Top 10s for 2005: Tomas Halberstad (Punk of Country)
This made my 2005:
01. Birds are singing deep within the greenery - Bear Quartet (Song)
This must be the best song ever.
02. Tripper - Efterklang (Album, 2004)
Made my entire winter 2004/2005. Driving around at night in the empty, industrial areas of Hising Island.
03. Ola Borgström, Service (Person)
Intelligent and driven and one who I think will be looked back on as a catalyst for Swedish popular music in the twenty-first century.
04. Tri Repetae - Autechre (Album, 1995)
I can't believe this album is ten years old. I this year got my first car with a decent stereo and rediscovered this album. Excellent car music. Excellent music. Modern music.
05. Hemstad (Band, Entire Mp3:catalouge)
Sweden seem to at any given time have one, just one, really great instrumental rock band. Hemstad is at the moment running the relay for the yellow and blue.
06. Mikrofonkåt - Fredrik Strage (Book, 2001)
Swedish hip-hop, up until 2001, for dummies.
07. Mew and the glass handed kites - Mew (Album)
The fact that they dared to do this album puts them on my list. Like it or not, it's not what you expect.
08. One Thing - Amerie (polyphonic ring tone)
One summer morning, again in a car in the industrial areas of Hising Island, watching the sun rise to a clear blue sky, I heard this song on the radio. I downloaded the ring tone (polyphonic) because fast R'nB tracks tend to sound best as ring tones... you hear them best when the phone is crammed in your pants (have no idea why).
This song is as we say in Sweden; svängig. Which I guess translates best to groovy or; it has a groove to it. Ok, in come the German ring tone makers. I have never heard a stiffer version of any song, ever. It's hilarious!
09. Dotshop.se (internet music shop)
The best way to find new music.
10. Apply some pressure - Maximo Park (song)
When it came out, I loved it. When the album surfaced, not so much. But you shouldn't judge a person by its friends. Alone he or she can be really lovable. In saying that, I hope someone covers this song and gives it a better home.
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Tomas and his band are currently putting the finishing touches on their second album, tentatively due out March 2006.
www.punkofcountry.com