Festival preview: Accelerator

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Måns Zelmerlöw - Stand by for...
02. Oh Laura - A song inside my head, a demon in my bed
03. Sarah Dawn Finer - A finer dawn
04. Tommy Körberg - Rakt upp och ner
05. Markoolio - Värsta Plattan
06. Sahara Hotnights - What if leaving is a loving thing
07. Danny - Heart beats
08. Mustasch - Latest version of the truth
09. The Ark - Prayer for the weekend
10. Streaplers - Bästa!
11. Sonja Aldén - Till dig
12. Neverstore - Sevenhundred Sundays
14. Sofia Karlsson - Visor från vinden
15. Cornelis Vreeswijk - CV - Det bästa med Cornelis Vreeswijk
16. Eldkvarn - Svart blogg
17. Takida - Bury the lies
18. Torgny Melin - Allting som vi har
19. The Tough Alliance - A new chance
20. Salem Al Fakir - This is who I am

The Tough Alliance
A new chance
Sincerely Yours

Composed of big 80s beats reminiscent of Peter Gabriel, UB40, and, to some extent, Madness, yet remaining distinctly a product of Gothenburg's electro scene, woven together with exceptional production, and as insinuating as a guilty pleasure, "A new chance" is a damned accomplished sophomore record. Infectiously sunny, but still subtle and complex, The Tough Alliance have crafted what is sure to be one of the standout albums of the summer, if not the year. Assembled around the hope that "every day is a new chance, a new romance," the songs on the record flow seamlessly together in their thematic explorations, further strengthening the record. There's not a single composition that I dislike, not even the kitschy, 90s-esque "Miami". Even the order of the tracks is faultless making it a record that can be enjoyed start to finish without any skipping. Summer hasn't technically started, a few weeks remain between us and the solstice, but I'd be rather surprised if I am not still listening to this fine album at a respectable frequency when autumn's chill reenters the evening air.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Danny - Heart beats
02. Sarah Dawn Finer - A finer dawn
03. Måns Zelmerlöw - Stand by for...
04. Oh Laura - A song inside my head, a demon in my bed
05. Tommy Körberg - Rakt upp och ner
06. Mustasch - Latest version of the truth
07. Markoolio - Värsta Plattan
08. Sofia Karlsson - Visor från vinden
09. Sonja Aldén - Till dig
10. The Ark - Prayer for the weekend
11. Sahara Hotnights - What if leaving is a loving thing
12. Torgny Melin - Allting som vi har
14. Nationalteaterns Rockorkester - Live 2006
15. Takida - Bury the lies
16. Cornelis Vreeswijk - CV - Det bästa med Cornelis Vreeswijk
17. Eldkvarn - Svart blogg
18. Salem Al Fakir - This is who I am
19. The Tough Alliance - A new chance
20. Timbuktu - Oberoendeframkalland

London-based mag Plan B will host the Taken By Trees record release show at The Spitz on June 18. As mentioned before, Taken By Trees is the new solo act of ex-Concrete Victoria Bergsman and her debut album "Open field" will be released that same day via Rough Trade. As a side note, Eric Berglund from The Tough Alliance will be one of the guest DJs at the gig as well.

Tack!Tack!Tack! will play host to a Sincerely Yours label night when they welcome back The Tough Alliance plus guests The Honeydrips at the Social in London on July 2. Will TTA do more than "perform" to their CD? Wait and see.

Listmania! 2007 so far

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Måns Zelmerlöw - Stand by for...
02. Oh Laura - A song inside my head, a demon in my bed
03. Svenska Akademien - Gör det ändå
04. The Ark - Prayer for the weekend
05. Mustasch - Latest version of the truth
06. Sonja Aldén - Till dig
07. Takida - Bury the lies
08. Sahara Hotnights - What if leaving is a loving thing
09. Cornelis Vreeswijk - CV - Det bästa med Cornelis Vreeswijk
10. Nanne - Jag måste kyssa dig
11. Sofia Karlsson - Visor från vinden
12. Markoolio - Värsta Plattan
14. Eldkvarn - Svart blogg
15. The Tough Alliance - A new chance
16. Salem Al Fakir - This is who I am
17. Marie Lindberg - Trying to recall
18. Sonata Arctica - Unia
19. Shout Out Louds - Our ill wills
20. Lillasyster - Hjärndöd musik för en hjärndöd generation

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

01. Shout Out Louds
02. The Arcade Fire
03. Arctic Monkeys
04. Björk
05. Of Montreal
06. The National
07. Feist
08. The Tough Alliance
09. Modest Mouse
10. Radiohead

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

MP3: The Tough Alliance - Something special

As provocateurs, The Tough Alliance has few peers. At least in the complacent Swedish indie/pop world - they've got a long way to go before they reach KLF or Men's Recovery Project levels of subversiveness, but I applaud them for trying. Musically, it barely even matters. Their reputation and notoriety is based far more on shtick than on anything they've committed to tape. On the other hand, "A new chance" shows a tremendous amount of growth and opening track "Something special" is the first time I've ever heard TTA open their mouths without making me cringe (hence my ready appreciation of the instrumental and new-agey "Escaping our ambitions" from last year). They move beyond their usual snotty Göteborg indie-gone-electro sound by spicing it up with bits of Middle Eastern samples and much-improved drum machine programming. And finally, vocals that actually approach tunefulness.
As a whole, the record is tailormade for summer listening. The sonic palette screams "island"-preset, if such a thing exists. Cheesy synths, steel drums, and so on - think "Kokomo". There's even a semi-decent reggae track ("Looking for gold") which may call to mind UB40, for better or worse. I'm surprised to find myself enjoying it as much as I do, though that might not really be all that much. I will say this however: The Embassy has some serious catching up to do.

The Tough Alliance - Something special

This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Takida - Bury the lies
02. Mustasch - Latest version of the truth
03. The Ark - Prayer for the weekend
04. Cornelis Vreeswijk - CV - Det bästa med Cornelis Vreeswijk
05. Sonja Aldén - Till dig
06. Sofia Karlsson - Visor från vinden
07. Sahara Hotnights - What if leaving is a loving thing
08. Nanne - Jag måste kyssa dig
09. The Tough Alliance - A new chance
10. Lillasyster - Hjärndöd musik för en hjärndöd generation
11. Markoolio - Värsta Plattan
12. Eldkvarn - Svart blogg
14. Jimmy Jansson - Sån e jag
15. Sonic Syndicate - Only inhuman
16. Shout Out Louds - Our ill wills
17. The Boppers - 30
18. Vikingarna - Bästa kramgoa låtarna 2
19. Marie Lindberg - Trying to recall
20. Salem Al Fakir - This is who I am

Pitchfork does the Forkcast thing with The Tough Alliance: http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/download/42676-the-tough-alliance-first-class-riot-video-silly-crimes-video-mp3

The Lovekevins
VS. the snow
Songs I Wish I Had Written

One thing I like about this this album is that it's a grower, I just don't seem to be able to get bored of it, no matter how many times I play it. The lyrics are also worth their word count in gold. "Tamagotchi freestyle", for example, contains the superb lines "For what it's worth I know it's hard to stay, every day we miss you, Leila K". Lovekevins sound a bit like the love child of The Tough Alliance and The Radio Dept., which isn't as freakish as it sounds. No, it's very catchy, fresh, pleasant and I think now is the time for you to go and visit their Myspace page and give them a little listen (before you buy this CD).
- Simon Tagestam

New track from The Tough Alliance over at Disco Belle: http://www.discobelle.net/2007/04/24/first-class-riot/

Last night's playlist for my show on Sirius Blog Radio:

01. Isolation Years - Yellow cross on blue
02. TALK 1
03. Johndoe - Nattskift
04. Montys Loco - Wasteland
05. Once We Were - Cut corners
06. TALK 2
07. [ingenting] - Mycket vasen for ingenting
08. Margaret Berger - Robot song
09. Namur - Marching
10. Lampshade - New legs
11. TALK 3
12. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
13. Mixtapes & Cellmates - Quiet
14. Fattaru - 100:-
15. Juvelen - Hanna
16. TALK 4
17. Säkert! - Allt som är ditt
18. Sonores - 16th of June
19. Detektivbyrån - E18
20. TALK 5
21. At the Gates - The swarm
22. Barra Head - Kill the lights
23. TALK 6
24. The Tough Alliance - Leg 7
25. Torpedo - My evil twin
26. Alog - Catch that totem!
27. TALK 7
28. Valley Days - 10k angels
29. A-ha - Celice
30. Victims - Who the fuck are we?
31. TALK 8
32. The Vicious - Alienated
33. Viola - Unreal life
34. Zweizz - Nowadays the only boring everything is so frustrating
35. Viktor Sjöberg - Winter guitars
36. TALK 9
37. Closer - The talker
38. Aerial - My god, it's full of stars!
39. The Kissaway Trail - La la song
40. Laakso - Italy vs Helsinki
41. The Psyke Project - Panic
42. TALK 10
43. C.Aarmé - We are the world

Next week: expect lots more killer jams including totally a brand new track from Closer and maybe even a spotlight set on post-rock/ambient music. Good times!