If I installed a message board, would you use it? Just curious - let me know. Otherwise, there's always the guestbook.

Here's the winners of today's P3 Gold Awards:

Best Male Artist – Håkan Hellström "Det Är Så Jag Säger Det"
Best Grouppp – Kent "Vapen & Ammunition"
Best Female Artist – Marit Bergman "3.00 A.M. Serenades"
Best Newcomer – The Sounds
Best Live – The Ark
Best Dance – Håkan Lidbo "Sexy Robot"
Best Rock/Metal – Opeth "Deliverance"
Best Hiphop/Soul – Looptroop "The Struggle Continues"
Best Pop – Doktor Kosmos "Reportage!"

For more info and to listen to the presentation, go here. And don't forget to check out P3 Live over the next two days as a lot of the nominees will be performing.

More dates have been added to the upcoming Sahara Hotnights tour with Ikara Colt and Washdown. They are as follows:

02/27 - Bowery Ballroom New York, NY
02/28 - Maxwell's Hoboken, NJ
03/01 - North Star Philadelphia, PA
03/02 - Black Cat Washington, DC
03/03 - Alley Katz Richmond, VA
03/04 - Cats Cradle Carborro, NC
03/05 - The Echo Lounge Atlanta, GA
03/06 - Jack Rabbits Jacksonville, FL
03/07 - The Social Orlando, FL
03/08 - The Orpheum Tampa, FL
03/10 - Shim Sham Club New Orleans, LA
03/13 - TBA Austin, TX
03/14 - Stubbs Austin, TX
03/15 - Trees Dallas, TX
03/16 - Green Door Oklahoma City, OK
03/17 - TBA Albuquerque, NM
03/18 - Mason Jar Phoenix, AZ
03/19 - Roxy Los Angeles, CA
03/20 - TBA Los Angeles, CA
03/21 - Slim's San Francisco, CA
03/22 - Dantes Portland, OR
03/23 - The Royal Vancouver Canada 03/24 - Graceland Seattle, WA
03/28 - El Torreon Kansas City, MO
04/02 - Mohawk Place Buffalo, NY

As previously noted here, there's going to be quite a few Scandinavian acts at this year's SXSW festival in Austin Texas. Ten from Sweden, seven fren Denmark and Norway and 3 from Finland and Iceland. The three bands Sondre Lerche, Madrugada and Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band will perform together at a Scandinavian showcase show and the rest will be playing other seperate dates during the event. For more info about the Norweigan acts go here. For a list of all the bands performing, go here.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. A Teens - New arrival
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
07. Melody Club - Music machine
08. Barbados - Rewind
09. Thåström - På röda sten
10. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
11. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. The Knife - Deep Cuts
14. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
15. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Tyskarna från Lund - Metamorphobia
18. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
19. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
20. Benny Anderssons orkester - Benny Anderssons orkester

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(14) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders"
(15) Oasis "Songbird"
(17) Massive Attack "Special Cases"
(18) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On"
(19) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space"

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 nominees for the Swedish Grammys (Grammis) have been announced. Here's a few of the categories:

Best Newcomer:
Marit Bergman – 3.00 AM Serenades
Brolle Jr – Rebellious Heart
Awa Manneh – Sounds Like Me
Melody Club – Music Machine
The Sounds – Living In America

Best Artist:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
The Hellacopters – By The Grace Of God
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music

Best Group:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
Caesars Palace – Love For The Streets
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
The Sounds – Living In America
Weeping Willows – Into The Light

Best Pop/Rock Male:
Brolle Jr – Rebellious Heart
Eric Gadd – Life Support
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Christian Kjellvander – Songs From A Two-Room Chapel
Ulf Lundell – Club Zebra

Best Pop/Rock Female:
Marit Bergman – 3.00 AM Serenades
Paola – Stockcity Girl
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music
Frida Snell – Black Trillium
Sophie Zelmani – Sing and Dance

Best Album:
The Ark – In Lust We Trust
Caesars Palace – Love For The Streets
Håkan Hellström – Det Är Så Jag Säger Det
Kent – Vapen & Ammunition
Robyn – Don’t Stop The Music

Best Lyrics:
Joakim Berg (Kent)
Håkan Hellström
Ulf Lundell
Ola Salo (The Ark)
Timbuktu

Best Composer:
Joakim Berg (Kent)
Jörgen Elofsson
Håkan Hellström
Andreas Mattson & Niclas Frisk
Ola Salo (The Ark)

Open Category:
v/a – Chess På Svenska
Bob Hund – 10 År Bakåt & 100 År Framåt
v/a – Nationalsånger
Svenska Tjejrockband 1966–1999 – Från Plommons Till Drain
Träd Gräs Och Stenar – Ajn Schwajn Dra

Best Hip Hop/Soul:
Ison&Fille – Vår Sida Av Stan
Looptroop – The Struggle Continues
Awa Manneh – Sounds Like Me
Masayah – Masayah
Timbuktu – Watt’s Dö Madderfakking Diil?

Best Hard Rock/Metal:
The Hellacopters – By The Grace Of God
In Flames – Reroute To Remain
Mustasch – Above All
Opeth – Deliverance
Pathos – Katharsis

The rest of the list is here.

"More than just an album; it's an unforgettable experience." Kerrang magazine gives Cult of Luna's new album "The Beyond" 5 out of 5 Ks. Read the entire review.

Don't forget to check out the wrap-up report for the Rockbjörnen over at Aftonbladet. More pics here, too.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Jon - Right Here Next To You
02. Andreas Johnsson - Waterfall
03. Christian - Min Fremtid
04. Kent - FF
05. The Klerks - She, She, She
06. Bombshell Rocks - On My Way
07. Madrugada - Majesty
08. The Spitts - That´s my girl
09. The Sounds - Seven Days A Week

Challengers:
Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
Last Days Of April - All Will Break
Jamie Meyer - Psycho
The Lungz - It´s Alright
Swing Fly feat. ADL and Ayo - Come Get It

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

Read this scandalous interview with Nina Persson of The Cardigans. (in Swedish)

The Cardigans are also beginning their media blitz in anticipation of the new album "Long Before Daylight". They'll be making quite a few TV appearances in the near future:

2/11 - TV4 Documentary
2/12 - ZTV Wimans
2/13 - TV4 Nyheterna (report)
2/14 - TV4 Nyhetsmorgon (2 tunes + interview)
2/15, 2/16, 2/18 - MTV Morning Glory (performance + interview)
2/16 - SVT Söndagsöppet (performance + interview)

Roxette gets a medal from the king. Read all about it. (in Swedish)

Andy McCoy of Hanoi Rocks disputes claims made in Mötley Crüe's bio "The Dirt".

Spiritual Beggars are set to do the following shows in the UK with support from Clutch before heading off to Japan on their own:

4/07 – Dudley, UK @ JB's
4/08 – Glasgow, UK @ Garage
4/09 – Manchester, UK @ Academy 3
4/10 – London, UK @ Mean Fiddler
4/17 – Nagoya, Japan @ Club Quattro
4/18 – Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya AX
4/20 – Osaka, Japan @ Big Cat
4/22 – Hiroshima, Japan @ Club Quattro

The up and coming group Paris is heading out on a Swedish tour. The dates:

2/06 - Visby Effes
2/07 - Växjö Lokal Bar
2/12 - Stockholm Rabbit Fighter
2/15 - Linköping Flamman
3/01 - Stockholm Yoshimitsu
3/08 - Norrköping Kulturkammaren
3/12 - Lund Mejeriet (w/Melody Club)
3/28 - Uppsala Kal3/Nation
4/10 - Göteborg Gump

A number of Swedish artists will be coming together on February 20 at Club Debaser in Stockholm to honor the memory of Joe Strummer from The Clash. The list of names is long, but here they are: Infinite Mass, Weeping Willows, Thåström, Randy with Howlin Pelle (The Hives), Ian and Ebbot from Sountrack Of Our Lives, Joppe Pihlgren, Nomads, Dregen & Nicke Borg (Backyard Babies), Jocke Åhlund (Caesars Palace, Teddybears STHLM), Eggstone and Brända Barn. Wow. Tickets are limited, so act fast.

Opeth will tour Australia in April. Dates coming soon.

In Flames has lined up the following summer festival gigs:

6/14 - Provinsirock / Finland
7/25 - Piteå Dansar och Ler, Piteå / Sweden
8/23 - Summer Breeze / Germany
8/24 - Metal Fest Vienna / Austria

Melody Club seems to have gotten a favorable write-up in Aftonbladet for their live show. There's a decent video clip posted, too. (in Swedish)

Turns out the info yesterday about The Ark's trip to Belguim was false. Members Ola and Sylvester are actually spending today on a press mission in Amersterdam.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. The Sounds - Living in America
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. Melody Club - Music machine
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
06. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
07. Eric Gadd - Life support
08. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
09. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
10. Roxette - Ballad hits
11. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
12. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
13. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
14. The Knife - Deep Cuts
15. v/a - Fame Factory volym 1
16. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
17. Joybells Gospel Choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
18. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
19. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
20. Kent - B-sidor 95-00

Swedish songwriter Jeanette Olsson wrote the single "Haven't Told You" for Kelly Rowlands' (Destinys Child) new album "Simply Deep", due out February 10. Apparently, Billboard magazine calls Jeanette "Sweden's best kept secret."

For those curious, Nicolai Dunger's backing band on his upcoming European tour will be as follows (dates in yesterday's post):

Jari Haapalainen (Bear Quartet, Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck, Heiki) - drums
Jonas Kullhammas (Jonas Kullhammar Quartet, Nacka Forum) - saxophone, flute, clarinet
Thomas Tjärnkvist - guitar
Johan Berthling (Vega, Nacka Forum) - upright bass
Kjell-Erik Eriksson (Hoven Droven, Triakel) - violin

I'm not sure if the same folk will be continuing on with Nicolai to America, but I'll let you know when I find out. (tack Niklas!)

Norweigan singer/songwriter St. Thomas recently finished up with his recording session in Nashville for his next album. Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Will Oldham) produced 22 songs were completed, including covers of "Don't Believe In A Mushroom" by Ring and "Who'll Stop The Rain" by Creedence Clearwater Revival. And that's not all - quite a group of illustrious guests will appear on the album, too:

Tony Crow (Lambchop)
Matt Swanson (Lambchop)
Jeremy Barnes (Neutral Milk Hotel and Bablicon)
Howe Gelb (Giant Sand)
Espen Mellingen (Ai Phoenix and Poor Rich Ones)
Bosse Litzheim (Ai Phoenix)

Five of those tracks ended up the on just-released EP "A Long Long Time". Listen for the title-track single on Norway P3 Radio. A video will be coming out soon, too.

A new mp3 from The Knife this morning. Look to your right.

Rune Grammofon released the new Supersilent album "6" today. Featuring members of Motorpsycho among other bands, the label says the music will "attract followers of bands such as Goodspeed You Black Emperor!, Sigur Rós, King Crimson, (late) Talk Talk or Popol Vuh." Read more about it here or here. In other news about the band, Helge Sten aka Deathprod revealed in an interview with Mute magazine that the band will be releasing a 10 disc live box sometime around spring '04.

Backdraft's debut album "Here To Save You All" will finally be made available in the US on Febuary 18 from Abstract Sound USA.

Askil Holm has a new single called "Daydream Receiver" coming out January 21. The track was written by Askil with help from Martin Hagfors and Lars Horntvedth. Look for the new album in early March.

"We have never been better" declares The Cardigans is this short feature from Aftonbladet. The band has their big 'comeback' performance at the Rockbjörnen awards show next Monday. (in Swedish)

More from Aftonbladet: the E-Type metal show gets a mediocre review from Göteborg. (in Swedish)

Wilmer X has a new single called "Vi Som Blommar Sent" coming out February 10. The new album "Lyckliga Hundar" follows on the 24th. Get a preview here. They'll be doing some touring, too. The dates so far:

3/22 Malmö, KB
3/26 Stockholm, Göta Källare
4/3 Helsingborg, The Tivoli
4/4 Lund, Mejeriet
4/10 Göteborg, Trädgår’n
4/11 Kalmar, Palace
4/12 Uppsala, Katalin

The Punchdrunks have become a duo leaving just guitarists Robert Johnson and Per Thorsell. Of course the reason was music differences. It pretty much always is. Anyhow, the two will be working on the follow-up to Fried On The Altar Of Good Taste", tentatively titled "Atomic Powered Singing".

The Klerks are the band of the week over at MTVE.com. They describe the band as "the lost link between The Ark and Andreas Johnson." They remind me a bit of the first album from The Motorhomes. Anyhow,the band is getting a lot of hype so go ahead and read their profile and interview. The album comes out today and the third single for the track "Shame" will be out mid-February.

DVD plans for the Backyard Babies have been pushed back as the band is still hard at work on preparing for their next album. They promise it will come out eventually, but for now they rather concentrate on the new material. In other news, Nicke and Dregen will be in LA for upcoming NAMM show to promote their new guitar models. If you read guitar mags, maybe you've already seen an ad for them.

In Flames is gearing up to work on their next album by travelling to Denmark for preproduction. The band says they are still planning a few summer festival gigs, but otherwise this is their plan:

As we did for "Reroute to Remain" we will turn off our phones, put our personal lives on hold and disconnect our entire contact with the outside world so that we can focus 100% on making a great new album. Once again it will be the five of us, our equipment and the cheapest possible beer we can find - tons of it!!!
Some of you had some thoughts on what we can change with our music,and that´s always appreciated, but as always we will choose no other path than the one chosen by the 5 members of IN FLAMES!

Moneybrother (ex-Monster) has their debut EP called "Thunder in My Heart" coming out on StarEP/Startracks. It was produced by Jari Haapalainen (Bear Quartet) and will be out in February. The first single and video for the track "Reconsider Me" will be out in either February or March. Listen to a sample here. (Real Audio)

New live set today! This time we've got The Ark live from Hultsfred 2001, as broadcasted on P3. I edited out all the between song banter, but if you're also interested in the full version, just ask.

The Sounds got themselves a new, internationally flavored website. Well, it's actually not that different, but they do have quite a bit more info in English. Like I've said before, keep your eyes on this band - they have a lot of potential to be big.

Download the new Fireside track "Throw It Away" right here! Startracks is also encouraging people to post responses in their guestbook. My first impression is that it sounds like a mix of the newer "Elite"-style with a touch more of their hardcore roots. Anyhow, I'm still excited for when the new album comes out.

Värttinä celebrates their 20th anniversary this year and has a new album coming out called "Iki". It won't be in stores until March 11, but you will be able to mailorder it weeks ahead of time from NorthSide. The label also promises to provide advance mp3s from the band in the near future, along with previews of new releases from Mari Boine and Frifot.

Photos and video from The Soundtrack of Our Lives/Cato Salsa Experience show at the Graceland in Seattle on 11/23/2002 are available here.

Dimension Zero are set to enter the studio on February 10 with producer/In Flames frontman Anders Fridén to record their new album, to be titled "This IS Hell". Look for it around September/October on Regain Records.

The working-title of the album is "Satan Berzerker-Mongo", which is a quite suiting title. It's gonna be a berzerk album. Many different songs (slow moody ones, to fast insane ones), but still recognizable as Dødheimsgard. Don't know any song-titles yet, they are in still in inside the head of Aldrahn, who's spent the last few months in a phsychiatric hospital.

That's black metal drummer extraordinaire Carl Michael Eide (Cadaver Inc., Aura Noir, DHG, and more) describing the direction of the band's new album in an interview with Voices from the Darkside. Read the rest here.

Corporation 187 will support Arch Enemy on their upcoming Scandinavian tour. The dates:

1/26 - Stockholm, Debaser
1/28 - Oslo, John Dee
1/29 - Göteborg, Musikens Hus
1/30 - Halmstad, Diezel
1/31 - Helsingborg, Tivoli

Here's the dates for the upcoming Melody Club Scandinavian tour:

1/22 - Stockholm, Göta Källare
1/23 - Stockholm, Cafe 44
1/24 - Göteborg, Trädgårn
1/31 - Strömstad ,The Cod
2/01 - Älmhult, Balders Hage
2/06 - Linköping, Corallen
2/07 - Växjö, Folkets Park
2/13 - Uppsala, Harrys
2/15 - Karlskoga, Wictoria
2/18 - Täby, Musikhuset Runan
2/19 - Norrköping, Kulturkammaren
2/20 - Sälen, HC
2/22 - Nybro, Mejeriet
2/26 - Svedala, Gamla Brandstationen
2/27 - Göteborg, Trädgårn
2/28 - Karlskrona, Bio Bar & Matsal
3/06 - Oslo (NO), So What
3/07 - Bergen (NO), Kvarteret
3/08 - Halmstad, Diezel
3/12 - Lund, Mejeriet
3/14 - Malmö, KB
3/15 - Helsingborg, Tivoli
3/28 - Umeå, Umeå Open

Don't forget to watch The Soundtrack of Our Lives tonight on The Late Show with David Letterman.

69-Hard will be filming the video for "Gone Gone Gone" this weekend. The track is the first single for the upcoming album "Blues from Hell", to be released sometime in February. The album comes out late March on Idle Hands Records.

Moonfog labelmates Khold will joining Satyricon on their upcoming European tour. Dates are here.

The split 7" from The Hives and The Pricks will see a fourth and final pressing in February. Only 100 copies will be available for mailorder, so pre-order it now from Hard-on Records.

The New Mess is now a quartet as live guitarist Adam has decided to sign on fulltime. Look for them to be playing a lot more around Sweden very soon.

Opeth is doing very well with their current US tour. A number dates are already sold out, so if you plan on seeing them you should get your tickets ASAP.

Most anticpated releases of 2003? Read what MTVE.com has to say on the issue. Besides the new Cardigans album, the list of anticpated Nordic releases in on page two and three.

Christian Kjellvander will be doing a Scandinavian tour starting at the end of the month in support of his fantastic "Songs from a Two-Room Chapel". The dates so far:

1/29 - Hultsfred / Metropol
1/30 - Linköping / Herrgår´n
2/1 - Sandviken / Dinos
2/5 - Sandviken / Kungen
2/6 - Umeå / Humlan
2/7 - Skellefteå / Pinkerton
2/8 - Östersund / Gamla Teatern
2/22 - Lund / Stadshallen Feat. Ebreliuskvartetten
2/23 - Göteborg / TBA Feat. Ebreliuskvartetten
2/24 - Uppsala / Katalin Feat. Ebreliuskvartetten
2/25 - Stockholm / Södra Teatern Feat. Ebreliuskvartetten
2/26 - Malmö / KB Feat. Ebreliuskvartetten
3/5 - Oslo / So What
3/7 - Halmstad / Diezelfestival
3/8 - Nybro / Mejeriet
3/14 - Norrköping / Kulturkammaren
3/15 - Jönköping / Kulturhuset

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Melody club - Music machine
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
06. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
07. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
08. Eric Gadd - Life support
09. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
10. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
11. Kent - B-sidor 95-00
12. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
13. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
14. Roxette - Ballad hits
15. v/a - Fame Factory volym 1
16. Joybells Gospel Choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
17. v/a - Chess - på svenska
18. Fredrik Kempe - Songs for your broken heart
19. Anders Widmark ft. Sara Isaksson - Anders Widmark ft. Sara Isaksson
20. The Ark - In lust we trust

Håkan Hellström is going to be doing a Scandinavian tour, too. The dates:

2/19 - Lillehammer, Bingo'n
2/20 - Sogndal, Meieriet
2/21 - Oslo, Rockefeller
2/22 - Bodö, Samfundet
2/26 - Kristiansand, Vaskeriet
2/27 - Stavanger, Folken
2/28 - Bö, Kroa
3/1 - Ålesund, Högskolen
3/2 - Halden, Studenthuset

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.

The archive is being updated. Done. I'm also still waiting for a mailorder shipment of new CDs before I update the playlist. Patience, my friends. I may however have some live mp3s from The Ark coming soon. We shall see...

A new Fireside mp3 for the track "Throw It Away" will be available next Monday from Startracks! The album isn't coming out till April.

Finland's HIM recently spent some time shooting the video for "Funeral of Hearts" with director Stefan Lindfors. Check out some pics from the shoot here.

Dungen will be on P3 Live January 20. You can listen online over at the P3 website.

Poet Bob Hansson has a spoken word album called "Kör Solen Kör" coming out January 27. Guests on the record include Ola Salo (The Ark) and Thåström. The first single will be "En Helt Vanlig Dag" featuring Ola.

Caesars Palace is finally gonna make it over to England, this time with Echoboy. If you remember, their December tour with (International) Noise Conspiracy was cancelled. Anyhow, The Caesars (as they're known outside Sweden) have an EP single for the song "Jerk It Out" coming out February 24, the follow-up to "(I´m Gonna) Kick You Out" which is already out. The album "Love For The Streets" comes out May 19 over there. As I've said before - watch out for this band. I expect big things. And I'm not the only one either - read this profile from Britain's Q Magazine. Here's the dates:

January 13 The Barfly, Camden
January 15 The Old Firestation, Bournemouth
January 18 The Junction, Cambridge
January 22 The Boston Arms, London
January 22 Arts Centre, Colchester
January 23 Casbah, Sheffield
January 24 Sumo, Leicester
January 26 The Barfly, Liverpool
January 27 King Tuts, Glasgow
January 28 The Cockpit, Leeds

Also on Q's 2003 bands to watch list is The Hellacopters. Read what they have to say here.

Eggstone will be the backing band and production talent on the new solo album from Weeping Willows frontman Magnus Carlsson. It will be his second attempt at going at it alone following his debut "Allt är Bara Du Du Du" from 2001.

Curious about Swedish jazz? Read this interesting article/interview concerning the recent activities of the Norrbotten Big Band.

The Cardigans will premiere a new song entitled "For What It's Worth" at the upcoming Rockbjörnen Awards on January 27. The show will be broadcasted on Swedish television and will also feature 'comeback' performances from Thomas Rusiak and Dilba along with contemporaries In Flames, Håkan Hellström, The Sounds, Mando Diao and Melody Club.

In Flames will be touring the US beginning in late March. Dates soon.

Be sure to check out 'Rock Over Sweden' today on Rocket 95.3 FM Stockholm. Listen here live or go here for more info. The program starts at 5pm local time. Or maybe not - the show is every other Monday, but it seems like today's scheduled broadcast ain't gonna happen. Next week?

Now scheduled to play the January 18 date of the Inferno Fest in Oslo is a one-off performace by a cover band made up of members from Dimmu Borgir, Red Harvest, The Kovenant, Blood Red Throne, Mayhem, and Susperia. They will reportedly run through various songs from much-respected metal artists such as Death, Black Sabbath, Slayer, and Anthrax and the whole thing is to be recorded for a possible future release on Edgerunner Records. Other bands scheduled to play the fest include Immortal, Children of Bodom and Taake.

Here's a short little article with some info concerning the next record from The Soundtrack of Our Lives. Drummer Fredrik makes comments. (in Swedish)

Beyond Dawn has had the new album "frysh" pushed back to March. In other news, a video is being made for the track "Among the Sedatives" by Vildensky featuring "clip-art animation of the band performing various heroic deeds."

I had no idea, but KEXP Seattle has a great archive of live-in-the-studio recordings of bands such as The Soundtrack of Our Lives, Sahara Hotnights, Kings of Convenience, Cato Salsa Experience and much much more. Check it.

Enter to win a $250 gift certificate for Ben Sherman from The Soundtrack of Our Lives and Filter mmm here.

Vote for your choices in the Swedish Alternative Music Awards (SAMA) right here. Vote for one of nominees or write in your own choice.

Joakim Thåström will be releasing a live EP on January 24. It's called "Thåström på Röda sten" and will feature six tracks from his Kalas tour performance in Göteborg last summer and the video for "Släpp aldrig in dom".

Here's the nominees for the P3 Guld awards:

Best female artist
Awa Manneh - "Sounds Like Me"
Frida Snell - "Black Trillium"
Marit Bergman - "3.00 A.M. Serenades"
Paola - "Stockcity Girl"
Robyn - "Don't Stop The Music"

Best male artist
Christian Kjellvander - "Songs from a Two Room Chapel"
Håkan Hellström - "Det är så jag säger det"
Stephen Simmonds - "For Father"
Thåström - "Mannen som blev en gris"
Timbuktu - "Wått´s Dö Madderfakking Diil"

Best group
Caesars Palace - "Love for the Streets"
The Hellacopters - "By the Grace of God"
Kent - "Vapen & ammunition"
Looptroop - "The Struggle Continues"
Mando Diao - "Bring ´Em In"

Best newcomer
The Sounds
Melody Club
Paola
Mando Diao
Marit Bergman

Best song
"Calleth You Cometh I" - The Ark
"Dom Andra" - Kent
"Keep This Fire Burning" - Robyn
"Kom igen, Lena!" - Håkan Hellström
"Someone New" - Eskobar feat Heather Nova

Best live artist
The Ark
Doktor Kosmos
The Hellacopters
Marit Bergman
Looptroop

More info and voting here.

The Hellacopters latest record "By the Grace of God" has gone gold in Sweden with sales of over 30k. It's their 2nd gold album, the first being "High Visibility".

Finland's Enternal Tears of Sorrow have broken up. The statement from the band:

With mixed feelings we have to announce that Eternal Tears of Sorrow have decided to split up. EToS have been on a break since March 2002. During the break, it has become obvious that it is time to quit.
This band started as a free-time activity about ten years ago. As we got more success, we also needed to give more and more of our time to the band. Day by day, we realised the band had become a full-time job for us. Now it's time to move on and do something different. This band achieved much more than we could imagine when we formed up this band.

However, we don't stop making and playing music. Check out the official EToS website regularly for information about the members and their other projects and bands. The site has been online for almost seven years now and will remain as it is. Only the address has changed: www.etos.tk.

We thank all our fans for support! A huge number of nice things happened to us between 1994 and today, thanks to you! On behalf of Eternal Tears of Sorrow in early January 2003, Jarmo Puolakanaho & Altti Veteläinen (the founding members)

Dave Lombardo (Slayer!) plays on four songs from the new upcoming Apocalyptica record "Reflections". If you didn't already know, Apocalyptica is the Finnish cello trio made famous for their covers of Metallica songs.

Happy new year! No new music today from me, but I plan to have something come in later this week. Otherwise, time to play catch-up.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Peter Jöback - jag kommer hem igen till jul
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
04. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
05. Melody club - Music machine
06. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
07. v/a - Chess - på svenska
08. Roxette - Ballad hits
09. The Sounds - Living in America
10. Eric Gadd - Life support
11. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
12. v/a - Årets julkonsert
13. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
14. v/a - Fame factory Christmas
15. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
16. The Ark - In lust we trust
17. v/a - Fame Factory volym 1
18. Carola - Jul i Betlehem
19. Helene Sjöholm - Visor
20. Ulf Lundell - Club Zebra

Rolling Stone has jumped on the bandwagon to name "Behind the Music" from The Soundtrack of Our Lives as one of the top 50 albums of 2002. Here's what they said:

The other Swedish export of choice, the Soundtrack of Our Lives make psychedelia without borders, a loud spray of combinations (nuclear-glam guitars, space-hymn keyboards, medieval psaltery) bound together with pop sense. You have to see the band live to appreciate the guruish ardor of bearlike singer Ebbot Lundberg. But the paisley-mule kick of "Infa Riot" and "21st Century Ripoff" will still have you seeing stars.

Sahara Hotnights also got a nod on RS writer/critic Michael Ansaldo's top 10 list.

Ariel Kill Him has a new website design. So do Kasual Records labelmates The New Mess. Their site is here.

Jester Records says that Bogus Blimp is planning on doing 3 new releases within a "very short period of time." What that means exactly is anyone's guess, but I am definitely looking forward to new material from those guys.

Check out pics from the Chalksounds Fest over here. Cobolt and A-tuna were some of the bands that played, but many other band-folk were in attendance such as most everyone from KVLR.

Soviac has entered the studio to begin work on their new album. The band says "the album is a sort of a trilogy", but other details won't be provided until later.

In other Chalksounds news, Carpet People are finishing up with the mixing of their new record. No release date yet.

Here's a track from the upcoming Cult of Luna album. The song is called "The Watchtower" and the album is gonna be called "The Beyond". Look for it around February 10 from Earache Records, otherwise peep the artwork here.

Stratovarius has posted new mp3 clips of the songs "Soul of a Vagabond" and "Find Your Own Voice". They both come from the upcoming album "Elements Part I", due January 27 from Nuclear Blast. For the record, the band's mainman Timo Tolkki has come out strongly against music downloading and has warned that he will come after anyone caught downloading the new album online. His comment on the subject:

I just got back from the promotour and received the news that it's [the new album] on the net already. I have taken the necessary steps to find out the persons, who have put it there. I have contacted our lawyer and the internet department of the Helsinki police. I already have in my possession some IP numbers and there´s more to come. We have obtained a list of journalists who have received the promo copy. We will find those people who did this and they will face a courtcase for sure. They are transmitting internationally copyrighted material without permission. The same goes to anybody who downloads this stuff from internet. It is morally wrong and it is also illegal because of the copyright. Don't download unless you don´t wanna get into trouble. We have means to find out these things. If you think that you have the right to download copyrighted Stratovarius material you are wrong. In that case I don't want you as a fan. There will be soundclips available on our OFFICIAL web site in time, just like there are clips for those who want to check out Strato. I am not gonna write these things again. To close this, you might want to be very careful what you donwload. There are already several false versions of Elements in the net and some of them contains viruses too.

Here's a zip file containing an mp3 of the new track "Black Seeds On Virgin Soil" from Old Man's Child. The new album "In Defiance Of Existence" comes out January 20 on Century Media.

Download some new tracks from Marduk over here.

Solefald has completed work on the album "In Harmonia Universali", the follow-up to the acclaimed "Pills Against The Ageless Ills". Look for it in the near future from Century Media. Lazare says the new record will be "certainly more experimental, but I think the whole sound and production of the album makes it feel more straight forward than it really is. The album will consist of 10 songs, and the vocal arrangements are larger and more complex this time around. We brought along a male choir and a saxophone player in the studio, and that worked out perfectly. I didn't use synths as much as I usually do in the recording process - instead you will hear a lot of real Hammond organs (with a wooden Leslie case) and a Steinway grand piano."

Download some new demo tracks from Einherjer here.

The new single from The Knife is called "Heartbeats" and it comes out today. Get a preview of it here, along with a special Christmas treat.

Kent is the band of the year according to Aftonbladet. Again. Personally, I was a little disappointed with the new record, but it wasn't bad or anything either. Anyhow, here's their picks of the groups with high expectations for next year along with their previous entries on the same list:

1. Kent (2002: 1 2001: 4 2000: 2 1999: 4 1998: 1 1997: 2 1996: 10)
2. Håkan Hellström (2002: 20 2001: 6)
3. Peter LeMarc (2002: 19 2001: 13 1996: 14 )
4. The Hives (2002: 2)
5. The Cardigans (2002: 14 2001: 8 2000: 1 1999: 3 1998: 4 1997: 1)
6. Ulf Lundell (2002: 6 2001: 17 2000: 15 1999: 10 1998: 4 1997: 1 )
7. Lisa Miskovsky
8. Marie Serneholt, A-Teens
9. Florens Valentine
10. Sara Isacsson
11. The Ark (2002: 11 2001: 10)
12. Soundtrack of Our Lives (1997: 18)
13. Magnus Uggla
14. Kaah (2002: 13)
15. Radio Dept
16. The Sounds
17. Broder Daniel (2002: 8)
18. Brolle Jr
19. International Noise Conspiracy
20. Rebecka Törnqvist (1996: 3)

I thought it was already released, but I guess I'm just way too ahead of the game. My prediction for 'next-big-thing' status, Caesars Palace (aka The Caesars), releases their next single "Candy Kane" on January 13.

The next record from the Dolores Singles Club will be from the band ALF. Dolores also says we'll be getting a new Broder Daniel record in the near future, but how many times have we heard that before?

Marduk's next album "World Funeral" will come out in Europe on February 24. A single for the song "Hearse" will also arrive in February with the b-side being a cover of "Phantasm", originally by Possessed.

Is it time for the final countdown? Word on the street has it that 80s rockers Europe may reunite in celebration of their 20th anniversary next year. They're already releasing a CD of previously unreleased material, so it's time to cash in, right? Ex-frontman Joey Tempest (nee Joakim Larsson) recently put out his third solo album earlier this year.

Hope y'all have yourselves a Merry Christmas. That is, if you celebrate said holiday. Everyone else, enjoy your day at the movies or doing whatever you do while the rest of the world ignores you. I feel your pain. I doubt there will be any news tomorrow, so I probably won't update.

The US label Deep Elm has signed Surrounded. A full length will come in spring and the track "High Five Hero" will be featured on the "Emo Diaries #9" compilation coming in March. Samples are available from both Deep Elm or the band's website.

This time we are heading for the ultimate and so far it sounds very promising. The new material is pretty diverse but in general the songs have more POWER. Hard-hitting and straight forward, with more natural flow. So that the energy and force comes straight back to you.

That's Magnus Olsfelt of The Crown commenting on the writing process for the new album. No release date yet, but the goal is for next summer.

Behold, the MTV Up North Top 20 videos of 2002:

1. Andreas Johnson - Shine
2. Kent - Dom Andra
3. Brainstorm - Waterfall
4. Saybia - The Day After Tomorrow
5. The Crash - Star
6. Millencolin - Man Or Mouse
7. Jupiter Day - The Morning After
8. Acorn - A.C.O.R.N
9. A-ha - Forever Not Yours
10. Jon - Right Here Next To Me
11. Bomfunk MC's - Back To Back
12. Swan Lee - Tomorrow never Dies
13. Kemopetrol - Saw It On TV
14. The Ark - Father Of A Son
15. The Sounds - Living In America
16. Junior Senior - Move Your Feet
17. Tyskarna Fran Lund - Global Fussball OK
18. Melody Club - Palace Station
19. Sondre Lerche - Sleep On Needles
20. Mew - Am I Wry

The details for P3 Popstad in February have been announced. Read more here or here (in Swedish). Some of the band playing include The Ark, Looptroop, Melody Club, Dub Sweden, The Sounds, The Haunted, Marit Bergman and Awa Manneh.

Recording for the new Fireside album is still coming along. Kristofer Åström reports the band just spent some time in the Silence studio this past weekend. A mid-April release date is the plan.

Before he heads out on tour, Nicolai Dunger will be continuing his pre-production work on his new album with the guys from Mercury Rev up in Kingston, NY. And also, I neglected to find out his backing band on said tour. It's gonna be Thomas Tjärnkvist, Johan Berthling, Jari Haapalainen (Bear Quartet), Jonas Kullhammar and Kjell-Erik Eriksson. Again, full dates are here.

After having various members experiment with solo projects such as A-Camp and Righteous Boy, The Cardigans are finally gonna have a new record out. "Long Gone Before Sunlight" is the title and it will feature guest appearances from Howlin´ Pelle Almqvist (The Hives), Ebbot Lundberg (The Soundtrack of Our Lives) and Nick Royale (The Hellacopters). Look for it in stores on March 24. The first single will be "For What It's Worth" and you'll be seeing that on February 17. For even more detail, read this interview with Nina Persson from MTVE.com.

E-Type to go heavy metal? Apparently so. Blabbermouth reports that E-Type mainman Martin Eriksson is indeed taking his music in a heavier direction for his upcoming tour. I had no idea, but I guess Martin used to drum for Hexenhaus way back when, but will not be behind the kit of course. That duty will be going to Motörhead drummer Mikkey Dee.

In celebration of Bathory's 20 year anniversary, Black Mark Records will be remastering and reissuing all of his albums on vinyl with enhanced layouts and full lyric sheets.