Entombed - Welcome home (King Diamond)

Somehow I missed this when it was first posted, but better late than never! "Welcome home" is included as the b-side on Entombed's new 7" "When in Sodom revisited", out now via Screaming Records.

Converge - Wolverine blues

Slightly OT, but probably of interest to many: check out Converge covering Entombed's classic "Wolverine blues" with guest vocals from Tomas Lindberg of At the Gates, Aaron Turner of Isis and more. It's not exactly what I'd call "good", but I'm sure a good time was had by all.

De:Nihil to release new 7" from Swarm

De:Nihil Records is putting out a new 7" from Swarm, a bluesy noiserock trio featuring current and ex-members from revered Swedish acts such as Victims, Disfear and Entombed: http://denihilrecords.blogspot.com/2012/05/new-release-swarm-nihil011.html
2 songs, pre-orders start on May 19.

New (old) Entombed single in May

Ninetone Records has announced that they will be releasing the new Entombed single "Amok" -- yes, a re-recorded version of the song from the album "Serpent saints" -- on May 23.

MP3: Entombed - State of emergency

I have no idea how widely it's been reported, but Western Washington underwent some seriously extreme weather this past week, so between working my regular dayjob among itinerant power outages and making sure my family and pets are taken care of, keeping up this site doesn't exactly register on the priority list. So despite the carnage above which shows you the view from my home office window, we are all doing okay, more or less. The fence and the tree, not so much. I'll get back on top of things soon enough.

Entombed - State of emergency

Screaming Records to release new Entombed 7", more

Danish label Screaming Records will be releasing a new 7" from Swedish death metal legends Entombed this coming May, ahead of the band's new full-length album due out late 2012. In other news, the label will also be doing a 7" with CPH upstart crust/hardcore act Parasight -- look for that one in late February.

Entombed live 1990 (video)

Entombed live in Stockholm circa 1990, what's not to like? Oh yeah, and they cover Black Sabbath too.

MP3: Nine - Time has come

Holy Moly, It's a Trap! is nine years old today! It's always weird to think back to when I first started this thing, back when there were no other websites devoted entirely to Scandinavian music (and certainly not in English!), back before Myspace and social networking, back in the time of Napster and a seemingly endless supply of free music. Naturally, times have changed quite a bit since then and while I'm thankfully no longer the sole representative of this particular niche, there's still no one else covering all the music I want to hear all in one place so I'm compelled to soldier on. So thanks to all my contributors past and present, tack till Jonas for managing the Clubnight, thanks to all the artists who keep me inspired and thanks to YOU for reading! Stubbornly I will persist for yet another year!

As for today's tune, the obvious choice would be "Nine years later" by Born Against (just as relevant today as when it was released 20 years ago), but since New York isn't in Sweden last I checked, I've got to go with Plan B and a quick perusal of my mp3 library leads me directly to Nine. Their combination of Entombed-style death'n'roll swagger and metallic hardcore was way ahead of its time, so while bands of that ilk seem to propagate nowadays in stupid amounts, let us remember back to an era when it was still sounding fresh. Did Nine ever properly get their due? Or were they forever doomed to obscurity thanks to their eminently un-Googleable name? What are those dudes up to now anyway? Bueller?

Nine - Time has come

Rock Science, the game

Presenting "Rock Science", a new rock'n'roll boardgame featuring artwork and a themesong by Nicke Andersson of Imperial State Electric/The Hellacopters/Entombed. Check it: http://www.rockscience.tv/

Entombed on tour

Upcoming live dates for Entombed:

01/28 - Spring & Airbrake, Belfast (IRL)
01/29 - The Village, Dublin (IRL)
02/24 - Hulen, Bergen (NOR)
02/25 - Byscenen, Trondheim (NOR)
02/26 - Betong, Oslo (NOR)
03/10 - Studenthuset, Aalborg (DK)
03/11 - Godset, Kolding (DK)
03/12 - The Rock, Copenhagen (DK)
05/19 - Turock, Essen (GER)
05/20 - Hedon, Zwolle (NL)
05/21 - Patronaat, Harlem (NL)
05/22 - Effenaar, Eindhoven (NL)
05/27 - Metalfest, Dessau (GER)
05/28 - Metalfest, Mining am Inn (AUS)
05/29 - Metalfest, Pratteln (CH)
07/07 - Obscene Extreme, Nabojisti (CR)
07/09 - Getaway rock, Gävle (SWE)

Blood Mortized
Bestial
Nocturnal Blood Records

The old-school Swedish sound made famous by Entombed and Dismember back in the day has come back with such force and in so many numbers of late that it's hardly fair to call it a revival. There's part of me that is wholeheartedly delighted to hear fresh songs surface with the HM-2 guitar buzz yet, with the vast amount of bands sporting the sound these days, there's another part of me that concedes the fact that nothing compares to the likes of "Left hand path" or "Like an everflowing stream" when it comes to the allied genius of that sound and song structure. Blood Mortized are one of the few modern bands that pretty much have both aspects nailed down. They have displayed in "Bestial" a thorough knowledge of what drove the scene and drew the masses into the hellish depths of Sweden's death metal darkside back in the late '80s and early '90s. It's a pity that there are only three tracks on offer here but, with this being a vast improvement on 2009's debut full-length, there's a glimmer of hope that their next full length will be a subhuman monster of an album.
- John Norby

MP3: The Robots - Night of the living dead

It's Halloween weekend and I've been listening to The Misfits all day long, so I figure I should probably share and share alike, especially seeing as how they are perfect band for the occasion. Problem is, the only cover tunes I have handy come from the dismal "Hell on Earth - Hail to Misfits" compilation which is 98% garbage. I suppose that Entombed's take on "Hollywood Babylon" is solid, but that's not exactly seasonably appropriate so we gotta go with the next best thing which is "Night of the living dead" as performed by The Robots. Competent, yet unexceptional, but that's all I got, so yeah -- happy holidays I guess. Deal with it.

The Robots - Night of the living dead

Entombed back to 5

Victor Brandt (Totalt Jävla Mörker, Djerv, Satyricon) has been enlisted as Entombed's new bassist with current member Nico Elgstrand switching permanently to 2nd guitar, making the band a 5-piece once more: http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=49775189&blogId=538732071

Interment
Into the crypts of blasphemy
Pulverised Records

Ah, the good old days of Swedish death metal. They’ve never really gone away, with the early recordings of likes of Entombed, Dismember, Carnage and Grave still cited as the best, most influential death metal ever to disgust the planet. One band that was around back then -- having formed at the same time as all the aforementioned legends -- was fellow countrymen Interment. Having disbanded after the release of a few demos back in the day, they tested the water back in 2007 with a split with US death crew Funebrarum before going on to record this, their first ever full-length album. I could go on and on describing the sound and the songwriting in great detail but, to keep it short and to the point -- and to let you know exactly what this album sounds like -- one sentence will do the trick: it's the oldschool Stockholm sound and style, done with great authenticity and the aspiration to be the "Left hand path" of the 21st Century. Obviously, nothing can ever top "LHP" but, for those looking for something new in this particular style "Into the crypts of blasphemy" isn't too far away.
- John Norby

Necronaut lineup revealed

Necronaut, the solo project of ex-Dismember drummer Fred Estby, has posted the complete guest lineup for his upcoming album: http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=414772938&blogId=538096458
For those that aren't so good with names, the list includes members from Entombed, Death Breath, Autopsy, At the Gates, Watain, Graveyard and more.