Ex-Refused/Final Exit members Dennis Lyxzén and David Sandström have started a brand new hardcore band together called AC4. The lineup features Dennis on vocals, David on bass, Kalle from The Vectors on guitar and Jens from Regulations on drums.

Jens Lekman
Live @ Webster Hall, NYC, 10/27/07

I'm not going to lie, I was a tad sceptical on how Jens' would perform, as I'd never seen him before. Needless to say, I was quite impressed. The true stand-out were his vocals, which on the record tend to hit some off notes, yet live, his voice carried and controlled the songs in a confident fashion. With a top notch (mostly all female) backing band, songs from his three albums were mixed about in the set, playing "You are the light", "Black cab" and "Maple leaves" to full applause, as well as "Sipping the sweet nectar" and "The opposite of hallelujah" from the new album "Night falls over Kortedala". The highlight though, had to be "A postcard to Nina" in it's almost overly maudlin aura. Combined with his witty banter, Jens held the crowd's attention so much so Webster Hall was strangely silent during his performance. Arguably, one of the most enjoyable shows I've seen all year.
- Matt Giordano

Jens Lekman in Seattle last night: I went to the show with the expectation, nay - the hope, that Jens would win me over with his charm. I wanted to enjoy myself, I wanted to be converted. Even the ghastly Throw Me The Statue wasn't going to ruin my night. So, while Jens was indeed quite charming, the show fell a bit short for me. Part of it was the pacing- the mid-portion of the set was bogged down by slow, maudlin numbers. Good songs, yes, but more fitting for a seated audience as opposed to a packed club. On the other hand, seeing Jens live did impress me in a number of ways. His backing band was excellent and they really accentuated Jens' gift for arrangements. Jens is also consistently improving as a musician himself and when he stretches himself on stage, it's great. I wasn't wowed, but I enjoyed myself.

Viktor Sjöberg closed the night as promised and it was great to see him again. Apparently he was having a bit of technical issues, so I bailed for the long drive home once he segued his set from his own material into a DJ set, but the bit I did hear was quite good. Viktor's a tremendous artist, all the better because I never know quite what to expect from him. Oh, and seeing him bust out his disco dance moves during Jens' set made the night. That alone was worth the price of admission.

Jens
If you've seen me lately please tell me where I've been
Goddamn I'm a Countryman Records

I'm glad getting this review out of the way, since it means I don't have to listen to this album anymore. Jens play basic alt-country, nothing special at all, even though some of the melodies aren't that bad. The vocals are the weakest point, they're way too plain to excite. Perhaps the odd song from this record would be ok, but I find listening to these eight songs in a row seriously boring, despite some duets with a girl and the odd flute playing. If you're of opinion that Wilco are way too experimental for their own good, you might want to try a bit of Jens out.
- Simon Tagestam

The Music for Listeners special program with Jens Lekman from last week is now available for on-demand listening: http://www.musicforlisteners.com/
Not only does it feature a few exclusive live tracks, but it also includes a number of Jens' hand-picked song selections.

Junk Music has posted a rehearsal clip of Mom & Dad, the new project featuring Jens and David rrom Brainpool: http://www.junkmusik.com/?p=440

Mom & Dad, the new project from David and Jens of Brainpool, will be entering the studio in March to begin work on their debut album for the label Junk Music.

Jens Lekman
USA October (ltd. tour EP)
self-released

It's taken me a long time to appreciate Jens Lekman. I still think his older material tends to be fairly weak, but I grudgingly admit that he has gotten much much better with time. In listening to his latest limited edition tour EP, I think I've figured out the reason for my change of heart: When Lekman eschews production tricks and lets his songs stand on their own, he shines. Whether it's the simple accompaniment of ukulele or piano, it works wonders for his material. On the other hand, the spoken word piece "How much you mean to me" is unlistenable garbage, but there's barely anyone who can pull something like that off, so I'll let it slide. I also think I prefer it when Jens sings in his native Swedish. He sounds so much more comfortable, more laidback. Keep making music like this and I'll definitely be a fan.
- Avi Roig

The new Jens Lekman album "Oh you're so silent Jens" has been confirmed for a June 8 release via Service Records. The disc contains Jens' first three EPs: "Maple Leaves", "Rocky Dennis in Heaven" and "Julie" along with some unreleased bonus songs. Samples and full tracklist info here: http://www.srvice.com/serv020.html

Carnal Forge has announced the enlistment of new vocalist Jens C. Mortensen (Leech, ex-Revolver, Slapdash). Jens replaces Jonas Kjellgren who left the group earlier this month after seven years and five albums with the band.

Trapdoor Fucking Exit has made a funny quiz that will tell you "Who are you in Trapdoor Fucking Exit?" Me, I'm Jens, guitarist and inventor of the big big riffs.

Check out this site to watch the new European version of "In the Shadows" from Finland's The Rasmus. And after twenty record-setting weeks on the MTV Nordic's UpNorth chart, they have decided the retire the single from further competition so as to give other acts more chance for exposure. In other news, the band was supposed to be supporting Evanescence on their upcoming German tourdates, but those shows have unfortunately been cancelled by the headliner. They still plan on going out and doing promotion in Hamburg and Berlin regardless.

Randy has posted a bunch of new pics from their recent European tour.

From thearkworld.com comes yet another live video. This is one is "Tell Me this Night is Over", live from Stockholm.

Ebbot hurt his back after drinking too much and failing to navigate some stairs so, under doctor's orders, he's had to cancel the scheduled Soundtrack of Our Lives show at Roskilde.

C.Aarmé just put up a couple videos on their homepage. They also report that they will be entering the studio on July 7 to record 'at least' 15 new songs.

Bear Quartet has put up an old mp3 of "Guilt Jazz/High Noon" from a live Luleå radio broadcast in 1995.

One more band has been added to the Uppsala Hardcore Fest: Parade. They'll play Tuesday at 18:00. See previous days news for more details.

Denmark's Ravonettes will appear on 'Late Night with David Letterman' this coming September 10. Obviously, the previously announced date in July will not be happening as planned. The band also will be supporting Beck at the Brixton Academy in London on August 21.

The band Dechas won the Emergenza demoband fest and they now get to play at the Taubertal festival in Germany this coming August. More on Dechas here. More on Taubertal here. Other bands playing the fest include The Cardigans and HIM.

The latest edition of the Brainwashed Brain reviews Ulver's "1993-2003: 1st Decade in the Machines", among other fine releases.

Kiss frontman Paul Stanley is working on a new solo album with Swedish songwriter Andreas Carlsson due out sometime early next year. Andreas' previous credits include working with artists such as Celine Dion, Def Leppard, Celine Dion, Backstreet Boys, N*Sync, Bon Jovi and Britney Spears.

Here's an update from Borknagar drummer Asgeir Mickelson concerning the recording of their forthcoming album and other current activities, as posted on their message board:

"I've recorded all the acoustic drums. I still have to do some V-drums stuff on one of the two Lars-instrumentals (don't know what to do yet...), and I'll spend a couple of hours going through all the drum tracks fixing small errors (like when I hit the snare or a tom a little bit wrong I can replace it with a better take, or move the bassdrums if they're not dead on the snare). Lars has recorded all keyboards (very happy with the sounds!) and Hammond (different one than last time - even more organic sound), but still have to record the grand piano in Fagerborg studio. Andreas is doing all his vocals next week (starting tomorrow). Øystein recorded most of the rhythm tracks in April and will continue recording his endless amounts of guitars the same week as Andreas is doing the vocals. Tyr was supposed to record bass this week but had to postpone it to the second week in July due to not getting his new fretless bass in time."

"Other news is that we've chosen to release the album early next year. We have way too much material so we'll probably save some songs for a Japanese release or something else. We still haven't found a title for it, but it's decided that I will - as usual - do the cover design + this time shoot the band pictures (the problem with being in front and behind the camera at the same time is solved with a remote control and then some hours with Photoshop...). Other reasons for releasing the album next year is that we need more time to find and record "the snacks". We want it to be better produced - more sound effects, more intros/outros, whatever... We have found a possible session guitarist to replace Jens, but still need to learn him the songs before playing live. Looks like we will have to cancel the (only) two scheduled shows and come back stronger next year. Who knows, maybe it's worth the wait..."

Some of the bands confirmed for the upcoming 4th annual Norbergfestival for modern electronica which takes place in Norberg, Sweden on July 24-26: Pan Sonic (FIN), Philip Jeck (UK) & Jacob Kirkegaard (DK), Gert-Jan Prins (NL), Mikael Stavöstrand (S), Björn Svin (DK), Håkan Libdo (S), Karsten Pflum (DK), Bauri (S), and Wäldchengarten (DK). More info: www.norbergfestival.com

Via pHinnWeb, comes these pictures from a recent Pan Sonic show in Russia.

In what is being billed as a 'knight to remember', Sweden's power-metal superstars Dream Evil will be playing the Camden Underworld in London on September 27. Dream Evil features Studio Fredman owner/engineer Fredrik Nordström and ex-Mercyful Fate drummer/Notre Dame frontman Snowy Shaw and have two albums out. Fellow Swedes Falconer open, and as the press release says, "Prepare to do battle against false metaaaal with thy sword held on high!!!"

Oh man, Mikkey Dee from Motörhead pulls no punches! Read what he has to say about Hammerfall:

Look at a band like Hammerfall and shit. They're going through the roof. When kids come up to me and say "Iron Maiden, they're almost as good as Hammerfall," there's something wrong, you know? I saw two kids with Iron Maiden-shirts, in Stockholm when me and Lemmy were there doing press, and I was sitting in the lobby waiting to get to the airport and I saw two eleven-year-olds with Iron Maiden t-shirts and I said, "Yeah, that's a great band you've got there" and they said, "Yeah, they're almost as good as Hammerfall, they sound exactly the same."

Then you realize there's something wrong here, you know. It's not a shit band, but it's incredible that they can hit the way they did. Anders is a great friend, and I hope to see Jens tonight. Someone told me that the Stratovarius guys are here. And the bass player, Magnus, he was the first bass player in Geisha. I fired his ass. He's an old friend since 25 years ago. So I'm glad for Magnus, and I'm glad for Anders. And Stefan is a good guy, the bald guitar player, he's good, but Joacim and Oscar, they can suck my cock. Because they really think they're god's gift to the planet, and I used to say don't shit on the ladder because you're going to climb on it on the way back. They pissed me off too much, let's say two years ago, by being rock stars. I've done this now for 22 years, around the world, and I'm no fucking rock star, I'm a normal guy, and I have a million friends around the world. They did a couple of fucking club shows and they were being the biggest rock stars you've ever seen in Gothenburg. It pissed me off because they were treating me almost the same way, and I said you should kiss my ass instead of throwing me out of the dressing room, you know? So I was pissed off. And Anders and Magnus, they had a long talk with Joacim and Oscar and said "Mikkey is really fucking pissed." So Oscar called me and he apologized and says he was so scared every time I showed up anywhere, and I said, "Oh, I'm not going to beat you up but you're still a fucking asshole." So they're like that when they see me. But I don't agree with that; I have a problem to see these fucking guys when they play one year then they're bigger than Mick Jagger. And the way they became big is by ripping off Helloween, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, even King Diamond stuff. I hear a complete rip off of some harmonies that are complete King Diamond stuff... And Helloween. And Accept. So, I mean, good luck to them, because I'm glad Magnus finally has a band, because he lived in an apartment of 27 square metres, for almost 20 years. He never had any money, he always played bass, he always stuck to his hard rock, and then he got a chance. I remember him calling me and saying, "Mikkey, I'm playing with a band called Hammerfall soon and we're going to do a tour," and I go, "Fucking great for you, Magnus." And then when Anders came into the band, he's a great drummer, that other guy was a fucking joke. So I'm happy for them. But I just can't agree on this rock star image, especially Oscar.

Read the rest of the interview with Metal Rules here. He actually talks a bit about the Scandinavian hard rock scene and dishes some dirt on W.A.S.P. and King Diamond, too.

The nominees for Norway's Alarm Awards have been announced. A sampling of the categories:

Pop: Jim Stärk, Monopot, Loch Ness Mouse, Hello Goodbye, and Thomas Dybdahl
Rock: We, JR Ewing, Gluecifer, Madrugada, and Gåte
Metal: Satyricon, Immortal, Red Harvest, Khold, and Arcturus
Live: Turbonegro, Jaga Jazzist, Gatas Parlament, JR Ewing, and Ralph Meyers & the Jack Herren Band

The Moonbabies report that they are now 3/4 of the way through recording their new album. It's scheduled for a March release on Chalksound in Europe and A Bouncing Space Recordings in the US. Here's a bit of what they had to say about it:

The new album sounds (at this point) like a hybrid between the more melodic parts of "June and Novas" and something totally colorful, new and unexplored. I definitely think we'll break some new ground with it. We started with a lot of songs and are on our way to narrowing down to twelve, or thirteen tracks. Funnily enough right now, we are working on an album of songs with no names. Unimaginary working titles like "apples" and "fear" are what we call the songs until they get finished lyrics and a real name, and it has been really hard to come up with the right titles for the this album. The best one's so far I think are "Bang goes another day" and "Fieldtrip U.S.A"... those I am proud of.

The band also finished their first ever video for the song "Over My Head". Filmed by the Swedish production company Colony and shot in Malmö, you can view it right here. (Requires Quicktime)

TSOOL is now confirmed to be entering the studio in January to work on their next record. Of course, you should have already suspected as such, but now we've got an official statement. As for their upcoming appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, frontman Ebbott had this to say:

"Being on the show will hopefully make a breakthrough easier, but you never know what effect these things have. But it's great fun!"

A Saturday Night Live appearance is apparently in the works, too. Pretty exciting!

Check out some new tunes in Real Audio from the folks at Promopop: By Heart - Catchy Music / The Leeches - World's End

Win some exclusive Motorpsycho stuff from NRK Stereo. (In Norweigan)

Recording of the new Entombed record is already beginning to wrap up. Expect a March release on Music for Nations.

Even more Entombed related news:

The band's Threeman Recording label is actually starting to get down to business. Entombed-side projects Murder Squad and The Project Hate MCMXCIX will be the first releases. There's also plans to do vinyl versions of the albums "Uprising" and "Morning Star".

Project Hate has parted ways with vocalist Mia Ståhl. That means they're looking for replacement female singer. Check their website for more details.

Washoe has apparently changed their name to Alpha Safari.

Uffe's old band Haystack has plans to do a one-off reunion gig in the near future. No date yet, but here's the band's lineup: Uffe - Guitar, vocals; Johan (Backyard Babies) - Bass; Jonas (The Maggots) - drums