Tickets aren't on sale quite yet, but I see that The Troubadour in LA is listing that The Caesars, Deportees, Moneybrother, Melody Club and The Ark are playing an Export Music Sweden showcase on March 16. Who wants to put me up for the night, eh? That also means that these are the acts selected to play the showcases in NYC and SXSW and I presume I'll be getting more details soon. UPDATE: I've just been informed that the date might be changing, so keep checking back for the latest.

Here's this week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Lars Winnerbäck - Vatten under broarna
02. Dark Tranquility - Character
03. The Ark - State of the Ark
04. Lena Philipsson - Det gör ont en stund på natten men inget på dan
05. Anna Ternheim - Somebody Outside
06. Fernandoz - Minnenas allé
07. Daniel Lindström - Daniel Lindström
08. Magnus Uggla - Den tatuerade generationen
09. Christian Walz - Paint by Numbers
10. Lasse Stefanz - Röd Chevrolet
11. Benny Anderssons Orkester - Bao!
12. Soundtrack of Our Lives - Origin vol. 1
13. Peter Jöback & Göteborgs symfoniker - Storybook
14. Uno Svenningsson - Ett andetag från dig
15. Melody Club - Face the Music
16. Totta Näslund - Totta 7: Soul!/På drift
17. Marie Fredriksson - The Change
18. Björn Afzelius & Mikael Wiehe - 1993 - Malmöinspelningarna
19. Arne Domnérus - Best of Dompan
20. Gyllene Tider - Finn 5 fel!

DJ Martian has the scoop on the 'Fresh Air at Fabric' one-day Norwegian music festial in London featuring performances by a wide range of artists including Annie, Magnet, Nils Petter Molvaer, Satyricon, Biosphere, WE and much more: http://djmartian.blogspot.com/2005_01_01_djmartian_archive.html#110677852973580507
Definitely something not to be missed.

Here's this week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. The Ark - State of the Ark
02. Daniel Lindström - Daniel Lindström
03. Lars Winnerbäck - Vatten under broarna
04. Lena Philipsson - Det gör ont en stund på natten men inget på dan
05. Lasse Stefanz - Röd Chevrolet
06. Anna Ternheim - Somebody Outside
07. Magnus Uggla - Den tatuerade generationen
08. Christian Walz - Paint by Numbers
09. Björn Afzelius & Mikael Wiehe - 1993 - Malmöinspelningarna
10. Uno Svenningsson - Ett andetag från dig
11. Totta Näslund - Totta 7: Soul!/På drift
12. Benny Anderssons Orkester - Bao!
13. Marie Fredriksson - The Change
14. Arne Domnérus - Best of Dompan
15. Lambretta - The Fight
16. Blacknuss - Gold
17. Gyllene Tider - GT 25 live!
18. Soundtrack of Our Lives - Origin vol. 1
19. Melody Club - Face the Music
20. Ulf Lundell - OK Baby OK

Bassist Timpa has left Finnish rockers Hanoi Rocks in order to spend more time with his family. The band's new album "Another Hostile Takeover" is due out April 30 and the group will be touring internationally throughout 2005.

Music Connection Magazine has posted a profile on Danish producer/engineer Thomas Troelsen who is currently working on Junior Senior's new album and whose resumé includes Whyte Seeds and Melody Club along with US acts Le Tigre and Beck: http://www.musicconnection.com/currentissue/crosstalk/crosstalk.lcgi
Thomas was also a recent recipient of P3 Denmark's "Respekten" award. Read more on that here: http://www.dr.dk/p3/p3guld/respekten.asp (in Danish)

Here's this week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. The Ark - State of the Ark
02. Daniel Lindström - Daniel Lindström
03. Lars Winnerbäck - Vatten under broarna
04. Lasse Stefanz - Röd Chevrolet
05. Lena Philipsson - Det gör ont en stund på natten men inget på dan
06. Anna Ternheim - Somebody Outside
07. Magnus Uggla - Den tatuerade generationen
08. Uno Svenningsson - Ett andetag från dig
09. Arne Domnérus - Best of Dompan
10. Björn Afzelius & Mikael Wiehe - 1993 - Malmöinspelningarna
11. Benny Anderssons Orkester - Bao!
12. Christian Walz - Paint by Numbers
13. Marie Fredriksson - The Change
14. Totta Näslund - Totta 7: Soul!/På drift
15. Soundtrack of Our Lives - Origin vol. 1
16. Markoolio - Bäst off
17. Melody Club - Face the Music
18. Ulf Lundell - OK Baby OK
19. Blacknuss - Gold
20. Silverbullit - Arclight

PopMatters reviews the latest Amorphis album "Far from the sun": http://popmatters.com/music/reviews/a/amorphis-farfrom.shtml

Swedish synth-poppers Melody Club are heading to Italy for a couple gigs in mid-February:

02/17 - Zoobar, Rome (ITA)
02/18 - Rainbow Club, Milano (ITA)

Here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart, the final one for the year:

01. Saybia - I surrender
02. Nephew - Superliga
03. Mando Diao - God Knows
04. Clemens - Raptus
05. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake Your Beauty
06. Nightwish - Wish I Had
07. The Hives - Two Timing Touch & Broken Bones
08. Dhani - Girl Talk
09. Jonna - Sateen Jälken
10. Black Belt - All to You
11. Melody Club - Baby (Stand Up)
12. Eskobar - You Got Me
13. Burhan G - Take U Home
14. Ayesha - Squaffie
15. Sahara Hotnights - Who Do You Dance For
16. Promoe - Long Distance Runner
17. Ana - Don't Cry For Pain
18. Infinite Mass - Fire Fire
19. Margaret Berger - Lifetime Guarantee
20. Lambretta - Chemical

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

Here's the final top 10 Nordic video chart from YLE/Morjen for the year:

01. Negative - In my heaven (FIN)
02. Apocalyptica - Bittersweet (FIN)
03. Smak - Hallanvaara (FIN)
04. Melody Club - Baby (SWE)
05. Nephew - Superliga (DK)
06. Kevin - Theme from forever (FIN)
07. Kapasiteetti- yksikkö - Usko parempaan (FIN)
08. Searching for Nurmes - Halti (NOR)
09. The Confusions - Window (SWE)
10. The Soundtrack of our lives - Bigtime (SWE)

New challengers return on January 13.

The nominees for the 2004 Swedish Grammy awards have been announced. Here's most of em:

Best newcomer:
Ana Johnsson - "The Way I Am"
Anna Ternheim - "Somebody Outside""
Deportees - "All Prayed Up"
Jens Lekman - "When I Said I Wanted To Be Your Dog"
Raymond & Maria - "Vi ska bara leva klart"

Best album:
Christian Walz - "Paint By Numbers"
Marit Bergman - "Baby Dry Your Eye"
Stina Nordenstam - "The World Is Saved"
The Hives - "Tyrannosaurus Hives"
The Soundtrack of our Lives - "Origin Vol. 1"

Best artist:
Gyllene Tider - "Finn 5 Fel!"
Lena Philipsson - "Det gör ont en stund på natten men inget på dan"
Marit Bergman - "Baby Dry Your Eye"
The Hives - "Tyrannosaurus Hives"
The Soundtrack of Our Lives - "Origin Vol. 1"

Best song:
Raymond & Maria - "Ingen vill veta vart du köpt din tröja"
Lena Philipsson - "Det gör ont"
Nic & The Family - "Hej Hej Monika"
Gyllene Tider - "Tuffa tider/Sten vid en sjö i en skog"
Shirley Clamp - "Min kärlek"

Best pop (female):
Anna Ternheim - "Somebody Outside"
Lena Philipsson - "Det gör ont en stund på natten men inget på dan"
Marit Bergman - "Baby Dry Your Eye"
Sophie Zelmani - "Love Affair"
Stina Nordenstam - "The World Is Saved"

Best pop (male):
Christian Walz - "Paint By Numbers"
Di Leva - "Tiden faller"
Jens Lekman - "When I Said I Wanted To Be Your Dog"
Mattias Alkberg BD - "Tunaskolan"
Tomas Andersson Wij - "Stjärnorna i oss"

Best pop group:
Alcazar - "Dancefloor - Deluxe"
Deportees - "All Prayed Up"
Gyllene Tider - "Finn 5 Fel!"
Melody Club - "Face The Music"
Raymond & Maria - "Vi ska bara leva klart"

Best rock album (solo):
Kristofer Åström - "Loupita"
Lars Winnerbäck - "Vatten under broarna"
Nicolai Dunger - "Here's My Song You Can Have It..."
Stefan Sundström - "Hjärtats melodi"
Ulf Lundell - "Ok Baby Ok"

Best rock group:
Sahara Hotnights - "Kiss & Tell"
Silverbullit - "Arclight"
Teddybears Sthlm - "Fresh!"
The Hives - "Tyrannosaurus Hives"
The Soundtrack of Our Lives - "Origin Vol. 1"

Best songwriter:
Anna Ternheim
Christian Walz & Ollie Olson
Marit Bergman
Per Gessle
Stina Nordenstam

Best lyrics:
Anna Ternheim
Jens Lekman
Lars Winnerbäck
Marit Bergman
Tomas Andersson Wij

Best producer:
Christian Walz
Johan Forsman & The Soundtrack of Our Lives
Lars Halapi
Pelle Gunnerfeldt & The Hives
Teddybears Sthlm & Phat Fabe

Best hip-hop/soul:
Damn! - "Youth Style"
Embee - "Tellings From Solitaria"
Infinite Mass - "1991"
Ison & Fille - "Ison & Fille"
Promoe - "The Long Distance Runner"

Best hard-rock/metal:
Dismember - "Where Ironcrosses Grow"
Entombed - "Unreal Estate"
Europe - "Start From The Dark"
In Flames - "Soundtrack To Your Escape"
The Hellacopters - "Strikes Like Lightning"

Best club/dance:
Andreas Tilliander - "World Industries"
Da Buzz - "Dangerous - The Album"
Guidelines - Must Be The Music"
Hird - "Moving On"
Stonebridge - "Can't Get Enough"

Best jazz:
Goran Kajfes - "Headspin"
Kullrusk - "Kullrusk"
Putte Wickman & Jan Lundgren - "We Will Always Be Together"
Rigmor Gustafsson And The Jacky Terrasson Trio - "Close To You"
The Torbjörn Zetterberg Hot Five - "Förtjänar mer uppmärksamhet"

Open category:
Alice Babs & Nisse Linds Hottrio - "Alice Babs & Nisse Linds Hot-Trio"
Anders F Rönnblom - "F-Box"
Blacknuss - "Gold"
Stefan Nilsson - "Så som i himmelen"
Titiyo - "Best of Titiyo"

Check out the full list here: http://www.ifpi.se/02.images/01.top/02.subnav_pdf/08.grammis/pdf/Grammisnomineringar_2004.pdf

Here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Saybia - I surrender
02. HIM - And Love Said No
03. Nephew - Superliga
04. Dhani - Girl Talk
05. Nightwish - Wish I Had
06. Black Belt - All to You
07. Ana - Don't Cry For Pain
08. The Hives - Two Timing Touch & Broken Bones
09. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake Your Beauty
10. Melody Club - Baby (Stand Up)
11. Burhan G - Take U Home
12. Ayesha - Squaffie
13. Sahara Hotnights - Who Do You Dance For
14. Eskobar - You Got Me
15. Promoe - Long Distance Runner
16. Noble - Hot 2 Nite
17. Beats And Styles - Fire
18. Deportees - Not Tonight
19. The Solution - My Mojo Aint Working No More
20. Margaret Berger - Lifetime Guarantee

Challengers:
01. Majid - My Struggle
02. The Ark - One Of Us Is Gonna Die Young
03. Jonna - Sateen Jälken
04. Infinite Mass - Fire Fire
05. Mando Diao - God Knows

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

Here's this week's top 10 Nordic video chart from YLE/Morjen:

01. Smak - Hallanvaara (FIN)
02. Kapasiteetti- yksikkö - Usko parempaan (FIN)
03. The Confusions - Window (SWE)
04. Searching for Nurmes - Halti (NOR)
05. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake your beauty (NOR)
06. Apocalyptica - Bittersweet (FIN)
07. The (International) Noise Conspiracy - A small demand (SWE)
08. Nephew - Superliga (DK)
09. Kevin - Theme from forever (FIN)
10. Melody Club - Baby (SWE)

Challengers:
11. Negative - In my heaven (FIN)
11. Brolle Jr - Sound of a drum (SWE)
12. The Soundtrack of our lives - Bigtime (SWE)

Timo Räisänen has confirmed a February 16 release date for his debut solo album "Lovers are Lonely". The artwork will be handled by the very talented Henrik Walse, whose recent work includes album covers for artists such as Thunder Express, Melody Club and The Hives.

Here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Saybia - I surrender
02. Annie - Chewing Gum
03. HIM - And Love Said No
04. Dhani - Girl Talk
05. Nightwish - Wish I Had
06. Nephew - Superliga
07. Black Belt - All to You
08. Ana - Don't Cry For Pain
09. The Hives - Two Timing Touch & Broken Bones
10. Lazyboy - Facts Of Life
11. Stephen Simmonds - Mother Mary
12. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake Your Beauty
13. Burhan G - Take U Home
14. Ayesha - Squaffie
15. Johndoe - Pyromantikk
16. The Solution - My Mojo Aint Working No More
17. Magne F - Past Perfect Present Tense
18. Eskobar - You Got Me
19. Noble - Hot 2 Nite
20. Promoe - Long Distance Runner

Challengers:
01. Deportees - Not Tonight
02. Beats And Styles - Fire
03. Melody Club - Baby (Stand Up)
04. Sahara Hotnights - Who Do You Dance For
05. Clemens - Raptus
06. Margaret Berger - Lifetime Guarantee

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

Here's this week's top 10 Nordic video chart from YLE/Morjen:

01. Kapasiteetti- yksikkö - Usko parempaan (FIN)
02. The Confusions - Window (SWE)
03. Apocalyptica - Bittersweet (FIN)
04. Kevin - Theme from forever (FIN)
05. Týr - Regin smidur (DK)
06. Melody Club - Baby (SWE)
07. The (International) Noise Conspiracy - A small demand (SWE)
08. Nephew - Superliga (DK)
09. Lars Winnerbäck - Elegi (SWE)
10. Bertine Zetlitz - Fake your beauty (NOR)

Challengers:
11. Smak - Hallanvaara (FIN)
12. Timo Räisänen - Lovers are lonely (SWE)
13. Searching for Nurmes - Halti (NOR)

Here's this week's top 10 Nordic video chart from YLE/Morjen:

01. Lars Winnerbäck - Elegi (SWE)
02. The Confusions - Window (SWE)
03. Steep - Complete lack of ideals and integrity (FIN)
04. Kevin - Theme from forever (FIN)
05. Nightwish - Wish I had an angel (FIN)
06. Týr - Regin smidur (DK)
07. Nephew - Superliga (DK)
08. Anna Ternheim - To be gone (SWE)
09. The Knife - Heartbeats (SWE)
10. Promoe - Long distance runner (SWE)

Challengers:
11. Apocalyptica - Bittersweet (FIN)
12. Melody Club - Baby (SWE)
13. Infinite Mass - Fire fire (SWE)