Swedish godfathers of garage-rock The Nomads will celebrate their 25th anniversary this year with a new best-of CD featuring one brand new track, a special show at Gearfest (June 24 @ Debaser in Stockholm) and maybe even a tour. Read more at the band's official site: https://members.chello.se/nomads/
Laakso has reportedly been added to the lineup of the upcoming Great Escape festival in London and is rumored to be playing two additional UK dates on the same trip. Details soon.
The relatively new, but very good music blog The Katapult has posted an excellent summation of the new Montys Loco album: https://thekatapult.blogspot.com/2006/04/montys-loco-man-overboard-nons-2006.html
David's statement "It's a record that at first comes off as nothing special, but just as a seed takes its time to blossom into a wild colourful lovely flower." is dead-on.
French Swedecentric mp3 blog Absolut Noise follows up with Love Is All interview (as linked here last week) with responses from the entire band: https://absolutnoise.blogspot.com/2006/04/absnoise-interview-n1-bis.html
Iisole, one of the many young promising acts I posted about last week, will be contributing a track to a 12" comp of European noiserock being compiled by the very excellent Swedish label Jezebel Recordings. Hopefully I'll be able to get the full tracklist soon.
Noxagt's forthcoming self-titled album, their third overall, will be out May 30 on US label Load Records. Look for US and European tourdates to be confirmed soon.
Bates Motel is saying that Recall Records has signed Norwegian singer/songwriter Thomas Dybdahl for the US.
Cake on Cake (aka Helena Sundin) will be releasing her second album this coming fall and has already posted a few preview tracks at myspace: https://www.myspace.com/cakeoncake
Helena also reports that she will be contributing track to an upcoming weird-folk/experimental compilation being put together by Tract Records entitled "What are the museums doing?" It should be out later this month.
The April edition of Famous for 15mb is now online and featuring selections from Scandinavian artists Fujasaki, VLDGMN, Now, Norra Varlinge Beast, His Hands Were Tiny And So She Said, Praktkopia and many more from all over the world: https://www.famousfor15mb.com/
Mute has signed The Knife and will release their latest record "Silent shout" in the US on July 25. They will also release a single for the title track on June 27 on both CD and 12" vinyl. No word of any tourdates yet, but I wouldn't hold your breath.
Could there be a more perfect show than The Ark playing Gay Pride in San Francisco? Nope, I think not. Some new US tourdates for the band:
06/21 - The Troubadour, LA
06/23 - Cafe Du Nord, San Francisco
06/25 - Gay Pride Day (Outside stage), SF
06/26 - Schubas, Chicago
06/28 - Bowery Ballroom, New York
06/30 - TT The Bears, Boston
MP3: The Tiny - Kind of like you
I absolutely love The Tiny's first album "Closer". Vocalist Ellekari's childlike voice and the group's intimate chamber-pop arrangements aren't just befitting to their name, they are beautiful and touching. Seeing them perform at Umeå Open was even better as their copious charms spilled freely from the stage into the audience. It's no wonder then that I was tremendously excited to hear their follow-up record "Starring; someone like you", but I'm sorry to say that my excitement faded quickly once I actually heard it. It's not that the record is bad (it's not), but this new recording has destroyed so much of what made The Tiny special. Layers of unnecessary instrumentation. Extraneous sound effects. Over-baked. What happened to The Tiny that I used to love? I used to feel a close kinship with you, but now you're pushing me away. The band I once knew is still there - I know because I can still hear it on songs like the one I've posted today, but our relationship has changed. Maybe we just need some time apart, but I tell you what: I'll be here waiting for you when you decide to come back.
The Tiny - Kind of like you
Asha Ali
Warm fronts
NONS
Please someone pass me the bourbon to go with this record... oh and get me a cigar, book me into a New York City hotel, get me a seat by the window and let classically trained, north Stockholm resident Asha Ali be playing. Simplistic electric piano, plucked acoustic guitar, minimal backing harmonies and accompaniment is the recipe, deviated upon on one track "Just a light touch" which features some vibraphone/organ/accordion. She does the singer/songwriter thing, but with more instrumentation and sullen tones. Ali's pitches can at times reach The Tiny or Montys Loco quality, but cuts above as she manages not to warble or become too overly sentimental. An outstandingly worked EP that is sure to keep doing me in.
- Jason Christie
Holy Madre
s/t
NONS
On their website, Holy Madre describe themselves as making "popmusic that sounds like a mixture of Fleetwood Mac, The Boss, Pink Floyd, television-shows for children and Bryan Adams," which I suspect may be Swedish for "run screaming in the opposite direction." It's true that much of this record of quiet restrained melodies would have fit just fine on 1970s album-oriented radio, somewhere between Al Stewart and Steely Dan, but the rest offers moments far more compelling. The strongest songs are "Shallow bay," a fun romp not unlike early Jayhawks without the harmonies and "The sun," with more of a late 60s almost Beach Boys feel. Other songs have their moments, but as a whole the record falls short and, by the final third, vacillates between boring and annoying.
- Nancy Baym
Jomi Massage
From where no one belongs, I will sing
Morningside Records
Jomi Massage transports you to the type of place that I like: a dark, claustrophobic, yet beautiful landscape. It is like stepping into a Tim Burton movie where he finally decided to wise up and let go of Danny Elfman. The range of emotion displayed is just as wide as film scores tend to be and goes from the sadly melancholic to happy-pissed off to depressingly lovelorn. The closest thing I could compare this to is the most depressing PJ Harvey records, but Jomi Massage also has a rock side that is sprinkled throughout the record. The music uses every instrumentation technique in the book, from a capella to straight rock to minimalist electronics. This is a very good record and effective, if a little too overproduced in parts, but certainly the type of record that I find pleasing to my ears.
- Simon Thibaudeau