - Man you owe me
25. Caitlyn - Oh no!
26. The Bombhappies - And at Belle Bed Inn, I told you
27. TALK 7
28. Brick - Call Batman
29. Smalltown - What's going on?
30. Desert Planet - Return of the ninja droids
31. TALK 8
32. Hedningarna - Neidon laulu
33. Dreamboy - What have I done
34. Captain Murphy - Sailor behaviour
35. TALK 9
36. Lemonator - Heart burns
37. The Kissaway Trail - Smother + evil = hurt
38. Johndoe - Rastløs rock'n'roll
39. Lukestar - Shade you hide
40. TALK 10
41. The Fine Arts Showcase - Teenage poetry
The playlist for this week's radio show, an all-winter theme:
01. Ricochets - Cold outside
02. TALK 1
03. Shining - Winterreise
04. Britta Persson - Winter tour
05. Svenson - In the snow
06. Weeping Willows - Christmas in prison
07. TALK 2
08. The Tiny - No money (for X-mas)
09. Kompjotr Eplektrika - Blikktztunddonner
10. The Knife - Reindeer
11. TALK 3
12. Hello Saferide - iPod X-mas
13. January Jaunt - Stuck in glaziers
14. Darkthrone - Too old, too cold
15. TALK 4
16. Sällskapet - Nordlicht
17. E.S.T. - Strange place for snow
18. Sort Mel - Det grønne flesket
19. Notre Dame - A scrooge tale
20. TALK 5
21. Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck - Winter moment
22. Syster Lycklig - Bilden till snöstorm
23. The Book of Daniel - 3rd of December
24. TALK 6
25. Samuraj Cities - Cold feet
26. Amandine - Silver bells
27. Logcabin - View of frost
28. Silverbullit - Winter coat
29. TALK 7
30. In Flames - December flower
31. Viktor Sjöberg - On a winters day
32. The Bear Quartet - Blizzard
33. TALK 8
34. Brick - Gray day
35. Laakso - Merry Christmas
36. Strayfolk - Another year before the mast
37. TALK 9
Don't forget to vote for Sirius Blog Radio at the Plug Awards! Vote here: http://www.plugawards.com/general_vote.php
We are nominated under the category "Media (Obsessive) > Specialty Show Of The Year (Commercial Radio)".
Nomethod has confirmed that Aerial's new EP "The legion of dynamic dischord" for release on January 31. Go here for cover art and tracklist: http://www.nomethod.se/
Nomethod also reports that Mixtapes & Cellmates frontman Robert Svensson will re-enter the studio on December 19 to record a duet with Adam Olenius (Shout Out Louds) for his upcoming solo album. Said track is called "1987" and it will be the first single. Also featured on the track is drummer Jejo Perkovic (Bear Quartet, Brick, Infinite Mass, etc.). No release date yet, but expect the single around February.
01. Kristofer Åström - Just a little insane
02. TALK 1
03. Darkthrone - Canadian metal
04. Sambassadeur - Subtle changes
05. Niccokick - Love & neon lights
06. TALK 2
07. Death By Kite - Bhf. Asta
08. The Alpine - Iceland
09. Pluxus - Bootstrap
10. TALK 3
11. Graveyard - Thin line
12. Hospital - Something in the water
13. Attrap - Just a word away
14. TALK 4
15. Jonna Lee - I wrote this song
16. Paper - My life is going under
17. Broder Daniel - You bury me
18. TALK 5
19. Radio LXMBRG - Score on the floor
20. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
21. Rather Sound Than Safe - The beat
22. Det Gamla Landet - Det heliga landet
23. TALK 6
24. Paris - When I laid my eyes on you
25. No Hope for the Kids - Rainy day
26. Sir Eric Beyond and the Avant-Garde - If this is the way
27. Barra Head - Overseas
28. TALK 7
29. Superfamily - Warszawa
30. Oskar Schönning - S
31. Brick - Automen
32. TALK 8
33. Miss Li - Leave my man alone
34. Kasper Bjørke - Liquid propagnosia
35. Loveninjas - I wanna be like Johnny C
36. Anti Cimex - Only in dreams
37. TALK 9
38. Pan Sonic - Virta 1
First Love, Last Rites
Axe, EL-SD & Karpis
