Slow news day today. What can ya do?

Turbonegro stormed the Troubadour like Vikings on a siege, selling out two shows in under an hour and proving to one and all that all the hype is for good reason -- these guys really are the best band on the planet right now.

Read KNAC.com's entire review of Turbonegro's recent Hollywood show.

Enslaved has announced they will doing two exclusive live shows in April, one in London on the 24th at The Garage with Thus Defiled and one in Oslo at the Rock In on the 25th. In other news, the band has finally confirmed a May 12 release date for the upcoming album "Below the Lights".

Randy will be appearing on P3 Rock tomorrow, April 17 at 10:10pm.

The Sounds have a feature in the May issue of Paper Magazine talking about their experiences in New York hanging out with Melissa Auf Der Maur from Hole and Smashing Pumpkins.

HIM has launched a new UK-based website at www.himonline.tv.

Labrador Records is releasing two limited edition 7" singles on May 5. First up is Douglas Heart, who the label describes as 'dreamcore' or akin to Sigur Rós, Mazzy Star and Stina Nordenstam. Next is The Legends who are said to play "joyful and catchy C-86-motown-punk-pop."

Samson & Rourke just posted a small profile on buzz-band Radio Dept. that you might find interesting. (in Swedish)

The Confusions have apparently signed deals with record labels in Taiwan, China and Japan. No details yet, but I'll keep you updated.

Evergrey are playing a couple of dates around Europe in support of their new album "Recreation Day":

5/9 - Vosselaar (BE), Biebob
5/10 - Rijssen (NL), Lucky
5/11 - Zaandam (NL), Kade
5/12 - Paris (FR), Ellysse Monmartre
5/14 - Hamburg (TY), Markthalle

Expressen is reporting that Jocke Berg (Kent) is working with singer/songwriter Lisa Miskovsky on songwriting for her next album. At least that's what Ola Håkansson of Stockholm Records has told them. We shall see. This would be the follow-up to Lisa's successful self-titled debut album from 2001.

Johan Bergqvist reports he has finished up shooting the video for his new single "This Could Be Our Time". And if you look to your right you'll see that you can download an exclusive mp3 of the track right now. But yeah, the video's done and the CD is being sent off to get mastered, so it's on track for its May release. Johan's also got plans for yet another video - on April 26 he's off to shoot one for the song "Lovelace" as he says he "found a nice location with a grand piano." I'll keep you posted.

People in the US - don't forget about Sahara Hotnights on Conan O'Brien tonight along with guest Adam Sandler.

Here's a bunch of pics from the 2001 Avrika fest, including acts such as The Hellacopters, TSOOL, Mustasch, Nasum, and The Haunted.

Problems arose when the grizzly bear appearing in the video went berserk...

Apparently there were some problems onsite at Turbonegro's video shoot for the song "Sell Your Body (To The Night)" which was being filmed in LA with help from the Jackass dudes. Read more at the the band's website.

"Their mesmerising guitar excursions are worthy of early Pink Floyd; the tunes are beyond brilliant; this is, without question, among the most supremely desirable stoner albums you are likely to hear all year" - James Delingpole, Sunday Telegraph, on "Every Time A Bell Rings An Angel Gets Its Wings"

Folks in London get the lucky opportunity to see Logh for free at 93ft East in London on April 14. The show starts at 7:30 and if I was you, I wouldn't miss it.

Been awhile since I heard from these guys, but the Diamond Dogs are going on tour:

4/21 - Monroes, Workingston (UK)
4/22 - Roadmenders, Norhhampton (UK)
4/23 - Markoni Club, Chelmsford (UK)
4/24 - Penningtons Live, Bradford (UK)
4/25 - Baths Hall, Scunthorpe (UK)
4/26 - Cheese and Grain, Frome (UK)
4/27 - Patti Pavilion, Swansea (UK)
4/28 - Camden Underworld, London (UK)
5/02 - Culturen, Västerås
5/08 - El Sol, Madrid (ESP)
5/09 - Stereo, Alicante (ESP)
5/10 - La Casa del Loco, Zaragoza (ESP)
5/13 - University, Granada (ESP)
5/15 - La Nasa, Santiago (ESP)
5/16 - Auditorium Intersecciones, Oviedo (ESP)
5/17 - Azkena, Bilbao (ESP)

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
02. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
03. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
04. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
05. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel
06. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
07. Jill Johnson - Discography
08. The Refreshments - On the rocks
09. Dilba - Revolution
10. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
11. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
12. Roxette - The pop hits
13. Gloria - People like you and me
14. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
15. The Knife - Deep Cuts
16. The Sounds - Living in America
17. Wilmer X - Lyckliga hundar
18. Rikard Wolff - Du får mig (om jag får dig)
19. Anders Widmark featuring Sara Isaksson - s/t
20. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (01) The White Stripes "7 Nation Army" 02. (02) Fireside "All You Had" 03. (08) The Dandy Warhols "We Used To Be Friends" 04. (15) The Knife "You Take My Breath Away" 05. (04) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 06. (09) Her Majesty "F.U.N.E.R.A.L." 07. (03) Timbuktu "Ett brev" 08. (05) Jurassic 5 Ft. Mya "Thin Line" 09. (06) First Floor Power "Happy Endings" 10. (07) The Coral "Don't Think You're The First"

11. (NY) Floetry "Floetic" 12. (14) The Concretes "You Can't Hurry Love" 13. (NY) Interpol "Obstacle 1" 14. (NY) Asian Dub Foundation Ft. Sinead O'Connor "1000 Mirrors" 15. (10) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 16. (11) Blur "Out Of Time" 17. (NY) David & The Citizens "New Direction" 18. (NY) Turbonegro "F**k The World (F.T.W.)" 19. (19) The Kills "Fried My Little Brains" 20. (17) Komeda "Reproduce"

Leaving the chart:
(12) The Donnas "Take It Off"
(13) Melody Club "Covergirl"
(16) Kamera "At Work"
(18) Ron Sexsmith Ft. Chris Martin "Gold In Them Hills"
(20) Lil' Kim Ft. Mr Cheeks "The Jump Off"

ZTV will begin broadcasting a TV version of Hitlisten, Sweden's official sales chart, compiled by IPFI affiliate GLF and published every Thursday.

Magnus Carlson from the Weeping Willows has his new Eggstone-produced solo album coming out July 9. Turns out he's getting even more outside help, this time from film director Lukas Moodysson (Fucking Åmal/Show Me Love, Tillsammans/Together)and Radio Dept. Lukas has reportedly helped out with some lyric writing while Radio Dept. and Magnus played together at their home in Malmö. The first single will be for the song "Jag ber dig", a cover of the Northern Soul-hit "Beggin'" with Swedish lyrics.

Moneybrother is heading on tour in support of his new, forthcoming album "Blood Panic". The dates:

5/21 - Stockholm, Södra Teatern
5/22 - Karlstad, Glada Ankan
5/23 - Oslo, So What
5/30 - Göteborg, Playground @ Pustervik
5/31 - Linköping, Rocksensation
5/27 - Malmö, Trenchtown @ KB

Mobbade Barn Med Automatvapen (MBMA) have a new 12" coming out in May called "Nu Ännu Drygare" with four songs. Breakmecanix and Embee (Loop Troop) handled the production and Timbuktu and Chords make guest appearances.

Here's an interview with Sami Liuski of Rovaniemi, Finland aka 8-Bit Rockers and Bangkok Impact among others. He talks about his upcoming touring activities and the Finnish electronic music scene, among other interesting topics. Those dates:

4/23 - Pianos, NYC, NY
4/24 - Rhode Island
4/25 - Rex Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
4/26 - Touch Supper Club, Cleveland, OH
4/27 - Empty Bottle, Chicago, MI
4/30 - Noise Lab, Seattle
5/01 - Blackbird, Portland, OR
5/02 - Obscura Digital, San Fransisco
5/05 - Knitting Factory, Los Angeles
5/06 - Los Angeles
5/08 - Sin 13, San Antonio
5/09 - The Elysium, Austin, TX
5/10 - Mermaid Lounge, New Orleans
5/11 - Miami
5/13 - Highlight, Chappel Hill, North Carolina
5/14 - Heaven and Hell, Washinton DC
5/16 - Ivy South, NYC, NY, USA

Danish dance duo Junior Senior are heating things up over in Britain. Not only are they in the singles chart at #5 with "Move Your Feet", but they're also planning to do either dates over there in May, starting with Glasgow Barfly on the first and ending with Liverpool Barfly on the 11th.

Division of Laura Lee has lined up a few extra dates around their appearance at the upcoming Coachella fest near LA:

4/21 - Houston, Engine Room
4/22 - Austin, Emos
4/23 - Dallas, Gypsy Tea Room
4/25 - Phoenix, Mason Jar
4/26 - Indio, Coachella

UPDATED: David & the Citizens will be on P3 Pop on April 14 from 10pm till midnight. They'll be playing live and chatting with Hanna in studio. They'll be sure to play the song "Glued to the Light" from the new EP "New Direction" they say, but they'll also be premiering two brand new tracks. As this news implicates, the band is already making plans for their next record - they'll be hitting the studio in May with plans to get it out around September.

In Flames have revealed the details for their forthcoming EP entitled "Trigger". The track listing is as follows:

01. Trigger (single edition)
02. Watch Them Feed (new song)
03. Land Of Confusion (Genesis cover)
04. Cloud Connected (Club Connected Remix)
05. Moonshield (C64 Karoke Version)

Look for it soon on Nuclear Blast. In other news, the band recently returned home from their most recent trek across the US and had this to say on their website:

Hello all, thanx a million for the GREAT support from both old and new fans on In Flames/Mudvayne tour in the US. We had a great time, and as usual we met some really cool people on the road( talking about you, our wonderful fans) and we made some good friends in the other bands- Mudvayne, Grade 8, and Depswa - we really hope to meet up again soon!!!!
On the way home we were forced to make an emergency landing in New Foundland, due to some strange objects on the aircraft that needed closer attention. This of course scared the hell out of us, but luckily it was false alarm, so as we speak we are in Sweden, jet-lagged as hell, but really glad to be on safe ground at home again.
In the end of June we will go back on the road again on a headline spin across the US, bringing some great acts along with us (see soon for official update on this). The tour will take us to places we didn´t hit on the last tour and some that we did play... Hope to see ALL of you out there. Also, watch out for our video/EP for "Trigger" that will be out very soon

Swedish power-metallers Hammerfall have booked themselves a short Czech Republic tour along with the following festival dates:

6/27 - Bang Your Head - Balingen, GER
6/28 - Masters Of Rock, Vizovice, CZ
6/29 - Centre of Town, Jihlava, CZ
6/30 - Hall Lokomotiva, Plzen, CZ
7/04 - Sundsvalls Gatufest - Sundsvall, SWE
7/05 - Töreboda Festival - Töreboda, SWE
7/25 - Karlskoga Stranddagar - Karlskoga, SWE
8/30 - Bloodstock Metalfest - Derby, UK

Transport League has announced that Crash Music Inc. will license their most recent EP "Grand Amputation" for release in the US. It was originally released last year on their own label Hoffa Communications through MNW distribution. In other news, the band reportedly just did some time in the studio with producer J. Reivén (ex-LOK) working on a new demo.

I'm happy to report that the show last night went quite well. The Caesars were a lot of fun and I was glad to finally get a chance to see 'em. The guitars weren't quite as loud as I would've liked, though. And yeah, that Jocke is definitely a nutter on stage. Needless to say, TSOOL rocked the house. Having Martin Hederos back with them (the guy from the Whyte Seeds was subbing last tour) made a huge difference in the sound. Ludwig from t(I)NC did a right and proper job filling in on the drums. Good fun. Someday I'll see the full band together, but until then...

Oh, and The Caesars now have a US website, too. Check it.

And making me even more happy is the fact that I got an exclusive (!!!) mp3 from Johan Bergqvist to offer you. People signed up with the newsletter already got a chance to download the song last week, but now I'm making it available to everyone. The track is called "This Could Be Our Time" and it's from his single due out in May. For more info on Johan, check out his website at www.pristinemusic.com/johanbergqvist.

Cobolt, Umeå's kings of sadcore, finally got themselves a website. About time, doncha think? Check it out.

The new Cult of Luna record is reviewed in the May issue of Rolling Stone. Short, but sweet.

Famed Swedish producer/musician/songwriter Dan Swanö has announced plans to reform metal band Edge of Sanity to record a new album via his official message board. Here's his full statement:

Hello Everyone...
Since Black Mark [his record label] have been clever enough to announce a new EDGE OF SANITY release called "CRIMSON II" even though I begged them to keep it a secret, what can I do??? I don't want to lie to my friends.
The first two weeks of May will be dedicated to the writing and recording of an album I have had bubbling inside of me ever since I started the fight for a more "accessible" Bloodbath (Which we all know didn't happen)
I have a bunch of good riffs that sounds SOOO like Edge Of Sanity that it would be ridiculous to start yet another project and sound just like something I invented years ago.
Black Mark have been asking me to re-join the band since the moment I quite and they never really got the fact that I wanted nothing to do with it. After "Evolution" I felt it was all over and went on to do my thing.
Then the "other" Edge Of Sanity split up and let the world "Edge-less"
That's when the ball began rolling. And after a long discussion over a good meal at the Black Mark house I decided to start thinking about the stuff I was writing as a new EOS album.
On the train ride home I started toying around with the idea of a follow up to "Crimson" and when I got home it seemed like the only right thing to do.
I am not in the mood for some "singer songwriter, wanna have a hit single" Metal.
I want Epic-goddamn!!!
So there will be one big piece this time as well, (With track numbers for index, this time!!)
It will be a mind-blowing powerful blend between E.O.S. (duuh..) Pan Thy Monium, Godsend, Karaboudjan, Diabolical Masquerade, Odyssey and maybe even some passages of old Nightingale thrown in. A Massive Swanö-style pomp-death overkill!!!!!
Some of the stuff I have this far is the most classy pomp-death stuff I have ever written and I feel very confident in myself.
The main reason to why I do such a sacred and weird this, as to revive EDGE OF SANITY is...I want this album to be known, to sell, to get through the fucking jungle of albums, to be reviewed everywhere...I know this album will kick ass and I don't want it to drown in some "new project with the guy from EOS" formula..
If it IS called EDGE OF SANITY it will be given a serious listen and trust me..
no one will be disappointed, it will be among the best EOS albums.
August it is..

"Dude, where's my lighter?" - The Venue have put up the first part of their tour diary from their recent US excursion for SXSW.

The guys from Supersilent got a few more gigs lined up at the Molde International Jazz Festival in Norway. First up, Helge will be playing with Norwegian folk singer Unni Løvlid and percussionist Terje Isungset on July 14. Next, Jarle plays the farmer's market on the 17th with festival "artist in residence" Michael Brecker and Ståle will duet with drummer/percussionist Thomas Strønen on the 18th. And finally, the full band will perform on the 19th at Kulturhuset.

In related news, Supersilent-member Arve will play with the combination British/Norweigan quartet Food during a festival tour of Canada:

6/25 - Jazzfest International, Victoria
6/27-28 - Vancouver International Jazz Festival
6/29 - Festival International de Jazz de Montréal

More details available here.

Nightwish will be entering their own home-studio on October 27 to record basic tracks for the follow-up to last year's "Century Child". From there, they'll go over to Finvoxx Studios in Helsinki to track vocals and guitars.

Her Majesty has just signed a publishing deal with Sony/ATV Music. The album "Happiness" comes out in May.

Petter, Doggelito and Daddy Boastin all make guest appearances on the debut Don Diego album "Mitt Liv", due out April 14 on Flava Records.

A-ha has decided not to release their new double live album "How Can I Sleep With Your Voice In My Head" in the UK due to lack of support from their label, Warner Music. The record is doing well in their home of Norway and is poised to do well also in Germany where the band has previously enjoyed healthy sales. No word if another label will step in to take over for a wider release.

Norway's eclectic 10-piece electronic-jazz act Jaga Jazzist will touring Europe in support of the wide release of their first album "The Stix" on Ninja Tune which comes out April 15. The dates:

4/15 - Belgium Brussels Ancienne Belgique
4/16 - France, Rennes Ubu
4/17 - France, Paris New Morning
4/18 - France, Lyon Ninkasi
4/19 - France, Strasbourg Laiterie
4/20 - Switzerland, Martigny Caves Du Manoir
4/23 - Switzerland, Zurich Moods
4/25 - Italy, Verona Interzona
4/26 - Italy, Rome La Palma
4/30 - UK, Brighton Beach Club (tbc)
5/1 - UK, London Ocean
5/2 - Ireland, Dublin The Village
5/3 - UK, Bristol Croft (tbc)
5/5 - Netherlands, Haarlem Bevrijdings Festival
5/6 - Netherlands, Rotterdam Nighttown
5/7 - Netherlands, Amsterdam VPRO (TV recording)
5/8 - Netherlands, Tilburg 13
5/9 - Netherlands, Groningen Vera
5/10 - Netherlands, Utrecht Tivoli
5/12 - France, Montpellier Rockstore
5/14 - Spain, Pamplona (tbc)
5/15 - Spain, San Sebastian Gaeztezena
5/16 - Spain, Madrid Teatro Jacinto
5/17 - Spain, Mieres Jovellanos
5/18 - France, Arles Cargo de Nuit
5/20 - Austria, Vienna Wuk
5/21 - Germany, Dresden(tbc)
5/22 - Germany, Berlin Maria Am Ostbahnhof
5/23 - Poland, Katowice Hipnoza
5/24 - Poland, Warsaw Jazzgot
5/26 - Germany, Halle (tbc)
5/27 - Germany, Cologne (tbc)
5/28 - Germany, Hamburg (tbc)
5/29 - Germany, Hannover (tbc)
5/30 - Denmark, CopenhagenJ azzhaus
5/31 - Denmark, Aarhus SPOT Festival
6/14 - Spain, Barcelona Sonar Festival
7/5 - Norway, Kongsberg Kongsberg Jazz Festival
7/6 - France, Belfort Eurockeennes Festival
7/9 - Switzerland, Montreux Montreux Jazz Festival
7/10 - Luxembourg, Luxembourg Kulturfabrik (tbc)
7/11 - Belgium, Dour Dour Festival
7/12 - Belgium, Bruges Cactus Jazz Festival
7/13 - Netherlands, Hague North Sea Jazz Festival
8/3 - UK, Malvern Big Chill Festival
8/4 - UK, London Jazz Cafe
8/8 - Norway, Oslo Oya Festival

Komeda will release their long-awaited new album "Kokomemedada" on June 2.

Lotta Wenglen plays Tavastia in Helsinki on April 15 in support of the new single "Ambassador of Love". Buddaboys will also perform.

Advance Patrol are hitting the road and now confirmed for Roskilde:

4/12 - Mejeriet, Lund
4/17 - Frölunda Fritisgård, Göteborg
4/18 - Tivoli, Helsingborg
4/25 - KB, Malmö
4/26 - TBA, Uddevalla
5/1 - Första Maj-Fest, Slottsparken, Malmö
5/2 - Culturen, Västerås w/Ison & Fille
5/14 - Rust, Köpenhamn (DK)
5/31 - Universitetet, Stockholm
6/28 - Roskildefestivalen, Roskilde (DK)

Speaking of Roskilde, Norway's Turbonegro and Cato Salsa Experience are now both confirmed to play, too.

Finnish experimental techno label Symptom Records will be putting out their second 12" release on April 22 containing three tracks from artists who will remain anonymous. Preview the music here: www.symptomrecords.com/preview.

The Haunted are coming back to the US in May with Shai Hulud and Skinless. Darkest Hour and Bleeding Through will also support on select dates. The itinerary so far:

5/08 - Krome - South Amboy, NJ *
5/09 - Rainbow - Montreal, QC, CANADA *
5/10 - Club Rockit - Toronto, ON, CANADA *
5/11 - Majestic - Detroit, MI *
5/12 - Newport Music Hall - Columbus, OH +
5/14 - Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA *
5/15 - Bridge Street Music Hall - Syracuse, NY *
5/16 - Club Laga - Pittsburgh, PA *
5/17 - The Palladium/New England Metal and Hardcore Fest - Worcester, MA
5/18 - Jaxx - West Springfield, VA +
5/19 - Ziggy's - Winston-Salem, NC +
5/20 - Uncle Doctor's - West Columbia, SC +
5/21 - State Theatre - St. Petersburg, FL +
5/22 - The Factory - Fort Lauderdale, FL +
5/23 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA +
5/24 - Tek World - Louisville, KY +
5/25 - Engine Room - Houston, TX +
5/27 - Emo's - Austin, TX +
5/28 - Tree's - Dallas, TX +
5/29 - Launchpad - Albuquerque, NM +
5/30 - Marquee - Tempe, AZ +
5/31 - Huntridge Theatre - Las Vegas, NV +
6/01 - Troubadour - Los Angeles, CA +
6/02 - The Pound - San Francisco, CA +
6/05 - Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO +
6/06 - The Bottleneck - Lawrence, KS +
6/08 - Agora Ballroom - Cleveland, OH +
* w/Darkest Hour
+ w/Bleeding Through

Amorphis will be honored with a 10-year retrospective collection called "Chapters" coming out June 3 from Relapse Records. Features include rare tracks, extensive liner notes and a DVD. View the cover art here. As mentioned before, Amorphis' new album "Far From The Sun" comes out on Virgin in Finland on May 20.

Marit Bergman has signed with BMG in Sweden making her labelmates with Kent, Sahara Hotnights, and the Backyard Babies. There's obviously been quite a bit of interest in her from the majors since her self-released debut solo album "3.00 A.M. Serenades" did so well and garnered many accolades. Now she's happy she no longer needs to worry herself about promotion, royalties or any of that other behind-the-scenes business and can concentrate 100% on the music.

The buzz is getting louder for Radio Dept. as their "Leibling" 7" was just played recently on the UK's legendary John Peel radio show.

And speaking of John Peel, don't forget to check out The Hellacopters playing live on-air tomorrow.

I've got a busy workday ahead of me, so updates may tend to be a bit slow. Bear with me. And lots of new links coming soon, too.

UPDATE: I'm finally done for the day and the links page has a ton of new sites on it. Enjoy!

Here's some pics from day one of the Umeå Open. Thanks Magnus!

The Cardigans have been confirmed for the Glastonbury festival which takes place on June 27. More info here.

Interested in the new Nasum album? The band has put up a full preview page with the album cover, tracklist and some samples. Check it out.

Thirdimension has added two of their videos to their site. Go to the 'Pleasure' section to check 'em out. The band admits they're kinda old and maybe not "not among our top ten-list of videos", but they say "the latter one ["Yes Equals No"] is quite cool." Works for me.

Get a preview of the new Moonbabies song "Fieldtrip USA". Like I said yesterday, Chalksounds is putting out some great pop records soon and the upcoming album "The Orange Billboard" is no exception. Good stuff.

On April 1, Burning Heart records will unleash the new Turbonegro site www.scandinavianleather.com where they say you'll find "mp3's, tourdates, bio, photos, video, competitions, e-cards and games." As much as I dig some of their old stuff and respect the band, I find the new album to be a bit too polished and boring. Eh, on the other hand, it's still better than most of the dreck out there I suppose. Those of who just discovering the band, buy one of the recent reissues - that's where it's at.

The nominees for the Swedish Hip Hop Awards have been announced. Check it.

Norwegian/Senegalese kora master Solo Cissokho won the BBC World Music Award for his album "Tretakt Takissaba" which was recorded together with Swedish fiddler Ellika Frisell. Cissokho has worked for many years on his goal of fusing "African griot-tradition with traditional Norwegian folk music," as stated by MIC Norway. For those that are unaware (as I was), the kora (or cora) is a Senegalese string instrument. Read more about it here.

More from MIC Norway:

Despite strong presence of Norwegian artists on the national Top 40 album charts, the sales trend is negative. The February figures from the Association of Norwegian Record Distributors indicate a 21% decline in sales of Norwegian records compared to 2002. Despite this, the mood on the Norwegian music scene is still very positive.

Read more.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. v/a - Melodifestivalen 2003
02. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
03. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
04. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
05. The Refreshments - On the rocks
06. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
07. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
08. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
09. Wilmer X - Lyckliga hundar
10. Evergrey - Recreation day
11. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
12. The Sounds - Living in America
13. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo
14. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
15. Anders Widmark featuring Sara Isaksson - s/t
16. Kajsa Grytt - Är vi på väg hem?
17. Rikard Wolff - Du får mig (om jag får dig)
18. The Knife - Deep Cuts
19. Ted Gärdestad - Droppar av solregn
20. Isolation Years - It's golden

The Hives have been added to the bill of the V Festival which takes place August 16-17 at Hylands Park in Chelmsford and Weston Park in Staffordshire. Apparently it will be their only UK appearance this year. Other bands confirmed for this fest include Echo And The Bunnymen, Coldplay and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Tickets are available at www.wayahead.com.

The Concretes will finally be releasing their self-titled album on May 1. The lead single "You Can´t Hurry Love" is already out. The band is also opening for Ed Harcourt on the following dates (sorry, no venue information):

3/31 - Stockholm
4/2 - Göteborg
4/3 - Malmö

The mighty Hellacopters are coming over to the UK in April to do some shows and a live session with John Peel. Pretty cool, eh? Now if they'd come back to America. SUpport will come from The Peepshows. Anyhow, the dates:

4/7 - London Scala
4/8 - Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms
4/9 - Live on John Peel, Radio 1
4/10 - Birmingham Academy 2
4/11 - Camber Sands Weekender
4/12 - Dublin Temple Bar
4/13 - Manchester Academy 3
4/14 - Leeds Cockpit
4/15 - Bristol Fleece & Firkin
4/16 - Brighton Concorde 2
And in Europe, too:
4/17 - Nijmegen (NL), Doornrossje
4/18 - Zwolle (NL), Hedo
4/19 - Kassel (D), Spot
4/20 - Erfurt (D), Spot
4/21 - Bremen (D), Schlachthof

Meshuggah has finally got confirmed dates for their upcoming US tour with Strapping Young Lad:

4/25 - Graceland - Seattle, WA
4/26 - Roseland - Portland, OR
4/27 - Commodore Ballroom - Vancouver, BC
4/29 - Slim's - San Francisco, CA
4/30 - The Edge - Palo Alto, CA
5/01 - The Palace - Los Angeles, CA
5/02 - The Scene - San Diego, CA
5/03 - Galaxy Theater - Santa Ana, CA
5/04 - Marquee Theater - Phoenix, AZ
5/06 - Stubb's B-B-Q - Austin, TX
5/07 - White Rabbit - San Antonio, TX
5/08 - Canyon Club - Dallas, TX
5/09 - Diamond Ballroom - Oklahoma City, OK
5/10 - The Other Side - Tulsa, OK
5/11 - Headliner's - Louisville, KY
5/12 - Clutch Cargo's - Pontiac, MI
5/13 - The Metro - Chicago, IL
5/14 - Quest Club - Minneapolis, MN
5/15 - The Rave - Milwaukee, WI
5/16 - Peabody's Down Under - Cleveland, OH
5/17 - The Palladium - Worcester, MA - New England Metal & Hardcore Fest
5/18 - Birch Hill - Old Bridge, NJ
5/19 - Jaxx - West Springfield, VA w/Hate Eternal
5/20 - The Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA
5/21 - Village Underground - New York, NY
5/22 - North Six - Brooklyn, NY
5/23 - The Chance - Poughkeepsie, NY
5/25 - Les Foufounes Electriques - Montreal, QUE
5/26 - Club Rocket - Toronto, ONT

Swedish dis-core band Skitsystem are finally heading out on their first European tour. For those that don't know, the band is fronted by ex-At the Gates/The Crown, current Great Deceiver singer Tomas Lindberg. He plays guitar in this band, too. Fellow crusties Victims are opening. The dates:

4/21 – Hamburg, GER - Rote flora
4/22 – Potsdam, GER - Archiv
4/23 – Mülheim, GER - AZ
4/24 – Bielefeld, GER - AJZ
4/25 – Stuttgart, GER @ TBA
4/26 – Amsterdam, NETH - Villa Friekens

Download two mp3s samples from the upcoming Nine album "Killing Angels": "Inferno" and "Discontent OD". Look for it in stores around August/September on Burning Heart.

Logh has been announced as the support act for Fireside on their upcoming Swedish tour. Congrats! And besides that, they've got quite a bit of other touring coming up. The dates:

03/20 - Prinzenbar (Docks), Hamburg, GER
03/21 - Magnet, Berlin, GER
03/22 - Starclub, Dresden, GER w/The Kills
03/23 - Gebaedue 9, Köln, GER w/The Faint
03/24 - Normal Records, Köln, GER
03/26 - La route du rhum, Nantes, FRA
03/27 - Local Transmission, Bordeaux, FRA
03/28 - Atzavara Club, St Feliu de Guixols, Girona, ESP
03/29 - Sala Moby Dick, Madrid, ESP w/The Donnas
03/30 - Sala Azkena, Bilbao, ESP
04/02 - Le Gibus, Besançon, FRA
04/03 - BOA, Luzern, CH
04/04 - Rockplanet, Pinarella di Cervia, ITA
04/07 - Szene Wien, Wien, A w/Cameran
04/08 - Orange House, Munich, GER
04/09 - Schlachthof, Wiesbaden, GER
04/10 - Schwimbad Musik Club, Heidelberg, GER
04/12 - La Guintuette Pirate, Paris, FRA
04/13 - Freebutt, Brighton, UK
04/14 - 93ft East , London, UK
04/15 - Club Fandango @ Dublin Castle, London, UK
04/16 - Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg, SWE w/Fireside
04/18 - Grand, Uppsala, SWE w/Fireside
04/24 - Herrgårn, Linköping, SWE w/Fireside
04/25 - Village, Västerås, SWE w/Fireside
04/29 - Kägelbanan, Stockholm, SWE w/Fireside
04/30 - Blå, Oslo, NOR w/Fireside
05/01 - Mejeriet, Lund, SWE w/Fireside

The Sounds say they are playing San Diego tonight on their website. No word on what club, but I'm sure if you're down there it shouldn't be too hard to figure out.

Zillion Digits aka David Sandström (ex-Refused) will be playing Klubb Modos in Umeå on March 22. I've been hearing good things about this, so check it out if you can.

Download an mp3 of 69-Hard's song "The Bullets", taken from the forthcoming album "Blues From Hell" due out April 11 on Idle Hands Records. Preorders are being taken at the label's website so act now, especially if you want a copy of the limited 3-song single.

There's going to be a new comp coming out called "Nordic Favourites" featuring 17 tracks from 17 artists including Silje Nergaard, Gåte, Bel Canto, Morten Abel, Maria Mena, The Rasmus, Junior Senior, The Sounds, Kristofer Åström, The Crash, and Lordi. Look for a "massive" Nordic TV ad campaign in the near future.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. v/a - Melodifestivalen 2003
02. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
03. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
04. The Refreshments - On the rocks
05. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
06. Wilmer X - Lyckliga hundar
07. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
08. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
09. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
10. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
11. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo
12. The Sounds - Living in America
13. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
14. Kajsa Grytt - Är vi på väg hem?
15. The Knife - Deep Cuts
16. Ted Gärdestad - Droppar av solregn
17. Anders Widmark featuring Sara Isaksson - s/t
18. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
19. Barbados - Rewind
20. A Teens - New arrival

Lars Winnerbäck's new album "Söndermarken" has already gone gold in Sweden. Look for him on tour this summer over there.

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (02) Timbuktu "Ett brev" 02. (NY) First Floor Power "Happy Endings" 03. (01) The Donnas "Take It Off" 04. (05) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 05. (NY) The Knife "You Take My Breath Away" 06. (03) Kamera "At Work" 07. (07) Lil'Kim Ft. Mr Cheeks "The Jump Off" 08. (NY) The Coral "Don't Think You're The First" 09. (04) The Flaming Lips "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt.1" 10. (06) Missy Elliott Ft. Ludacris "Gossip Folks"

11. (NY) The Kills "Fried My Little Brains" 12. (08) The Jayhawks "Save It For A Rainy Day" 13. (NY) Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Date With The Night" 14. (14) Blur "Out Of Time" 15. (NY) Club8 "Saturday Night Engine" 16. (ÅT) Brendan Benson "Metarie" 17. (10) Liam Lynch "United States Of Whatever" 18. (12) Placebo "The Bitter End" 19. (13) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 20. (14) Satirnine "Hey No Hell"

Leaving the chart:
(09) Whyte Seeds "Slow Motions"
(15) USCB Allstars "Watch Me Roll"
(16) Dj Format Ft. Chali 2na & Akil "We Know Something You Don't Know"
(17) Simian "La Breeze"
(18) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i världen"
(19) Lars Winnerbäck "Åt samma håll"
(20) Millencolin "E20 Norr"

Kent has lined up another show this summer: the Park festival in Moss, Norway on June 14. Also playing are Kaizers Orchestra and Vibeke Saugestad.

UPDATED: Finntroll, Impaled Nazarene, and (maybe) Children of Bodom will be doing a benefit/memorial show at Nosturi in Helsinki on March 25 for Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta. The price of entry will be a 10 euros dontation with all proceeds going to cover expenses for Teemu's family. The funeral will be on March 29.

The Finnish band Amorphis have signed with EMI to release their next album, the self-produced "Far From The Sun". The first single "Day Of Your Beliefs" comes out in April, the album to follow in May. This will be the band's first major label release following a long relationship with Relapse Records.

Picked up the guys from KVLR at the airport yesterday. They're a little jet-lagged, but otherwise very excited to head out on tour. Should be a lot of fun! The dates, yet again:

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-in Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - Tag Teen Center w/Mercy Mile, The Yellow Press
3/9 - SF, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise, Century Schoolbook, Fuck the Hope You Gave Me (ex-Fury 66, Audiocrush, Yaphet Kotto), Science of Yabra
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge
3/13 - Austin, TX - Momo's TFT/Better Looking Records Showcase w/Mark Gardner of Ride, Jealous Sound + more
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - Sacramento, CA - 1020 J w/Sputterdoll, No Avail

One of my favorite bands, Katatonia, is heading out across Europe with some help from Finntroll. The dates:

4/16 - Nachtleben/Batschkapp, Frankfurt, Germany
4/17 - Kiff, Aarau, Switzerland.
4/18 - Terminal Export, Nancy, France
4/19 - Dioxin, Schindellegi/Schwyz,Switzerland
4/20 - Midian Club, Vicenza, Italy
4/21 - Alpheus, Rome, Italy
4/22 - Transilvania Live, Milan, Italy
4/24 - Crockmore, Perpignan, France.
4/25 - K.G.B., Barcelona, Spain
4/26 - Caracol, Madrid, Spain
4/27 - SWR VI, Barroselas, Portugal
4/29 - Republicca II, Valencia, Spain
4/30 - West Rock, Cognac, France
5/01 - Rail Theatre, Lyon, France
5/02 - Splendid, Lille, France.

Some more dates have been announced for the upcoming In Flames/Mudvayne US tour. Here's the current itinerary:

3/08 - Pittsburgh, PA - Metropol
3/10 - Hartford, CT - Webster Theatre
3/11 - Clifton Park, NY - Northern Lights
3/12 - Pittston, PA - The Staircase
3/14 - Norfolk, VA - The NorVa
3/15 - Orlando/ Lake Buena Vista (FL) - House Of Blues
3/17 - Cincinnati, OH - Bogart's
3/18 - Milwaukee, WI - The Rave / Eagles Ballroom
3/19 - Cleveland, OH - Odeon Concert Club
3/21 - Grand Rapids, MI - Orbit Room
3/22 - Indianapolis, IN - Murat Egyptian Room
3/23 - Des Moines, IA - Val Air Ballroom
3/25 - Kansas City, MO - Beaumont Club
3/26 - Oklahoma City, OK - Coca Cola Bricktown Event Center
3/28 - Corpus Christi, TX - Concrete Street Amphitheatre
3/29 - San Antonio, TX - Sunset Station
3/30 - McAllen, TX - Villa Real Conv. Ctr.

Finland's The Rasmus are doing a short Swedish tour in support of their new album "Dead Letters" which comes out March 21. The dates:

4/9 - Stockholm, Klubben
4/10 - Göteborg, Valand
4/11 - Köpenhamn, Lilla Vega
4/12 - Helsingborg, The Tivoli

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
04. The Refreshments - On the rocks
05. The Sounds - Living in America
06. Barbados - Rewind
07. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
08. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo
09. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
10. The Knife - Deep Cuts
11. Melody Club - Music machine
12. Thomas Rusiak - In the sun
13. The Radio Dept. - Lesser matters
14. A Teens - New arrival
15. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
16. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
17. Slaptones - Simplify
18. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
19. The Haunted - One kill wonder
20. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det

Listen to the new Isolation Years single "Open Your Eyes". Very different from their first record, but still quite good. Can't wait to hear the full album!

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (01) The Donnas "Take It Off" 02. (03) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 03. (02) Placebo "The Bitter End" 04. (04) Missy Elliott Ft. Ludacris "Gossip Folks" 05. (06) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 06. (07) Liam Lynch "United States Of Whatever" 07. (NY) The Flaming Lips "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt.1" 08. (05) Satirnine "Hey No Hell" 09. (12) Whyte Seeds "Slow Motions" 10. (NY) Lil' Kim Ft. Mr Cheeks "The Jump Off"

11. (NY) Franke "Ställs Mot Dig" 12. (10) Christian Kjellvander "Broken Wheels" 13. (NY) David Lindh & Hail Marys "Glad I Found You" 14. (NY) USCB Allstars "Watch Me Roll" 15. (14) Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck "One Good Moment" 16. (NY) Macy Gray "When I See You" 17. (09) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i världen" 18. (NY) Timbuktu "Ett brev" 19. (08) Aimee Mann "Pavlov's Bell" 20. (NY) Brendan Benson "Metarie"

Leaving the chart:
(11) Coldplay "Clocks"
(13) Laakso "Long Beach"
(15) The Dysfunctionals "Payback Time"
(16) Pearl Jam "Love Boat Captain"
(17) Ed Harcourt "All Of Your Days Will Be Blessed"
(18) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane"
(19) Ben Harper "With My Own Two Hands"
(20) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush"

It's been quite some time since I heard anything about them, but Bad Cash Quartet has now been confirmed for Popaganda fest at Universitetsområdet in Stockholm to take place May 29-31. Other bands confirmed for the fest include The Embassy, Florence Valentin, Crystal Committee, The Junior, The Concretes and Buck.

Melody Club is setting their sites on Germany. Their album will get a release there on May 5 to be followed by a tour:

5/14 - Hamburg (D) Molotow
5/15 - Düsseldorf (D) Unique
5/16 - Weinheim (D) Cafe Central
5/17 - Berlin (D) Bastard
5/18 - Kassel (D) K19
5/19 - Frankfurt (D) Cookys
5/20 - Dresden (D) Downtown
5/21 - München (D) Atomic Cafe

The mail form on the contact page managed to get broken for some reason, but I fixed it. Sorry about that.

Want some more info about the various bands playing the upcoming ExMS Swedish Showcase gigs? Read this.

Nasum has booked a number of Finnish dates with Rotten Sound. Check it:

4/23 - Helsinki @ Nosturi
4/24 - Jyväskylä @ Lutakko
4/25 - Turku @ Säätämö
4/26 - Tampere @ Klubi

Going to see Nicolai Dunger open for Calexico in SF tomorrow. I'm pretty excited as it'll be my first time seeing him play. He's also got some new European dates lined up:

3/22 - Växjö, Momento - fiket/baren på muséet
3/28 - Rotterdam, Dutch Motel Mozaique Festival
4/01 - Köln, Gebäude 9
4/02 - München, Orange house
4/03 - Berlin, Knaack

Word has it that Union Carbide Productions will not be releasing a new single to coincide with their upcoming reunion at Hultsfred Fest as originally thought. Instead, they'll have a free single with a track from the first album "In The Air Tonight" along with an unreleased b-side. I guess the label doesn't want to try to sell an old song - can't blame 'em. So yeah, if you want the single, you gotta go to the fest.

Isolation Years got a couple upcoming gigs lined up:

3/5 - (S) Stockholm - Munchenbryggeriet w/Flaming Lips
5/8 - (D) Berlin - Knaack
5/15 - (CH) Bern - ISC Club
8/7 - (CH) Pully/Lausanne - For Noise Festival
8/9 - (D) Haldern - Open Air

In other Isolation Years news, Triggerfish.de recently did a phone interview with Jacob. Listen here. So much broken English! Anyhow, they talk a lot about the new record and it's a good listen.

After finally completing their new album, Logh will be heading out on the road across Europe starting March 20. They're a great band, so be sure to check em out. The dates:

3/20 - GER Hamburg, Prinzenbar (Docks)
3/21 - GER Berlin, Magnet
3/22 - GER Dresden, Starclub
3/23 - GER Köln, Gebaedue 9
3/26 - FRA Nantes, La route du rhum
3/29 - ESP Madrid, Sala Moby Dick
3/3 - CH Luzern, BOA
4/4 - ITA Pinarella di Cervia, Rockplanet
4/7 - A Wien, Szene Wien
4/8 - GER Munich, Orange House
4/9 - GER Wiesbaden, Schlachthof
4/10 - GER Heidelberg, Schwimbad Musik Club
4/14 - UK London, 93ft East
4/15 - UK London, Club Fandango @ Dublin Castle

Looks like there's even more to-do over that Haunted vs. Earache Records flap! Timo Isoaho of Kaista who did the original interview in Finnish has posted mp3s of the conversation proving that the report was indeed NOT a fabrication. Listen for yourself! (from Blabbermouth)

mp3 #1: Includes Marco's (The Haunted's frontman) claim Earache told the band they sold only 1,000 CDs in the U.S.

mp3 #2: Marco on the subject of "Entombed vs. Earache"

mp3 #3: Marco talks about The Haunted having inherited At the Gates' old contract.

mp3 #4: Marco talks about the "Caught On Tape" DVD

Like I said before, complaints against Earache's business dealings are nothing new. I think it's a shame Marco isn't standing behind his words, especially since he was recorded.

Darkane will be supporting Meshuggah on their upcoming Scandinavian tour. The dates:

3/17 - Stockholm, SWE @ Göta Källare
3/18 - Malmö, SWE @ Kulturbolaget
3/19 - Göteborg, SWE @ Sticky Fingers
3/20 - Oslo, NOR @ Betong
3/21 - Gävle, SWE @ Nivå
3/22 - Örebro, SWE @ Contan
3/27 - Helsinki, FIN @ Nosturi
3/29 - Umeå, SWE @ Umeå Open/Äpplet

You snooze, you lose. Kent's upcoming show at Stockholm Stadium on June 6 is sold out. All 32,500 tickets are gone.

Nine's new album has been pushed back to a August/September release, but Jacob Bannon (Converge) has signed on to do the artwork.

On March 28 The Knife will release the third single from their latest album "Deep Cuts". The track is called "You Take My Breath Away" and it featured guest vocals from Jenny Wilson. The b-sides will be two remixes by Emmon and Puppetmasters. A video is also on the way from Puppetmasters member Henry Moore Selder.

Division of Laura Lee will have a CD of their old material reissued in the US this spring from Lovitt Records. It's gonna be called "97-99" and Chad Clark at Inner Ear did the mastering. In the meantime, you can download a preview mp3 on this page.

Remember that item I posted about The Haunted being upset with their label Earache? Well, it seems that singer Marco Aro is calling that whole interview "total bullshit". Read more. (from Blabbermouth)

Katatonia has put up a third and final sample from their forthcoming album on their website. This one's called "Ghost of the Sun". I managed to track down a copy of the three-song promo they released and can report that it definitely sounds good. I'm excited to hear the full-length when it finally comes out on March 24.

The new video for HIM's "Funeral of Hearts" premieres February 28 on Viva, Viva Plus and MTV Central. TV4 in Finland will debut it March 4 on 4POP along with a 'Making of the Video' program.

Listen to P3 between 8 and 9pm on March 4 to hear The Sonnets perform a few live acoustic tracks and do an interview.

Promopop will be holding a showcase event at Lava/Kulturhuset in Stockholm on April 26. The bands scheduled to perform: Wendy, By Heart, The Alpine (DK), Planet Superfly, The Leeches, and Paris.

a-ha has announced the title of their new double live album will be "How Can I Sleep With Your Voice in My Head". It doesn't come out until March 24, but you can listen to preview snippets here. The tracklist:

CD1
Forever Not Yours
Minor Earth Major Sky
Manhattan Skyline
I’ve Been Losing You
Crying In The Rain
The Sun Always Shines On TV
Did Anyone Approach You?
Swing Of Things
Lifelines
Stay On These Roads
Hunting High And Low
Take On Me
Living Daylights
Summer Moved On

CD2
Scoundrel Days
Oranges On Appletrees
Cry Wolf
Dragonfly
Time and Again
Sycamore Leaves
Video track: tour diary

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
06. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo
07. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
08. Thomas Rusiak - In the sun
09. A Teens - New arrival
10. Melody Club - Music machine
11. The Knife - Deep Cuts
12. Slaptones - Simplify
13. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
14. The Haunted - One kill wonder
15. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
16. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
19. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
20. Eric Gadd - Life support

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (01) The Donnas "Take It Off" 02. (02) Placebo "The Bitter End" 03. (05) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 04. (NY) Missy Elliott Ft. Ludacris "Gossip Folks" 05. (NY) Satirnine "Hey No Hell" 06. (04) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 07. (NY) Liam Lynch "United States Of Whatever" 08. (08) Aimee Mann "Pavlov's Bell" 09. (03) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i världen" 10. (07) Christian Kjellvander "Broken Wheels"

11. (10) Coldplay "Clocks" 12. (ÅT) Whyte Seeds "Slow Motions" 13. (14) Laakso "Long Beach" 14. (18) Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck "One Good Moment" 15. (NY) The Dysfunctionals "Payback Time" 16. (15) Pearl Jam "Love Boat Captain" 17. (ÅT) Ed Harcourt "All Of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 18. (06) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 19. (11) Ben Harper "With My Own Two Hands" 20. (12) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush"

Leaving the chart:
(09) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth"
(13) Fireside "Throw It Away"
(16) Mull Historical Society "The Final Arrears"
(17) Reef "Give Me Your Love"
(19) Eminem "Sing For The Moment"
(20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

"Sweden's most requested demoband" Florence Valentins will be putting out an EP on April 14 called "Allt Dom Bygger Upp Ska Vi Meja Ner". The band plans to play a number of festival gigs this summer, too.

Gloria has a new album called "People Like Me And You" coming out on March 24. The first single will be a cover of the Talking Heads song "This Must Be The Place".

After touring the US for four weeks together, Cato Salsa Experience and The Soundtrack of Our Lives will play together again - this time in Malmö on March 7 and Lund on the 8th.

Stratovarius has announced they will be filming their upcoming show in Milan, Italy for release on a future DVD. The band also says they will be performing a 'secret' show in their native Finland sometime before their next tour. Look for details to be announced on their webpage.

Listen to The Cardigans cover "Das Model" right here. (requires Flash, by way of cardigans.de) The track was originally intended for a Kraftwerk tribute in 2001, but is now available on the "For What It's Worth" maxi-single.

By popular demand, Opeth has added a date in Perch on their upcoming Australian tour: April 14 at The Globe.

Millencolin will be touring the States beginning in April with a West Coast jaunt featuring Rufio and then it's off to the East on 4/30 with American HiFi. The band is also playing the Hurricane and Southside fests in Germany in June. More details soon.

Wow! what a catchy song. It reminds me of all those movies from the 80s about confused teenagers. This is like "Breakfast Club". But in music. Really, really dope! Are they big in Sweden? Doesn't surprise me. They would probably drop like a bomb in the States as well.

That's Pharrell Williams from N.E.R.D discussing "Seven Days a Week" with Aftonbladet, the newest single from The Sounds. I'm not super keen on the band myself, but I totally agree that they'd go over well in the US. Wait and see! Read the article. (in Swedish)

KVLR got themselves a new bassist, a fellow by the name of Joel Borg. Again, be sure to check them out when they tour the US in March. Those dates, yet again:

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-In Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - Tag Teen Center w/The Yellow Press, Mercy Mile
3/9 - San Fransisco, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise, more
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/The Yellow Press, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room w/The Yellow Press
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge w/Jelaous Sound
3/13 - Austin, TX - SXSW, TFT Records/Better Looking Records Showcase w/ Mark Gardner of Ride, Jealous Sound, more
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - Stanford, CA - KZSU (www.kzsu.org)

Those dates are still subject to minor changes, but stop by and say hi if you can. I'll be traveling along with the band and am very excited.

Vintersong reports they are working on their new album. Described as a concept album, they say there will be "a story running through the album's entirety, and with a musical flow that includes small compositions between the "real" songs." The subject is said to concern man's hunger for science and faith. And the music? They say it will range "from mellow prog to extreme metal, to ambient and folky vibes, spiced with a lot of effective contrasts, changing directories but united under a solid musical kingdom."

Soilwork has set "Figure Number Five" as the title for their upcoming album. Look for it in the US on May 5 from Nuclear Blast, April 21 in Europe.

Håkan Hellström has decided to leave Broder Daniel he reveals in an MTVE interview to be broadcast on Monday. I'm really not surprised considering his success with his solo career. "I won't play with them anymore, but we are still very good friends," he says. The Up North Swedish Grammy special will also have interviews with Melody Club, The Sounds, Robyn, The Hives and Caesars Palace plus live performances by Awa, Masayah and Marit Bergman.

BBC's Radio One has chosen DJ Nils Noa to perform on The Essential Mix program in April. He's the third Scandinavian to appear on the program, but the first Norweigan.

Rapper Diaz and black-metallers Dimmu Borgir collaborating? Yes, it's true! Listen to a samples of the track "Smakebit" and hear for yourself. (Windows Media)

Okay, here's the full scoop on those upcoming Export Music Sweden (ExMS) showcase shows in the US in NYC, Austin (SXSW) and LA. The bands scheduled to perform: Lambretta, The $1000 Playboys, Pineforest Crunch, Marit Bergman, The Mo, The Teenage Idols, Prime Sth, Whyte Seeds, The Sounds, and User.

Kent will play Stockholm Stadium on June 6. Tickets go on sale February 28 and will cost 350 kr.

Aftonbladet reports that Ebba Grön is back. Read all about it. (in Swedish) They made an appearance last night at the Joe Strummer tribute at Club Debaser in Stockholm accompanied by ex-Clash member Mick Jones. Pretty cool, eh?

The initial lineup for Augustibuller fest in Lindesberg on August 1-2 has been announced. They are Last Days Of April, The Spitts, Satirnine, Valley Days, JR Ewing, Between Us, Radioaktiva Räker, Mimikry, Spoiler and Piper. More info here.

We're in cold Sweden at the moment making our new record. We've done quite a lot of singles for the album already but we keep changing some things around.

The Hives report that they are working on their new album. In an interview with NME, singer Howlin' Pelle reveals that the new music sounds "like The Sex Pistols meets Detroit Cobras meets Kraftwerk." Look for it around September.

Meshuggah will be doing a Scandinavian tour in March. The dates:

3/17 - Sthlm Göta Källare
3/18 - Malmö KB
3/19 - Göteborg Sticky Fingers
3/20 - Oslo Betong
3/21 - Gävle Nivå
3/22 - Örebro Contan
3/26 - Helsingfors (sf) Nosturi

Limbonic Art has broken up. The statement from guitarist Morfeus and guitarist/vocalist Daemon:

We feel that we have reached as far as we could in our collaboration, and do not feel as inspired as we should when it comes to [producing] new quality music. Everything is set for a new beginning for the both of us, and we desire to explore other aspects of our musical interests, so it is time to stop now. The circle is complete, begin another...

Katatonia has posted a second teaser mp3 from their new album "Viva Emptiness", this time for the song "Criminals". Go to their website to download it.

The Cardigans will be performing two acoustic songs on XFM in London on March 4 between 5:30 and 6:30 pm. They'll also be recording an extra track for airplay at a later date. Those not local or unable to pick it up on satellite can listen from their website. The station will also host a live chat with the band at the end of March.

Marit Bergman will be releasing a four-song EP in the US on March 19. The tracks to be included are "It Would Have Been Good", "Nightlife", "I Take My Wings Off You", and "Between the Lines". She'll also be doing those US ExMS shows along with The Sounds, et al. at CBGBs, SXSW, and LA. Yet another Swede ready to break across the ocean?

Dagbladet has posted a short interview with TSOOL. (in Swedish)

Preview the new Erlend Öyes album here.

Mörk Gryning are currently recording their new album at Dug Out Studio with producer Daniel Bergstrand. Look for it on June 6 in Sweden, Europe two weeks later.

Rune Grammofon will be putting out an album of unreleased material from Arne Nordheim on March 17. It's called "Dodeka" and it will consist of 12 electronic pieces "composed from the basic and essential sound material gathered and constructed during Arne Nordheim´s fruitful period in Warsaw in the late sixties."

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (NY) The Donnas "Take It Off" 02. (11) Placebo "The Bitter End" 03. (02) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 04. (NY) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 05. (NY) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 06. (06) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 07. (NY) Christian Kjellvander "Broken Wheels" 08. (NY) Aimee Mann "Pavlov's Bell" 09. (01) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 10. (03) Coldplay "Clocks"

11. (NY) Ben Harper "With My Own Two Hands" 12. (08) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush" 13. (05) Fireside "Throw It Away" 14. (09) Laakso "Long Beach" 15. (NY) Pearl Jam "Love Boat Captain" 16. (NY) Mull Historical Society "The Final Arrears" 17. (NY) Reef "Give Me Your Love" 18. (NY) Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck "One Good Moment" 19. (NY) Eminem "Sing For the Moment" 20. (ÅT) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(04) The Knife "Heartbeats"
(07) Foo Fighters "Times Like These"
(10) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out"
(12) Paris "Streetlights"
(13) N.E.R.D. "Provider"
(14) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again"
(15) Maceo Parker "Come By And See"
(16) Eve "Satisfaction"
(17) The Libertines "Time for Heroes"
(18) Calexico "Quattro"
(19) Zwan "Honestly"
(20) Red Hot Chili Peppers "Can't Stop"

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Barbados - Rewind
06. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
07. A Teens - New arrival
08. The Haunted - One kill wonder
09. Melody Club - Music machine
10. The Knife - Deep Cuts
11. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
12. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
13. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
14. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
15. Eric Gadd - Life support
16. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Roxette - The ballad hits
19. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
20. Joybells gospel choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker

The Ark, Entombed, Shenerah, and USCB Allstars have all been confirmed for Westgothafestivalen in Trollhättan on May 24.

The Swedish Hip-Hop Awards will be held April 25 in Stockholm. Nominees to be announced soon.

Guitar player Jens F. Ryland has left black-metallers Borknagar. Band mainman Oystein G. Brun says Jen's "decision is based on various personal reasons, but we would like to state that there is no conflict nor bad blood in relations to the break. On behalf of Borknagar, I wish him all the best for the future!" The band will enter the studio in March to record an album for a late 2003 release.

Children of Bodom guitarist Alexi Laiho recently joined Halford on stage in Japan for a rendition of the Judas Priest classic "Living After Midnight". CoB was the opening act on the Japan tour.

Okay, here's the winners of the Swedish Grammis:

Best artist: Kent
Best song: Kent - "Dom andra"
Best album: Kent - "Vapen & ammunition"
Best pop/rock group: Kent
Best pop/rock, female: Robyn
Best pop/rock, male: Håkan Hellström - "Det är så jag säger det"
Best newcomer: The Sounds
Best lyrics: Joakim Berg (Kent)
Best composer: Joakim Berg (Kent)
Best producer: Martin von Schmalensee, Zed (Kent)
Best hard-rock: Opeth - "Deliverance"
Best jazz: Oddjob - "Oddjob"
Best folk: Stefan Sundström - "Sundström spelar Allan"
Best club/dance: Koop - "Waltz for Koop"
Best hip-hop/soul: Timbuktu - "Watt's dö madderfakking diil"
Open category: v/a - "Nationalsånger"
Government export prize: The Hives

Jeez, does Kent really need to win any more awards? I mean, c'mon now! Anyhow, for the full list of winners, go here. (in Swedish)

Your Halo Is A Radar have been disbanded. Why? Lack of time, careers, paranoia, creative differences, blah blah blah... The usual crap.

Read the full statement from the band.

In Flames reports they are in the middle of working on new material for an album to come this summer. They also say they're excited about the upcoming Ministry/Mudvayne tour: "We are all getting eager to go out on the road again. After all, we´ve had 2½ months off now, and it´s about time to get out there and have some fun."

Here's some new Peter, Björn & John tourdates:

3/15 - Trondheim
3/16 - Oslo
3/22 - Stockholm, DJing at Debaser
3/25 - Jönköping
3/27 - Linköping, DJing at Herrgårn
3/28 - Hässleholm

Kristofer Åström is heading out on the road for probably the last time in awhile as he will most likely be concentrating on Fireside in the future. Here's the dates and be sure to check out his new EP "Dead End" when it comes out March 10:

3/14 - Helsingborg Tivoli - w/Peter Hermansson on piano
3/18 - Uppsala Katalin
3/19 - Sthlm Nalen
3/20 - Malmö KB
3/21 - Lund Stadshallen
3/22 - Göteborg Bommens Salonger
3/23 - Umeå Stationen - w/Peter Hermansson on piano

A number of new bands have been confirmed for the Emmaboda fest including Cato Salsa Experience, Paris, Björns Vänner, Pamplonas, La Masa and Bring Me The Fucking Riot Man. Paris and Cato Salsa have also both been confirmed for this year's Hulsfred fest along with Cult of Luna.

The winners of this year's Norweigan Alarm awards are as follows:

Best live band: Turbonegro
Best metal album: Satyricon - Volcano
Best pop album: Thomas Dybdahl – That Great October Sound
Best rock album: JR Ewing – Ride Paranoia
Best music video: Kaada – No You Don't
Best hip-hop/rap album: Gatas Parlament – Holdning over underholdning
Best jazz album: Dadafon – Visitor
Best song: Satyricon – Fuel For Hatred
Best electronica/techno album: Jaga Jazzist – The Stix
Alarm prize: Ephemera

Metal-Reference.com recently did an interesting interview with Ulver mainman Trickster G aka Garm. Read it here.

Carcrash Records has set the release dates for Dialog Cet's "Konsumera Era" on March 24 and QGMR's "Quiet Is Not Loud" on March 3.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. The Cardigans - For What It´s Worth
03. User - You Belong
04. Trucker - I Feel So Sick
05. Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
06. Beats & Styles - Smilin´
07. The Raveonettes - Attack Of The Ghostriders
08. Jon - Right Here Next To You
09. Paperboys - Find My Way

Challengers:
01. Kaah -Du Kan Få Mej
02. Freak Kitchen - Nobody´s Laughing
03. St. Thomas -Long, Long Time
04. Winta - Emotions
05. Blues - Gamla Tider

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

Check out this video of The Cardigans playing live on MTV's Morning Glory.

All the new material is ready and we have also mastered our own pre-production and it sounds awesome in our ears. We rehearse like we are possessed every day and will continue to do so until we go into studio.

That's Silenoz of Dimmu Borgir talking about the band's preparations to go into Studio Fredman on March 3 to record their new album.

Cult of Luna will touring the UK with ISIS in March. If you like heavy music, I highly recommend you check both these bands out. The dates so far:

3/12 – Manchester, UK - Roadhouse
3/13 – Cardiff, UK - Ms1
3/14 – Brighton, UK - Concorde
3/15 – London, UK - Mean Fiddler

Was it just me, or did World Cafe not stream that TSOOL performance yesterday? Did I miss it? Anyone else record it?

Katatonia has put up a 45-second teaser of the new song "Evidence"on their homepage. As stated before, the new album "Viva Emptiness" comes out March 24.

The Hives won two categories at the recent NME awards: 'Best International Band' and 'Best Dressed'. The full list of winners is here.

Isolation Years will release the first single from the new album "It's Golden" on February 17. The track is called "Open Those Eyes" and I have no doubt it will be awesome. The album follows on March 14.

Madrugada is planning to release the song "Majesty" as the next single. It's already been doing quite well in the charts. The rumor is that they're doing an EP and it'll be out on March 5. No word on the b-sides at this time.

Read the transcript of MTVE.com's webchat with The Cardigans. There's actually some pretty good questions from the fans getting asked and answered.

Ulver reports that the "1993-2003: 1st Decade in the Machines" remix comp is now complete. Contributors include the band themselves, Alexander Rishaug, Information, Third Eye Foundation, Upland, Bogdan Raczynski, Martin Horntveth, Neotropic, Stars of the Lid, Fennesz, Pita, Jazzkammer, V/Vm, and Merzbow. It'll be out in March on Jester Records.

In other Ulver news, the band also has announced their next EP will be called "A Quick Fix of Melancholy". It will contain three tracks and over 30 minutes of music that they say will "reflect the title." Author Christian Bök provides the lyrics.

Flow Magazine has themselves an exclusive mp3 from Paragon. The track is called "När Gon Spottar" and was produced by Michel Rocwell. Look for it on the upcoming debut album "Stadsbarn".

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (01) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (06) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 03. (09) Coldplay "Clocks" 04. (05) The Knife "Heartbeats" 05. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 06. (08) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 07. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 08. (NY) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush" 09. (NY) Laakso "Long Beach" 10. (11) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out"

11. (NY) Placebo "The Bitter End" 12. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 13. (18) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (04) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 15. (NY) Maceo Parker "Come By And See" 16. (14) Eve "Satisfaction" 17. (13) The Libertines "Time For Heroes"18. (NY) Calexico "Quattro" 19. (15) Zwan "Honestly" 20. (NY) Red Hot Chili Peppers "Can't Stop"

Leaving the chart:
(07) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer"
(10) Supergrass "Seen the Light"
(12) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed"
(17) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home"
(19) Paola "Interstellar Love"
(20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Big Bongo Records is doing a comp to be called Twenty Years Too Soon One Year Too Late - A Tribute To The Nomads" featuring contributions from Sewergrooves, The Hellacopters, Maryslim, bob hund, The Dictators, Entombed, Sons of Cyrus and Nitwitz. In case you are unaware, The Nomads are the forefathers of Swedish garage rock and two of the members now make up The Hellacopters' rhythm section. I don't have a release date, but it should be out soon.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
06. A Teens - New arrival
07. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
08. Melody Club - Music machine
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
11. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
14. Thåström - På röda sten
15. Joybells gospel choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
16. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
17. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
18. Eric Gadd - Life support
19. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
20. v/a - Fame factory vol 2

Swedish singer/songwriter Sofia Loell has done a song to be featured in the upcoming Gwyneth Paltrow film "A View from the Top". Read more here. (in Swedish)

The new Lost Patrol record is scheduled to be out in May. For those that don't know, LP is the solo side project of Dennis Lyxzén from The (International) Noise Conspiracy. Among the various guests to appear on the album are singer/songwriter Lisa Miskovsky, David Sandström (The Facers, ex-Refused), Stefan Granberg (Randy), and Peder Stenberg (Bittersweet). Read more here. (in Swedish)

Nasum reports they have completed their new album "Helvete" which was recorded at the band's own Soundlab Studios by singer/guitarist Mieszko Talarczyk. The tracklisting:

01. Violation
02. Scoop
03. Living Next Door to Malice
04. Stormshield
05. Time to Discharge
06. Bullshit
07. Relics
08. We Curse You All
09. Doombringer
10. Just Another Hog
11. Drop Dead
12. I Hate People
13. Go!
14. The Final Sleep
15. Slaves to the Grind
16. Breach of Integrity
17. The Everlasting Shame
18. Your Words Alone
19. Preview of Hell
20. Illogic
21. Whip
22. Worst Case Scenario

If I installed a message board, would you use it? Just curious - let me know. Otherwise, there's always the guestbook.

Here's the winners of today's P3 Gold Awards:

Best Male Artist – Håkan Hellström "Det Är Så Jag Säger Det"
Best Grouppp – Kent "Vapen & Ammunition"
Best Female Artist – Marit Bergman "3.00 A.M. Serenades"
Best Newcomer – The Sounds
Best Live – The Ark
Best Dance – Håkan Lidbo "Sexy Robot"
Best Rock/Metal – Opeth "Deliverance"
Best Hiphop/Soul – Looptroop "The Struggle Continues"
Best Pop – Doktor Kosmos "Reportage!"

For more info and to listen to the presentation, go here. And don't forget to check out P3 Live over the next two days as a lot of the nominees will be performing.

More dates have been added to the upcoming Sahara Hotnights tour with Ikara Colt and Washdown. They are as follows:

02/27 - Bowery Ballroom New York, NY
02/28 - Maxwell's Hoboken, NJ
03/01 - North Star Philadelphia, PA
03/02 - Black Cat Washington, DC
03/03 - Alley Katz Richmond, VA
03/04 - Cats Cradle Carborro, NC
03/05 - The Echo Lounge Atlanta, GA
03/06 - Jack Rabbits Jacksonville, FL
03/07 - The Social Orlando, FL
03/08 - The Orpheum Tampa, FL
03/10 - Shim Sham Club New Orleans, LA
03/13 - TBA Austin, TX
03/14 - Stubbs Austin, TX
03/15 - Trees Dallas, TX
03/16 - Green Door Oklahoma City, OK
03/17 - TBA Albuquerque, NM
03/18 - Mason Jar Phoenix, AZ
03/19 - Roxy Los Angeles, CA
03/20 - TBA Los Angeles, CA
03/21 - Slim's San Francisco, CA
03/22 - Dantes Portland, OR
03/23 - The Royal Vancouver Canada 03/24 - Graceland Seattle, WA
03/28 - El Torreon Kansas City, MO
04/02 - Mohawk Place Buffalo, NY

As previously noted here, there's going to be quite a few Scandinavian acts at this year's SXSW festival in Austin Texas. Ten from Sweden, seven fren Denmark and Norway and 3 from Finland and Iceland. The three bands Sondre Lerche, Madrugada and Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band will perform together at a Scandinavian showcase show and the rest will be playing other seperate dates during the event. For more info about the Norweigan acts go here. For a list of all the bands performing, go here.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. A Teens - New arrival
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
07. Melody Club - Music machine
08. Barbados - Rewind
09. Thåström - På röda sten
10. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
11. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. The Knife - Deep Cuts
14. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
15. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Tyskarna från Lund - Metamorphobia
18. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
19. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
20. Benny Anderssons orkester - Benny Anderssons orkester

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (04) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Fireside "Throw It Away" 04. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 05. (11) The Knife "Heartbeats" 06. (NY) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 07. (NY) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer" 08. (03) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 09. (08) Coldplay "Clocks" 10. (NY) Supergrass "Seen the Light"

11. (07) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 12. (06) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 13. (10) The Libertines "Time for Heroes" 14. (NY) Eve "Satisfaction" 15. (09) Zwan "Honestly" 16. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (12) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 18. (13) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 19. (NY) Paola "Interstellar Love" 20. (20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(14) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders"
(15) Oasis "Songbird"
(17) Massive Attack "Special Cases"
(18) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On"
(19) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space"

Best wishes,
El Presidente for Turbojugend St. Pauli

Check out a profile on Norweigan jazz group 1300 Oslo right here.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Spitts - That´s my girl
02. Jon - Right Here Next To You
03. Last Days Of April - All Will Break
04. The Lungz - It´s Alright
05. Christian - Min Fremtid
06. Madrugada - Majesty
07. Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
08. Kent - FF
09. Bombshell Rocks - On My Way

Challengers:
01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Thomas Rusiak - Spinning
03. The Mo - The Mo
04. Acorn - One Day
05. User - You Belong

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

Big surprise: Kent won the Music Control Airplay Award for 'Most Played Swedish Artist'.

Randy has revealed that they are finished with their new record "Welfare Problems" and passed the whole thing off to Burning Heart to get in pressed. It's still not due out until April, but here's the track listing:

01. Dirty Tricks
02. A Man in Uniform
03. Bad, Bad, Bad
04. We're All Fucked Up More or Less
05. Cheap Thrills
06. X-ray Eyes
07. Welfare Problems
08. Cheater
09. Ruff Stuff
10. My Heart, My Enemy
11. Devilish
12. Dirty and Cheap

Seven Feet Four have a new album called "Departure/Arrival" coming out on Coalition Records in March, but you can preview the track "Auto Emotion" now. The band will be touring Scandinavia beginning late March and then heading out across Europe in April with JR Ewing.

This time we are heading for the ultimate and so far it sounds very promising. The new material is pretty diverse but in general the songs have more POWER. Hard-hitting and straight forward, with more natural flow. So that the energy and force comes straight back to you.

That's bassist Magnus Olsfelt of the The Crown discussing the songwriting progress on the new album. The band, now reunited with original vocalist Johan Lindstrand after one album utilizing the services of Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates, Skitsystem), have booked time at Studio Fredman in May for their next album. Look for it around early September on Metal Blade Records.

In Flames will be touring the US with Ministry and Mudvayne in March. Dates soon. In other news, Aftonbladet has posted the streaming video of the band's performance from the Rockbjörnen: Real / Quicktime

The Sounds are doing a number of Scandinavian shows before they head over to America for SXSW in March. The dates:

2/7 - Växjö, Kaskad Folkets Park, Popstad
2/8 - Luleå, Kåren
2/12 - Oslo, So What!
2/13 - Sogndal, Mejeriet
2/14 - Bergen, Kvarteret
2/15 - Stavanger, Folken
2/20 - Århus, VoxHall
2/21 - Köpenhamn, Stengade30
2/22 - Roskilde, Gimle
2/26 - Halmstad, Kåren
2/27 - Eskilstuna, Blå
2/28 - Kinna, Överlida
3/1 - Älmhult, Balders Hage

"Batter Check" will the next single from Millencolin, due out in March. The band also has some new dates lined up for around the same time:

3/13 - Stockholm, Arenan
3/14 - Skelefteå, Folkparken
3/21 - Göteborg, Kåren
3/22 - Lund, Mejeriet
3/23 - Oslo, Rockefeller

Esteemed British music mag NME has nominated The Hives for 3 categories in its 2003 Carling Awards. They are 'Best International Band', 'Best Live Band' and 'Best Dressed'. The full list of nominees is here.

The upcoming KVLR tour is coming together quite nicely! Stop by and say hi, why doncha?

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-In Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - TBD w/The Yellow Press
3/9 - SF, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/The Yellow Press, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room w/The Yellow Press
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge
3/13 - Austin, TX - SXSW, TFT Records/Better Looking Records Showcase
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - TBD

Looks like The Soundtrack of Our Lives have been added to the bill of the next Coachella Fest on April 27 and 28. Check the TSOOL US site under 'schedule' for updates.

Peter, Björn and John have lined up the following shows:

1/31 Västerås, Culturen (+Venue & Virtues)
2/1 Stockholm, Debaser
3/28 Hässleholm

The band also says they are planning on doing a new single and video in March.

Download the new video for the song "Eagleheart" from Stratovarius here. Be forewarned, it's a 40+ meg .avi file.

Rumor has it that Motorpsycho will reissue their album "The Tussler" later this year with ten bonus tracks. Apparently it's a soundtrack to the Italian film of the same name and was originally released in 1994.

Some of the bands for the upcoming Emmaboda festival have been announced. The Swedish acts include Doktor Kosmos, Laakso, Whyte Seeds, Speedmarket Avenue, Teenage Idols, Mando Diao and Talking to Teapots. More info here.

Madrugada will doing a tour of Norway right before heading over to the US to play SXSW. The dates:

2/5 - Bredtveit Fengsel, Oslo
2/6 - Hydranten, Hamar
2/7 - Folken, Stavanger
2/8 - Hulen, Bergen
2/9 - Hulen, Bergen
2/13 - Uka 2003, Lillehammer
2/14 - Drammen teater og kulturhus, Drammen
2/15r - Studentenes Hus, Gjøvik
2/18 - Rust Club & Scene, Ørsta
2/19 - Strøget, Tromsø
2/20 - Sinus Bodø
2/21 - Studentersamfunnet, Ås
2/22 - Rockefeller, Oslo

MTVE.com put up the video for "Candy Kane" from Caesars Palace. It's pretty entertaining, so check it out. Nothing like doing donuts in a Volvo, eh?

Sophie Zelmani covers Bob Dylan's song "Most Of The Time" for the soundtrack of the upcoming movie "Masked and Anonymous". The film will star Dylan himself along with John Goodman, Penelope Cruz, Jessica Lange, Luke Wilson and Jeff Bridges. More info here.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. Melody Club - Music machine
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. Barbados - Rewind
07. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
08. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Thåström - På röda sten
11. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
12. Eric Gadd - Life support
13. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
14. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
15. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Kent - B-sidor 95-00
19. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
20. Roxette - Ballad hits

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

01. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 02. (12) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 04. (02) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 05. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 06. (07) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 07. (NY) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 08. (NY) Coldplay "Clocks" 09. (04) Zwan "Honestly" 10. (06) The Libertines "Time for Heroes"

11. (ÅT) The Knife "Heartbeats" 12. (14) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 13. (NY) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (08) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders" 15. (11) Oasis "Songbird" 16. (09) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (NY) Massive Attack "Special Cases" 18. (10) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On" 19. (NY) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space" 20. (NY) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(13) Mando Diao "The Band"
(15) The Coral "Dreaming of You"
(16) The Hellacopters "Carry Me Home"
(17) The Datsuns "Harmonic Generator"
(18) Echoboy "Automatic Eyes"
(19) The Music "Getaway"
(20) Audio Bullys "We Don't Care"