Sigh. It was only a matter of time, but Virgin Records Sweden has contacted me and kindly asked me to remove the mp3s from their artists (Nicolai Dunger, Melody Club, Caesars Palace and The Ark). And I do mean kindly - no threats or anything, just a polite request. Maybe we'll work something in the future for authorized downloads, but until then there will be no more Virgin artists represented on the playlist. Kind of a pity since they are some of my favorites, but that's the way it goes.

UPDATE: The nice people at Virgin are looking into working out an arrangement in the future. Nothing yet, but we'll see. As for now, get a preview of "Who Will Buy These Wonderful Evils?", the new 2xCD from Virgin/Dolores showcasing the label's past and present artists. It comes out February 24 and will be celebrated with a party at Club Debaser in Stockholm. Scheduled to appear and spin records are Ebbot from The Soundtrack of Our Lives, Jocke Åhlund from Caesars Palace, Reine Fiske from Dungen and more. Tickets go on sale on the 7th. Oh, and the tracklist for the album:

CD1.
01. Caesars Palace - Subhuman Girl
02. Håkan Hellström - Fulaste Flickan I Världen
03. Dungen - Horizon
04. Alf - Mitt I Malmö City
05. Grammar School Boys - Baby Blue
06. Franke - Aldrig förstå
07. Jose Gonzales - Dead Waits On Velveteen
08. The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Jehova Sunrise
09. Broder Daniel - You Bury Me
10. Silverbullit - I Had To Tell You
11. Hello Goodbye - Pussycat
12. Whyte Seeds - Lost My Love
13. Sagor & Swing - Flickan & Jätten
14. The (International) Noise Conspiracy - Up For Sale
15. Paola - Rainbow In The Dark
16. Nicolai Dunger - Hey Mama

CD2.
01. The Mascots - The Girl That You Are
02. The Shakers - Who Will Buy (These Wonderful Evils)
03. The Wizards - See You Tonight
04. The Jackpots - King Of The World
05. Tages - Fantasy Island
06. Annaabee-Nox - Always On My Mind
07. Outsiders - Iside Of Me
08. Fabulous Four - 438 South Michigan Avenue
09. T-Bones - I Want You
10. Charlie & Esdor - Dagen Är Över
11. Steampacket II - Fruitseller Oldman's Song
12. Pugh - Här Kommer Natten
13. Ola And The Janglers - I Can't Wait
14. Mecki Mark Men - Midnight Land
15. Hansson & Karlsson - Tax Free
16. Trolls - Alone
17. The Deejays - Striped Dreams Checked Fear

And on a similar note, increased traffic levels mean I need to cut back on the amount of music I have for download anyways. If someone else is willing to externally host the stuff, by all means, let me know. Otherwise, five tracks at a time going forward plus the usual live sets.

Beyond Dawn reports that they've finally solidified a release for their new album "Frysh". Look for it in May from Peaceville.

In BD related news, side-project Wrongside has finished recording their debut MCD for a release in April on Duplicate Records. Described as "a strange mix of noisy rock, playful electronica and lo-fi melancholy among other things," they say "it should appeal to BD fans and probably a lot of other people as well." Preorder it now: duplicaterecords@hotmail.com.

Also from the BD camp, word is that Virus is nearly done with their debut album for Jester Records. Now tentively titled "Carheart" (as opposed to the original title "The Drama Hour") they describe it as "outlandishly cool and mindbogglingly mindboggling." To me that describes most everything from Jester, but hey, check it out and decide for yourself.

The new Katatonia album has been finalized. It's called "Viva Emptiness" and you can preview the cover here. It'll be out on March 24 from Peaceville. The tracklist:

01. Ghost of the Sun
02. Sleep
03. Criminals
04. A Premonition
05. Will I Arrive
06. Burn the Remembrance
07. Wealth
08. One Year from Now
09. Walking by a Wire
10. Complicity
11. Evidence
12. Omerta
13. Inside the City of Glass

The band promises preview mp3s shortly. I'll keep you posted.

Here's a message of interest from Burning Heart that may be worth investigating:

We have a very special treat for you. In cooperation with Burning Heart Records Turbojugend members will have the chance to listen to the new Turbonegro album "Scandinavian Leather" before everybody else!!! The official street date is the 28th of april. If your chapter is interested in setting up a pre-listening party, have your President get in touch a.s.a.p. with El Presidente (party@bitzcore.de) and Montse (montse@burningheart.com)

The good people over at Parasol have got a sale on their top picks of 2002. Lots of great Swedish imports worth checking out, among many other fine releases. Can't go wrong with Citizen Bird/Silverbullit, that's for sure. And like they say, be on the lookout for the US release of "Inland Traveller" from Isolation Years coming up soon. A brilliant album.

The (International) Noise Conspiracy have the 'Album of the Day' over at CMJ.com with the "Bigger Cages, Longer Chains" EP. If you've never heard them before, they've got two songs you can sample.

The new EP from Whyte Seeds will be out February 10. I haven't heard them yet, but their keyboardist was the guy who filled in for Martin Hederos on the last US Soundtrack of Our Lives tour.

The new album from Randy will be called "Welfare Problems". Look for it in April on Burning Heart.

The Ark is busy doing promotional work in Germany this week. Check out their schedule here.

The exact release date of the new Fireside album has been announced as April 7.

Look for features on Cult of Luna in upcoming issues of Kerrang, Terrorizer, Rocksound and Metal Hammer. The new album "The Beyond" comes out February 10 on Earache. As for now, you can preview the lyrics here.

Download the song "Sensory Pleasures" from the upcoming HGH album "Seb's Hotel". It comes out February 1 in Norway, February 24 elsewhere.

Christian Kjellvander's excellent album "Songs From a Two-Room Chapel" will be released in Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands and Luxemburg next week. Fans of moody roots music such as 16 Horsepower or recent Neko Case should check him out.

The New Mess will be interviewed on P3 Rock January 22. As stated before, the band's debut five song CD-EP just came out on Kasual Records.

The debut album from hip-hop group Advance Patrol comes out March 24.

Read a review of the new Cardigans single here (in Swedish). I heard the song on P3 yesterday and wasn't blown away, but it wasn't bad either. It actually reminded me quite a bit of A-Camp, Nina's recent solo project, with its heavy use of acoustic guitars. Anyhow, listen to the radio and hear it for yourself. I'm sure it'll be huge no matter what. Look for it in stores February 17.

Röyksopp are nominated for "Best International Group" in the Brit Music Awards. More info here.

Interested in performing contemporary classical music from Swedish composers? STIM (Swedish Music Information Centre and Swedish Performing Rights Society) has published a large catalogue of music they have available (in PDF format).

The US release of "Living In America" from The Sounds will be in May on James Iha's (ex-Smashing Pumpkins) Scratchie Records. As stated here before, the band will also be making an appearance at this year's South by Southwest Festival. In other news, the new single for the track "Seven Days a Week" comes out on the 20th with the b-side being a demo version of the song "Go!"

Hammerheart Records is reissuing Necrophobic's 1993 album "The Nocturnal Silence". The label will also be releasing a limited edition "Tour EP 2003" for the band's current tour featuring a song from each album and five select cover tunes.

I put up a track from Melody Club today. I think they're kinda cheesy, but maybe you'll like 'em. They got that retro 80s thing going on, kinda like The Faint maybe, except without the edge.

I saw that Smirnoff Ice commercial that uses "Kick You Out" from Caesars Palace/The Caesars last night. A quick Google search shows that message boards are already buzzing about the song. Anyhow, you can view it for yourself. (Low bandwidth version here, both require Real Player)

The upcoming album from Enslaved will be called "Below the Lights". It'll include 8 songs and should be out around March. In other news, drummer Dirge Rep has reportedly left the band to concentrate on his project Orcustus, featuring members of Gorgoroth, Borknagar, and Desekrator.

NRK's favorite Norweigan records of the year:

1. Jaga Jazzist - "The Stix"
2. Thomas Dybdahl – "The Great October Sound"
3. Gåte - "Jygri"
4. Madrugada – "Grit"
5. Bjørn Eidsvåg – "Tålt"
6. a-ha – "Lifelines"
7. The Margarets – "What Kept You?"
8. Vamp - "Månemannen"
9. Ugress – "Resound"

Check out some of the latest videos from these Burning Heart arists: Millencolin, Division of Laura Lee, Looptroop, and Bombshell Rocks.

Wondering what your favorite Swedish artists favorite records of the year are? Aftonbladet has the scoop. Some of the queried people are Magnus Carlson (Weeping Willows), Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist (The Hives), Maria Andersson (Sahara Hotnights), Håkan Hellström, Nicolai Dunger and more. (In Swedish, but not hard to figure out)

Check out some videos from Kent, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Håkan Hellström and more at this year end wrap-up article from MTVE.com. There's a couple paragraphs on the success and current state of Scandinavian music towards the end on page two.

The USCB Allstars will be releasing a new album next spring entitled “I Can't Believe It’s Not Music".

To clarify - KVLR's new CD "On Planted Streets" will contain the debut album "Let Me Worry Some More", the follow-up EP "Deadly Dozen" and one unreleased track. All good stuff, so if you don't have those releases already, this is a great way to get it all in one fell swoop.

Cadavar Inc.'s new album will be called "Necrosis". Look for it around springtime on Earache records.

Vintersorg's new album will be called "The Focusing Blur". It comes out sometime next year on Napalm Records. Here's what Vintersorg himself had to say about the music:

"The next album is going to have the format of a concept/theme album, a story running through the albums entirety, and with a musical flow that includes small compositions between the 'real' songs. The music takes off from 'Visions From The Spiral Generator' (the previous record) and twists and turns through a vast genre spectra (as always with Vintersorg). 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." (from Blabbermouth)

A ton of news today! My goodness! Read on...

Björn Olsson will NOT be participating in the upcoming Union Carbide Productions reunion at Hultsfred. "Sure, it might be fun to play, but it's more fun not to play." says the man himself in this interview. (in Swedish) Of course, this may be subject to change. You never know. Also, the boxset is now expected around mid-May, but still no exact date has been set. And lastly, I just my hands on a copy of "UPA" and will try to put up a track a bit later today. Full review next week at the latest. Check back, y'hear?

In somewhat related news, TSOOL's latest album "Behind the Music" made GQ Magazine's top 10 of the year. What they said:

Cranking guitars and clean, poppish melodies make you think of 1960s British bands, but this time it's the Scandanavian Invasion. Will Norrkoping or Malmö be the next Manchester?

Check out the video for "By the Grace of God" from The Hellacopters, courtesy of NME.

The finalists for Rockbjörnen have been announced! Vote here! Here's the list of the nominees for the Swedish categories:

Best female artist:
Robyn
Marit Bergman
Paola
Carola
Awa Manneh

Best male artist:
Håkan Hellström
Ulf Lundell
Joakim Thåström
Brolle Jr
Markoolio

Best group:
Kent
The Ark
The Hellacopters
In Flames
The Sounds

Best song:
Dom andra (Kent)
Kom igen Lena (Håkan Hellström)
FF (Kent)
Kärleken Väntar (Kent)
Vinternoll2 (Kent)

Best album:
Vapen och Ammunition (Kent)
Det är så jag säger det (Håkan Hellström)
In lust we trust (The Ark)
Club Zebra (Ulf Lundell)
Reroute To Remain (In Flames)

Best newcomer:
The Sounds
Mando Diao
Brolle Jr
Melody Club
Awa Manneh

Randy is currently in the studio and have completed 17 songs for their next record. Not all of em will make the cut, but they have until the 22nd to keep cranking out more. Mixing will convene in January.

Bad Taste Records says they're gonna put the recently completed Bad Taste Festival up for online viewing! No exact details yet, but they say to check their website tomorrow for the scoop. Danko Jones, Langhorns, Logh and Last Days of April were the bands that played and you can read more about the event here.

Håkan Hellström's next single will be "Det är så jag säger det". Look for it in January.

Dolores Recordings is gonna release a compilation of the best pop/rock from today and from 1966-1971 in February. Here's the track listing:

CD1.
01. Caesars Palace - Subhuman Girl
02. Håkan Hellström - Fulaste Flickan I Världen
03. Dungen - Horizon
04. Alf - Mitt I Malmö City
05. Grammar School Boys - Baby Blue
06. Franke - Aldrig förstå
07. Jose Gonzales - Dead Waits On Velveteen
08. The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Jehova Sunrise
09. Broder Daniel - You Bury Me
10. Silverbullit - I Had To Tell You
11. Hello Goodbye - Pussycat
12. Whyte Seeds - Lost My Love
13. Sagor & Swing - Flickan & Jätten
14. The (International) Noise Conspiracy - Up For Sale
15. Paola - Rainbow In The Dark
16. Nicolai Dunger - Hey Mama

CD2.
01. The Mascots - The Girl That You Are
02. The Shakers - Who Will Buy (These Wonderful Evils)
03. The Wizards - See You Tonight
04. The Jackpots - King Of The World
05. Tages - Fantasy Island
06. Annaabee-Nox - Always On My Mind
07. Outsiders - Iside Of Me
08. Fabulous Four - 438 South Michigan Avenue
09. T-Bones - I Want You
10. Charlie & Esdor - Dagen Är Över
11. Steampacket II - Fruitseller Oldman's Song
12. Pugh - Här Kommer Natten
13. Ola And The Janglers - I Can't Wait
14. Mecki Mark Men - Midnight Land
15. Hansson & Karlsson - Tax Free
16. Trolls - Alone
17. The Deejays - Striped Dreams Checked Fear

Lots of news from Ulver today:

The soundtrack to "Svidd Neger" is just about finished and will be released in conjunction with the film in March 2003.
The all-string remake of "Nattens Madrigal" is delayed yet again and the prospects of it ever getting done are looking dimmer and dimmer.
The upcoming remix album will be called "1st Decade in the Machines" and it should be out around February. Some of the contributing artists include Merzbow, Neotropic, Bogdan Raczynski, Third Eye Foundation, Kevin Drumm, Fennesz and Stars of the Lid.
The band recently recorded a cover of Lee Hazelwood's "The Night Before" and it may surface on a Jester Records cover album sometime in the future.
T-shirts are now available from Plastichead in the UK.
And finally, the band has yet another new release coming up. It will be an EP entitled "A Quick Fix of Melancholy" and it will be out sometime next year.
phew.

In other Ulver-related news, their self-run label Jester Records has a bunch of new stuff on the horizon.

Kåre Joaö will release the single "Sleepers" in February. The CD will also contain the video.
Lars Pedersen of When says a new album is in the works. March 2003? Here's an interview you can read where he discusses his plans, along with some other topics. (In English, too!)
Jester will also release a new album from Lord Bård (aka 1349 Rykkinn, founding member of Masters of Møh and Superskill) entitled "Brown Ring of Fury". The artist's own description of his work: "Brown Ring of Fury is the sound of growing up in the suburbs west of Norway’s capital. 1349 Rykkinn. The sound of glue and magic mushrooms. Ghettoblasters. Daddy drowning in his own vomit. Amphetamines. Fireworks. The sound of getting laid for first time. Of filming one’s first orgasm. My life. A tribute to blowing oneself up. For to repent till tears gush forth. Again and again. An anaesthetic circle."

Porcupine Tree mastermind Steven Wilson says the inspiration for his band's latest album came from the Swedish metal bands Meshuggah and Opeth. Of course, he did produce Opeth's last couple records, but anyhow - here's what he had to say on the subject:

For years I had dismissed metal as music for adolescents, which a lot of people do, because I was only exposed to the stuff that is in the mainstream. And then suddenly I tapped into this whole group of bands from the underground. Actually, it's because I read a book called 'Lords Of Chaos', because I was fascinated with this guy from Burzum, that led me into the whole world. So I started listening to bands like Morbid Angel, some of the doom bands and eventually found my way to Meshuggah and Opeth, which to me, were the holy grail of that whole scene. I suddenly realized where all the musicians that were making truly progressive music had gone. They weren't making old-style progressive music, they were making a completely contemporary form of progressive music by using metal as their kind of conduit, if you like. I mean, Mike from Opeth is completely into progressive rock. But he's not doing it in a nostalgic way, he's doing it in a completely cutting edge contemporary way, using metal as his vehicle. And he loves metal just as much as anything, and so do I. And that was kind of a real eye-opener for me, to find musicians who are obviously very much coming from the tradition of the way people made records in the '70s, but doing it in a completely new and contemporary way and with musicianship that I just didn't think existed anymore.

Amorphis has completed the recording of the instrumental parts for their new album. Frontman Pasi Koskinen will begin working on his parts under the tutelage of producer Hannu Leiden shortly.