Electric Basement interviews Hanoi Rocks frontman Michael Monroe: http://www.electricbasement.com/interview_hanoirocks_febuary2004.htm
They discuss the band's recent US licensing deal for the last album "12 Shots on the Rocks", among other topics.

Original Hanoi Rocks guitarist Nasty Suicide will be rejoining his old bandmates for a New Year's Eve show at Caribia/994-Hall in Turku, Finland. This will be the first time he's played with the guys since the band originally broke up in 1984.

And speaking of those guys, here's a review of their most recent album "Twelve Shots on the Rocks" from DigitalMetal.com in anticipation of its upcoming US release.

Finland's Hanoi Rocks has slammed Mötley Crüe over the title of their new box set "Music To Crash Your Car To, Volume 1". And rightfully so, as Crüe frontman Vince Neil was arrested on drunk-driving and vehicular-manslaughter charges following a car accident that killed HR drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley back in 1984. "The despicable title by the 'Motley Crude'… is the most tasteless and murderous gimmick to cash in on the past that we've ever heard of," they said, "There's nothing 'cool' or 'funny' about death… How low can you go?!?" Nikki Sixx so far has pleaded ignorance and says the title is a "sarcastic statement towards a lifestyle" and that he never made the connection until Neil brought up his reservations.

"Twelve Shots On The Rocks", the long-awaited reunion album from Finland's Hanoi Rocks, will finally get a proper US release on Novmber 18 through Liquor and Poker Music. The disc has been remixed and remastered and will include five bonus tracks plus a CD-Rom video. Download the first single "People Like Me" from here.

Finnish glam-rock legends Hanoi Rocks will be recording a live album later this month at Tampereella Panama on August 26-27. No details on release dates or anything else, but I'll see what I can come up with. Otherwise, check them out as they tour the UK in September and Japan in October. Dates:

09/25 - The Corporation, Sheffield (UK)
09/26 - Arena Foyer, Newcastle (UK)
09/27 - Rock City, Nottingham (UK)
09/28 - Dudley JB's, Birmingham (UK)
09/29 - The Coal Exchange, Cardiff (UK)
09/30 - Shepherds Bush Empire, London (UK)
10/07 - Festival Hall, Osaka (JAP)
10/08 - Budokan, Tokyo (JAP)
10/11 - Lots, Niigata (JAP)
10/12 - Shibuya AX, Tokyo (JAP)
10/14 - Diamond Hall, Nagoya (JAP)

The nominees for the Swedish Grammys (Grammis) have been announced. Here's a few of the categories:

Best Newcomer:
Marit Bergman – 3.00 AM Serenades
Brolle Jr – Rebellious Heart
Awa Manneh – Sounds Like Me
Melody Club – Music Machine
The Sounds – Living In America

Best Artist:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
The Hellacopters – By The Grace Of God
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music

Best Group:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
Caesars Palace – Love For The Streets
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
The Sounds – Living In America
Weeping Willows – Into The Light

Best Pop/Rock Male:
Brolle Jr – Rebellious Heart
Eric Gadd – Life Support
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Christian Kjellvander – Songs From A Two-Room Chapel
Ulf Lundell – Club Zebra

Best Pop/Rock Female:
Marit Bergman – 3.00 AM Serenades
Paola – Stockcity Girl
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music
Frida Snell – Black Trillium
Sophie Zelmani – Sing and Dance

Best Album:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
Caesars Palace – Love For The Streets
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music

Best Lyrics:
Joakim Berg (Kent)
Håkan Hellström
Ulf Lundell
Ola Salo (The Ark)
Timbuktu

Best Composer:
Joakim Berg (Kent)
Jörgen Elofsson
Håkan Hellström
Andreas Mattson & Niclas Frisk
Ola Salo (The Ark)

Open Category:
v/a – Chess På Svenska
Bob Hund – 10 År Bakåt & 100 År Framåt
v/a – Nationalsånger
Svenska Tjejrockband 1966–1999 – Från Plommons Till Drain
Träd Gräs Och Stenar – Ajn Schwajn Dra

Best Hip Hop/Soul:
Ison&Fille – Vår Sida Av Stan
Looptroop – The Struggle Continues
Awa Manneh – Sounds Like Me
Masayah – Masayah
Timbuktu – Watt’s Dö Madderfakking Diil?

Best Hard Rock/Metal:
The Hellacopters – By The Grace Of God
In Flames – Reroute To Remain
Mustasch – Above All
Opeth – Deliverance
Pathos – Katharsis

The rest of the list is here.

"More than just an album; it's an unforgettable experience." Kerrang magazine gives Cult of Luna's new album "The Beyond" 5 out of 5 Ks. Read the entire review.

Don't forget to check out the wrap-up report for the Rockbjörnen over at Aftonbladet. More pics here, too.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Jon - Right Here Next To You
02. Andreas Johnsson - Waterfall
03. Christian - Min Fremtid
04. Kent - FF
05. The Klerks - She, She, She
06. Bombshell Rocks - On My Way
07. Madrugada - Majesty
08. The Spitts - That´s my girl
09. The Sounds - Seven Days A Week

Challengers:
Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
Last Days Of April - All Will Break
Jamie Meyer - Psycho
The Lungz - It´s Alright
Swing Fly feat. ADL and Ayo - Come Get It

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your faves.

Read this scandalous interview with Nina Persson of The Cardigans. (in Swedish)

The Cardigans are also beginning their media blitz in anticipation of the new album "Long Before Daylight". They'll be making quite a few TV appearances in the near future:

2/11 - TV4 Documentary
2/12 - ZTV Wimans
2/13 - TV4 Nyheterna (report)
2/14 - TV4 Nyhetsmorgon (2 tunes + interview)
2/15, 2/16, 2/18 - MTV Morning Glory (performance + interview)
2/16 - SVT Söndagsöppet (performance + interview)

Roxette gets a medal from the king. Read all about it. (in Swedish)

Andy McCoy of Hanoi Rocks disputes claims made in Mötley Crüe's bio "The Dirt".

Spiritual Beggars are set to do the following shows in the UK with support from Clutch before heading off to Japan on their own:

4/07 – Dudley, UK @ JB's
4/08 – Glasgow, UK @ Garage
4/09 – Manchester, UK @ Academy 3
4/10 – London, UK @ Mean Fiddler
4/17 – Nagoya, Japan @ Club Quattro
4/18 – Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya AX
4/20 – Osaka, Japan @ Big Cat
4/22 – Hiroshima, Japan @ Club Quattro

The up and coming group Paris is heading out on a Swedish tour. The dates:

2/06 - Visby Effes
2/07 - Växjö Lokal Bar
2/12 - Stockholm Rabbit Fighter
2/15 - Linköping Flamman
3/01 - Stockholm Yoshimitsu
3/08 - Norrköping Kulturkammaren
3/12 - Lund Mejeriet (w/Melody Club)
3/28 - Uppsala Kal3/Nation
4/10 - Göteborg Gump

Whaddya know? Found time to update today anyway. Fixed some bad links, too. People should tell me about these things.

The (International) Noise Conspiracy have cancelled their upcoming UK tour with Danko Jones and Caesars Palace citing a back injury suffered by lead singer Dennis Lyxzen. The statement from the band:

Unfortunately The (International) Noise Conspiracy have been forced to cancel their upcoming UK tour due to serious back problems for the singer Dennis Lyxzén.

The problems arose during last weekend, but didn´t seem very serious in the beginning. However, as it only got worse and to a point where Dennis had problems walking he went to a doctor yesterday morning who said that there´s no way he can perform on stage for at least the next two weeks.

Dennis has a serious muscle inflammation, and will be having tests done later this week.

The band wants to apologise to everyone involved in this tour and to their fans, but hopes for everyone´s understanding of the situation.

As it is unclear if and when the dates will be re-scheduled, check back for further information or tickets can be refunded at point of purchase

Of course, that's all fine and dandy, but the skeptic in me sees more trouble a-brewing on the horizon. Thing is, the rumor mill has been going on about possible complications in the long term relationship between Dennis and keyboardist Sara. Is the "back injury" simply a red herring? Is this really just the beginning of the end? Time will tell I suppose, but I don't think the future's all that bright.

Kent and ZTV seem to be having a little bit of a public feud. What gives?

Sweden student radio top 20:

Leaving the chart:
(14) The Klerks "She She She"
(15) Noir Désir "Le Vent Nous Portera"
(16) Swizz Beats "Bigger Business"
(17) Spotrunnaz ft. Timbuktu "Mr Mista"
(18) The Venue "What's In His Head?"
(19) The Streets "Don't Mug Yourself"

The latest issue of Denim Zine will be out November 29. It includes interviews with bands such as Hanoi Rocks, Backyard Babies, The Maggots, 69 Hard and more. Instructions on how to get yourself a copy are on their site.

Entombed got themselves into a bit of a pickle with a Finnish promoter and had to cancel their Rock at Sea show. Read all about it. In other Entombed news, the band has entered the studio yet again and you read their daily reports right here. 3 days in, there's not too much of substance to report, but things do seem to be going quite well.

I didn't see it myself, but apparently TSOOL did a great job playing on Conan the other night. Keyboardist Martin was flown in special for the event, as he was being filled in for by Olle of the Whyte Seeds during the just-ended US tour. Martin opted out so he could spend time with his new baby and family, but he should be back around with the band next time. Anyway, the song they played was "Sister Surround" and I'll try and find a video of it if I can.

Saw the Sahara Hotnights in SF last night. A pretty good show, even if the crowd didn't get that worked up. It seems like people just don't know the album well enough yet. The band sounded pretty raw and energetic and I went home happy. An interesting item of note: They had advance copies of a Jetset Records domestic U.S. release of their first album "C'mon Let's Pretend" for sale. I'm not sure of the actual release date for stores, but I highly recommend it and actually prefer it a bit over the newer one.

The new Hanoi Rocks album "Twelve Shots On The Rocks" will be released in Finland on November 28, December 2 in the rest of the Scandinavia, and December 4 in Japan.

Speaking of comebacks, Grave's new album "Back From The Grave" is set to come out January 28, 2003 on Century Media with European and North American tours to follow.

The Great Deceiver is already planning their next CD. The tentative title is "Terror Incognito" and they plan to enter the studio early next year. Expect a late spring or early summer release from Peaceville Records.

It seems that my earlier news about a domestic release for the Caesars Palace album "Cherry Kicks" was slightly off. The album to be released in the U.S. and U.K. will actually contain tracks from all 3 of their albums. The first single will be “Fun & Games" from "Cherry Kicks", to be followed by a U.K. tour with t(I)NC and Danko Jones in December (as stated here before). I fully expect this band to get huge - remember you heard it here first.

In case you haven't already heard, The Cardigans are hard a work on a new album after various members took solo outings, such as Nina's A-Camp and Magnus' Righteous Boy. The end result should be out by the end of the year with a tour to follow, naturally.

Carnal Forge is busy in the studio working on their fourth album.

P3 Swedish Radio has announced a new music prize for Swedish music. Winners will be decided by journalists as well as listeners. Categories include best female artist, male artist, group, pop, rock/metal and hiphop/soul. The event will take place on February 6, 2003 in conjunction with P3 Popstad in Växjö.

Reviews of the current TSOOL tour are starting to come in. Check em out: MTV.com / Boston Globe

Speaking of TSOOL, here's the article I mentioned yesterday that talks a bit about plans for the next album.