Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. Anna Järvinen
02. Bob Hund
03. Loney, Dear
04. Håkan Hellström
05. The Concretes
06. El Perro del Mar
07. The Legends
08. Kristofer Åström
09. Bon Iver
10. Kent
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. A Camp
02. Jenny Wilson
03. Frida Hyvönen
04. The Bear Quartet
05. Fever Ray
06. Shout Out Louds
07. The Concretes
08. Jonathan Johansson
09. Phoenix
10. Sahara Hotnights
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
The Concretes have booked studio time in both March and June for the recording of their next record.
Lisa Milberg (The Concretes) has a new solo track on myspace called "It was the end" featuring guest vocals from Sarah Assbring (El Perro Del Mar) and percussion by John Eriksson (Peter Bjorn and John): http://www.myspace.com/milbergmakesmusic
Lisa Milberg of The Concretes has a new myspace page for her solo project: http://www.myspace.com/milbergmakesmusic
Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. Håkan Hellström
02. Laakso
03. The Radio Dept.
04. Detektivbyrån
05. Kent
06. Sambassadeur
07. The Concretes
08. The Kid
09. Studio
10. Tiger Lou
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
New Peter Bjorn and John tourdates:
09/03 - Debaser Medis (Amnesty International Benefit), Stockholm (SWE) w/The Concretes, First Floor Power
09/16 - Koko, London (UK)
09/20 - Theatre UFPE, Recife (BRA)
09/23 - Studio SP, Sao Paulo (BRA)
09/24 - Studio SP, Sao Paulo (BRA)
09/27 - OneDotZero Festival, Buenos Aires (ARG)
The Debaser Medis gig will be a special one-time performance of the forthcoming instrumental album "Seaside rock" which will finally be coming out in mid-September on 180gm vinyl and digital download.
Here is the It's a Trap! listening group top 10 artists of the week, unique to our group:
01. Håkan Hellström
02. Laakso
03. The Radio Dept.
04. Detektivbyrån
05. Kent
06. Sambassadeur
07. The Concretes
08. The Kid
09. Studio
10. Tiger Lou
Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Please join us and make your playlist count! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/
Who doesn't love a kazoo refrain? You've got to be one cold, heartless bastard to resist. Anna Maria Espinosa has been kicking around the Stockholm scene for a long time now, performing with bands such as Morder Jords Massiva, Club Killers and tons more, as well as popping up as a guest vocalist on numerous releases from a vast variety of artists. And this fall she's breaking free with her very own solo release (due out October 8, I believe) and here now is her debut single "Everyday", a great little upbeat pop number that has me super excited for what's to come. It's produced by the always-reliable Jari Haapalainen and written with Theodor Jensen (The Plan), but it's her voice that carries the day, along with that lovely, buzzing refrain I referred to back in sentence #1. Pure joyful exuberance, pure summer bliss! I'm glad Anna Maria is finally stepping out to do her own thing, it's time she had a chance for the spotlight. Not that she's going at alone though, she does have a lot of help: besides Jari and Theodor, she's also recruited Ellekari Larsson (The Tiny), Mattias Hellberg, Andreas Mattson, The Concretes, Nicolai Dunger and others to help out. I guess it was time to call in some favors, eh? Like I said, 'bout time.
Anna Maria Espinosa - Everyday
I know a lot of folks are eager to kickstart the Kleerup backlash in earnest, so to them let me say this: sorry, but his new album really isn't all that bad. For one, he's got a lot of starpower in his favor; Robyn, Marit Bergman, Lykke Li (today's mp3), Titiyo, Lisa Milberg (The Concretes) and Neneh Cherry all lend their voices to tracks. On the other hand, those tracks are the only standouts as Kleerup's instrumentals are unanimously forgettable. So when I say that the album isn't all that bad, it really isn't all that great either. "Until we bleed" is sublime, smoky and sad-sack, easily the album highlight. I'm not even that much of a Lykke Li fan, but her fragile delivery here suits the dark, bubbly sound to a tee. It's all about vibe and the string samples in the refrain accentuate her vulnerability, giving the track a subdued but seductive coating. Compared to "With every heartbeat" (ft. Robyn), my pick for the 2nd best track (and one I assume everyone's already heard more than enough times by now), it's far less immediate, but far more rewarding overall. The formula is almost exactly the same almost to the point of self-plagiarization, except that Robyn can't help but make everything she sings into an anthem. When Kleerup attempts to do the same with Marit Bergman and Titiyo, the results are decent enough, but nowhere near as exciting. It's not the vocalists' fault - they do their job adequately enough, the tracks just don't accentuate their strengths. In a word: tepid. Not hot, not cold, not even worth discussing. Grab this one and blast it, forget the rest.
Kleerup - Until we bleed (ft. Lykke Li)
The London Times spotlights Lykke Li: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article3939298.ece
Also check the extra feature at the bottom for a weird sidebar about other Swedish pop worth checking out. C'mon, who really thinks that The Concretes have kept silent since Victoria Bergsman left?
The long-awaited Licking Fingers Swedish music comp "Thank You For The Music" will finally be out on May 28 and the label will celebrate with a party that evening at Pet Sounds Bar in Stockholm. Here's the tracklist, as best I can tell:
01. Anna Järvinen - Svensktalande Bättre Folk
02. Jens Lekman - The Opposite Of Hallelujah
03. Lykke Li - Everbody But Me
04. Those Dancing Days - Dischoe
05. Friska Viljor - Old Man
06. Shout Out Louds - South America
07. The Concretes - The Sentence
08. First Floor Power - The Jacket
09. Pacific! - Runaway To Elswhere
10. Kleerup/Lisa Milberg - Music For Girl
11. The Radio Dept. - Freddy And The Trojan Horse
12. Studio - No Company
13. Peter Morén - Social Competence
14. Loney, Dear - Your Time Will Come
15. Wildbirds And Peacedrums - Liar Lion
16. El Perro Del Mar - Glory To The World
17. The Tiny - Too Heavy A Burden
18. Frida Hyvönen - See How I Come Into Town
19. Speedmarket Avenue - Sirens
20. Idiot Kid - Wide Awake
21. Nicolai Dunger - God's Waitingroom
Besides Titiyo and Robyn, Kleerup's upcoming debut album will also feature guest spots from Lykke Li, Lisa Millberg (The Concretes), Neneh Cherry and Marit Bergman.
Sad Day For PuppetsThis is the debut release from the Stockholm-based band. It's released on Radio LXMBRG's Haha Fonogram Records, and produced by Alex Svenson-Metés of the same band. Musically, this couldn't be further apart from Radio LXMBRG. "Annie says" is reminiscent is one of The Concretes' more tender moments, whilst the rest of the EP brings to mind eighties indie pop bands like The Cocteau Twins and the long-forgotten, but rather excellent, Voice Of The Beehive. The dreamy melodic sounds transport the listener back to a more innocent time when shonky anorak-clad bands genuinely believed they could change the world. With this release, Sad Day For Puppets are very well placed to capitalise on the micro indie-pop phenomenon currently doing the rounds on MySpace.
- Nick Levine
Don't Be A StrangerSwedish bands break up and morph into others quicker than an atom, or at least so it seems. The collaborative effort is so high, it's as if the Social-Democracy permeates every level of society, and, within the music scene, usually proves to be a successful act. Here for example, we have Don't Be A Stranger, a band which features former members of Honey Is Cool. For comparative purposes, this is not too dissimilar stylistically from The Concretes and The Tiny, though I find them to be better than the former and more accessible than the latter. On the tracks "Lonely together", "Yellow moon" and "Too late", the band is at their peak, with the mellow, intertwining instruments creating the space needed for the listener's maximum enjoyment. Just because one has an instrument doesn't mean one has to fill every second with sound - and with a group such as Don't Be A Stranger, the notes not played allow the music to be most emphatic.
- Matt Giordano
