Not that I really need an excuse to post a track from the very-excellent Vånna Inget, but considering that today is International Woman's Day (and Purim, but let's not get distracted), I'll take it. Sweden has long excelled in the realm of female-fronted melodic punk with early acts such as Tant Strul, Mögel and Pink Champagne leading the way and modern bands like Knugen Faller and Masshysteri carrying the torch. Vånna Inget keep it burning. Go see them next week at our It's a Trap! Clubnight at Debaser Malmö!
I always make an effort to check out the various Manifest Awards nominees because, inevitably, there's always at least a few quality names that have previously escaped my attention. I don't worry so much about who actually won or who was unfairly passed over, I just want new music. As for the punk category: I'm already a fan of Vånna Inget and happily grabbed a copy of their excellent LP via 1-2-3-4 Go! Records; Obnoxious Youth's stiff thrashy hardcore is not my thing at all, but kudos to them for winning; and I must confess, I don't know Black Feet at all, but that will be remedied eventually. Which leaves Sju Svåra År, a band that I've been aware of for awhile, but never fully investigated until very recently. Shame on me, because they are ruling female-fronted melodic punk, not too dissimilar from the aforementioned Vånna Inget or other acts like Masshysteri and The Vicious. So yeah, right up my alley -- especially when they combine exquisite vocal harmonies with raw grit like on tracks such as "Pappa". I may have neglected to track down a copy of their LP before now, but that will soon be remedied.
Umeå punkrockers UX Vileheads have posted a brand new tune from their upcoming LP: http://uxvileheads.blogspot.com/2011/03/new-song-up.html
If you dig other Umeå punk such as Regulations or Masshysteri, you'll probably like this too.
Just in case the one thing missing in your life was a modern hardcore-style cover of Masshysteri's "Dom kan inte höra musiken", one of 2010's best tracks. Download the rest of the band's latest EP "De få & de stolta" for free via myspace: http://www.myspace.com/halldetakta
Synth: Code 64 - Trialogue () Cryo - Hidden Aggression () Page - Nu () Social Ambitions - Almost gone ()
Hardrock/Metal: Ghost - Opus Eponymous () Watain - Lawless Darkness () Khoma - A final storm () Dark Tranquility - We are the void ()
Rhythm: Haci Tekbilek - Türlü () Helt Off - Marknadens Soldat () Million Stylez - Everyday () Serengeti - Standing Steady ()
Jazz: Elin Larsson Group - Live and Alive () Lekverk - Everyday () NEO (Nässjö Extreme Orchestra) - NEO () The Country - The Country ()
Punk/Hardcore Antipati - Frågor som rör det allmänna () Hårda Tider - Gatan Kallar () Old Fashioned Ideas - We're in this shit together () The Baboon Show - Punk Rock harbour ()
Hip-Hop: Academics - Tare Lugnt 4 () Carlito - Guldburen () PH3 - Löser ett fall () Zacke - Visst är det vackert ()
Rock: Bad Hands - Take The Money And Run () Dundertåget - Dom feta åren är förbi () Pascal - Orkanen närmar sig () The Bear Quartet - Monty Python ()
Folk/Visa: Anders Svensson, Magnus Gustafsson, Susanne Gustafsson, Anders Löfberg, Jörgen Svensson - Bålgetingen, Låtar efter August Strömberg () Mats Edén, Daniel Sandén-Warg, Leif Stinnerbom, Magnus Stinnerbom - Anno 2010 () OK Star Orchestra - Sound Classique () Ola Magnell - Rolös ()
Experimental: Ombudsman - And His Father Was A Great Machine () Erik Enocksson - Man tänker sitt () Leif Jordansson - The Comet / The Doll Maker () New Tango Orquesta - Vesper ()
Singer/Songwriter: I'm Kingfisher - Arctic () Daniel Norgren - Horrifying Death Eating Blood Spider () The Tarantula Waltz - Did Not Leave To Find But To Forget, To Leave Behind () The Tallest Man On Earth - Wild Hunt ()
Best live act: Anna Von Hausswolff The Tallest Man On Earth Masshysteri Robyn
Best unsigned act (in collaboration w/P3 Lab): Alice B Katakomb Ascend Broken Boys
Winners will be announced at a ceremony on February 4 at Nalen in Stockholm. More info: http://www.manifestgalan.se/
Gaffa Sweden's top Swedish album picks of 2010 out of their top 30:
01. The Radio Dept. - Clinging to a scheme
03. Håkan Hellström - 2 steg från paradise
04. Masshysteri – Masshysteri
09. Säkert – Facit
11. Tallest Man on Earth - The wild hunt
15. Robyn - Body talk part 1
20. JJ – n° 3
21. Anna von Hausswolff – Singing from the grave
26. The Bear Quartet – Monty Python
Gaffa reports, by way of Dennis Lyxzén, that Masshysteri has split up: http://gaffa.se/nyhet/45175
Huge bummer, especially considering they released one of the best albums of 2010.
I didn't really expect an album consisting of melodic political punk anthems sung in Swedish to be my favourite album of the year, especially not the second album from a band whose debut I wasn't really that into, but Sweden's Masshysteri's "Masshysteri" is the album I've kept on returning to continually in the last 4-5 months. Despite the album only being 10 songs and about 28 minutes long, repeated listenings don't seem to do it any harm, only the opposite -- the songs now feel like an extension of my spine. Masshysteri are not doing anything new music- or lyric-wise, and there are a some similar Swedish bands (e.g. Pascal), but the frenetic energy and the heavenly melodies on this album are just mind-blowing. I'd rank this album alongside any of Swedish punk pioneers Ebba Grön, which is mighty high praise. It's just a great shame that more people haven't heard it! - Stefan Nilsson
Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:
01. Särkyneet - Huono nainen
02. TALK 1
03. Masshysteri - Masshysteri del två
04. Interment - Eternal darkness
05. Cut City - The sound and the sore
06. Fireside - Lovecar
07. TALK 2
08. Moto Boy - Early grave
09. V. Sjöberg New Jazz Ensemble - Start at the finish
10. The Goner - Lost summer
11. TALK 3
12. The World - Roybgiv
13. Familjen - Det var jag
14. STYGG - Sleep
15. TALK 4
16. EL-SD - Hille
17. Menfolk - Column 79
18. Camouflage - La la la
19. Grande Roses - The astronaut
20. TALK 5
21. Donkeyboy - Ambitions
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.
Masshysteri