Markus Krunegård is playing Cirkus in Stockholm on November 11 and it would be totally unremarkable except for the fact that both of his other bands Laakso and Hets! are opening: http://www.cirkus.se/index.php/events/view/markus_krunegard/
No idea yet if either of those bands will be doing more shows or making new music, but I guess we'll have to wait and see...
It's hard to get excited since his last few releases have been pretty weak, but ex-Laakso frontman Markus Krunegård will be releasing a new album on March 28. He will premiere his new single "Everybody hurts" at P3 Guld on January 21.
It has been revealed that the new Swedish duo Serenades, as posted here and elsewhere, is Markus Krunegård (Laakso) and Adam Olenius (Shout Out Louds). Their debut EP "Birds" will be out on April 18 via with a live debut set to take place May 26 at Södra Teatern in Stockholm.
Check out Nord & Syd, a new band from prolific Swedish indiepop artist Martin Abrahamsson (Vapnet, Siberia, Kommun) alongside David Nygård (Laakso), Julia Hanberg (Penny Century), Kalle Danielsson (Holy Madre) and Joel Linderberg (Ironville): http://www.nord-och-syd.blogspot.com/
I could easily sum this review up in one sentence: Robert Svensson has crafted the best record of 2010.
As I sneak up on thirty, I worry, much more so than in my younger years, that whatever visceral, overpowering connection I once had with music is slipping -- the records that were going to tear right into me have already done so; everything else is going to be an echo of those experiences. "You're a wasteland, honey", however, tore right into me. Listening to the record, I couldn't help but remember falling in love with Bruce Springsteen's "Born to run" in the mid-'90s while my peers at British boarding school were enraptured by Brit Pop, though this parallels my experience with Robert Svensson's most recent offering, it doesn't mock the occasion.
While I enjoyed Svensson's "Beat EP", I worried that it signaled his future trajectory, with bands such as Bloc Party already demonstrating how the allure of electronic music can unravel even the most talented of musicians. "You're a wasteland, honey", thankfully, is the fitting follow up to Svensson's fantastic debut, "Young punks are on the never-never". Everything I enjoyed about that first record is improved upon with "...wasteland". It's been a while since the release of a record that after the fifth or sixth listen I am not just skipping to my favorite tracks, often leaving more than half of the album behind; there is nothing to leave behind here. The record is effortlessly brilliant throughout, demonstrating how Svensson's many strengths and talents have developed since his gorgeous "Young punks..". Hands down, this is the record of the year, and the first in a while, perhaps since Laakso's "My gods" or Shout Out Louds' "Our ill wills", that has made such a profound impact on me. - Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
Listen to a YouTube preview of the brand new Juni Järvi single "(I love it when you call me) Baby", featuring guest vocals from Annika Norlin (Hello Saferide, Säkert!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPyiuXpN_hE
The official release date for said track is May 26 and it will be followed by the album "The gospel" in early September which will feature guest appearances from Markus Krunegård (Laakso) and others.
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:
01. Laakso - Worst case scenario
02. TALK 1
03. Du Pacque - Walk straight
04. Pascal - Tutti frutti
05. Nirvana 2002 - The awakening of...
06. Lapko - I shot the sheriff
07. TALK 2
08. The Floor is Made of Lava - The bigger picture
09. No Balls - Guilt blocker
10. Obliteration - Styxerian path (into darkness)
11. Next Life - Anti matter
12. TALK 3
13. Ikons - Imperiet
14. The Skull Defekts - Habit
15. Familjen - När planeterna stannat
16. TALK 4
17. Meleeh - Sun and moon
18. Kite - I give you the morning
19. Ef - 401 Lwa
20. TALK 5
Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.
I've recently been listening to this track a lot, in kind of a roundabout sort of way. The story: my wife and I go to the gym every morning (well, at least I do, her schedule is more, um, intermittent) and she requested my help with putting together some good workout tunes for her mp3 player. Of course I'm content with a healthy mix of brutal death metal and hardcore punk, but that just won't do -- she wants something melodic, so I oblige myself to pick out a few choice selections from my collection, most of which she is unfamiliar with. The criteria: match the BPM of High Hats' "The end", a track she knows and loves (as should everyone). So yeah, "The end" clocks at 155bpm, so I scan my files for appropriate tunes to match... Laakso and The Hives seem to fit the bill pretty well, but I know that few things are better than a pounding techno beat and "Habibi" is a solid 156 according to my calculator. Perfect! Now I just have to contend with her shrilly shouting "Don't!" at me every time I do something she doesn't like. Which is surprisingly often.