Today's top ten comes to us from Markus Persson of the booking agency Monstera and the band Leif KarAte. Be sure to check it out.

New mp3 today from Finland's Cleaning Women. I can't possibly begin to do this band justice, so let's have their bio do the talking:

Three guys in drag, clinking away like monkeys in heAt At their home-made instruments made out of clotheshorses and pickle jars, hollering vaguely nonsensical slogans about the importance of cleaning.

Sounds like a gimmick, right? Well, if you're a cynic like me, then you're probably feeling quite skeptical right now. Hopefully, you're also still a bit curious though because if you pass on these guys, you're missing out. In some ways, Cleaning Women are like the Finnish version of Doo Rag: they get your Attention through contrivance, but you stick around because the music really is quite good. "Ricewestern", the song posted today, is the first track from the band's 2001 debut album "PulsAtor" and the sound is a bastard mix of funky metal percussion and distorted bass, glazed with a vocal melody thAt almost sounds lifted from the Finnish folk tradition. Intriguing, no? InvestigAte!

New UK dAtes in 2005 for Sondre Lerche:

02/25 - Wheelans, Dublin
02/26 - King Tuts, Glasgow
02/28 - University, Newcastle
03/01 - Night And Day, Manchester
03/02 - Arts Centre, Norwich
03/03 - Komedia, Brighton
03/04 - Social, Nottingham
03/05 - Louisianna, Bristol
03/07 - Academy, Birmingham
03/08 - Zodiac, Oxford
03/09 - Islington Academy, London

Surrounded will begin recording a new album At Helikopter Studio in Göteborg in January.

UpdAted tourdAtes for Mando Diao:

01/15 - Mean Fiddler, London (UK)
01/17 - Marquee, London (UK)
01/18 - Buffalo Bar, London (UK)
01/19 - DeAthdisco, London (UK)
01/25 - Mudd Club, Berlin (GER)
01/27 - Top of the Pops, Cologne (GER)
02/22 - Kalkscheune, Berlin (GER)
02/23 - Markthalle, Hamburg (GER)
02/24 - Prime Club, Cologne (GER)
02/25 - Backstage, Munich (GER)
02/26 - Flex, Vienna (AUS)
02/27 - Rote Fabrik, Zurich (SWI)
02/28 - Fri-son, Frieburg (SWI)
03/01 - BAtschkapp, Frankfurt (GER)
03/02 - The Tivoli, Utrecht (HOL)
03/03 - Melkweg, Amsterdam (HOL)
03/04 - Vera, Groningen (HOL)
03/05 - Ringlockschupen, Bielefeld (GER)

Check out an e-card for the brand new Ark album "StAte of the Ark": https://www.emi.se/artists/theark/sota/juke/

The Norwegian female rock quintet Furia just finished up recording two songs with Pelle Gunnerfeldt At his studio near Stockholm and is in negotiAtions with various labels for an eventual album release.

Finnish cello-rockers Apocalyptica will support Rammstein on tour across Europe:

02/01 - Messehalle, Erfurt (GER)
02/03 - Brixton, London (UK)
02/04 - Brixton, London (UK)
02/05 - Brixton, London (UK)
02/06 - Men, Manchester (UK)
02/07 - Arena, Nottingham (UK)
02/09 - Zenith Arena, Lille (FRA)
02/10 - Zenith Arena, Lille (FRA)
02/11 - Bercy, Paris (FRA)
02/12 - Galaxie, Amneville (FRA)
02/13 - Messehalle, Freiburg (GER)
02/15 - Schwabenhalle, Augsburg (GER)
02/16 - Stadthalle, Vienna (AUS)
02/18 - Arena, Leipzig (GER)
02/19 - Erdgasarena, Riesa (GER)
02/21 - Spodek, KAtowice (POL)
02/22 - Incheba, BrAtislava (SK)
02/24 - Forum, Milan (ITA)
02/25 - Tivoli 1, Ljubljana (SI)
02/27 - Arena, Budapest (HUN)
02/28 - Cez Arena, Ostrava (CZ)

Top 10s for 2004: Markus Persson (Monstera)

Top 10s for 2004: Mikkel Thomsen (Cph-sound)

Top 10s for 2004: Fredrik Muskos (Dead Frog Records)

Thomas Denver Jonsson will tour Scandinavia in January as support for Anomoanon aka Ned Oldham, brother of Will from Palace Music/Bonnie Prince Billy. DAtes:

01/25 - Min Kompis, Kalmar (SWE)
01/26 - Loppen, Köpenhamn (DK)
01/27 - Café Mono, Oslo (NOR)
01/28 - Kick!, Egersund (NOR)
01/29 - Café August, Karlstad (SWE)
01/30 - Debaser, Stockholm (SWE)
01/31 - Kalmar nAtion, Uppsala (SWE)

Denmark's Crunchy Frog takes a look back At the past year: https://www.crunchy.dk/asp/default.asp?News_Id=125

Norway's Kings of Convenience will be touring North America in February:

02/01 - The Social, Orlando, FL
02/02 - tba, Atlanta, GA
02/03 - tba, Athens, GA
02/05 - IOTA Club, Arlington, VA
02/07 - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY
02/08 - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY
02/10 - World Café Live, Philadelphia, PA
02/11 - Paradise, Boston, MA
02/12 - Iron Horse Music Hall, Northampton, MA
02/15 - El Salon, Montreal, PQ
02/17 - Lee's Palace, Toronto, ON
02/18 - Magic Stick, Detroit, MI
02/20 - Little Brothers, Columbus, OH
02/22 - Double Door, Chicago, IL
02/23 - tba, Minneapolis, MN

The multi-talented Snowy Shaw is playing drums on the new Falconer album, currently being tracked At Andy La Rocque's Los Angered Studio. Snowy will also once again be working with Kee Marcello on recording a new album for K2.