has announced that they will be releasing new singles from both Miss Li and The Baboon Show on May 30. Miss Li's track is called "My heart goes boom" and comes off her upcoming album, due out in September along with extensive touring and so on. As for The Baboon Show, their tune is called "Dancehall Killers" and is the first taste of the band's next album which is coming this fall. Hear more new stuff (Little Marbles, Kristian Anttila) from at SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/national
Synth: Code 64 - Trialogue () Cryo - Hidden Aggression () Page - Nu () Social Ambitions - Almost gone ()
Hardrock/Metal: Ghost - Opus Eponymous () Watain - Lawless Darkness () Khoma - A final storm () Dark Tranquility - We are the void ()
Rhythm: Haci Tekbilek - Türlü () Helt Off - Marknadens Soldat () Million Stylez - Everyday () Serengeti - Standing Steady ()
Jazz: Elin Larsson Group - Live and Alive () Lekverk - Everyday () NEO (Nässjö Extreme Orchestra) - NEO () The Country - The Country ()
Punk/Hardcore Antipati - Frågor som rör det allmänna () Hårda Tider - Gatan Kallar () Old Fashioned Ideas - We're in this shit together () The Baboon Show - Punk Rock harbour ()
Hip-Hop: Academics - Tare Lugnt 4 () Carlito - Guldburen () PH3 - Löser ett fall () Zacke - Visst är det vackert ()
Rock: Bad Hands - Take The Money And Run () Dundertåget - Dom feta åren är förbi () Pascal - Orkanen närmar sig () The Bear Quartet - Monty Python ()
Folk/Visa: Anders Svensson, Magnus Gustafsson, Susanne Gustafsson, Anders Löfberg, Jörgen Svensson - Bålgetingen, Låtar efter August Strömberg () Mats Edén, Daniel Sandén-Warg, Leif Stinnerbom, Magnus Stinnerbom - Anno 2010 () OK Star Orchestra - Sound Classique () Ola Magnell - Rolös ()
Experimental: Ombudsman - And His Father Was A Great Machine () Erik Enocksson - Man tänker sitt () Leif Jordansson - The Comet / The Doll Maker () New Tango Orquesta - Vesper ()
Singer/Songwriter: I'm Kingfisher - Arctic () Daniel Norgren - Horrifying Death Eating Blood Spider () The Tarantula Waltz - Did Not Leave To Find But To Forget, To Leave Behind () The Tallest Man On Earth - Wild Hunt ()
Best live act: Anna Von Hausswolff The Tallest Man On Earth Masshysteri Robyn
Best unsigned act (in collaboration w/P3 Lab): Alice B Katakomb Ascend Broken Boys
Winners will be announced at a ceremony on February 4 at Nalen in Stockholm. More info: http://www.manifestgalan.se/
If System of a Down appeared in the '60s, prior to the invention of super-heavy distortion, this is probably what they would sound like. Swedish quartet NEI take that style and make it their own, offering an eccentric and upbeat collection of songs that envelops the sounds of the '60s in a pseudo-punk meets Queens Of The Stone Age infused veil. While this is far from a metal album, it's also quite reminiscent of Entombed's polarizing "Same difference" opus, the album that found the Swedish death metal stalwarts relinquish their characteristic grinding guitar tone in favor of a more alternative warmth. "New agenda" even offers whole chunks of music that wouldn't sound out of place on "SD" in terms of song construction and guitar sound -- take "The destroyer man" and "Hello" as prime examples. Variety comes in abundance on this album with a perfect amalgam of styles and a wealth of tempo changes, and it makes this one of the most enjoyable and exciting albums to emerge from Sweden in a long time. It must be said that it's a grower, though. First listen doesn't really make that much of an impression but on successive spins it gradually reveals its true genius. For the most part it's airy and driving with occasional pensive moments placed sparingly to inject a cool dynamic into the mix. A brilliant album indeed! One minor point, though: guys, what's with the 'cabaret-magician-meets-original-series-Star Trek' outfits? Jeez! - John Norby
Love her or hate her, Miss Li has proven herself one of the more prolific Swedish acts of recent memory. Personally, there is something about her music -- the strangely functional blend of theatrical, cabaret-like eccentrics, her voice that simultaneously holds the innocence of a child and the wisdom of a young woman who grew up rather quickly -- that draws me in, sometimes quite against my own will. Miss Li covers a lot of ground on this celebration of a year's worth of her music: "Seems like we lost it" would not feel particularly out of place on the soundtrack to "American Graffiti"; "Leave my man alone" has a peculiarly Eastern European feel to it; and "I'm sorry, he's mine" seems to find a convergence point between the two previously discussed tracks, working in the Old World European elements into a 50s American musical vehicle. If you can fall in love with her quirks, Miss Li is a richly rewarding pop musician -- not just in her voice or her skillful musicianship, but in the amount of personality and fun that she imbues her compositions with. - Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
A garment woven from fraying, lonely threads, "The tarantula waltz" is an exploration to be placed alongside Vetiver's "To find me gone" or a strange collaboration of Songs:Ohia and Nick Drake. Instead of exploring the emptiness at the heart of many of their songs, The Tarantula Waltz survey emptiness slowly filled by guitars and voices, by strings and melodies. Far from a cheery record, it isn't terribly depressing either, merely contemplative and pregnant with pauses and silences - very much a canvas that can be painted by the world of the listener. I can imagine "The tarantula waltz" being a dark indulgence during this cold, dark, nearly claustrophobic winter season, and a warm, thoughtful recess during summer's lengthy, sun soaked days. All in all, there's as much honesty as there is twang in this record, like Johnny Cash held to the building pace of Sigur Rós. Definitely worth looking into. - Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson
National have become known mostly for being a reissue label, be it Allan Edwall or Pugh Rogefeldt. And when they do sign a band that still exists, they usually are a bit dull to be frank. Alice In Videoland is no exception. I guess AiV going for some kind of Fischerspooner-ish electroclash, but the production sounds cheap and out of date. Come on man, it's fucking 2005, not 1985. However, lead singer Toril Lindqvist was voted 73'd sexiest woman by sleazy magazine Slitz and that's got to count for something, huh? - Johanna Smith
NEI
Miss Li
The Tarantula Waltz
