Nine's new album has been pushed back to a August/September release, but Jacob Bannon (Converge) has signed on to do the artwork.

On March 28 The Knife will release the third single from their latest album "Deep Cuts". The track is called "You Take My Breath Away" and it featured guest vocals from Jenny Wilson. The b-sides will be two remixes by Emmon and Puppetmasters. A video is also on the way from Puppetmasters member Henry Moore Selder.

Division of Laura Lee will have a CD of their old material reissued in the US this spring from Lovitt Records. It's gonna be called "97-99" and Chad Clark at Inner Ear did the mastering. In the meantime, you can download a preview mp3 on this page.

Remember that item I posted about The Haunted being upset with their label Earache? Well, it seems that singer Marco Aro is calling that whole interview "total bullshit". Read more. (from Blabbermouth)

Katatonia has put up a third and final sample from their forthcoming album on their website. This one's called "Ghost of the Sun". I managed to track down a copy of the three-song promo they released and can report that it definitely sounds good. I'm excited to hear the full-length when it finally comes out on March 24.

The new video for HIM's "Funeral of Hearts" premieres February 28 on Viva, Viva Plus and MTV Central. TV4 in Finland will debut it March 4 on 4POP along with a 'Making of the Video' program.

Listen to P3 between 8 and 9pm on March 4 to hear The Sonnets perform a few live acoustic tracks and do an interview.

Promopop will be holding a showcase event at Lava/Kulturhuset in Stockholm on April 26. The bands scheduled to perform: Wendy, By Heart, The Alpine (DK), Planet Superfly, The Leeches, and Paris.

a-ha has announced the title of their new double live album will be "How Can I Sleep With Your Voice in My Head". It doesn't come out until March 24, but you can listen to preview snippets here. The tracklist:

CD1
Forever Not Yours
Minor Earth Major Sky
Manhattan Skyline
I’ve Been Losing You
Crying In The Rain
The Sun Always Shines On TV
Did Anyone Approach You?
Swing Of Things
Lifelines
Stay On These Roads
Hunting High And Low
Take On Me
Living Daylights
Summer Moved On

CD2
Scoundrel Days
Oranges On Appletrees
Cry Wolf
Dragonfly
Time and Again
Sycamore Leaves
Video track: tour diary

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

01. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
06. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo
07. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
08. Thomas Rusiak - In the sun
09. A Teens - New arrival
10. Melody Club - Music machine
11. The Knife - Deep Cuts
12. Slaptones - Simplify
13. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
14. The Haunted - One kill wonder
15. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
16. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
19. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
20. Eric Gadd - Life support

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

01. (01) The Donnas "Take It Off" 02. (02) Placebo "The Bitter End" 03. (05) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 04. (NY) Missy Elliott Ft. Ludacris "Gossip Folks" 05. (NY) Satirnine "Hey No Hell" 06. (04) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 07. (NY) Liam Lynch "United States Of Whatever" 08. (08) Aimee Mann "Pavlov's Bell" 09. (03) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i världen" 10. (07) Christian Kjellvander "Broken Wheels"

11. (10) Coldplay "Clocks" 12. (ÅT) Whyte Seeds "Slow Motions" 13. (14) Laakso "Long Beach" 14. (18) Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck "One Good Moment" 15. (NY) The Dysfunctionals "Payback Time" 16. (15) Pearl Jam "Love Boat Captain" 17. (ÅT) Ed Harcourt "All Of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 18. (06) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 19. (11) Ben Harper "With My Own Two Hands" 20. (12) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush"

Leaving the chart:
(09) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth"
(13) Fireside "Throw It Away"
(16) Mull Historical Society "The Final Arrears"
(17) Reef "Give Me Your Love"
(19) Eminem "Sing For The Moment"
(20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

"Sweden's most requested demoband" Florence Valentins will be putting out an EP on April 14 called "Allt Dom Bygger Upp Ska Vi Meja Ner". The band plans to play a number of festival gigs this summer, too.

Gloria has a new album called "People Like Me And You" coming out on March 24. The first single will be a cover of the Talking Heads song "This Must Be The Place".

After touring the US for four weeks together, Cato Salsa Experience and The Soundtrack of Our Lives will play together again - this time in Malmö on March 7 and Lund on the 8th.

Stratovarius has announced they will be filming their upcoming show in Milan, Italy for release on a future DVD. The band also says they will be performing a 'secret' show in their native Finland sometime before their next tour. Look for details to be announced on their webpage.

Listen to The Cardigans cover "Das Model" right here. (requires Flash, by way of cardigans.de) The track was originally intended for a Kraftwerk tribute in 2001, but is now available on the "For What It's Worth" maxi-single.

By popular demand, Opeth has added a date in Perch on their upcoming Australian tour: April 14 at The Globe.

Millencolin will be touring the States beginning in April with a West Coast jaunt featuring Rufio and then it's off to the East on 4/30 with American HiFi. The band is also playing the Hurricane and Southside fests in Germany in June. More details soon.

Wow! what a catchy song. It reminds me of all those movies from the 80s about confused teenagers. This is like "Breakfast Club". But in music. Really, really dope! Are they big in Sweden? Doesn't surprise me. They would probably drop like a bomb in the States as well.

That's Pharrell Williams from N.E.R.D discussing "Seven Days a Week" with Aftonbladet, the newest single from The Sounds. I'm not super keen on the band myself, but I totally agree that they'd go over well in the US. Wait and see! Read the article. (in Swedish)

KVLR got themselves a new bassist, a fellow by the name of Joel Borg. Again, be sure to check them out when they tour the US in March. Those dates, yet again:

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-In Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - Tag Teen Center w/The Yellow Press, Mercy Mile
3/9 - San Fransisco, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise, more
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/The Yellow Press, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room w/The Yellow Press
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge w/Jelaous Sound
3/13 - Austin, TX - SXSW, TFT Records/Better Looking Records Showcase w/ Mark Gardner of Ride, Jealous Sound, more
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - Stanford, CA - KZSU (www.kzsu.org)

Those dates are still subject to minor changes, but stop by and say hi if you can. I'll be traveling along with the band and am very excited.

Vintersong reports they are working on their new album. Described as a concept album, they say there will be "a story running through the album's entirety, and with a musical flow that includes small compositions between the "real" songs." The subject is said to concern man's hunger for science and faith. And the music? They say it will range "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."

Soilwork has set "Figure Number Five" as the title for their upcoming album. Look for it in the US on May 5 from Nuclear Blast, April 21 in Europe.

Håkan Hellström has decided to leave Broder Daniel he reveals in an MTVE interview to be broadcast on Monday. I'm really not surprised considering his success with his solo career. "I won't play with them anymore, but we are still very good friends," he says. The Up North Swedish Grammy special will also have interviews with Melody Club, The Sounds, Robyn, The Hives and Caesars Palace plus live performances by Awa, Masayah and Marit Bergman.

BBC's Radio One has chosen DJ Nils Noa to perform on The Essential Mix program in April. He's the third Scandinavian to appear on the program, but the first Norweigan.

Rapper Diaz and black-metallers Dimmu Borgir collaborating? Yes, it's true! Listen to a samples of the track "Smakebit" and hear for yourself. (Windows Media)

Okay, here's the full scoop on those upcoming Export Music Sweden (ExMS) showcase shows in the US in NYC, Austin (SXSW) and LA. The bands scheduled to perform: Lambretta, The $1000 Playboys, Pineforest Crunch, Marit Bergman, The Mo, The Teenage Idols, Prime Sth, Whyte Seeds, The Sounds, and User.

Kent will play Stockholm Stadium on June 6. Tickets go on sale February 28 and will cost 350 kr.

Aftonbladet reports that Ebba Grön is back. Read all about it. (in Swedish) They made an appearance last night at the Joe Strummer tribute at Club Debaser in Stockholm accompanied by ex-Clash member Mick Jones. Pretty cool, eh?

The initial lineup for Augustibuller fest in Lindesberg on August 1-2 has been announced. They are Last Days Of April, The Spitts, Satirnine, Valley Days, JR Ewing, Between Us, Radioaktiva Räker, Mimikry, Spoiler and Piper. More info here.

We're in cold Sweden at the moment making our new record. We've done quite a lot of singles for the album already but we keep changing some things around.

The Hives report that they are working on their new album. In an interview with NME, singer Howlin' Pelle reveals that the new music sounds "like The Sex Pistols meets Detroit Cobras meets Kraftwerk." Look for it around September.

Meshuggah will be doing a Scandinavian tour in March. The dates:

3/17 - Sthlm Göta Källare
3/18 - Malmö KB
3/19 - Göteborg Sticky Fingers
3/20 - Oslo Betong
3/21 - Gävle Nivå
3/22 - Örebro Contan
3/26 - Helsingfors (sf) Nosturi

Limbonic Art has broken up. The statement from guitarist Morfeus and guitarist/vocalist Daemon:

We feel that we have reached as far as we could in our collaboration, and do not feel as inspired as we should when it comes to [producing] new quality music. Everything is set for a new beginning for the both of us, and we desire to explore other aspects of our musical interests, so it is time to stop now. The circle is complete, begin another...

Katatonia has posted a second teaser mp3 from their new album "Viva Emptiness", this time for the song "Criminals". Go to their website to download it.

The Cardigans will be performing two acoustic songs on XFM in London on March 4 between 5:30 and 6:30 pm. They'll also be recording an extra track for airplay at a later date. Those not local or unable to pick it up on satellite can listen from their website. The station will also host a live chat with the band at the end of March.

Marit Bergman will be releasing a four-song EP in the US on March 19. The tracks to be included are "It Would Have Been Good", "Nightlife", "I Take My Wings Off You", and "Between the Lines". She'll also be doing those US ExMS shows along with The Sounds, et al. at CBGBs, SXSW, and LA. Yet another Swede ready to break across the ocean?

Dagbladet has posted a short interview with TSOOL. (in Swedish)

Preview the new Erlend Öyes album here.

Mörk Gryning are currently recording their new album at Dug Out Studio with producer Daniel Bergstrand. Look for it on June 6 in Sweden, Europe two weeks later.

Rune Grammofon will be putting out an album of unreleased material from Arne Nordheim on March 17. It's called "Dodeka" and it will consist of 12 electronic pieces "composed from the basic and essential sound material gathered and constructed during Arne Nordheim´s fruitful period in Warsaw in the late sixties."

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

01. (NY) The Donnas "Take It Off" 02. (11) Placebo "The Bitter End" 03. (02) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 04. (NY) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes" 05. (NY) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees" 06. (06) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 07. (NY) Christian Kjellvander "Broken Wheels" 08. (NY) Aimee Mann "Pavlov's Bell" 09. (01) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 10. (03) Coldplay "Clocks"

11. (NY) Ben Harper "With My Own Two Hands" 12. (08) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush" 13. (05) Fireside "Throw It Away" 14. (09) Laakso "Long Beach" 15. (NY) Pearl Jam "Love Boat Captain" 16. (NY) Mull Historical Society "The Final Arrears" 17. (NY) Reef "Give Me Your Love" 18. (NY) Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck "One Good Moment" 19. (NY) Eminem "Sing For the Moment" 20. (ÅT) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(04) The Knife "Heartbeats"
(07) Foo Fighters "Times Like These"
(10) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out"
(12) Paris "Streetlights"
(13) N.E.R.D. "Provider"
(14) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again"
(15) Maceo Parker "Come By And See"
(16) Eve "Satisfaction"
(17) The Libertines "Time for Heroes"
(18) Calexico "Quattro"
(19) Zwan "Honestly"
(20) Red Hot Chili Peppers "Can't Stop"

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Barbados - Rewind
06. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
07. A Teens - New arrival
08. The Haunted - One kill wonder
09. Melody Club - Music machine
10. The Knife - Deep Cuts
11. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
12. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
13. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
14. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
15. Eric Gadd - Life support
16. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Roxette - The ballad hits
19. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
20. Joybells gospel choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker

The Ark, Entombed, Shenerah, and USCB Allstars have all been confirmed for Westgothafestivalen in Trollhättan on May 24.

The Swedish Hip-Hop Awards will be held April 25 in Stockholm. Nominees to be announced soon.

Guitar player Jens F. Ryland has left black-metallers Borknagar. Band mainman Oystein G. Brun says Jen's "decision is based on various personal reasons, but we would like to state that there is no conflict nor bad blood in relations to the break. On behalf of Borknagar, I wish him all the best for the future!" The band will enter the studio in March to record an album for a late 2003 release.

Children of Bodom guitarist Alexi Laiho recently joined Halford on stage in Japan for a rendition of the Judas Priest classic "Living After Midnight". CoB was the opening act on the Japan tour.

Okay, here's the winners of the Swedish Grammis:

Best artist: Kent
Best song: Kent - "Dom andra"
Best album: Kent - "Vapen & ammunition"
Best pop/rock group: Kent
Best pop/rock, female: Robyn
Best pop/rock, male: Håkan Hellström - "Det är så jag säger det"
Best newcomer: The Sounds
Best lyrics: Joakim Berg (Kent)
Best composer: Joakim Berg (Kent)
Best producer: Martin von Schmalensee, Zed (Kent)
Best hard-rock: Opeth - "Deliverance"
Best jazz: Oddjob - "Oddjob"
Best folk: Stefan Sundström - "Sundström spelar Allan"
Best club/dance: Koop - "Waltz for Koop"
Best hip-hop/soul: Timbuktu - "Watt's dö madderfakking diil"
Open category: v/a - "Nationalsånger"
Government export prize: The Hives

Jeez, does Kent really need to win any more awards? I mean, c'mon now! Anyhow, for the full list of winners, go here. (in Swedish)

Your Halo Is A Radar have been disbanded. Why? Lack of time, careers, paranoia, creative differences, blah blah blah... The usual crap.

Read the full statement from the band.

In Flames reports they are in the middle of working on new material for an album to come this summer. They also say they're excited about the upcoming Ministry/Mudvayne tour: "We are all getting eager to go out on the road again. After all, we´ve had 2½ months off now, and it´s about time to get out there and have some fun."

Here's some new Peter, Björn & John tourdates:

3/15 - Trondheim
3/16 - Oslo
3/22 - Stockholm, DJing at Debaser
3/25 - Jönköping
3/27 - Linköping, DJing at Herrgårn
3/28 - Hässleholm

Kristofer Åström is heading out on the road for probably the last time in awhile as he will most likely be concentrating on Fireside in the future. Here's the dates and be sure to check out his new EP "Dead End" when it comes out March 10:

3/14 - Helsingborg Tivoli - w/Peter Hermansson on piano
3/18 - Uppsala Katalin
3/19 - Sthlm Nalen
3/20 - Malmö KB
3/21 - Lund Stadshallen
3/22 - Göteborg Bommens Salonger
3/23 - Umeå Stationen - w/Peter Hermansson on piano

A number of new bands have been confirmed for the Emmaboda fest including Cato Salsa Experience, Paris, Björns Vänner, Pamplonas, La Masa and Bring Me The Fucking Riot Man. Paris and Cato Salsa have also both been confirmed for this year's Hulsfred fest along with Cult of Luna.

The winners of this year's Norweigan Alarm awards are as follows:

Best live band: Turbonegro
Best metal album: Satyricon - Volcano
Best pop album: Thomas Dybdahl – That Great October Sound
Best rock album: JR Ewing – Ride Paranoia
Best music video: Kaada – No You Don't
Best hip-hop/rap album: Gatas Parlament – Holdning over underholdning
Best jazz album: Dadafon – Visitor
Best song: Satyricon – Fuel For Hatred
Best electronica/techno album: Jaga Jazzist – The Stix
Alarm prize: Ephemera

Metal-Reference.com recently did an interesting interview with Ulver mainman Trickster G aka Garm. Read it here.

Carcrash Records has set the release dates for Dialog Cet's "Konsumera Era" on March 24 and QGMR's "Quiet Is Not Loud" on March 3.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. The Cardigans - For What It´s Worth
03. User - You Belong
04. Trucker - I Feel So Sick
05. Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
06. Beats & Styles - Smilin´
07. The Raveonettes - Attack Of The Ghostriders
08. Jon - Right Here Next To You
09. Paperboys - Find My Way

Challengers:
01. Kaah -Du Kan Få Mej
02. Freak Kitchen - Nobody´s Laughing
03. St. Thomas -Long, Long Time
04. Winta - Emotions
05. Blues - Gamla Tider

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

Check out this video of The Cardigans playing live on MTV's Morning Glory.

All the new material is ready and we have also mastered our own pre-production and it sounds awesome in our ears. We rehearse like we are possessed every day and will continue to do so until we go into studio.

That's Silenoz of Dimmu Borgir talking about the band's preparations to go into Studio Fredman on March 3 to record their new album.

Cult of Luna will touring the UK with ISIS in March. If you like heavy music, I highly recommend you check both these bands out. The dates so far:

3/12 – Manchester, UK - Roadhouse
3/13 – Cardiff, UK - Ms1
3/14 – Brighton, UK - Concorde
3/15 – London, UK - Mean Fiddler

Was it just me, or did World Cafe not stream that TSOOL performance yesterday? Did I miss it? Anyone else record it?

Katatonia has put up a 45-second teaser of the new song "Evidence"on their homepage. As stated before, the new album "Viva Emptiness" comes out March 24.

The Hives won two categories at the recent NME awards: 'Best International Band' and 'Best Dressed'. The full list of winners is here.

Isolation Years will release the first single from the new album "It's Golden" on February 17. The track is called "Open Those Eyes" and I have no doubt it will be awesome. The album follows on March 14.

Madrugada is planning to release the song "Majesty" as the next single. It's already been doing quite well in the charts. The rumor is that they're doing an EP and it'll be out on March 5. No word on the b-sides at this time.

Read the transcript of MTVE.com's webchat with The Cardigans. There's actually some pretty good questions from the fans getting asked and answered.

Ulver reports that the "1993-2003: 1st Decade in the Machines" remix comp is now complete. Contributors include the band themselves, Alexander Rishaug, Information, Third Eye Foundation, Upland, Bogdan Raczynski, Martin Horntveth, Neotropic, Stars of the Lid, Fennesz, Pita, Jazzkammer, V/Vm, and Merzbow. It'll be out in March on Jester Records.

In other Ulver news, the band also has announced their next EP will be called "A Quick Fix of Melancholy". It will contain three tracks and over 30 minutes of music that they say will "reflect the title." Author Christian Bök provides the lyrics.

Flow Magazine has themselves an exclusive mp3 from Paragon. The track is called "När Gon Spottar" and was produced by Michel Rocwell. Look for it on the upcoming debut album "Stadsbarn".

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

01. (01) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (06) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 03. (09) Coldplay "Clocks" 04. (05) The Knife "Heartbeats" 05. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 06. (08) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 07. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 08. (NY) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush" 09. (NY) Laakso "Long Beach" 10. (11) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out"

11. (NY) Placebo "The Bitter End" 12. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 13. (18) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (04) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 15. (NY) Maceo Parker "Come By And See" 16. (14) Eve "Satisfaction" 17. (13) The Libertines "Time For Heroes"18. (NY) Calexico "Quattro" 19. (15) Zwan "Honestly" 20. (NY) Red Hot Chili Peppers "Can't Stop"

Leaving the chart:
(07) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer"
(10) Supergrass "Seen the Light"
(12) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed"
(17) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home"
(19) Paola "Interstellar Love"
(20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Big Bongo Records is doing a comp to be called Twenty Years Too Soon One Year Too Late - A Tribute To The Nomads" featuring contributions from Sewergrooves, The Hellacopters, Maryslim, bob hund, The Dictators, Entombed, Sons of Cyrus and Nitwitz. In case you are unaware, The Nomads are the forefathers of Swedish garage rock and two of the members now make up The Hellacopters' rhythm section. I don't have a release date, but it should be out soon.

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
06. A Teens - New arrival
07. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
08. Melody Club - Music machine
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
11. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
14. Thåström - På röda sten
15. Joybells gospel choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
16. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
17. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
18. Eric Gadd - Life support
19. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
20. v/a - Fame factory vol 2

Swedish singer/songwriter Sofia Loell has done a song to be featured in the upcoming Gwyneth Paltrow film "A View from the Top". Read more here. (in Swedish)

The new Lost Patrol record is scheduled to be out in May. For those that don't know, LP is the solo side project of Dennis Lyxzén from The (International) Noise Conspiracy. Among the various guests to appear on the album are singer/songwriter Lisa Miskovsky, David Sandström (The Facers, ex-Refused), Stefan Granberg (Randy), and Peder Stenberg (Bittersweet). Read more here. (in Swedish)

Nasum reports they have completed their new album "Helvete" which was recorded at the band's own Soundlab Studios by singer/guitarist Mieszko Talarczyk. The tracklisting:

01. Violation
02. Scoop
03. Living Next Door to Malice
04. Stormshield
05. Time to Discharge
06. Bullshit
07. Relics
08. We Curse You All
09. Doombringer
10. Just Another Hog
11. Drop Dead
12. I Hate People
13. Go!
14. The Final Sleep
15. Slaves to the Grind
16. Breach of Integrity
17. The Everlasting Shame
18. Your Words Alone
19. Preview of Hell
20. Illogic
21. Whip
22. Worst Case Scenario

Lots of new music today! I feel like I've been skimping on the metal, so I put up a live set from Mustasch recorded just the other day from Popstad on P3. They sound like a mix of "Kill 'Em All"-era Metallica and Soundgarden fronted by a guy who reminds of Dio and Ian Astbury of The Cult. And yes, those are all good things. I doubt they'll win, but the band is also up for a Swedish hard rock Grammy this year.

Next up is a track from the band KVLR. I'm going to be accompanying these guys on a short US tour next month, so you know I'm definitely into them. The track comes from the new retrospective collection "On Planted Streets" which combines all of their older releases on one CD. Those dates again:

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-In Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - TBD w/The Yellow Press
3/9 - SF, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise + more
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/The Yellow Press, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room w/The Yellow Press
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge w/The Jealous Sound
3/13 - Austin, TX - SXSW, TFT Records/Better Looking Records Showcase
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - TBD

Speaking of Popstad, Chili.se has a bunch of pictures and reviews of the show. (in Swedish)

Check out this deal on the new Crystal Committee album from Chalksounds. Available for Swedes only.

Export Music Sweden (ExMS) is doing another series of showcase concerts this year at CBGBs in NYC, SXSW, and LA. The performers include The Sounds, Prime Sth, Whyte Seeds, Marit Bergman and The $1000 Playboys. The NY shows are March 10-11, SXSW is March 14-15 and then Spaceland in LA on the 16th plus the 17th at the Troubadour. Last time around, this concert series was the event which introduced America to The Soundtrack of Our Lives and Sahara Hotnights. I suspect there will be at least one new hit act from this year's crowd, too.

Check out the video for 69-Hard's forthcoming single "Gone Gone Gone" right here. It comes out on February 28 with the b-sides "The Bullets" and "Fuck Authority". The new album "Blues From Hell" follows on March 28.

Check out some pictures from Madrugada's recent tour of Europe here.

The Cardigans finally got themselves a new website.

And whaddya know? Meshuggah has a new site, too. No definitive word yet, but there's a headlining US tour in the works for the future.

Don't forget the big Popstad show on P3 Live today (and tomorrow) at 10 am Pacific. Featured bands to perform include The Sounds, Moneybrother, Melody Club and more. Listen here. Click the 'Lyssna' link.

I didn't see the link to it the other day, but here's the cover art for Beyond Dawn's upcoming album "Frysh". Their last album "Electric Sulking Machine" was a fantastic and original piece of brooding, dark pop and I expect no less from the new one. I hope those guys come through with that promo for me - I'm really excited to hear it.

Check out the new videos from Håkan Hellström and Roxette.

Look for Buck to be touring in the near future, hot on the heels of their highly regarded new "Rock Dream" EP on Startracks. The dates so far:

02/13 - Esklistuna, Etrea Clubnights @ Blå
02/14 - Stockholm, Accelerator @ Debaser
02/26 - Lund, Klubb Buster @ Mejeriet
03/15 - Malmö, KB w/ Comet Gain and The Radio Dept.

Opeth reports they may push back the release of the upcoming album "Damnation" to May. Their currently hectic touring schedule seems to have gotten the best of them and they feel they wouldn't be able to promote it properly with a March/April release.

Katatonia has scheduled a European tour to support the release of the upcoming album "Viva Emptiness". Lullacry and Pornorphans will support in Finland, To Die For and Daylight Dies on the rest. The dates:

4/2 - Tavastia Helsinki, Finland
4/3 - Lutakko Jyväskylä, Finland
4/4 - Tuiskula Nivala, Finland
4/5 - Säätämö Turku, Finland
4/8 - TBA Hamburg, Germany
4/9 - TBA Berlin, Germany
4/10 - TV Studio Krzemionki Krakow, Poland
4/12 - TBA Munich, Germany
4/13 - TBA (East), Germany
4/15 - TBA, Germany
4/16 - TBA, Germany
4/17 - TBA Frankfurt, Germany
4/18 - TBA Stuttgart, Germany
4/19 - Dioxin Schindellegi/Schwyz, Switzerland
4/20 - Transilvania Live Milan, Italy
4/22 - Alpheus Rome, Italy
4/23 - La Gabbia Bassano de Grappa (VI), Italy
4/24 - TBA Marseille, France
4/25 - K.G.B Barcelona, Spain
4/26 - Caracol Madrid, Spain
4/27 - Le Son Coimbra, Portugal
4/29 - Republicca II Valencia, Spain
4/30 - Koslow Bordeaux, France
5/1 - La Locomotive Paris, France
5/2 - Splendid Lille, France
5/3 - Rock City Nottingham, UK
5/4 - Bierkeller Bristol, UK
5/6 - Bierkeller Manchester, UK
5/7 - Ca -ouse Glasgow, UK
5/8 - Rio Bradfo -, UK
5/9 - -e Underworld/ULU London, UK
5/10 - Eland Gent, Belgium
5/11 - Tivoli Utrecht, -e Ne -erlands
5/12 - TBA Essen/Bochum, Germany
5/14 - Vega Copenhagen, Denmark
5/15 - TBA Goteborg, Sweden
5/16 - TBA Oslo, Norway
5/15 - TBA Stockholm, Sweden

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):

01. (04) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Fireside "Throw It Away" 04. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 05. (11) The Knife "Heartbeats" 06. (NY) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 07. (NY) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer" 08. (03) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 09. (08) Coldplay "Clocks" 10. (NY) Supergrass "Seen the Light"

11. (07) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 12. (06) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 13. (10) The Libertines "Time for Heroes" 14. (NY) Eve "Satisfaction" 15. (09) Zwan "Honestly" 16. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (12) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 18. (13) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 19. (NY) Paola "Interstellar Love" 20. (20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

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"

Best wishes,
El Presidente for Turbojugend St. Pauli

Check out a profile on Norweigan jazz group 1300 Oslo right here.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Spitts - That´s my girl
02. Jon - Right Here Next To You
03. Last Days Of April - All Will Break
04. The Lungz - It´s Alright
05. Christian - Min Fremtid
06. Madrugada - Majesty
07. Caesars Palace - Candy Kane
08. Kent - FF
09. Bombshell Rocks - On My Way

Challengers:
01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Thomas Rusiak - Spinning
03. The Mo - The Mo
04. Acorn - One Day
05. User - You Belong

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

Big surprise: Kent won the Music Control Airplay Award for 'Most Played Swedish Artist'.

Randy has revealed that they are finished with their new record "Welfare Problems" and passed the whole thing off to Burning Heart to get in pressed. It's still not due out until April, but here's the track listing:

01. Dirty Tricks
02. A Man in Uniform
03. Bad, Bad, Bad
04. We're All Fucked Up More or Less
05. Cheap Thrills
06. X-ray Eyes
07. Welfare Problems
08. Cheater
09. Ruff Stuff
10. My Heart, My Enemy
11. Devilish
12. Dirty and Cheap

Seven Feet Four have a new album called "Departure/Arrival" coming out on Coalition Records in March, but you can preview the track "Auto Emotion" now. The band will be touring Scandinavia beginning late March and then heading out across Europe in April with JR Ewing.

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 bassist Magnus Olsfelt of the The Crown discussing the songwriting progress on the new album. The band, now reunited with original vocalist Johan Lindstrand after one album utilizing the services of Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates, Skitsystem), have booked time at Studio Fredman in May for their next album. Look for it around early September on Metal Blade Records.

In Flames will be touring the US with Ministry and Mudvayne in March. Dates soon. In other news, Aftonbladet has posted the streaming video of the band's performance from the Rockbjörnen: Real / Quicktime

The Sounds are doing a number of Scandinavian shows before they head over to America for SXSW in March. The dates:

2/7 - Växjö, Kaskad Folkets Park, Popstad
2/8 - Luleå, Kåren
2/12 - Oslo, So What!
2/13 - Sogndal, Mejeriet
2/14 - Bergen, Kvarteret
2/15 - Stavanger, Folken
2/20 - Århus, VoxHall
2/21 - Köpenhamn, Stengade30
2/22 - Roskilde, Gimle
2/26 - Halmstad, Kåren
2/27 - Eskilstuna, Blå
2/28 - Kinna, Överlida
3/1 - Älmhult, Balders Hage

"Batter Check" will the next single from Millencolin, due out in March. The band also has some new dates lined up for around the same time:

3/13 - Stockholm, Arenan
3/14 - Skelefteå, Folkparken
3/21 - Göteborg, Kåren
3/22 - Lund, Mejeriet
3/23 - Oslo, Rockefeller

Esteemed British music mag NME has nominated The Hives for 3 categories in its 2003 Carling Awards. They are 'Best International Band', 'Best Live Band' and 'Best Dressed'. The full list of nominees is here.

The upcoming KVLR tour is coming together quite nicely! Stop by and say hi, why doncha?

3/7 - Santa Cruz, CA - Drop-In Center w/Science of Yabra, The Yellow Press
3/8 - Redding, CA - TBD w/The Yellow Press
3/9 - SF, CA - Club Galia w/Low Rise
3/10 - Huntington Beach, CA - Liquid Den w/The Yellow Press, Taint
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ - Red Room w/The Yellow Press
3/12 - Albuquerque, NM - Burt's Tiki Lounge
3/13 - Austin, TX - SXSW, TFT Records/Better Looking Records Showcase
3/14 - Flagstaff, AZ - Soul Kitchen
3/15 - TBD

Looks like The Soundtrack of Our Lives have been added to the bill of the next Coachella Fest on April 27 and 28. Check the TSOOL US site under 'schedule' for updates.

Peter, Björn and John have lined up the following shows:

1/31 Västerås, Culturen (+Venue & Virtues)
2/1 Stockholm, Debaser
3/28 Hässleholm

The band also says they are planning on doing a new single and video in March.

Download the new video for the song "Eagleheart" from Stratovarius here. Be forewarned, it's a 40+ meg .avi file.

Rumor has it that Motorpsycho will reissue their album "The Tussler" later this year with ten bonus tracks. Apparently it's a soundtrack to the Italian film of the same name and was originally released in 1994.

Some of the bands for the upcoming Emmaboda festival have been announced. The Swedish acts include Doktor Kosmos, Laakso, Whyte Seeds, Speedmarket Avenue, Teenage Idols, Mando Diao and Talking to Teapots. More info here.

Madrugada will doing a tour of Norway right before heading over to the US to play SXSW. The dates:

2/5 - Bredtveit Fengsel, Oslo
2/6 - Hydranten, Hamar
2/7 - Folken, Stavanger
2/8 - Hulen, Bergen
2/9 - Hulen, Bergen
2/13 - Uka 2003, Lillehammer
2/14 - Drammen teater og kulturhus, Drammen
2/15r - Studentenes Hus, Gjøvik
2/18 - Rust Club & Scene, Ørsta
2/19 - Strøget, Tromsø
2/20 - Sinus Bodø
2/21 - Studentersamfunnet, Ås
2/22 - Rockefeller, Oslo

MTVE.com put up the video for "Candy Kane" from Caesars Palace. It's pretty entertaining, so check it out. Nothing like doing donuts in a Volvo, eh?

Sophie Zelmani covers Bob Dylan's song "Most Of The Time" for the soundtrack of the upcoming movie "Masked and Anonymous". The film will star Dylan himself along with John Goodman, Penelope Cruz, Jessica Lange, Luke Wilson and Jeff Bridges. More info here.

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. Melody Club - Music machine
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. Barbados - Rewind
07. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
08. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Thåström - På röda sten
11. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
12. Eric Gadd - Life support
13. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
14. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
15. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Kent - B-sidor 95-00
19. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
20. Roxette - Ballad hits

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

01. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 02. (12) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 04. (02) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 05. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 06. (07) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 07. (NY) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 08. (NY) Coldplay "Clocks" 09. (04) Zwan "Honestly" 10. (06) The Libertines "Time for Heroes"

11. (ÅT) The Knife "Heartbeats" 12. (14) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 13. (NY) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (08) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders" 15. (11) Oasis "Songbird" 16. (09) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (NY) Massive Attack "Special Cases" 18. (10) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On" 19. (NY) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space" 20. (NY) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(13) Mando Diao "The Band"
(15) The Coral "Dreaming of You"
(16) The Hellacopters "Carry Me Home"
(17) The Datsuns "Harmonic Generator"
(18) Echoboy "Automatic Eyes"
(19) The Music "Getaway"
(20) Audio Bullys "We Don't Care"

The Klerks will be appearing on the MTV Nordic program Morning Glory on February 8, 9 and 11. They will perform the single "She, She, She" and do an interview.

Here's the dates for Opeth's upcoming Australian tour:

4/10 - Brisbane, The Arena
4/11 - Melbourne, The Corner
4/12 - Adelaide, Uni Bar
4/13 - Sydney, The Metro

Seen the video for "By the Grace of God" from The Hellacopters yet? Click here.

The Soundtrack of Our Lives has announced the dates for their upcoming US tour:

3/15 - Orlando FL The Social
3/16 - Ft. Lauderdale FL Culture Room
3/18 - Atlanta GA Cotton Club
3/20 - New York NY Irving Plaza
3/21 - Washington DC 9:30 Club
3/22 - Philadelphia PA Theatre of Living Arts
3/23 - Boston MA Paradise
3/24 - Providence RI Met Cafe
3/26 - Ottawa Barrymore's Music Hall
3/27 - Montreal Cafe Campus
3/28 - Toronto Opera House
3/29 - Columbus OH Little Brother
3/31 - Detroit MI Magic Stick
4/2 - Minneapolis MN 400 Bar
4/5 - Denver CO Bluebird
4/8 - San Francisco CA Bimbo's 365 Club
4/10 - Seattle WA Graceland

In a sign of big things to come, The Sounds have two songs featured in the upcoming movie "Final Destination 2", "Dance With Me" and "Rock'n'Roll". As stated before, James Iha's Scratchie Records will be releasing the album in the states. The movie hits US theatres tomorrow.

The Wannadies's full version of the video for "Little by Little" gets its TV premiere on MTV2 at 6:20. They may not be one of my faves, but the video's greatness is undeniable.

Kristofer Åström reports that Fireside has finished up with nine of the songs for the upcoming album and comments "it's turning out really good. I'm satisfied with how it sounds." Eh, not the boldest statement I've heard, but I'm still quite excited for when it finally comes out. Don't forget to download the new track "Throw it Away" if you haven't already.

Bad Taste Records has kindly put up the video for "Playerin" from Last Days of April. Check it: High / Low (Real Media)
Also, if you haven't already done so, vote for the band's video for "All Will Break" on the MTV Up North Chart or check out that mp3 I put up on the right.

Logh will be on P3 Live tonight at 9pm (12 noon Pacific). I plan on recording it, but you can also listen online at the P3 site. (click the link 'Lyssna' in the upper-right)

Hot on the heels of news of their StarEP release, Moneybrother has revealed they are working on a full length for Burning Heart Records. Mainman Anders Wendin (ex-Monster) says that him and producer Jari Haapalainen (The Bear Quartet) have twelve tracks ready to go for a summer release. He's also got an all-star lineup for the backing band: Fredrik Sandsten (The Soundtrack of Our Lives), Magnus Öström (Esbjörn Svensson Trio, Nicolai Dunger's "Soul Rush"), Björn Yttling (Peter, Björn & John, live keyboards for Ceasars Palace), plus Monster's horn section (Viktor Brobacke, Gustav Bendt and Patrick Andersson). The music is decribed as a mix of soul, reggae, and punk - not far from the sound of his old band.

Soviac reports they are finished with the second part of their new recording. They are working at Pelle Gunnerfeldt's Gröndal Studio with Johan Gustavsson (Randy) and Kalle Ohlsson (The Bear Quartet).

The new album from Crystal Committee is now available from Chalksounds and you can download the preview mp3s for "So Sinister" and the title track "Forever Overhead". Described by the label as "A true indierock masterpiece in the vein of Ride, early Starmarket", the band consists of Fredrik from the aforementioned Starmarket with help from Mattias Norlamder (Blithe, Komeda), Kristoffer Larsson (Cobolt) and Pontus Levahn (also in Starmarket).

Also from Chalksounds comes this mp3 from Carpet People. The track is called "A Road Trip" and it comes from the forthcoming album "More Bad Weather Coming Out of the Rain".

LOK has a live album called "Blästrad Levande" coming out on February 24. The recording is from a show in Göteborg last August 14. Preview the cover art here.

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 new mp3 today from Last Days of April. Nice melancholic pop music.

The Sahara Hotnights are coming back to the US. The dates so far: (w/Ikara Colt and Washdown)

2/27, 2003 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
2/28, 2003 Hoboken, NJ Maxwells
3/01, 2003 Philadelphia, PA North Star
3/02, 2003 Washington, DC Black Cat
3/03, 2003 Richmond, VA Alley Katz
3/05, 2003 Atlanta, GA The Echo Lounge
3/06, 2003 Jacksonville, FL Jack Rabbits
3/07, 2003 Orlando, FL The Social
3/14, 2003 Austin, TX Stubb's (SXSW)
3/31, 2003 Detroit, MI The Shelter

And the winners of the Rockbjörnen are...

Best male: Håkan Hellström
Best female: Robyn
Best group: Kent
Best song: Kom igen Lena (Håkan Hellström)
Best album: Vapen och Ammunition (Kent)
Best newcomer: The Sounds

Also from Aftonbladet on occasion of the Rockbjörnen, a transcription of a live chat with The Cardigans. More here. (in Swedish)

Deathprod (Supersilent, ex-Motorpsycho) was interviewed on the BBC Radio 3 program Mixing It yesterday. Listen to an archive of the program here.

Lullacry's new album "Crucify My Heart" will hit North America on April 8from Century Media. The first single already went straight to #5 on the Finnish charts right on its initial release.

The Hellacopters are going on a Scandinavian tour beginning in late February. The dates:

2/27 - Malmö, KB
2/28 - Helsingborg, Tivoli
3/01 - Lund, Blender@Tegnérs Matsalar
3/07 - Halmstad, Diezel
3/08 - Karlskoga, Wictoria
3/11 - Halden (N), Studenthuset
3/12 - Stavanger (N), Folken
3/13 - Oslo (N), Rockefeller
3/14 - Bergen (N), Hulen
3/15 - Trondheim (N), Studentersamfundet
3/26 - Åre, Bygget
3/27 - Sälen, HC
3/28 - Umeå, Umeå Open

Also from The Hellacopters is a new 4-colored, 52-page comicbook called "The Hellacopters - Beamed Into Deep-Space". Honest! Read more from the artist Dennis Eriksson:

You will get a close-up look at The Hellacopters backstage, see them fight and even follow them in space! The band will meet characters like Florinda Flames, Dawn Daggers and The Regulator. They are all featured in my web-comic - Francis Rove. I found the whole concept to fit very well together with The Hellacopters so all I had to do was to introduce the band into the world of Francis Rove!
Henke Walse, who does all of The Hellacopters' prints, thought it'd be a cool idea to do a Hella-comic. Since I've previously been involved with the making of an animated video for the band ("Move Right Outta Here") I felt pretty comfortable with making a Hella-comic. Nicke wanted it to feature a great deal of "rock, space and sci-fi". That was his only request. So keep an eye out for the sequel!!

Get a preview of it here, here, or here.

Check out a profile on the Norweigan singer Solveig Slettahjell right here. Judging from the 30-sec sample, she does that jazzy torch-song kinda thing.

Get a preview of the new single "Daydream Receiver" from Askil Holm.

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.

Download the track "Seashell Eyes" from the new, upcoming Ariel Kill Him album "In the Pyramid". It'll be out in Scandinavia late February on Kasual Records, the rest of the world two months later - unless you mailorder it direct, of course.

Better late than never, here's the Swedish winners of the NRJ Radio Awards:

Best male artist: Håkan Hellström
Best female artist: Robyn
Best group: Kent
Best newcomer: The Sounds
Best song: "Dom andra", Kent

Here's a review and samples of the new album from The Knife (ex-Honey is Cool). I've only listened to it once or twice so far, but I dig it. Fans of that whole 'electroclash' trend should definitely investigate. (in Swedish)