Swedish punk act The Indecision Alarm are keeping a tour diary as they travel across Europe: http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=93318173&blogID=397281890

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show:

01. Disfear - Deadweight
02. TALK 1
03. The Social Services - Up in arms
04. Kaka - The hotspurs (the less know the faster we go)
05. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Manic panic
06. TALK 2
07. Tiger Lou - Patterns
08. Paper - My life is going under
09. Dreamboy - Stars
10. TALK 3
11. Lack - Watchmen
12. Don't Be A Stranger - Mon chi-chi
13. Ea Philippa - Heslenes sang
14. TALK 4
15. Ef - Thrills
16. Isolation Years - Yellow cross on blue
17. Frivolvol - Satellite kids
18. TALK 5
19. Enslaved - Eld
20. The Grand Opening - Secrets revealed
21. Ultralyd - Comphonie V
22. TALK 8
23. Firefok AK - Techno tears
24. The Indecision Alarm - Alienation process
25. Looptroop Rockers - Marinate
26. TALK 7
27. Markus Krunegård - Jag är en vampyr
28. The End Will Be Kicks - Exit ramps
29. Cadillac - Locomotive
30. TALK 8
31. Lukestar - Lake Toba
32. Commando M Pigg - Baby doll
33. Printer - Minds out
34. TALK 9
35. Seven Feet Four - Auto emotion
36. Tobias Hellkvist - Abomination
37. Barra Head - Undermine
38. TALK 10
39. Britta Persson - Happy hour
40. Anna Leong - Guillotine
41. Ted Gärdestad - Can't stop this train
42. TALK 11

The Indecision Alarm is touring Europe in May. Dates so far:

05/16 - JUZ Yellowstone, Bergkamen (GER)
05/24 - Casal de Roquetes, Barcelona (ESP)
05/29 - Immerhin, Würzburg (GER)
05/30 - Nook Club, Bremen (GER)

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show, featuring special guest Pontus Levahn from the band Torpedo:

01. Fireside - Let Rasputin do it
02. TALK 1
03. Britta Persson - You are not my boyfriend
04. Hyacinth House - Lucky stranger
05. The Bear Quartet - Sailors
06. TALK 2
07. Jennie Abrahamson - In this life to live
08. Margaret Berger - Seek I'll hide
09. Heroes & Zeros - The foolproof
10. TALK 3
11. Folie - Strum
12. Ellen Beach - The widespread acclaim
13. The Indecision Alarm - Where every fucking dream is killed
14. TALK 4 (INTERVIEW)
15. Torpedo - From Russia with love
16. Rupesh Cartel - Comes the hour comes the man
17. TALK 5 (INTERVIEW)
18. Torpedo - Hospital
19. Tiger Lou - Until I'm there
20. TALK 6 (INTERVIEW)
21. Simon Ryman - Walk with me instead
22. Fanny Risberg - Stay with me forever
23. Lack - Deserters
24. TALK 7
25. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Manic panic
26. Hebosagil - Slightly confusing
27. Dieter Schöön - The harbour's cold
28. TALK 8
29. Lukestar - White shade
30. Fun - Hold it close
31. The Skull Defekts - The secret
32. TALK 9
33. Laakso - Great times underground
34. CS Nielsen - Black spots
35. Knugen Faller - Lugna favoriter
36. TALK 10
37. Säkert! - Allt som är ditt

The playlist for this week's radio show:

01. Isolation Years - Frosted minds
02. TALK 1
03. Hyacinth House - Lucky stranger
04. Immanu El - Kosmonaut
05. Kamera - Fragile
06. TALK 2
07. Pay TV - Fashion report (clubmix)
08. Fun - I've got a truck
09. Timo Räisänen - Sixteen
10. TALK 3
11. Superfamily - Warszawa
12. Majessic Dreams - Still inside
13. The Indecision Alarm - Time for the big guns, baby
14. Boeoes Kaelstigen - Flir
15. TALK 4
16. The Fine Arts Showcase - Modern love
17. Karin Ström - Ordlös
18. Meleeh - Malign
19. TALK 5
20. Kongh - Pushed beyond
21. Baby Woodrose - Let yourself go
22. TALK 6
23. Mixtapes & Cellmates - Quiet (Cat Burgler remix)
24. The Je Ne Sais Quoi - Rhythm
25. The Bell - I need nothing
26. September - Satellites
27. TALK 7
28. Piroth - Waltz for prima ballerina
29. Sällskapet - Järnstaden
30. Montt Mardié - Birthday boy (drama)
31. TALK 8
32. CS Nielsen - Bottle for the road
33. Susanna and the Magical Orchestra - Love will tear us apart
34. Voices Break the Silence - Mopo3
35. TALK 9
36. Plain Fade - Blue skies ahead

The final edition of The Indecision Alarm's European tour diary is now online: http://www.tiaband.com/blog.asp?ID=23

MP3: The Indecision Alarm - Making bets in a burning house

As hinted at last week, today's mp3 post is on The Indecision Alarm, the flipside band on the new Enemy Alliance split. I posted about Enemy Alliance first, but I think I prefer The Indecision Alarm overall. They've got an even stronger wistful vibe, further enhanced by their preference of open chords over power chords. They also tend to be a bit slower and that suits me just fine. As for the big choruses with harmonized vocals - yeah, they've got those too, though they tend to be a bit rougher. That's fine by me as I find the imperfections hold more charm and are far more inviting for group singalongs. That's part of the punk promise: you can do it too! I can't say for sure that TIA is the type of band that will set up and play on the floor instead of the stage to be on the same level as the people, but that's the feeling I get from the music. I like this a lot.
Read more of The Indecision Alarm's ongoing tour diary: http://www.tiaband.com/blog.asp?ID=22

The Indecision Alarm - Making bets in a burning house

The playlist for this week's radio show:

01. Timo Räisänen - My valentine
02. TALK 1
03. Torpedo - From Russia with love
04. Desert Planet - Breakout button
05. Ebba Grön - Mamma pappa barn
06. TALK 2
07. The End Will Be Kicks - Don Johnson
08. Skywriter - Where both worlds never meet
09. Skull Defekts - The secret
10. TALK 3
11. Tsukimono - Tokyo OEast
12. Kristin Asbjørnsen - Trying to get home
13. Enemy Alliance - Government subsidized ghetto
14. TALK 4
15. The Indecision Alarm - Where every fucking dream is killed
16. Dismember - Soon to be dead
17. Mixtapes & Cellmates - Moments
18. TALK 5
19. Kristofer Åström - All in
20. Pan Sonic - Virta 1
21. Ulver - Of wolf and fear
22. TALK 6
23. Mainliners - Olivia
24. 120 Days - Let me come down
25. Universal Poplab - 60 is the new 40
26. TALK 7
27. Dag Vag - Popitop
28. The Bombettes - Lust is the new black
29. Breach - Big strong boss
30. TALK 8
31. CS Nielsen - Black spots
32. Tape - Sand dunes
33. The Psyke Project - For us to see for us to help
34. TALK 9
35. Cortex - Shark boys die hard
36. Viola - I don't know how to party
37. Don't Be A Stranger - Lonely together
38. TALK 10
39. Broder Daniel - What clowns are we

Catch both Enemy Alliance and The Indecision Alarm on tour together while you still can:

09/06 - MTC, Köln (GER)
09/07 - JUZ, Ebersberg (GER)
09/08 - Triebwerk, Wiener Neustadt (GER)
09/09 - Gala Hala, Ljubljana (SLO)
09/11 - Arena, Wien (GER)
09/12 - Café Central, Weinheim (GER)
09/13 - Alter Stadtbahnof, Schweinfurt (GER)
09/14 - Kuba, Julich (GER)
09/15 - Regenbogen, Hameln (GER)

I'll probably do another post on TIA next week, so check back. Oh, and check in with a tour diary on the shows they've played so far right here.

MP3: Enemy Alliance - Government subsidized ghetto

I've been going through a bit of a punk rock renaissance as of late, getting back in touch with my roots and figuring out how it relates to my life here and now. I know it can be argued that punk is meaningless now (and has been for quite some time), but nothing else quite affects me in the same way. It's not just the music - punk had always been about more than that - it's also the values and the spirit of community it represents. As for the "indie" scene? Give me a break, that's not a scene at all. So while I could easily get up on my soapbox and pontificate on the subject all day, it must be pointed out that it really does come down to the music in the end. Lots of mediocre bands coast on being good dudes who "support the scene" or whatever, but they never stand the test of time. Good bands, even if they aren't doing anything particularly groundbreaking, are timeless. That's kind of how I'd describe the new split from Enemy Alliance and The Indecision Alarm. It sounds so incredibly familiar, yet fresh and alive. You can hear it in the sincerely of both band's performance. There's a certain wistfulness that calls to mind Midwestern acts of yore, but for Enemy Alliance, the sound is far more Southern California. Fast skate-rock beats and huge harmonized choruses. Nothing original there, but the delivery is so good I could care less. It makes me feel like a kid again.

Enemy Alliance - Government subsidized ghetto