Here are the winners of the 2012 Manifest award, Sweden's indie/alternative Grammy:
Folk/Ballad: Siri Karlsson - Gran Fuego ()
Experimental: Hanna Hartman - H ^ 2 ()
Punk: Obnoxious Youth - The Eternal Void ()
Dance: Jonsson/Alter - Samlad årsproduktion ()
Hardrock: Opeth - Heritage ()
Rhythm: Simone Moreno - Planetas ()
Singer/Songwriter/Country/Americana: Ane Brun - It All Start With One ()
Rock: Pascal/Mattias Alkberg - Allt det här ()
Best Unsigned: Death By Armborst
Jazz: Jonas Holgersson - Snick Snack ()
Hip-Hop: Mofeta & Jerre - Briljanter & Smaragder ()
Synth: Necro Facility - Wintermute ()
Pop: Azure Blue - Rule of thirds ()
Best live act: This is Head ()
SKAP/Manifest Prize for best lyrics: Philip Ekström - Det Vackra Livet ()
SKAP/Manifest Prize for best composer: Maria Lindén - I Break Horses ()
Manifest Prize for best indie: Popkollo
Swedish highlights from Gaffa SE's top 30 albums of 2011:
3. Mattias Alkberg - Anarkist (Teg Publishing/)
4. Anna Järvinen - Anna själv tredje (/)
5. Skriet - Det Beslutande Organet (/)
8. Invasionen - Saker som jag sagt till natten (/)
12. Graveyard - Hisingen Blues (/)
14. Deportees - Islands & Shores (/)
16. I Break Horses - Hearts (/)
18. The Field - Looping State of Mind (/)
20. Syket - With Love (/)
21. Jonathan Johansson - Klagomuren (/)
28. Movits! - Ut ur min skalle (/)
29. Det Vackra Livet - Det Vackra Livet (/)
30. Ison & Fille - För evigt (/)
The debut video from I Break Horses, the new Swedish band featuring Maria Lindén of Blackstrap as first reported about here. Look for their debut album "Hearts" to be released later this year via . Direct link: http://vimeo.com/23403268
Danish act Treefight For Sunlight has been picked up by UK label who will be releasing their first international single "What became of you and I" on December 13.
Danish artist Our Broken Garden will release her sophomore album "Golden sea" on October 18 via in the UK and at home. Hear the first single "Garden grow" at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/ourbrokengarden
Swedish indie/shoegazers I Break Horses are streaming a new track at myspace, the first fully mixed sample off their forthcoming debut on : http://www.myspace.com/ibreakhorsesandhearts I Break Horses features Maria Lindén from the similarly-minded act Blackstrap who will reportedly have a new single of their own sometime around October.
Let's get this out of the way: Danish band The Kissaway Trail owes a good deal of their sound to Arcade Fire. No... make that a great deal. From lush orchestral movements, to their pendent for melodramatic swells punctuated with non-specific "ooohh ohh ohhs", Win Butler and the gang seep though the holes of nearly every track. It may come as a surprise then, that The Kissaway Trail's sophomore effort "Sleep mountain" comes off significantly more than a simple "Neon Bible"-retread. Marrying electronics to dense instrumentals, they've managed to create an album that timelessly reflects the intermingled sorrow and optimism of youth.
With vocal styles that sound not unlike Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips, co-lead men Thomas Fagerlund and Søren Corneliussen lead the charge though eleven tracks, their Bright Eyes-style emotive phrasing adding gravity to melancholic paean "New year" and helping transform Neil Young cover "Philadelphia" into a multi-layered, wandering daydream. Unafraid to un-ironically dip into Loney Dear-style sincerity on "Beat your heartbeat" and "New lipstick", it's difficult not to get swept up in their unabashed romanticism. Arcade Fire may have gotten there first, but The Kissaway Trail is here to stay. - Laura Studarus
Ja Ja Ja February showcase has been confirmed for February 25 and will feature Ungdomskulen, Vuk and The Good the Bad, as selected by curator Simon Raymonde (). Read more: http://www.jajajamusic.com/spotlight.php?id=26
Apparently the April show will feature all metal acts, as chosed by Alexander Milas of Metal Hammer.
The Kissaway Trail