Kuryakin
Still here
Shelflife Records

The most obviously Scandinavian of the three Shelflife Records acts I delighted in this past weekend, Kuryakin open their EP with "Take my hands", a song that combines the lush dreaminess of The Radio Dept. with the sample-happy, Motown feel of Jens Lekman -- which is quite an accomplishment to say the least. Effortlessly integrating the organic with the electronic, Kuryakin may carry a torch that many would feel The Radio Dept. initially lit, but this torch lights a very different path for Kuryakin. On "Still here" there is a buoyancy where similar bands explore melancholy, and Kuryakin retain this optimism without sacrificing any of the ethereal quality of their songwriting. "Peace of mind", the closer of the EP, has all the makings of a heartrending composition, instead the song channels all of these genre techniques down brighter avenues. The deft craftsmanship that went into "Still here" has put Kuryakin firmly on my list of artists to keep an eye on. I have the feeling these recordings are only the beginnings of a wonderful catalog.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

Here is the It's a Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 artists of the week:

01. Sigur Rós
02. Death Cab for Cutie
03. Radiohead
04. Håkan Hellström
05. The Radio Dept.
06. Belle and Sebastian
07. Coldplay
08. Kleerup
09. Jens Lekman
10. Sébastien Tellier

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/

Larsen & Furious Jane
Zen sucker
Morningside Records

Despite the laughable name of both the group and their album, Larsen & Furious Jane are by far one of the best bands I've heard this year. An amalgamation of the melancholic immediacy of fellow countrymen Kashmir and the more contemplative vein of Interpol's register -- though this American influence only extends so far, most notably on "A deathbed conversion". A naming of influences also does little with an act like Larsen & Furious Jane; the majority of the record is difficult to place in this way. "Zen sucker" is a wonderfully luxuriant album -- its various components are in no hurry, despite the rather short length of the songs (only two tracks break the 4-minute mark), taking their time to build off the first moments of a composition and creating a extraordinarily functional mass of instrumentation, the timbre of the voice chosen to appropriately settle into this mixture: an almost Ian Curtis/Paul Banks tone adopted on "A deathbed conversion"; a somber, nearly-spoken register taken with "Snakes in the grass"; a contemporary Brit-pop style utilized within "A car that comes with the job"; a very Scandinavian quality (similar to The Radio Dept.'s approach) imbued into "Fine". In the end, "Zen sucker" is a record painted in almost every despondent, sorrowful hue that we've come to expect from Kashmir's contemporaries, but that somehow fits into these early summer days. There is a fragile sense of a hope intertwined in the beauty of Larsen & Furious Jane's music -- sometimes that's all you need.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

The Radio Dept.'s new album "Clinging to a scheme" is confirmed for release on September 10.

Here is the It's a Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 albums of the week:

01. MGMT – Oracular Spectacular
02. Feist – The Reminder
03. Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours
04. Håkan Hellström – För Sent För Edelweiss
05. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
06. Jens Lekman – Night Falls Over Kortedala
07. Radiohead – In Rainbows
08. The Radio Dept. – Pet Grief
09. Hot Chip – Made In The Dark
10. Familjen – Det snurrar i min skalle

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! Last.fm listening group top 10 artists of the week:

01. Death Cab for Cutie
02. Radiohead
03. Jens Lekman
04. Håkan Hellström
05. Lykke Li
06. The Radio Dept.
07. Coldplay
08. Vampire Weekend
09. Feist
10. Sufjan Stevens

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 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

Here is the It's a Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 artists of the week:

01. Death Cab for Cutie
02. Radiohead
03. Håkan Hellström
04. Lykke Li
05. The Radio Dept.
06. Nine Inch Nails
07. Kent
08. Belle and Sebastian
09. Shout Out Louds
10. Feist

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! Last.fm listening group top 10 tracks of the week:

01. Coldplay - Violet Hill
02. The Radio Dept. - Freddie and the trojan horse
03. Håkan Hellström - för en lång lång tid
04. The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age Of The Understatement
05. Lykke Li - Little Bit
06. M83 - Kim & Jessie
07. Håkan Hellström - Sång I Buss På Villovägar 2007
08. Håkan Hellström - För sent för Edelweiss
09. Håkan Hellström - Tro Och Tvivel
10. Markus Krunegård - Jag Är En Vampyr

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/

Pitchfork has a brand new track from The Radio Dept.: http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/download/50061-the-radio-dept-freddie-and-the-trojan-horse-mp3stream

Firefox AK
If I were a melody
Razzia Records

The recent hyper-popularity of bands like Justice and MGMT has proven that electronica is now a serious player in the music industry, not only with the indie crowd, but the major label industry as well. Firefox AK has been in the game a few years, garnering attention throughout Scandinavia, the British Isles, and Europe, obviously not to the extent of Swedish comrades such as The Knife, but making an impact nonetheless. The follow up to "Madame, madame", "If I were a melody" again proves that Andrea Kellerman has a unique knack for electronic music: bridging the gap between the dancefloor bound compositions and the more contemplative creations by acts such as The Radio Dept. and Junior Boys (whose Matt Didemus mixed "If I were a melody"). "The river" is one of the finest tracks Firefox AK has ever produced, and first single "Winter rose", with husband and consistent collaborator Rasmus Kellerman (better known as Tiger Lou), demonstrates the range of this album, focusing the synth-driven craftsmanship into a more popular vein. An extremely consistent artist, you probably didn't need too much reassurance that Firefox AK's newest effort was worth a small investment - but, in case you did: "If I were a melody" is a fine album.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

The Radio Dept.'s long-awaiting forthcoming album has been pushed back to August, though we may get a single in May.

The Radio Dept.'s new album is done and on-track for a May release.

This week's It's A Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 albums of the week:

01. Radiohead – In Rainbows
02. Shout Out Louds – Our Ill Wills
03. The Shins – Wincing the Night Away
04. Jens Lekman – Oh You're So Silent Jens
05. Familjen – Det snurrar i min skalle
06. The Radio Dept. – Lesser Matters
07. The National – Alligator
08. Belle and Sebastian – The Life Pursuit
09. The Knife – Silent Shout
10. Tiger Lou – The Loyal

Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Join us! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/

This week's It's A Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 artists of the week:

01. Jens Lekman
02. Shout Out Louds
03. José González
04. Death Cab for Cutie
05. Belle and Sebastian
06. Interpol
07. Moneybrother
08. The Knife
09. The Radio Dept.
10. The Bear Quartet

Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Join us! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/