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MP3: Mats/Morgan Band - Thanks for flying with us

Ever listen to Meshuggah and find yourself wishing that they were just a little bit wackier and maybe just a touch more funky? Friends, if this thought has ever crossed your mind or now seems like a good idea, then Mats/Morgan Band is for you. It's no coincidence that both Meshuggah and Mats/Morgan (keyboardist Mats Öberg and drummer Morgan Ågren) hail from Umeå - there must be something about Norrland that makes people want to push the boundries of freaky music. I don't have the patience to go into M/M's long and illustrious history, but I will tell you this: their most recent album "Thanks for flying with us" is a serious headtrip. Listen to the title track that I've posted today and you'll see what I mean.

Mats/Morgan Band - Thanks for flying with us

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
02. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
03. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
04. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
05. Darin - Darin
06. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
07. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
08. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Nanne - Alltid på väg
11. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
12. Laleh - Laleh
13. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
14. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
15. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
16. The Soundtrack of Our Lives - A present from the past
17. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
18. Carola - Jul i betlehem
19. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger
20. Peter Lemarc - Sjutton sånger - lemarc sjunger lemarc

The nominees for the Swedish Grammis have been announced:

Best pop female:
Amy Diamond - This is me now
Ane Brun - A temporary dive
Frida Hyvönen - Until death comes
Jenny Wilson - Love and youth
Robyn - Robyn

Best pop male:
Darin - Darin
Håkan Hellström - Ett kolikbarns bekännelser
Mauro Scocco - Herr Jimsons äventyr
Peter LeMarc - Sjutton sånger - LeMarc sjunger LeMarc
Son of a plumber - Son of a plumber

Best pop group:
Alcazar - Dancefloor deluxe
Bodies without organs - Prototype
CDOASS - Extra fingers
Doktor Kosmos - Ett enkelt svar
Suburban kids with biblical names - #3

Best rock album (solo):
Christian Kjellvander - Faya
Freddie Wadling - Jag är monstret
Moneybrother - To die alone
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209
Tomas Andersson Wij - Tomas Andersson Wij

Best rock group:
Kent - Du & jag döden
Soundtrack of our lives - A present from the past
The Ark - State of the Ark
The Cardigans - Super extra gravity
The Hellacopters - Rock & roll is dead

Best composer:
Anders Wedin (Moneybrother) - To die alone
Joakim Berg - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Robyn/Klas Åhlund - Robyn
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209

Best lyrics:
Håkan Hellström - Ett kolikbarns bekännelser
Jason Diakité - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
Joakim Berg - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209

Best proder:
Anders Hansson & Alexander Bard
Bloodshy/Avant
Klas Åhlund
Laleh
Lars Halapi

Best hip-hop/soul:
Hearin'aid - The Boom Lucy
Jaqee - Blaqalixious
Looptroop - Fort Europa
Masayah - p.s.
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Best hard-rock:
Candlemass - Candlemass
Hammerfall - Chapter V: Unbent, unbowed, unbroken
Hardcore Superstar - Hardcore Superstar
Meshuggah - Catch thirtythree
Opeth - Ghost reveries

Best jazz:
Bobo Stenson/Anders Jormin/Paul Motian - Goodbye
e.s.t. - Viaticum
Jonas Kullhammar Quartet - Snake city north
Putte Wickman & Jan Lundgren - An intimate salute to Frankie
Torbjörn Zetterberg - Krissvit

Best club/dance:
Arash - Arash - new version
v/a - Inside Scandinavia vol 2
Hundarna från söder - Troika
September - In orbit
Spånka Nkpg - The City of the golden king

Open category:
Allan Edwall - Alla Allans visor
v/a - Du Beppe, Beppe Wolgers mästerverk
Peps Blodsband - Äntligen!
The Latin Kings - Familia Royale
Totta Näslund - Totta 8: Greatest hits!

Best newcomer:
Amy Diamond
Bodies Without Organs
Darin
Frida Hyvönen
Laleh

Best album:
Bodies without organs - Prototype
Kent - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Robyn - Robyn
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Best artist:
Kent
Laleh
Moneybrother
Robyn
Timbuktu

Best music dvd:
Abba - Abba the movie
Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis
Evergrey - A night to remember
Marit Bergman - Marit Bergman - Live at Rival
Timbuktu - Funken styr våra steg

Best song:
Amy Diamond - What's in it for me
Darin - Money for nothing
Kent - The hjärta & smärta ep
Robyn - Be mine
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Full list of every category here: http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=2198&a=503182

Plenty of choice Scandinavian pics on Decibel Magazine's top 40 of 2005 list: http://djmartian.blogspot.com/2005_12_01_djmartian_archive.html#113339939499691172 (Opeth, Meshuggah, Enslaved, Ulver, etc.)

Burning Heart reports that Raised Fist will soon be entering Dugout Studios with producer Daniel Bergstrand (In Flames, Meshuggah etc) later this month to work on a new record. Expect a spring 2006 release.

Phil Freeman recommends checking out Meshuggah on their current US tour: http://runningthevoodoodown.blogspot.com/2005/10/what-i-did-last-night.html

Meshuggah in the UK:

12/05 - Concorde 2, Brighton
12/06 - Academy 2, Manchester
12/07 - Garage, Glasgow
12/08 - Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton
12/09 - The Forum, London

Norway's ChewinPine Records will release NoPlaceToHide's long-awaited album "Zukunft" on September 26. Download the first single "Capice" right here: http://www.notam02.no/%7Eespenth/npth/mp3/noplacetohide-Capice.mp3
Highly recommended for fans of Meshuggah.

Meshuggah, The Haunted, Mnemic and God Forbid will be playing together in the US on the "Fury of the Fall" tour. Dates announced so far:

10/04 - Crocodile Rock, Allentown, PA
10/05 - Guvernment, Toronto, ON
10/06 - Medley, Montreal, QC
10/07 - Chance Theater, Poughkeepsie, NY
10/08 - Jaxx, Springfield, VA
10/09 - Palladium, Worcester, MA
10/12 - Peabody's, Cleveland, OH
10/13 - Rex Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
10/14 - Harpo's, Detroit, MI
10/15 - Alrosa Villa, Columbus, OH

Podcast: The sound of Umeå

The video for "Shed" from Meshuggah can be streamed online from here: http://www.mtv.com/bands/az/meshuggah/artist.jhtml

PopMatters gives their take on the new Meshuggah: http://popmatters.com/music/reviews/m/meshuggah-catch.shtml

Check out some new live videos from Meshuggah recorded at their May 25 show in Paris, France: one / two

Meshuggah has reportedly resigned with Nuclear Blast Records.

Blistering interviews Tomas Haake of Meshuggah: http://www.blistering.com/fastpage/fpengine.php/link/1/templateid/9348/tempidx/5/menuid/3