Artist: Fireside
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A new Bear Quartet album is always a big deal in these quarters and why should it not be? They have consistently proven themselves to perhaps be the greatest Swedish band of all-time. Constant re-invention, and, as justified with this decade's output, a move towards abstract. "89" finds The Bear Quartet delving into altermodern proto-metal, rhythmic and futuristic, a reminiscing of times lost to people, and peoples lost to time. Recently I revisited Fireside's "Elite", an aural documentation of societal ills in a world heading towards collapse. It dawned on me that "89" is its sequel--the post-collapse view of the plagues that brought down man. However, where it succeeds is to provide the starting point for lessons to prevent a dystopian cycle from forming. What The Bear Quartet have offered is much more than "music"; it's an oral history to be passed on, a way of life to be altered to prevent the hypothetical post-collapse in order for society to evolve.
- Matt Giordano
Bad Hands, the solo project of Per Nordmark (Fireside, etc.), has a new video for his eponymous song with vocals from Nina Kinert: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyzqR1h6ckg
Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. Håkan Hellström
02. Jens Lekman
03. Anna Ternheim
04. Fireside
05. The Big Pink
06. Loney, Dear
07. Mew
08. Hello Saferide
09. Bon Iver
10. The xx
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
Remember Bad Hands? Per Nordmark's new solo project? Y'know, the drummer from Fireside whose played with all sorts of Swedish elite such as Christian Kjellvander, Britta Persson and so on? Well, I've just been handed their eponymous single and I'm happy to be able to share it with you. Apparently a 10-track album with 10 different guest vocalists is on the way via NONS later this year and this particular track (which you might have already heard via myspace) features Nina Kinert on lead. Sound-wise, it's kind of what I'd expect from a Stockholm-based drummer-led project. Very krauty with a bit of artsy electro, not too dissimilar from Existensminimum (drummer/engineer Magnus Henriksson's solo project). Not very flashy either -- drummers understand it's the supporting players who make the difference, so they often remain in service of the song even when they take the helm. Of course, the beat still takes precedence, even if it's subtle. As a drummer myself, I'm really looking forward to hearing what else he'll come up with.
Bad Hands - Bad hands (feat. Nina Kinert)
"Grand letdown". Before the music even starts I hear the sound of hacks worldwide sharpening their pencils, rising to the challenge of who can scribe the punniest headline. Take the time to actually, truly listen and you'll hear a band growing and expanding on their already expansive sound. More vocals, more dynamics, more beauty, more... songs? Still too postrock to ever be pop, but they sure toe the line. As for the letdown? Verse one implies self-doubt, but the track moves to external anguish as it proceeds. Or is it just changing to a third-person view? Regardless, I just like the way the two guitarlines intertwine and dance. You can't hear it quite so much on this title track, but there are also strong echoes of classic Fireside in the new Scraps of Tape. And classic Swedish indie in general; witness their cover of "Eric" by cult favorites Carpet People for example. Proving once and for all that we must learn from the past in order to move ahead.
Scraps of Tape - Grand letdown
Big Byrd, the Stockholm-based supergroup featuring Jocke Åhlund (Teddybears, Caesars), Nino Keller (Caesars), Frans Johansson (Fireside) and Carl Zim Lundell, have a new 7" single coming out on Startracks on April 2 featuring the track "Anna Belle". Preview at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/bigbirdtheband
Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. Hello Saferide
02. A Camp
03. Frida Hyvönen
04. Fever Ray
05. Anna Ternheim
06. Fireside
07. The Soundtrack of Our Lives
08. Loney, Dear
09. Håkan Hellström
10. The Bear Quartet
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
Check out Bad Hands, the new project from drummer extraordinaire Per Nordmark (Fireside, Christian Kjellvander, etc.): http://www.myspace.com/badhandssthlm
David Sandström contributes vocals to one song, Britta Persson another -- very recommended! (tack Marco for the insider info!)
Thanks to mRa for this one! I had heard of the band Superdong for a long, long time, but only got a chance to hear them when they appeared on myspace. They've been sort of a Holy Grail act in my mind - these are the guys who later formed Fireside and Breach, after all, bands that have both factored very prominently in my love of Swedish/Scandinavian music. So to know a band existing, to know they have recordings, but yet to search fruitlessly for years... that's frustrating. Of course, the larger the legacy becomes to me, the more likely I am to be disappointed, but I'm actually kind of stoked to hear Kristofer Åström sing skaterock. "Don Lombardo" isn't as amazing as say, the early Him Kerosene track from the same comp ("Salmons of Hort"), but it's solid and well-representative of the era (1995). It's also infinitely better than everything else on said comp: Lapdog, The Fitz Geralds (or is that Fitzgeralds?), Stoned and Millencolin. 3rd wave ska-punk, no thank you. The early/mid-90s was a promising time for Norrland indierock, but it took some time to get going. It's fun to listen back.
Superdong - Don Lombardo
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show:
01. Pascal - Längtar efter dig
02. TALK 1
03. Division of Laura Lee - Central Park
04. New Decade - While tonight still is
05. Abduktio - Uutisia rintamalta
06. TALK 2
07. Echo Is Your Love - Lion tamer vs tigers
08. Fireside - Silver muscle car
09. Him Kerosene - Ladybugs
10. TALK 3
11. NEI - New morning
12. The Bear Quartet - All your life
13. Park Hotell - Dead ringers
14. KVLR - Spit
15. Electric Retard - Skate girl
16. TALK 4
17. Samuraj Cities - Ugly kids are alright
18. Barra Head - Iron to skin
19. Death By Kite - Himmelfahrtskommando
20. TALK 5
21. Blithe - Haven
22. Starmarket - You can't come
23. Lukestar - White shade
24. Monkeystrikes - Tahonga take away
25. TALK 6
26. Voices Break the Silence - This awful friend
Reminder: My show on Sirius Left of Center (channel 26) airs Sundays 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.
Him Kerosene - Whatever gets you by
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show:
01. Peter Morén - This is what I came for
02. TALK 1
03. Entombed - Hollowman
04. King Of All The Animals - Concrete skyline
05. Jettie - The lay up
06. TALK 2
07. Happy Trash Culture - Frisky pet
08. Josse - You had a plan
09. Ondo - Sleep
10. TALK 3
11. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - This room seems empty without you
12. Håkan Hellström - För sent för edelweiss
13. Marvins Revolt - Deliberate deeds
14. Marybell Katastrophy - Hey Frank
15. TALK 4
16. The Bear Quartet - Mvh contempt
17. Lögnhalsmottagningen - Snacka gär ju
18. Ghost Brigade - Based on you
19. TALK 5
20. September Malevolence - I shut doors and windows
21. The End Will Be Kicks - Ass of a friend
22. Anna Leong - Battered, bruised and cold
23. TALK 6
24. Bright Oak - On the list
25. Tape - Moth wings
26. Axewitch - Hot lady
27. TALK 7
28. Nationalteatern - Jack the Ripper
29. Tsukimono - Heart beater
30. Zeigeist - Bunny
31. TALK 8
32. First Floor Power - The jacket (Karin Dreijer remix)
33. No Hope for the Kids - Angels of destruction
34. Docenterna - Popmusik
35. Vapnet - Skorpan
36. TALK 9
37. Björn Kleinhenz - Olis
38. Fireside - Ambulance
39. Looptroop Rockers - Living on a prayer
40. TALK 10
Jacob Felländer, a Swedish artist probably best known so far for his photography, will release his debut album "Letters from the Trenches" on June 4. Guest musicians on said album include Dan Lepp (Grand Tone Music), Patrik Andersson (Moneybrother, Club Killers, Barr). Per Nordmark (Fireside, Breach, Christian Kjellvander), Britta Persson and many more. Hear samples at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/jacobfellander
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show:
01. Figurines - The wonder
02. TALK 1
03. CS Nielsen - Happy
04. Superfamily - Teens of the 70s
05. Winter Took His Life - Oh
06. TALK 2
07. Frivolvol - Out come the knives
08. Bogus Blimp - Untitled jazz no. 1
09. Firefox AK - Pushing
10. TALK 3
11. Disfear - Get it off
12. Biker Boy - March song (Kalle J remix)
13. Eskju Divine - Darkness all around
14. TALK 4
15. Dogday - New romance
16. Mew - Am I wry? No
17. Det Är Jag Som Är Döden - Hello!
18. TALK 5
19. Familjen - Huvudet i sanden
20. Darkthrone - Skald av Satans sol
21. Caesars Palace - (I'm gonna) Kick you out
22. TALK 6
23. Lack - Behead
24. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake your beauty
25. Hebosagil - Old prophet
26. TIAC - OTW
27. TALK 7
28. Marybell Katastrophy - Hip
29. Strip Music - Never die
30. The Social Services - Electric brae
31. TALK 8
32. At the Gates - All life ends (live)
33. Fireside - Jupiter
34. Ulver - Funebre
35. Paper - They're gonna keep me
36. TALK 9
37. Convoj - Cultural legacy
38. Maia Hirasawa - Still June
39. Silverbullit - Run
40. TALK 10
41. Massgrav - Vuxenliv
The Bear Quartet