Added a new mp3 today from Last Days of April. Their latest album "Ascend to the Stars" just came out over here in the US and the track "Playerin" is easily my favorite from that release. In fact, it was my favorite summer single last year. Y'know those songs you sometimes hear on the radio around this time of year that seem to embody the essence of summertime? That song fits the bill perfectly. And as for this year, my pick (so far) would probably have to be "Reconsider Me" from Moneybrother. I figure y'all were just dying to know.

Otherwise, there's probably not going to be much news today as everyone is at Hultsfred fest it seems. Wish I was. Check out the Dagensskiva special on the event. Oh, and check out www.hultsfred.tv for more, too.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Outlandish - Guantanamo
03. A-Teens - Perfect Match
04. Turbonegro - Fuck The World
05. The Cardigans - You´re The Storm
06. Kashmir - Rocket Brothers
07. Her Majesty - F.U.N.E.R.A.L
08. C21 - She Cries
09. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
10. Da Buzz - Alive
11. Equicez - Live From Pass It
12. HIM - Funeral of hearts
13. Mando Diao - Sheepdog
14. Antique - Moro Mou
15. Melody Club - Cover Girl
16. Darude - Music
17. The Narcissists - Fanatik R.I.P
18. Jon - This Side Up
19. Dallas Superstars - Fast Driving
20. The Klerks - Shame

Challengers:
01. Paula Lobos - Fuss & Fight
02. User - Do You
03. Ingrid Marguerite - Everything I Need
04. Bad Cash Quartet - Dirty Days
05. Superheroes - Someone Else

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Download the free, electronic Diskodiktator single for the track "Just Say 'No' to Democrazy!". A video for the song, his first one ever, is in the making. The full-length album "The World According To..." isn't out quite yet, but is already available for preorder.

Voidfaith Netzine has posted an interview with my pals KVLR. (in Swedish)

The Alpine, Moi Caprice, Baal, and Figurines are a couple of the bands confirmed for the Sydslesvig-Rocks in Schleswig, Germany on August 23.

Here's the full schedule for this weekend's Norweigan Wood Festival.

Norweigan jazz vocalist Silje Nergaard has been nominated for the Edison Jazz Award, which will be presented at the upcoming North Sea Jazz Festival on July 11-13. Other nominees for the award include Cassandra Wilson, Diana Krall and Jimmy Scott. More info here: http://www.edisonaward.nl/Jazz/

And speaking of Norweigan jazz, acclaimed saxophonist Jan Garbarek will be on the BBC's Radio 3 Jazz on 3 radio show tomorrow at 11:30pm local time.

Since they didn't manage to send it to me yesterday as planned (ahem.), here's the rest of the playlist from the Galaxy Gramophone DJ night:

They also pass along word that they are encouraging more people to send them music to play, along with t-shirts to wear while spinning and whatever. Um, so like, send your goods to me and I'll make sure they get them, right? But seriously - if you're interested in sending stuff just drop me a line and I'll put you in touch.

Lambgoat.com reports that The Great Deceiver (Tomas from At the Gates/Skitsystem + members of Diabolique) will be touring Europe in October/November along with Swedish metal-wannabees Darkest Hour.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Carola - Guld platina & passion - det bästa
02. Tomas Ledin - I sommarnattens ljus
03. Pugh Rogefeldt - Pughs bästa
04. Tommy Körberg - Gränslös - det bästa med
05. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
06. Robert Wells - Rhapsody in rock the complete collection
07. Da Buzz - More than alive
08. Alcazar - Alcazarized
09. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
10. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
11. Timbuktu - The botten is nådd!
12. Moneybrother - Blood panic
13. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
14. Style, Sandelin & Ekman, Freestyle - Samlade hits
15. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
16. v/a - Fame factory visor
17. Martin Nilsson - En del av mig
18. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
19. Eddie Meduza - Live(s)!
20. v/a - Fame Factory volym 5

Entombed has been forced to cancel their appearance at the BW&BK 6-Pack Weekend in Cleveland, Ohio on June 13-14 after drummer Peter Stjärnvind's wife was hospitalized. The cause of her ailments are still undiagnosed and of course Peter wishes to remain with her at this time. Guitarist Alex Hellid commented, "Peter is really upset by this. He doesn't want to be the cause of us not playing. We all know how important this show is/was. We are really sorry, for the fans and for ourselves, because we really wanted to play." Alex and frontman L.G. Petrov still plan to be in attendance at the fest to sign autographs and meet with fans. Other bands still scheduled to play include Evergrey, Trouble and Candlemass.

Nightwish has added a second date to their short US/N. American itinerary. After playing the ProgPower Festival in Atlanta on September 5 and at The Medley in Montreal, Canada on September 6, the band will play L'Amour in Brooklyn, NY on the 7th.

Last Days of April's most recent album "Ascend to the Stars" just got a US release on Crank! Records this week and they've put up quite a few samples from the album on this page. Also, in cooperation with Now On Tour, they have an online contest where you can win a copy of said album along with a poster.

In case you didn't know, Entombed's new album "Inferno" has been delayed for August 4. It seems the reason behind the change is that their label Music for Nations's parent company Zomba was bought out by BMG and they had to shift the entire release schedule. Anyhow, they still have a couple gigs this summer and plan to start touring for the record around the same time it gets released. They'll also be filming a video for the track "Retaliation" later this week.

Opeth reports that their upcoming co-headlining tour with Porcupine Tree will feature their more mellow material, as they are supporting the new, mostly-acoustic "Damnation" album. They say they may even bust out the old song "To Bid You Farewell" from "Morningrise" among other ballad-esque tracks. In other touring news, they say they are working on a Scandinavian tour for October and November. Details when I get 'em.

The Ark will be playing Germany next week and their show on June 7 will be webcasted by Rockpalast. You can also participate in a live chat with the band on the same date from right here.

Musicbrigade and Startracks have put up a couple videos for public viewing:

Buck - Dead Time Race
Revolvo - Moscow Mule

JR Ewing has announced they will supporting Mars Volta for two UK gigs:

07/08 - Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth
07/09 - Electric Ballroom, London

Some of the new acts confirmed for the upcoming Accelerator The Big One shows: Christian Kjellvander & Lazy Grace Frontier (Malmö), Franke (Gbg), Mattias Hellberg (Gbg), The Radio Dept. (Sthlm), and Komeda (Sthlm).

MTVE.com has put up a bunch of new streaming video channels, including one for Northern Europe.

Also from MTVE.com, here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Turbonegro - Fuck The World
03. Outlandish - Guantanamo
04. A-Teens - Perfect Match
05. C21 - She Cries
06. Kashmir - Rocket Brothers
07. HIM - Funeral of hearts
08. The Cardigans - You´re The Storm
09. Her Majesty - F.U.N.E.R.A.L
10. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
11. Dallas Superstars - Fast Driving
12. Darude - Music
13. Equicez - Live From Pass It
14. Melody Club - Cover Girl
15. Jennifer Brown - Weak
16. Mando Diao - Sheepdog
17. Antique - Moro Mou
18. Jon - This Side Up
19. Kwan - Shine
20. Paragon - Försök Förstå

Challengers:
01. The Klerks - Shame
02. Da Buzz - Alive
03. The Narcissists - Fanatik R.I.P
04. De Stijl - Date Times
05. Grand Tone Music - Become Whatever

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Carola - Guld platina & passion - det bästa
02. Da Buzz - More than alive
03. Robert Wells - Rhapsody in rock the complete collection
04. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
05. Tommy Körberg - Gränslös - det bästa med
06. Alcazar - Alcazarized
07. Style, Sandelin & Ekman, Freestyle - Samlade hits
08. Her Majesty - Happiness
09. Moneybrother - Blood panic
10. v/a - Fame Factory volym 5
11. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
12. Timbuktu - The botten is nådd!
13. Fame - Give me your love
14. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
15. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
16. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
17. Eddie Meduza - Live(s)!
18. Martin Nilsson - En del av mig
19. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
20. Jill Johnson - Discography

DigitalMetal.com interviews Burst, who they call "one of the best new bands of 2004." As mentioned here recently, Burst features bassist Jesper Liveröd who just quit Nasum to focus more time on this band. Their second forthcoming album "Prey On Life" apparently was recently picked up by Relapse Records in the US and comes out sometime this fall.

Check out some sample mp3s and video from Bobby's new album "Romantic & Bleeding", out now on Imperial Recordings.

Drummer Henry Ranta has left Soilwork in order to dedicate more time to his personal life. The band's statement:

"After playing in Soilwork for five years, our dear friend and drummer Henry Ranta has decided that he can no longer continue to play in Soilwork. There are no hard feelings between Henry and us in any way, and we will still remain amazing friends, he will always be a true Soilworker. We wish him all the best of luck with his decision and we're sure we'll cross paths again in the future!"

And Henry's own personal statement:

"I guess this is supposed to be a statement of why and when I decided to leave Soilwork, but since this is a well thought out decision (not an easy one though) I will try and keep away from the sentimental 'bullshit' and just focus on the hard facts. Combining my daytime job, rehearsing, recording and touring with Soilwork has basically worn me out. This didn't really make a difference the first couple of years in Soilwork, but as time went on I started digging a black hole for myself. For the past two years I haven't really found any joy playing, and with all the tours coming up this year I felt that it was time for me to leave. Playing in Soilwork has been my life 24/7 for five years now, and at one point last year, I started to open my eyes to a lot of things that has been neglecting, just because I had been to concentrated on one thing only. Basically I'm gonna start investing more time in things that are making me happy right now. I'll take a peek at the other side, and I'm pretty sure that I'll enjoy what I'll find. But you're not gonna get rid of me yet though. It's not like I'm gonna stop playing drums. You will still hear me fucking shit up in The Defaced [his other band w/Darkane guitarist Klas Idebergand] other projects. A really big thanks to all Soilwork fans for amazing support throughout years — Love ya all! Finally I would like to say a big fucking 'hell yeah' to the band for five beautiful years of insanity."

Force of Evil has posted a couple new mp3s online: "Hell on Earth" / "Eye of the Storm". The band features in its ranks ex- and current Mercyful Fate members Michael Denner, Hank Shermann (both on guitar), Bjarne Holm (drums), Hal Patino from King Diamond's band (bass), and Martin Steene from Ironfire (vocals). Their as-yet untitled album is due out later this month on an unspecified label and they promise it will be "loaded with evil-riffing and lots of guitar solos." Dude.

Here's Christian Kjellvander's latest updated tour schedule:

06/05 - Eskilstuna, Strömsholmen
06/14 - Hultsfred, Hultsfredsfestival
06/26-29 - Roskilde (Denmark), Roskildefestival
07/01 - Malmö, Accelerator The Big One
07/19 - Skellefteå, Trästock
07/26 - Ängelholm, Tullakrok (solo)
07/30 - Strömstad, The Cod
08/07 - Emmaboda, Emmaboda-festival
08/09 - Göteborg, Göteborgskalaset

Askil Holm has enlisted Daniel Hovik as a new member for his backing band on keyboards. Daniel used to play with Askil in the band Attack and also currently plays with Hugo, who will be playing at the upcoming Kristiansand show too. The rest of the band's dates going into fall:

06/05 - Tønsberg, Event
06/07 - Isle of Jøa, Faksdal Pub
06/13 - Rockstock, Rakkestad
06/28 - "Agent Cody Banks" Premiere, Fredrikstad
06/30 - Kristiansand, Quart - Kick Off, Markens
07/10 - Høylandet, Høylandet Revyfestival
07/12 - Stavern Festivalen
07/19 - Tjøme, Gamle Ormelet (unplugged)
07/26 - Etne, Fugl Fønix
08/07 - SU Leir, Tvedestrand
08/08 - Steinkjer Martnan, Torget
08/15 - Namsos Martnan, Festplassen
08/27 - Steinkjer, Studenten
09/04 - Bergen, Kvarteret
09/12 - Stjørdal, Hell Bluesfestival
09/19 - Verdal, Catz

Added the rest of those Madrugada live mp3s on the right. Enjoy.

That charming young Norweigan, Sondre Lerche, just posted a new tour diary entry on his website.

Rec90 artists Lorraine are heading to Germany on tour this month with the band Delaware:

06/08 - Berlin, Magnet
06/09 - Hannover, Gig
06/10 - Leipzig - Moritzbastei
06/11 - Hamburg, Tanzhalle
06/12 - Kassel, K19
06/15 - Regensburg, Alte Mälzerei
06/16 - Köln, MTC
06/17 - Frankfurt, Nachtleben

Those of you in Deustchland can look for a track from the band on the sampler CD from the May edition of Zillo magazine, too. They also play the Working Class Hero Festival in Drammen Norway on August 6 and expect to have their debut full-length "The Perfect Cure" out in September.

Some news from Norway's Jester Records, the label of Ulver mainman Garm aka Kristoffer Rygg aka Trickster G:

September 15 marks the day that both Ulver's soundtrack to the film "Svidd Neger" and Virus' new album hit the stores. The other upcoming Ulver release, "A Quick Fix" EP, is now slated for August. Ulver even got a write-up in the Village Voice awhile back, too.
The new single and video "Sleepers" from Kåre João is out and getting spun NRK2 and ZTV. I haven't seen it myself, but they say it was shot on 16mm b&w film and resembles "such fine pieces of art as Jim Jarmusch's "Stranger than Paradise" and Gus Van Sant's "Drugstore Cowboy".
When's new album is due to be mixed in July with a release sometime this winter.
And lastly, the label is in negotiation with Tigerbeat6, the label of Kid606 for licensing of Jester's "cut-cool electronic" catalogue. The other part of their catalogue (or however you want to refer to it) is currently distributed by The End Records in North America.

The Crown has finished the recording of their album "Possessed 13" and is currently taking a three-week break before entering the mixing stage back at Studio Fredman. This release will be the band's sixth album and is the first one back with original vocalist Johan Lindstrand after a one-off with Tomas Lindberg (ex-At the Gates).

Due to singer Maja Ivarsson's bronchitis and over exhaustion, The Sounds have been forced to cancel a number of upcoming gigs. THe following dates are affected:

06/07 - Nuremberg, Germany
06/08 - Eifel, Germany
06/12 - Hultsfred Festival, Sweden
06/13 - Norwegian Wood, Norway
06/14 - Nyköping, Sweden
06/17 - Gothenburg, Sweden
06/18 - Gröna Lund, Stockholm, Sweden
06/20 - Wiesen, Austria
06/21 - Southside, Munich, Germany
06/22 - Hurricane, Hannover/Hamburg, Germany
06/27 - Kiruna Festival, Sweden
06/28 - Skellefteå Festival, Sweden

The band plans to recover at their home in Helsingborg, Sweden before setting back out on the road again.

Amorphis has posted a video interview with vocalist Pasi Koskinen and guitarist Esa Holopainen as part of their electronic press kit.

The UK's XL Recordings (Electric Six, Badly Drawn Boy, White Stripes, The Prodigy, etc) imprint Rex Records will put out the Radio Dept.'s album "Lesser Matters" this coming fall.

All six bands representing Finland's Popcity 2003 will perform at the Provinssirock festival in their own hometown Seinäjoki and takes place June 13-15. They are: Georg Kalliola & JooJoo Miehet, Kayah, Kuolleet intiaanit, Stigma, Trigon and Velvetcut. The Finnish Music Information Centre launched the Popcity project as a way to promote as-yet unknown bands from a different annually chosen town. Read more.

Saami artist Mari Boine has won the 2003 Nordic Council Music Prize of 47k EUR. "Mari Boine is one of the leading lights on the new Saami music scene. Boine's music defies facile attempts at labelling. It is based on joik but the complimentary stylistic ingredients include African rhythms, world music and rock-funk." Read more.

Confirmed bands for Festival Mission Impossible which takes place August 23 at Smedjebacken in Dalarna: The Hellacopters, The Ark, Pugh Rogefeldt, Docenterna and The Mainliners. At total of 16 acts will perform and tickets will cost 200 SEK.

The full lineup for Göteborgskalaset: Looptroop, Fireside, Moneybrother, Raised Fist, Mory Kante, Christian Kjellvander, Franke, Hammerfall, Evergrey, Cult of Luna, Her Majesty, Isolation Years, Florence Valentin, Shout Out Louds, Mando Diao, The Latin Kings, Advance Patrol, Ison & Fille, The Ark, Komeda, Paola, The Concretes, Satirnine, Thomas Rusiak, Dub Sweden, Kajsa Grytt, Kamera and Kristian Anttila.

The Maggots' new album "Do The Maggot" doesn't come out until August 25, but they're already heading out on tour in the UK:

06/12 - Sheffield, Casbah
06/13 - Aberdeen, Dr Drakes
06/14 - Edinburgh, Studio24
06/15 - Day off
06/16 - Newcastle
06/17 - York, Fibbers
06/18 - Nottingham, Junktion7
06/19 - High Wycombe
06/20 - London, Dirty Water
06/22 - Stockholm, Debaser/Gearclub

In case you were unaware, Timbuktu addressed stateminister Göran Persson in his song "Ett Brev" and now Göran is just about ready with his response. Apparently he wrote something together with an unnamed colleague in rap form (!!!) and it will be published in SSU's magazine Frihet on June 18. What comes next is anyone's guess.

The Killers, Gaffaman, Crash, Ziggy Kropp & Karma, Sirqus Alfon and Soul Source have all been added to Hultsfred fest.

Wired for Mono reports they will be heading back over to England in mid-July for a few dates, details to be posted on their website soon. They'll also be back in the studio recording some new material this month along with playing Friday at Debaser in Stockholm.

Trapdoor Fucking Exit has put up the video for the song "Short Term Investment", recorded live at Umeå Punkfest in 2001. Check it out.

Amulet recently filmed a video for the single "Breaking News". They say it "involves a low key gig at an abandoned house and a deathdefying girl in a van who brings terror to the city of Oslo." I'll let you know if they post in online.

Turbonegro's complete festival schedule for the summer:

06/02 - Flippaut festival, Bologna, Italy
06/05 - Ruisrock, Turku, Finland
06/12 - Hultsfred Festival Hultsfred, Sweden
06/20 - Kick off Festival, Wiesen, Austria
06/21 - Southside Festival, Neuhausen, Germany
06/22 - Hurricane Festival, Schlessel, Germany
06/27 - Roskilde Festival, Denmark
06/28 - Open Air, St Gallen, Switzerland
07/05 - London, Meanfiddler (clubshow) UK
07/12 - T in the Park, Kinross, Scotland, UK
08/07 - Nordland Musikkfestukke, Bodö, Norway
08/08 - Öya festivalen, Oslo Norway
08/09 - Wrightegaarden, Langesund, Norway
08/23 - Reading Festival, Reading UK
08/24 - Leeds Festival, Leeds, UK

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Outlandish - Guantanamo
03. A-Teens - Perfect Match
04. Her Majesty - F.U.N.E.R.A.L
05. Jennifer Brown - Weak
06. HIM - Funeral of hearts
07. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
08. The Cardigans - You´re The Storm
09. Melody Club - Cover Girl
10. Darude - Music
11. Mew - Comforting Sounds
12. Kwan - Shine
13. Equicez - Live From Pass It
14. Bertine Zetlitz - Girl Like You
15. Elin Sigvardsson - Where To Start
16. Timbuktu - Ett Brev
17. Paragon - Försök Förstå
18. Pauline - Runnin´ Out Of Gaz
19. Surferosa - Neon Commando
20. Homy - Bus Stop

Challengers:
01. Jon - This Side Up
02. Antique - Moro Mou
03. Fireside - All You Had
04. The Concretes - You Can´t Hurry Love
05. Kamera - At Work
06. C21 - She Cries

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Labrador Records is now distributed by Mortes Nois in Estonia. For more info email mrnois@hot.ee.

Dolores Records has announced they will be releasing a limited edition CD single for the new supergroup Vanessa and the O's on June 10. The band features ex-members of Popsicle along with James Iha from Smashing Pumpkins and is described as electronic pop in French. Crazy, eh? More info soon.

Bad Taste Records is the label of the month over at the Danish radio program New Rocking Sounds which airs Tuesdays at 8pm on 93.7 in Århus. They'll be interviewing Last Days of April, Logh and various others from the roster along with playng tunes from said bands. Be sure to check it out or wait for the clips to hit the online archives.

Listen to "Mattias Alkbergs Begravning" from Planekonomi, another band featuring Mattias from Bear Quartet. More info here. Look for 2 EPs this fall and a full-length sometime next year.

One of my pals over at indieworkshop.com reviews the new Flaming Sideburns album today.

"No one has satisfactorily explained why a country of 4.5 million generates so much music: is it the dark winters? Subsidised music lessons? Rubbish TV?" - John Bungey, The Times (UK)

Norweigan music appears to be making quite a few headways beyond their borders as evidenced in this article from MIC Norway. Turbonegro and Jaga Jazzist might be the first names to come to mind for most folk, but now there's also Beady Belle, Tord Gustavsen, Per Arne Glorvigen, and St. Thomas to pay attention to.

Johnny Bråttom Records will be holding a record release show on May 30 at Kulturkammaren in Norrköping for their forthcoming "Svensk Populärmusik Volym Två" compilation. The bands scheduled to appear are Slagsmålsklubben, recent Dolores-signees Cdoass, Bremen Brotröster GmbH, Björn Kleinhenz, and The Flu. As for the tracklisting of said comp, it is as follows:

01. Cdoass - The Box
02. Niccokick - Run, Run, Run
03. Björn Kleinhenz - How Long Is The Night?
04. Slagsmålsklubben - Filter Fabric Facts (DJ Upperkurt Instrumental Remix)
05. Idiot Savants - Daily Routine
06. Music 77 - Kameror
07. Pete Thompson - Folk Song
08. Lola Barbershop - Ticket To Happiness
09. The Kid - Baton Rouge
10. Junip - Turn To The Assassin
11. The Topeka Twins - Hunting Song
12. Menteroja - Call Me
13. Bremen Brotröster GmbH - Greater/Better
14. The Flu - Golden Hair
15. Celestine - Sunflower
16. José González - Heartbeats
17. Café Polymorf - A Good Time
18. Quit Your Dayjob - Pissing On A Panda
19. Joni - Frank Xerox
20. Ane Brun - Are They Saying Goodbye?
21. Sandy Mouche - A Year

Aftonbladet reports that famed Swedish videomaker Jonas Åkerlund is working with Blondie on the single "Good Boys" in LA. The new album ""The Curse of Blondie" comes out around September or October. Åkerlund's previous credits include artists such as Satyricon, Madonna, Metallica and The Prodigy.

This new album will be 'harder' than the previous one and more guitars. To sum it up: a groovier album!

That's Peter Tägtgren of Pain describing work on the new album. He says he's already finished all of the backing music along with five of the thirteen vocal tracks and should be able to have it out sometime this fall on Stockholm Records.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Robert Wells - Rhapsody in rock the complete collection
02. Alcazar - Alcazarized
03. Eddie Meduza - Live(s)!
04. v/a - Fame Factory volym 5
05. Moneybrother - Blood panic
06. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
07. Timbuktu - The botten is nådd!
08. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
09. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
10. Jill Johnson - Discography
11. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
12. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
13. Antique - Blue love
14. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
15. Monia - Söderns hjärtas ros
16. Siw Malmkvist - Siws bästa
17. Elin Sigvardsson - Saturday light naive
18. Simson Dupont - Simson Dupont
19. Fame - Give me your love
20. The Sounds - Living in America

Tomas Ledin is going on tour in support of his new live album "I Sommarnattens Ljus" which comes out on June 2. The dates so far:

07/08 - Öja Slott, Öja
07/19 - Bergs Slussar, Linköping
08/03 - Stadsparken, Örebro

The lineup for Sommarrock, which takes place July 10-12 in Svedala, Sweden: Mikael Wiehe, Bubbles, Joddla w/Siv, Advance Patrol, The Ark, Danne Stråhed, Häjkån Bäjkån Band, The Mo and Di Leva.

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(10) Randy "A Man in Uniform"
(11) Solomon Burke "Soul Searching"
(12) Fireside "All You Had"
(13) Magnus Carlson "Jag ber dig"
(16) Queens Of The Stone Age "Go With The Flow"
(18) The Go-Betweens "Caroline and I"
(19) David & The Citizens "New Direction"
(20) Hot Hot Heat "Bandages"

The full details for Finland's Koneisto Festival has been released. Some of the artists scheduled to appear include Björn Torske, Ralph Myerz & Jack Herren Band, Erlend Oye (acoustic set + "magnificent singing DJ set"), Datarock, Jori Hulkkonen, Rinneradio (feat. Dj Slow, Siiri Nordin and MC Paleface) among many others. The acclaimed electronic music festival was the first of its type for all of Scandinavia and the selection of performers "seeks to establish an interesting balance between commercial and experimental music" over the event's 9 stages. It all goes down in Helsinki from July 25-27 and more info can be found from the fest's official website.

Blabbermouth reports that HIM will be touring Europe in support of Ozzy Osbourne and Godsmack this September. I'll keep you posted.

I fixed a typo in one of the Madrugada mp3 links. Sorry about that. They should all work okay now.

Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg will be holding a club three times a week all summer long called, ahem, Sommarklubben. Besides the usual DJs spinning there will also be live music. Scheduled so far:

06/06 - Royal Beat Conspiracy, Sparks of Seven
06/28 - Shout Out Louds, Homy
07/12 - David & the Citizens

More info when I get it.

The (International) Noise Conspiracy report that they are featured on a DJ Spooky mix that comes with the latest edition of Adbusters Magazine. Other artists including on the comp include Fugazi, Bad Brains, Sun Ra, and Public Enemy so check it out.

More entries on the ongoing media blitzkrieg from The Sounds - here's a number of upcoming American TV appearances they have scheduled:

05/22 - Last Call with Carson Daly on NBC, recorded in Las Vegas last week
05/26 - The View on ABC
TBA - Subterranean on MTV, more info to come

The Hellacopters have published their complete summer tour schedule:

05/31 - Donigton (GB) Download
06/07 - Nurburgring (D) Rock Am Ring
06/08 - Nurnberg (D) Rock Im Park
06/13 - Hultsfred (S) Hultsfredsfestivalen
06/14 - Berlin (D) Berlinova
06/15 - Oslo (N) Norwegian Wood
06/21 - Scheessel (D) Hurricane
06/22 - Neuhausen OE (D) Southside
06/27 - Kiruna (S) Kirunafestivalen
06/28 - Bonn (D) Rheinkultur
06/29 - Roskilde (DK) Roskildefestival
07/04 - Oulo (SF) Oluoln Yöt
07/05 - Turku (SF) Ruisrock
07/16 - Helsinki (SF) Olympiastadion w/The Rolling Stones
07/22 - Stockholm (S) Cirkus w/The Rolling Stones
08/02 - Korso (SF) Ankarock
08/30 - Jerez / Cadiz (ESP) Serie Z
09/12 - Stockholm (S) Gröna Lund
09/13 - Vitoria Gasteiz (ESP) Azkena

Burning Heart's latest signees Sparks of Seven have finally updated their website.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. A-Teens - Perfect Match
03. Outlandish - Guantanamo
04. HIM - Funeral of hearts
05. Darude - Music
06. Jennifer Brown - Weak
07. Kwan - Shine
08. Mew - Comforting Sounds
09. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
10. Equicez - Live From Pass It
11. Melody Club - Cover Girl
12. Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck - One Good Moment
13. Timbuktu - Ett Brev
14. Bertine Zetlitz - Girl Like You
15. The Jessica Fletchers - Let´s Go
16. Paragon - Försök Förstå
17. Surferosa - Neon Commando
18. Moon Gringo - Buzz Aldrin
19. Homy - Bus Stop
20. Pauline - Runnin´ Out Of Gaz

Challengers:
01. D-Coy feat. Acorn - I´ll Be There
02. The Cardigans - You´re The Storm
03. Charlie´s Magazine - Something That I Missed
04. Her Majesty - F.U.N.E.R.A.L
05. Elin Sigvardsson - Where To Start

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Project-X will be having a record release show on May 31 for their new album "Modus Operandi" at Ground Zero in Växjö.

Here's the lineup for the 5th Fucking North Pole Festival which takes place over the next three days in Tromsø, Norway.

5/15 @ Driv: Amulet (Oslo), Turdus Musicus (Tromsø), Dominic (Bodø)
5/16 @ Driv: Misvær Ska Forening (Bodø), Lame Ducks (Oslo), Square (SWE)
5/16 @ Tvibit: Gatas Parlament (Oslo), Amulet (Oslo), Drunk (Oslo), Turdus Musicus (Tromsø)
5/17 @ Driv: DK (US), Os Replicantes (Brasil), Drunk (Oslo)
5/18 @ Driv: Mohammed(Horten), Los Fastidios (Italia), Nikkeby Lufthavn (Tromsø)

FNPF is the biggest independent rock festival in northern Norway and takes place twice a year. The next occurance is scheduled for sometime around September/October. More info here.

The German Phono Academy recently awarded Norway's Midnight Choir with a best album award in the rock/pop category for the album "Waiting for the Bricks to Fall". The award is given every quarter by "key industry representatives and respected music journalists" and qualifies the band for the album of the year competition.

This year's Nordic Council Music Award will be granted to an ethnic music artist. The nominees who will be competing for the 47k EUR prize:

Pierre Dørge & New Jungle Orchestra (DK)
Outlandish (DK)
Kimmo Pohjonen (FIN)
Gjallarhorn (FIN)
Kári Sverrisson (Faroe Islands)
Sigurður Flosason and Pétur Grétarsson (Iceland)
Steindór Andersen, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson and Sigur Rós (Iceland)
Mari Boine (NOR)
Solo Cissokho (NOR)
Ellika Frisell (SWE)
Ziya Aytekin (SWE)
Anna Thastum Kuitse (Greenland)

Read more. Previous winners of the prestigious award have been Sunleif Rasmussen (2002), Palle Mikkelborg (2001), and Kaija Saariaho (2000).

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. Robert Wells - Rhapsody in rock the complete collection
02. v/a - Fame Factory volym 5
03. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
04. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
05. Timbuktu - The botten is nådd!
06. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
07. Simson Dupont - Simson Dupont
08. Jill Johnson - Discography
09. Antique - Blue love
10. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
11. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
12. Moneybrother - Blood panic
13. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
14. Siw Malmkvist - Siws bästa
15. Elin Sigvardsson - Saturday light naive
16. Gloria - People like you and me
17. The Refreshments - On the rocks
18. Roxette - The pop hits
19. The Sounds - Living in America
20. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel

Aftonbladet has also published a short article discussing Magnus Carlson's (of the Weeping Willows) forthcoming solo album that he collaborated with Eggstone and film director Lukas Moodysson on. The record is called "Ett Kungarike För En Kram" and it hits stores on June 30. (in Swedish)

The Ark, Dom Galna Hundarna, The Narcissists, Shout Out Louds, Lola Barbershop and P-Danielsa are among the groups now confirmed for the Storsjöyran fest happening in Östersund this summer.

The guys from Looptroop are all hard at work on new projects. Promoe is in the process of doing a new solo album with a single to come in June. The other two guys, Cosmic and Embee aka Casual Brothers, have a new EP that also comes out in June that features a guest appearance by Christian Kjellvander of all people.

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(07) N.E.R.D. "Things Are Getting Better"
(09) Miss Universum "Fertilize"
(12) Millenia Nova Ft. Iggy Pop "Rockicide"
(13) The Knife "You Take My Breath Away"
(14) Radiohead "There There"
(15) Florence Valentin "Allt dom bygger upp ska vi meja ner"
(17) Ed Harcourt "Watching the Sun Come Up"
(18) Audio Bullys "The Things"
(19) Zwan "Lyric"

The Dandelions have added one more date to their upcoming London tour. The full itinerary is now as follows:

05/22 - Gaz's Rockin' Blues
05/23 - Dragon Bar
05/24 - Cobden Club
05/26 - The Beachclub at Notting Hill Arts Club (new)
05/27 - Eyelash at Pop

Lullacry and Naglfar have both announced that they will be making their US debuts at this year's Milwaukee Metalfest which takes place July 25-26. The new Lullacry single "Alright Tonight" comes out May 23 on Spikefarm Records and Naglfar's latest album "Sheol" came out last month.

Melody Club has annouced their full list of summer tour dates. Here's the schedule as of now:

05/14 - Hamburg (D) Molotow
05/15 - Düsseldorf (D) Unique
05/16 - Weinheim (D) Cafe Central
05/17 - Berlin (D) Bastard
05/18 - Kassel (D) K19
05/19 - Frankfurt (D) Cookys
05/20 - Dresden (D) Downtown
05/21 - München (D) Atomic Cafe
05/23 - Göteborg Liseberg / Okej Dagen
05/30 - Eskilstuna Blå
05/31 - Härnösand Högslättens Isstadion
06/06 - Drammen (NO) Working Class Hero
06/06 - Hultsfred Hultsfred Festival
06/06 - Visby Gutekällaren
07/01 - Östhammar Musikveckan
07/04 - Sundsvall Sundsvalls Gatufest
07/05 - Kristianstad Tivolirock
07/11 - Arvika Arvikafestivalen
07/19 - Mariehamn, Åland Rock Off Festival
07/23 - Hedemora Hedmora Parken
07/26 - Karlskoga Stranddagar
07/30 - Visby Gutekällaren
08/01 - Östersund Storsjöyran
08/02 - Stockholm Pridefestivalen
08/06 - Gävle Gävle Cityfest
08/08 - Emmaboda Emmabodafestivalen

Johan Bergqvist has posted all three songs from his new single in RealMedia format over at his (newly refurbished) website. Check em out in the upper right-hand corner.

Billboard reviews the US release of "Living in America" from The Sounds.

Stylus Magazine has named Norway's Rune Grammofon their label of the week.

Massproduktion has announced that they will be reissuing a remastered version of the very first Left Hand Solution seven-song EP "Shadowdance" on CD with five extra bonus tracks, three of which are previously unrereleased. It's been ten years since the recording first came out and serves as an almost-complete document of the era when Kicki Höijertz fronted the band.

The Flicker will be playing Club Clampers in Stockholm on May 17 and the first 25 attendees will receive a copy of their new CDr "Phases". Download an mp3 of the track "Consulation" right here.

DigitalMetal.com interviews the avant-metal band Solefald and black/dark metallers Aeternus.

Samson & Rourke recently published an interview with Anders Wendins of Moneybrother. (in Swedish)

The new Lost Patrol single "All Right" featuring Lisa Miskovsky comes out June 2. For those that don't know, LP is the solo project of International Noise Conspiracy frontman Dennis Lyxzen.

Even more bands added to Popaganda fest in Stockholm: Doktor Kosmos, Isolation Years, Superheroes, Miss Universum, José González, Tiger Lou, Carpet People, Mano & the tears, The Search, Blanka, Callahan, Ebon Tale and Anna Vnuk.

Starting on June 3 Swedish Radio P3 will have a week-long feature on Swedish music. Be sure to check it out and remember you can listen online at their website.

The Caesars recently had the single "Sort it Out" featured during an episode of the UK's most watched soap opera Eastenders. Listen to the track here. Like I've said before, expect big things from these guys. The band has also been confirmed for the 'new bands' stage at Glastonbury fest which takes place June 27-29.

The Ark, Hammerfall, Looptroop, Paola, Her Majesty, Evergrey, Moneybrother and Mando Diao have all be confirmed for Göteborgskalaset on August 8-16.

Mike Wead (King Diamond, Mercyful Fate), Snowy Shaw (King Diamond, Dream Evil, Notre Dame), Sharlee D'Angelo (Mercyful Fate, Witchery) and Simon Johansson (Memory Garden, Abstrakt Algenra) have all teamed up to form a new band called Firegod. Mike's statement on the current state of the group:

I'm more than thrilled to be joined by some of the guys I consider to be the most creative and talented in Scandinavia. Me and Simon [have] been working really hard for almost two years writing and demoing something like 40-45 tracks... These tracks will be the perfect frame for what I'm sure will become a concept album that will stand out among the rest! People into our older bands as well as our current ones WILL NOT be disappointed!

They expect to have an album out around early 2004.

The new Finnish death-metal "supergroup" Chaosbreed has posted a couple sample mp3s from their demo for downloading:

01. Wretched Life
02. Rotting Alive
03. FC/DC (Freedom Corps Death Crush)

As mentioned before, Chaosbreed features vocalist Taneli Jarva (ex-Sentenced, The Black League), guitarist Marko Tarvonen (Moonsorrow), guitarist Esa Holopainen (Amorphis), among others. The band is currently entertaining any serious offers for booking or label support and anyone wanting to get in touch should email them at chaosbreeders@hotmail.com.

David & the Citizens and The Knife are both receiving gold disc awards from Border Music in Sweden for sales of over 5000. It's part of a new initiative enacted by the company to encourage and reward independent labels. The ceremony will be held at Pustervik in Göteborg on May 23.

In other D&tC news, the band's album "For All Happy Endings" was just reviewed in English over at firesideometer.com.

Lovitt Records has announced they will start taking preorders of the new Division of Laura Lee collection "97-99" with songs from before they signed with BHR/Epitaph. Email mailorder@lovitt.com for more info or visit the label's website. You can also download a preview mp3 of the track "Stereotype" if you're curious about their old sound, which they describe as "reminiscent of the DC post-punk sound with a dash of Drive Like Jehu." The record hits stores June 16.

The Caesars aka Caesars Palace have gotten themselves a write-up in the May issue of Kerrang:

Swedish people rock. And not just because of their shiny hair and nice teeth, but because they seem to possess an understated sense of style, intelligence and passion for all things rock. Mixing the pill-popping, proto-punk sounds of The Who with the grandiose LSD-tinged pop of Phil Spector, Caesars have been the centre of the Swedish renaissance since their formation in the mid-90s, watching some of their comrades-in-ties accidentally spearhead the garage-rock revival along the way.
"Anything which becomes 'cool' soon attracts crap bands and becomes passé, but that's okay because then things go back underground," ponders singer/guitarist Jocke Ahlund. "What would be bad is if people thought we'd formed a garage band two weeks ago when some of our songs on our new album are seven years old. And, um, we're not a garage band."
He's right, of course. Dipping into blissful West Coast psychedelia, Caesars' new album is light years beyond the scene that prompted Ahlund to form the band with childhood friend Cesar Vidal, inspired by a diet of Billy Childish and Sonic Youth. As is the way with many in the Swedish scene, Caesars (who go by the name Caesars Palace back home) aren't shy in helping out their like-minded brethren - The Hives cite them as major influences, Ahlund directed Refused's seminal "New noise" video and they've just toured the US with their buds The Soundtrack Of Our Lives.Twenty-five Swedes rolling into a new American town every day and taking over was funny," chuckles the singer. "It's hard not to party on tour. As Swedes we make sure we don't go anywhere without a little ass-pocket of vodka..."

They also got a favorable review in NME. Read it on the band's website. I tell ya - with the right promotion we'll definitely be hearing a lot more about these guys in the near future.

The Venue have updated their website with part II of the "Dude, where's my lighter" tour diary from their recent trip to the US.

Randy have been added to the lineup of the Download festival which takes place May 31 to June 1 in the UK at Donington Park. More info: www.downloadfestival.co.uk

Dolores Records has actually confirmed a release date of August 25 for a new Broder Daniel single. I'll believe it when I see it.

In other Dolores news, the label has signed the band Cdoass and will release a single for the song "Autovision" very soon. It's a rerecording of a song they've already released and the CD will include the tracks from their latest 7" too ("Airplanes" b/w "The Box"). And finally, Dolores will also put out a 12" version of the single through their singles club which will have a special remix of the title track as the flipside. Oh, and in case you're curious, the band is described as post-punk ala Gang of Four, Television and Talking heads.

And in even more Dolores news, the label has also revealed their latest single for the club will be "123 Bom Bom" from Love Is All featuring Josefin of the band Girlfrendo. More info including mp3s are available here.

Finnish psyche-rockers Circle will touring central Europe in June. Check it:

06/06 - Scheune, Dresden (DE)
06/07 - Fundus, Weingarten (DE)
06/08 - Reitschule, Bern (CH)
06/09 - Sue Ellen Bar, Zürich (CH)
06/11 - Raum 102, München (DE)
06/12 - Cafe Cairo, Würzburg (DE)
06/13 - Stubnitz, Rostock (DE)
06/14 - Silke, Hannover (DE)
06/15 - Magnet, Berlin (DE)
06/16 - Molotow, Hamburg (DE)

Interested in what the Moonbabies are up? Check out this studio report page. Included are pics from the studio along with the potential cover art design and more.

Kaospilot has finally secured a release date for their self-titled debut full-length on June 9 through Level-Plane Records.

Advance Patrol's new single "Min Musik" comes out in June. The b-side will be for the track "Området E På Plats" which features guest appearances from Lilleman and Helt Fjuttade. While you're at it, check out AP on tour in the near future:

05/07 - Stockholm
05/09 - Linköping
05/14 - Köpenhamn
05/31 - Stockholm
06/12 - Hultsfred
06/26 - Roskilde
07/05 - Tivolirocken in Kristianstad

Isolation Years, The Leeches, Nebos, Endivia, and The Heartattacks have all been added to the lineup of the Blow Up a Panda fest which takes place July 26-27 in Stockholm.

Abbath from Immortal guests on a couple tracks on the new Dimmu Borgir record. One of the songs on which he appears is called "Humanity Perverse" and it will also feature the Prague Orchestra String Section. Look for it in stores this September from Nuclear Blast.

Zyklon (ex-Emperor) has revealed the track listing to their upcoming album "Aeon", due out in September on Candlelight Records:

01. Psyklon Aeon
02. Core Solution
03. Two Thousand Years
04. No Names Above the Names
05. The Prophetic Method
06. Specimen Eruption
07. Electric Current
08. An Eclectic Manner

Zyklon and fellow Norweigans Myrkskog play the Cameron Underworld in London on June 6.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. v/a - Fame Factory volym 5
02. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
03. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
04. Timbuktu - The botten is nådd!
05. Robert Wells - Rhapsody in rock the complete collection
06. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
07. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
08. Jill Johnson - Discography
09. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
10. Antique - Blue love
11. Siw Malmkvist - Siws bästa
12. Simson Dupont - Simson Dupont
13. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
14. Elin Sigvardsson - Saturday light naive
15. Lasse Tennander - Därifrånochhit sånger 1974-2003
16. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel
17. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
18. The Refreshments - On the rocks
19. The Sounds - Living in America
20. Roxette - The pop hits

It has been revealed that Cecilia Nordlund makes a guest appearance on the upcoming Her Majesty record which comes out on May 26. As mentioned yesterday, people who preorder the new album will receive an exclusive free pin with their purchase.

Moneybrother, Nasum, and The Hellacopters have been added to the Hultsfred fest lineup.

Nightwish has pushed back the release date of their upcoming "End of Innocence" DVD to July 7. No reason was given for the delay.

Ink19 declares "6" from Supersilent to be "a landmark album." Furthermore, they say "It is a harrowing work of jazz, electronica and ambient textures that is as exciting as it is mind-blowing." Read more.

Peaceville has yet again delayed the release of Beyond Dawn's forthcoming album "Frysh", this time to June 30. If the 3-song sampler is any indication, it's gonna be damn great. Can't wait.

Preorder a copy of the new Her Majesty album "Happiness" and receive an exclusive free pin. Go here.

The latest news from Värttinä, as posted on their website:

[We] just returned from a tour of Scotland, Turkey, Switzerland and France. Edinburgh, Stans and Bern were the highlights with great shows and incredible audience response. Big news from France is that "iki" [the new album] is the Number 3 Best Selling World Music album at the main FNAC shop (Forum) in Paris. Additionally, "iki" is named Album of the Week at Swedish Radio P2 Klingan and World Music Album of the Week on WDR Radio KC6ln. iki also reached Number 6 on the CMJ World Music Chart in USA. In England, "iki" was picked Number 9 in the Songlines magazine Top of the World chart. Finally, "iki" received a glowing review from Songlines Magazine: "From the exhilarating drive of "Nahkaruoska", its jostling rhythms and bristling close harmonies bringing to life a story of infidelity and leather whips, to the sheer beauty of "Maahinen Neito", a song of an unwanted earth maiden, Värttinä's tenth album (celebrating their 20th year) is their most radiant and satisfying to date. .. A totally desirable disc." (Songlines Jan Fairley)

Those of you in Denmark can check out The Cardigans on the 'Barend & van Dorp' show tomorrow night playing their new single "You're the Storm" live. The program starts at 10:30 pm.

Clawfinger's new album "Zeros & Heroes" comes out May 26. Singer Zak Tell says he is confident fans will like it. The band is also hitting the road this summer. Dates so far:

05/17 - Bengtsfors, S
06/12 - Crans-sur-N., CH
06/14 - Bolzano, I
06/18 - Zürich, CH
06/20 - Scharans, CH
06/21 - Burgum, NL
07/05 - Leipzig, D
07/19 - Eberschwang, A
08/01 - Óbudai Island, H
08/08 - Höchstenbach, D

Soviac has booked a number of dates around Sweden this summer:

05/24 - Ronneby, Uterock
05/26 - Stockholm, Debaser w/Paris, Marit Bergman
05/27 - Stockholm, Gula Villan Blowupapanda pre party
05/28 - Göteborg, Valand w/Fox´n wolf
05/29 - Västervik, Oasen
05/31 - Stockholm, Debaser w/7feet4
06/07 - Fredricia, Formanova03 w/The Price Of Ink, Switchblade

Look for a video from the band for song "Boogie Woogie" soon, too.

MTVE.com has posted the new video for "Reconsider Me", the first single from Moneybrother's new album "Blood Panic".

The Norweigan musicians union and the Stavanger Symphonic Orchestra are raising money to send musical instruments to Iraq. So far about 60,000 NOK has been brought in for the effort. Read more. (in Norweigan)

The six finalists for the Roland/SAMI Artistpris 2003:

1. Steroids (rock)
2. Yukon AK (country/pop)
3. Ane Brun (singer/songwriter)
4. Peter Murphy (pop)
5. The Terrible Misstakes (punk)
6. Andreas Giri (pop)

They will all be performing at Alcazar (Nalen) in Stockholm on May 28 to vye for the various prizes in front of a jury of various music industry professionals. Read more. (in Swedish)

Proof that The Hives have reached a significant level of success: Weird Al has parodied them on the song "Angry White Boy Polka" from his new album "Poodle Hat". Congrats guys.

Ed Hartcourt that he will be making a Gröna Lund appearance on August 22.

The Amnestys endagsfestival on May 17 at Mondo in Stockholm will feature Florence Valentin, Shout Out Louds, Paris, Ane Brun and The Concretes.

Dagensskiva gives Logh's new album "The Raging Sun" a 9 out of 10 in their review today. I'd have to agree - I managed to find myself an advance copy and have been listening to it quite a bit. Easily one of the best records I've heard so far this year.

Arch Enemy has set "Anthems of Rebellion" as the title of new new record due out August 26 from Century Media, and in Japan on July 23 from Toy's Factory. Guitarist Michael Amott is quoted as saying "There is a thread of ANTI-establishment and REBELLION that goes through all the songs lyrics and also the artwork, but I wouldn't go as far as calling it a full-blown concept — that kind of stuff usually tends to get in the way of the music... It sounds thicker and more heavy than the last album." Read more. (from Blabbermouth)

Via the pHinnweb mailing list comes this glossary of various terms and items relevant to Finnish art and music.

Entombed's upcoming eigth album "Inferno" has now been delayed to an August 4 release date. Pelle Gunnerfeldt of Fireside produced and I for one am very curious to hear how it turned out.

As hinted at before, David & the Citizens are at Gula Studion (The Yellow Studio) in Malmö with producer Jens Lindgård working on their new record. Word has it that Pelle Ossler of Wilmer X guests on a track along with the klezmer band Tummel on another.

Cold Meat Industry acts IRM and Institut will play the Red Rose in London on May 9. More info here.

A grand total of 100 (!!!) new bands were confirmed for Roskilde Fest today. Some of the acts mentioned include The Cardigans, Christian Kjellvander, Immortal, The Hellacopters, TSOOL, Satirnine, Gåte, Turbonegro, The Sounds, Cato Salsa Experience and The Raveonettes and a plethora of Scandinavian hip-hop artists: Advance Patrol (SWE), Denmarks Finest (DK), Equicez (NOR), Loose Cannons (SWE), Mad Con (NOR), Organism 12 (SWE), Son Of Light (NOR), Static & Nat Ill (DK) and Suspekt (DK). Read more.

Did you miss Hardcore Superstar last night at Chalmers in Göteborg? Well, you can watch a video of the song "Honey Tongue" from that performance.

Lullacry has postponed the release of their new single "Alright Tonight" to May. No reason was given for the delay.

Norway's Gluecifer has announced a couple dates for this summer:

05/31 - Jæren, NOR
06/06 - Working Class Hero Festival, Drammen NOR
08/16 - Raumarock festival Åndalsnes NOR

The band also reiterated their plans to come back to the US, hopefully this coming fall. Their exact words from the website: "For our very patient fans in the US... we are R E A L L Y looking forward to coming back & playin' for y'all!!!!!"

New Line Records has finally launced a website which of course has info and downloads for label darlings The Sounds.

Misconduct has been confirmed for the Kaktus Festival which will take place at an airfield in Arboga on July 18-19. Other artists playing include The Venue, Peter, Björn and John, The Virtues and Charta 77.

Stockholm Records artists Thee Ultra Bimboos are doing a few dates around Scandinavia in May:

05/02 - Västerås, Rockstad Västerås (Culturen)
05/03 - Malmö, KB
05/04 - Oslo, So What
05/05 - Göteborg, Pusterviksbaren
05/07 - Hultsfred, Metropol
05/08 - Stockholm, Nalen

Motorpsycho is planning a Japanese tour for December, but there's no details yet. Their side-project The International Tussler Society will also be doing some shows around Norway in August such as the Øya festival in Oslo on August 7-9. There may be some dates in Europe, too. Stay tuned.

Silence Records has put up a streaming sample of "Happy Endings" from First Floor Power.

In other Silence-related news, Träd, Gräs & Stenar are heading over to England to two dates in England and Brighton on May 21 and 22 respectively. The full list of their upcoming dates:

05/21 - London, 291 Gallery w/No-Neck Blues Band
05/22 - Brighton w/No-Neck Blues Band
05/28 - Västerås, Taj Mahal
05/29 - Oslo, So What
07/19 - Möja (Stockholm archipelago)

Watch the video for "New Direction" from David & the Citizens.

Turbonegro has announced the addition of a new gig at the Garage in London on May 12. Here's what their upcoming European tour itinerary now looks like:

04/30 - Göteborg, Lisebergshallen
05/01 - Stockholm, Munchen Bryggeriet
05/02 - Malmö, KB
05/03 - Hamburg, Grosse Freiheit, DE w/Division of Laura Lee
05/04 - Hamburg, Grosse Freiheit, DE w/DoLL
05/06 - Amsterdam, Melkweg, NL w/DoLL
05/07 - London, Garage, UK w/DoLL
05/08 - Glasgow, King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, UK w/DoLL
05/09 - Manchester, Hope & Grape, UK w/DoLL
05/10 - Birmingham, Acedemy 2, UK w/DoLL
05/11 - Dublin, Whealans, IRL w/DoLL
05/12 - London, Garage, UK w/DoLL
05/13 - Paris, La Tranbendo, F w/DoLL
05/15 - Bergara, Sala Jam, E w/DoLL
05/16 - Madrid, Aqualung, E w/DoLL
05/17 - Barcelona, Apolo, E w/DoLL
05/19 - Milano, Transilvania, IT w/DoLL
05/20 - Zurich, Rote Fabriek, CH w/DoLL
05/21 - Stuttgart, Longhorn, DE w/DoLL
05/22 - Munchen, Elserhalle, DE w/DoLL
05/23 - Köln, E-werk, DE w/DoLL
05/24 - Bielefeld, PC 69, DE w/DoLL
05/25 - Berlin, Columbia halle, DE w/DoLL
05/27 - Stavanger, Siddishallen
05/28 - Bergen, Haukelandshallen
05/29 - Trondheim, Trondheim Spektrum/Nidarøhallen
05/31 - Oslo, Oslo Spektrum

Due to an undisclosed family emergency, Millencolin has been forced to cancel the remaining dates on the second leg of their US tour to return back home to Sweden.

MTVE.com has the new video for "You're the Storm" from The Cardigans.

If you didn't already see it listed, Robyn is doing some touring this summer:

06/28 - Gamleby, Folkets Park
07/05 - Sundsvall, Sundsvalls Gatufest
07/23 - Tylösand, Hot Tylösand
07/24 - Hudiksvall, Stadsfesten
07/25 - Gävle, Rocknatta
07/26 - Piteå, Piteå Dansar och Ler
08/02 - Östersund, Storsjöyran
08/10 - Göteborg, Liseberg
08/15 - Stockholm, Gröna Lund

Here's a MIC Norway profile on Sondre Lerche with links to a number of interviews such as the CNN one linked here yesterday. Among other things, it says that Lerche is featured on the cover of this month's Index Magazine and he is also currently in Bergen, Norway working on his new album with producer Jørgen Træen (aka Sir Duperman). Look for him on tour in the US in May with Nada Surf and Ed Hartcourt.

Also by way of MIC Norway come this article on the Music Export Norway showcase as South by Southwest in Austin last March. Featured bands included the aforementioned Sondre Lerche, Madrugada, Ralph Myerz & the Jack Herren Band, Cadillac, Span and We.

This is pretty amazing: Junior Senior - "Move Your Feet". Definitely not the sort of thing I'm normally into, but that video is just too awesome.

Did you know the last Saturday in May is 'Swedish Music Day'? Me neither.

The following acts have been confirmed for the Siesta fest in Hässleholm on May 30-31: The Ark, Marit Bergman, Dynamo Chapel, David & The Citizens, Christian Kjellvander, $1000 Playboys, Her Majesty, Whyte Seeds, Last Days Of April, Lotta Wenglén Band, Joddla med Siv, Pete Thompson, Loserville plus a number of yet-to-be-named demo bands.

Lars Winnerbäck, Mikael Wiehe and Wilmer X have all been added to the bill of the Piteå Dansar Och Ler fest.

Entombed-side project Project Hate has set "Hate, Dominate, Congregate, Eliminate" as the name of their new album. Look for it later this year from Entombed's own Threeman Recordings label.

Dimmu Borgir has lined up a couple dates in the Netherlands for October:

10/02 – Amsterdam, NETH @ Paradiso
10/03 – Tilburg, NETH @ 013

In other news, the band has reportedly spent the last few weeks at Studio Fredman recording a new album. No word on when to expect it.

Carnal Forge has announced that they have extended their contract with Centry Media for another two albums. Look for 'em on tour in America with the 2003 Metal Gods featuring Halford, Testament, Immortal, Primal Fear and Behemoth.

MTV Up North has moved to Thursdays with a new, extended format. Here's this week's chart:

01. HIM - Funeral of hearts
02. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
03. Mew - Comforting Sounds
04. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
05. A-Teens - Perfect Match
06. Kwan - Shine
07. Kashmir - Surfing The Warm Industry
08. Dub Sweden - Walk Me Home
09. Kari - Exile
10. Surferosa - Neon Commando
11. Paola - Interstellar Love
12. Moon Gringo - Buzz Aldrin
13. Melody Club - Cover Girl
14. Whyte Seeds - Slow motions
15. Pauline - Runnin´ Out Of Gaz
16. Bertine Zetlitz - Girl Like You
17. Jennifer Brown - Weak
18. The Cardigans - For What It´s Worth
19. Equicez - Live From Pass It
20. Thomas Rusiak - Unicorn
Challengers:
01. Empire Dogs - The Dogs
02. Timbuktu - Ett Brev
03. Nik & Jay - Elsker Hende Mere
04. The Knife - You Take My Breath Away
05. Jamie Meyer - Good Girl

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Besides appearing on MTV Morning Glory back home in Sweden this weekend, The Sounds also have reviews published in US mags Billboard and Alternative Press. I'll try and track 'em down if I can.

Misconduct's video for their cover of Bob Marley's "Iron Lion Zion" will premiere on CTV's new program 'Nöjesnytt' on April 29. Singer Fredrik Olsson and bassist Andreas Wall will be on the show, too.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
02. Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt - Den andra skivan
03. Jill Johnson - Discography
04. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
05. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
06. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
07. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
08. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel
09. Elin Sigvardsson - Saturday light naive
10. The Refreshments - On the rocks
11. Roxette - The pop hits
12. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
13. Siw Malmkvist - Siws bästa
14. The Knife - Deep Cuts
15. Fireside - Get shot
16. Buddaboys - Lost people areas
17. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
18. Dilba - Revolution
19. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
20. The Sounds - Living in America

The Shout Out Louds are hard at work on their upcoming debut full-length which is now scheduled to come out September 29. They also have a new single coming out in May for the track "Hurry Up Let's Go" which will include an unreleased song as a b-side. And that's not all - they're even fitting in some touring:

4/25 - Borlänge, Klubb Desired
4/26 - Lund, Klubb Blender
5/7 - Oslo, So What
5/23 - Umeå Studion, Folkets Hus
5/28 - Örebro, Kåren
5/30 - Uppsala, Stones-festivalen
5/30 - Stockholm, Popaganda
5/31 - Linköping, Rocksensation, Herrgårn
5/31 - Kalmar, Skälby
6/6 - Göteborg, Pustervik w/Marit Bergman

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(06) Jurassic 5 Ft. Mya "Thin Line"
(12) Asian Dub Foundation Ft. Sinead O'Connor "1000 Mirrors"
(14) Sean Paul "Get Busy"
(16) Blur "Out of Time"
(17) Outlandish "Guantanamo"
(19) First Floor Power "Happy Endings"
(20) The Concretes "You Can't Hurry Love"

'Against All Evens' is the name of the upcoming Second Gothenburg Biennale to take place May 24 - August 24 at Gothenburg Konsthallen. The event is being billed as "a resistance against all that which is vapid, indifferent and toothless" and will be curated by artist/musician Carl Michael Von Hauswolff. 27 concerts are scheduled to take place including performances by Tommi Grönlund (Sähkö Rec.) with Petteri Nisunen (FIN), John Duncan, Kim Gordon, Russell Haswell, Florian Hecker, Phill Niblock, Pita, Franz Pomassl and more. More info here.

Get a preview of the new Hell n' Diesel single in RealAudio format: "Tears for the Wicked" / "Rebel" / "Speed Devil"
Preorders are already being taken over at the Shuffle Records website.

Live4Metal is reporting that Enslaved was forced to cancel their show at The Garage in London tonight as the promotor seems to have bungled the job. Their statement:

Only about 65 advance tickets were sold and the promoters could not afford to pay the deposit to bring Enslaved over from Norway and have pulled the gig. Live4Metal were happy to be official sponsors of the event, but we have not even had any official notice from them and are as mystified as the support bands, anybody who bought a ticket and no doubt Enslaved themselves. All I can say is that there is a lesson to be learnt here and budding promoters should most definitely learn to walk before they try to run. Being as we are fair, we are willing to listen to the promoters' side of the story... but we are yet to hear from them.

A little bird has informed me that the new C.Aarmé 4-song 7" and The New Mess 3-song gatefold EP are now done and ready for ordering from Deleted Art.

There's a new message board in town: http://www.itsatrap.com/wforum/index.php
I'm still working out some kinks, but it should be up and running just fine for the most part.
UPDATE: Everything is pretty much good-to-go. Whatcha waiting for? Come say hi.

Satirnine has posted their upcoming European tour itinerary:

04/24 - Amsterdam, The MAX - NL
04/25 - Den Bosch, W 2 - NL
04/27 - Cologne, Live music Hall - DE
04/29 - Hamburg, Logo - DE
04/30 - Berlin, Columbia Fritz - DE
05/1 - Hannover, Musikzentrum - DE
05/2 - Schweinfurt, Alte Stadt bahnhof - DE
05/3 - Trier, Exil - DE
05/4 - Munchen, Backstage - DE
05/6 - Dornbin, Condrad Sohm - AUT
05/7 - Vienna, Arene - AUT
05/8 - Graz, Orpheum - AUT
05/10 - Milan, Leoncavallo - IT
05/12 - Zurich - Abart - CH
05/13 - Basel, Kaserne - CH
05/14 - Wil, Remise - CH
05/16 - Lyon, MJC - F
05/17 - Barcelona, Mephisto - E
05/18 - Madrid, Gruta 77 - E
05/20 - Valencia, Roxy - E
05/21 - Vigo, Nashville - E
05/22 - Gijon, Cafe albenitz - E
05/23 - Girona, Atzavara - E
05/24 - La Rouche Sur, Le fuzz - F
05/25 - Rennes, Mondo Bizarro - F
05/26 - Tours, Festival - F
05/28 - Portsmouth, Wedge wood room - UK
05/29 - Birmingham, Academy - UK
05/30 - Leeds, Jospehs Well - UK
05/31 - Glasgow, King Tuts Wah Hut - UK
06/3 - London - Garage – UK
06/12 - Hultsfredsfestivalen
08/2 - Augustibuller

Check out this review and pictures from Logh's show in Köln. (in German)

Pitchfork covers a couple joints from the cold, cold north today. They review both Turbonegro - "Scandinavian Leather" and Jaga Jazzist - "Animal Chin". The latter is a group I've actually been listening to a lot and can definitely recommend. The former, well... the less said the better I think.

Here's a streaming video interview with The Ark in English. It includes some political discussion along with behind-the-scenes footage from an acoustic TV performance.

The Sounds US press onslaught has begun. Are they the 'next big thing'? Can they be stopped? The band reports that they have articles in Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterly, FHM, In Style (Dave Grohl Quote), Jane (The Donnas review the album), and W along with the previously mentioned Paper profile. They've also finally confirmed their upcoming dates with the Ravonettes and Vue:

05/24 - Minneapolis, 7th St. Entry
05/25 - Milwaukee, Vnuk's Lounge
05/27 - Chicago, Double Door
05/28 - Cleveland, Beachland Ballroom
05/29 - Detroit, Magic Stick
06/02 - New York, Bowery Ballroom
06/03 - Boston, Paradise Rock Club
06/04 - Philadelphia, North Star
06/05 - Washington DC, 9:30 Club

And don't forget that they're doing other headlining dates in the US, too. Keep your eyes peeled.

KVLR reports they are just about done with six songs for their new album which they have been working on in the studio with Marcus and Lena from Komeda. The material has been described as "poppy." Next up, they plan to hit the road for awhile after which they'll return to the studio to record the second half of the album. Dates confirmed so far:

05/31 - Umeå @ Scharinska Villan w/Logh
06/12 - (D) Trier, Ex House
06/13 - (D) München, Atomic Cafe
06/16 - (D) Frankfurt, Cookys
06/17 - (D) Marburg, Cafe Trauma
06/18 - (D) Hannover, Bei Chez Heinz
06/19 - (D) Berli, Magnet
06/20 - (D) Hamburg, Molotow
06/21 - (D) Kiel, Kieler Woche (Delta Radio Stage)
06/22 - (DK) Fredericia, Kulturmilitzen

The Klerks' new video for the single "Shame" premieres on Wimans ZTV on Monday April 28. They've also got a couple tourdates lined up for the near future:

04/27 - Göteborg, Chalmers Cortegen
04/29 - Örebro, Festivalborg
05/7 - Växjö, Studentkåren
05/8 - Kalmar, Studentkåren
05/9 - Hässleholm, Perrong 23
05/16 - Borlänge, Borlange

Bad Taste Records has posted an mp3 of the title track from Logh's upcoming EP "The Contractor and the Assassin". Check it out. Again, that'll be out May 5.

Check out the Fireside playing live on MTV Morning Glory. The extra guitarist is apparently Calle Olsson.

The lineup for the comp in honor of the Mjuk i Mössan fest in Emmaboda has just been released. Go to rassle.org for more info. Otherwise, here's the tracklist:

01. Comet Gain - Never die
02. john.wayne.shot.me - Introducing the mechanical reindeer
03. Hank - Table 5 (and eating nachos)
04. Laakso - Sunday night
05. Speedmarket Avenue - You set the terms
06. Talking to Teapots - Me, you, Janie and Drew
07. Sagor & Swing - Popkarusellen
08. La Masa - Min megafon
09. Niccokick - I drink to get thrilled
10. Tullycraft - Miss Douglas county
11. The Radio Dept. - Lean back, lean forward
12. Björns Vänner - Tiden (egentligen "Den enda lögn du har kvar")
13. Surrounded - Exit serenade
14. Florence valentin - Haninge punks
15. Her Majesty - Rules to follow
16. Paris - Tonight
17. Bring me the fucking riot...man - Red wine riot
18. Sonny Crocket - Suppose
19. Dr. Higgins - Den vanliga människan

Misconduct just came back Studio Phlat Planet in Gothenburg with Fredrik Reinedahl (Passenger, In Flames, more) where they were working on their new album. The working title is "Fight Back" and the label describes it as "the best and most varied record Misconduct ever delivered." Also, if you preorder it now you can get a special limited edition digipack before the release date in May with extra songs, video and more. The first 250 orders also get "a Special Gift from the band," whatever that means. And as mentioned a looooong time ago, the band is heading out on the road this summer with NYC hardcore act 25 Ta Life. The dates so far:

06/12 - (GER) Bremen/Wehrschloss
06/13 - (GER) Hannover/Faust
06/14 - (GER) Chemnitz/Talschock
06/15 - (GER) Berlin/Knaack-Klub
06/16 - (GER) Tba
06/17 - (HOL) Tba
06/18 - (HOL) Leuwarden/Gloppe Festival
06/19 - (BEL) tba/tbc
06/20 - (FRA) Straßbourg/La Laterie
06/21 - (FRA) Paris/Street Fest
06/22 - (ESP) St. Feliu de Guixlos
06/23 - tba
06/24 - (POR) Lisbon/Tba
06/25 - (ESP) Madrid/Tba
06/26 - (ESP) Tba
06/27 - (FRA) Perpignan/Crockmore
06/28 - (FRA) Nantes, Hardcore Fury Fest w/Sick of it All, Suicidal, Madball,
06/29 - (FRA) tba
06/30 - (ITA) tba
07/01 - (AUS) Vienna/Arena
07/02 - (AUS) Dornbirn/Conrad Sohm
07/03 - (GER) Eisenach/Crocodiel
07/04 - (GER) Leipzig/Conne Island

Startracks/V2 has a DVD out entitled "Hidden Scenery". It features the video for "All Lovers Hell" from Kristofer Åström along with "How Come Your Arms Are Not Around Me" and "Leaving Song" from a live performance he did in Berlin back in 2002. Other artists on it include Christian Kjellvander, Eskobar plus international acts Grandaddy, Elbow, Mercury Rev and more.

Bear Quartet have been confirmed for the free Pop Dakar music fest May 24 at Gula Villan in Stockholm. Other bands scheduled to play include First Floor Power, Grand Tone Music, Radio Dept., Hell on Wheels, Paris and more.

Here's a track-by-track review of that Finnish psych comp I mentioned yesterday.

Division of Laura Lee has a new CDS coming out May 26 for the track "Trapped In". B-sides will include the song "44" plus a live version of "Need To Get Some". Read more.

Pitchforkmedia.com has posted a review of Mika Vainio's new album "In the Land of the Blind The One-Eyed Is King". For those that don't know, Vainio is one half of the Finnish duo Pan Sonic.

Cult of Luna has unveiled their new website to match the cover art from the new album "The Beyond".

This year's pre-fest activities for Emmaboda have been cancelled due to organization problems. Here's a translated statement from the people behind the scenes at rassle.org:

Unfortunately we have some bad news. Our decision to run a pre festival fest again this year was taken in haste and we have therefore decided to cancel the event. We apolgise for this but we couldn't do anything about it as organisting it was proving more difficult than anticipated and there is not much we can do about it.

Sweden's best band? That's what Aftonbladet says. Check out these recent Fireside 4-star live reviews from the show at Sticky Fingers in Göteborg: Aftonbladet / Expressen (both in Swedish)

Here's the setlist:

Fernandez must die
All you had
Backwards over germany
Desolator
Follow Follow
Blue Monday (New Order cover)
Throw it away
Kilotin
Jerrico
Problem (to you)
Thing on a spring
Encore:
Sweatbead
Betrayer
Layer

The band will also be appearing on MTV Morning Glory this weekend, so check it out when it airs.

Kalas-touring acts Marit Bergman and Her Majesty have now both been confirmed to play the Popaganda fest in Stockholm on May 29-31. The other two new bands confirmed are Midnight Monkeys and Kaada from Norway.

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
02. Jill Johnson - Discography
03. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel
04. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
05. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
06. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
07. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
08. The Refreshments - On the rocks
09. Buddaboys - Lost people areas
10. Fireside - Get shot
11. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
12. Roxette - The pop hits
13. Dilba - Revolution
14. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
15. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
16. The Knife - Deep Cuts
17. Rikard Wolff - Du får mig (om jag får dig)
18. Gloria - People like you and me
19. The Sounds - Living in America
20. Wahlströms - Allt jag vill ha

What are they thinking? Empire Magazine has put out a compilation entitled "Soundtrack of Our Lives" with tracks from artists such as U2, Orbital and Ash. Are they banking on confusion over the name or just totally clueless?

Revolution #9 has announced the creation of a new pop festival to occur this summer on July 18-19 at Bulltoftaparken in Malmö. It will be called the "We & You" fest and they expect to book about 25 bands, though no names have been revealed yet. More details soon.

Here's an interview with Jimmy Tenor in which discusses his new role of fatherhood along with his musical past, present and future. His upcoming tour dates were posted on the 14th.

The good folks at Chalksounds have revealed that they will reissuing Bear Quartet's classic album "Cosy Den" on vinyl this coming September. Keep your eyes peeled.And in even bigger BQ news, the band has announced that will also be putting out a new EP called "All Your Life" in May. Some of the other tracks to be included are"No More School", "Friend Friend" and "Disappearing Act". It was recorded and produced by the ever-so-talented Pelle Gunnerfeldt (Fireside) at his Studio Gröndal. Look for a brand new full length around August.

Denmark's The Alpine will be entering a studio in Sweden shortly to record their second demo. They'll also be playing at Lava/Kulturhuset in Stockholm while over they're there. The band is already receiving regular airplay on Danish P3 radio with the track "Ground Beneath Me" so things are definitely looking up for them. Check em out live, if you are so inclined:

4/18 - Paraplyen, Vejle (DK)
4/26 - Lava/Kulturhuset, Stockholm (S)
5/5 - Stidsholt Ungdomsskole (DK)
5/23 - Skråen, Aalborg (DK)
5/24 - Kulisselageret, Horsens (DK)
5/29-31 - SPOT09 fest, Århus (DK)
6/7 - Cafe' Von Hatten, Randers (DK)
6/25 - Nibe Festival (DK)

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(05) Shout Out Louds "100 Degrees"
(13) Interpol "Obstacle 1"
(15) Isolation Years "Open Those Eyes"
(17) David & The Citizens "New Direction"
(19) The Kills "Fried My Little Brains"
(20) Komeda "Reproduce"

Johan Bergqvist reports he has finished up shooting the video for his new single "This Could Be Our Time". And if you look to your right you'll see that you can download an exclusive mp3 of the track right now. But yeah, the video's done and the CD is being sent off to get mastered, so it's on track for its May release. Johan's also got plans for yet another video - on April 26 he's off to shoot one for the song "Lovelace" as he says he "found a nice location with a grand piano." I'll keep you posted.

People in the US - don't forget about Sahara Hotnights on Conan O'Brien tonight along with guest Adam Sandler.

Here's a bunch of pics from the 2001 Avrika fest, including acts such as The Hellacopters, TSOOL, Mustasch, Nasum, and The Haunted.

Problems arose when the grizzly bear appearing in the video went berserk...

Apparently there were some problems onsite at Turbonegro's video shoot for the song "Sell Your Body (To The Night)" which was being filmed in LA with help from the Jackass dudes. Read more at the the band's website.

"Their mesmerising guitar excursions are worthy of early Pink Floyd; the tunes are beyond brilliant; this is, without question, among the most supremely desirable stoner albums you are likely to hear all year" - James Delingpole, Sunday Telegraph, on "Every Time A Bell Rings An Angel Gets Its Wings"

Folks in London get the lucky opportunity to see Logh for free at 93ft East in London on April 14. The show starts at 7:30 and if I was you, I wouldn't miss it.

Been awhile since I heard from these guys, but the Diamond Dogs are going on tour:

4/21 - Monroes, Workingston (UK)
4/22 - Roadmenders, Norhhampton (UK)
4/23 - Markoni Club, Chelmsford (UK)
4/24 - Penningtons Live, Bradford (UK)
4/25 - Baths Hall, Scunthorpe (UK)
4/26 - Cheese and Grain, Frome (UK)
4/27 - Patti Pavilion, Swansea (UK)
4/28 - Camden Underworld, London (UK)
5/02 - Culturen, Västerås
5/08 - El Sol, Madrid (ESP)
5/09 - Stereo, Alicante (ESP)
5/10 - La Casa del Loco, Zaragoza (ESP)
5/13 - University, Granada (ESP)
5/15 - La Nasa, Santiago (ESP)
5/16 - Auditorium Intersecciones, Oviedo (ESP)
5/17 - Azkena, Bilbao (ESP)

Here's the top 20 Swedish albums of the week, as reported by Aftonbladet:

01. The Cardigans - Long gone before daylight
02. v/a - Fame Factory volym 4
03. Lisa Nilsson - Samlade sånger 1992-2003
04. Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
05. Mauro Scocco - Beat hotel
06. Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis Vreeswijks bästa
07. Jill Johnson - Discography
08. The Refreshments - On the rocks
09. Dilba - Revolution
10. Emil Sigfridsson - Tillbaka till igår
11. Fernandoz - Vem får din kärlek i natt
12. Roxette - The pop hits
13. Gloria - People like you and me
14. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
15. The Knife - Deep Cuts
16. The Sounds - Living in America
17. Wilmer X - Lyckliga hundar
18. Rikard Wolff - Du får mig (om jag får dig)
19. Anders Widmark featuring Sara Isaksson - s/t
20. Kikki Bettan Lotta - Live från Rondo

This week's Swedish college radio chart (from Dagensskiva):

Leaving the chart:
(12) The Donnas "Take It Off"
(13) Melody Club "Covergirl"
(16) Kamera "At Work"
(18) Ron Sexsmith Ft. Chris Martin "Gold In Them Hills"
(20) Lil' Kim Ft. Mr Cheeks "The Jump Off"

ZTV will begin broadcasting a TV version of Hitlisten, Sweden's official sales chart, compiled by IPFI affiliate GLF and published every Thursday.

Magnus Carlson from the Weeping Willows has his new Eggstone-produced solo album coming out July 9. Turns out he's getting even more outside help, this time from film director Lukas Moodysson (Fucking Åmal/Show Me Love, Tillsammans/Together)and Radio Dept. Lukas has reportedly helped out with some lyric writing while Radio Dept. and Magnus played together at their home in Malmö. The first single will be for the song "Jag ber dig", a cover of the Northern Soul-hit "Beggin'" with Swedish lyrics.

Moneybrother is heading on tour in support of his new, forthcoming album "Blood Panic". The dates:

5/21 - Stockholm, Södra Teatern
5/22 - Karlstad, Glada Ankan
5/23 - Oslo, So What
5/30 - Göteborg, Playground @ Pustervik
5/31 - Linköping, Rocksensation
5/27 - Malmö, Trenchtown @ KB

Mobbade Barn Med Automatvapen (MBMA) have a new 12" coming out in May called "Nu Ännu Drygare" with four songs. Breakmecanix and Embee (Loop Troop) handled the production and Timbuktu and Chords make guest appearances.

Here's an interview with Sami Liuski of Rovaniemi, Finland aka 8-Bit Rockers and Bangkok Impact among others. He talks about his upcoming touring activities and the Finnish electronic music scene, among other interesting topics. Those dates:

4/23 - Pianos, NYC, NY
4/24 - Rhode Island
4/25 - Rex Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
4/26 - Touch Supper Club, Cleveland, OH
4/27 - Empty Bottle, Chicago, MI
4/30 - Noise Lab, Seattle
5/01 - Blackbird, Portland, OR
5/02 - Obscura Digital, San Fransisco
5/05 - Knitting Factory, Los Angeles
5/06 - Los Angeles
5/08 - Sin 13, San Antonio
5/09 - The Elysium, Austin, TX
5/10 - Mermaid Lounge, New Orleans
5/11 - Miami
5/13 - Highlight, Chappel Hill, North Carolina
5/14 - Heaven and Hell, Washinton DC
5/16 - Ivy South, NYC, NY, USA

Danish dance duo Junior Senior are heating things up over in Britain. Not only are they in the singles chart at #5 with "Move Your Feet", but they're also planning to do either dates over there in May, starting with Glasgow Barfly on the first and ending with Liverpool Barfly on the 11th.

Division of Laura Lee has lined up a few extra dates around their appearance at the upcoming Coachella fest near LA:

4/21 - Houston, Engine Room
4/22 - Austin, Emos
4/23 - Dallas, Gypsy Tea Room
4/25 - Phoenix, Mason Jar
4/26 - Indio, Coachella

UPDATED: David & the Citizens will be on P3 Pop on April 14 from 10pm till midnight. They'll be playing live and chatting with Hanna in studio. They'll be sure to play the song "Glued to the Light" from the new EP "New Direction" they say, but they'll also be premiering two brand new tracks. As this news implicates, the band is already making plans for their next record - they'll be hitting the studio in May with plans to get it out around September.

In Flames have revealed the details for their forthcoming EP entitled "Trigger". The track listing is as follows:

01. Trigger (single edition)
02. Watch Them Feed (new song)
03. Land Of Confusion (Genesis cover)
04. Cloud Connected (Club Connected Remix)
05. Moonshield (C64 Karoke Version)

Look for it soon on Nuclear Blast. In other news, the band recently returned home from their most recent trek across the US and had this to say on their website:

Hello all, thanx a million for the GREAT support from both old and new fans on In Flames/Mudvayne tour in the US. We had a great time, and as usual we met some really cool people on the road( talking about you, our wonderful fans) and we made some good friends in the other bands- Mudvayne, Grade 8, and Depswa - we really hope to meet up again soon!!!!
On the way home we were forced to make an emergency landing in New Foundland, due to some strange objects on the aircraft that needed closer attention. This of course scared the hell out of us, but luckily it was false alarm, so as we speak we are in Sweden, jet-lagged as hell, but really glad to be on safe ground at home again.
In the end of June we will go back on the road again on a headline spin across the US, bringing some great acts along with us (see soon for official update on this). The tour will take us to places we didn´t hit on the last tour and some that we did play... Hope to see ALL of you out there. Also, watch out for our video/EP for "Trigger" that will be out very soon

Swedish power-metallers Hammerfall have booked themselves a short Czech Republic tour along with the following festival dates:

6/27 - Bang Your Head - Balingen, GER
6/28 - Masters Of Rock, Vizovice, CZ
6/29 - Centre of Town, Jihlava, CZ
6/30 - Hall Lokomotiva, Plzen, CZ
7/04 - Sundsvalls Gatufest - Sundsvall, SWE
7/05 - Töreboda Festival - Töreboda, SWE
7/25 - Karlskoga Stranddagar - Karlskoga, SWE
8/30 - Bloodstock Metalfest - Derby, UK

Transport League has announced that Crash Music Inc. will license their most recent EP "Grand Amputation" for release in the US. It was originally released last year on their own label Hoffa Communications through MNW distribution. In other news, the band reportedly just did some time in the studio with producer J. Reivén (ex-LOK) working on a new demo.

I'm happy to report that the show last night went quite well. The Caesars were a lot of fun and I was glad to finally get a chance to see 'em. The guitars weren't quite as loud as I would've liked, though. And yeah, that Jocke is definitely a nutter on stage. Needless to say, TSOOL rocked the house. Having Martin Hederos back with them (the guy from the Whyte Seeds was subbing last tour) made a huge difference in the sound. Ludwig from t(I)NC did a right and proper job filling in on the drums. Good fun. Someday I'll see the full band together, but until then...

Oh, and The Caesars now have a US website, too. Check it.

And making me even more happy is the fact that I got an exclusive (!!!) mp3 from Johan Bergqvist to offer you. People signed up with the newsletter already got a chance to download the song last week, but now I'm making it available to everyone. The track is called "This Could Be Our Time" and it's from his single due out in May. For more info on Johan, check out his website at www.pristinemusic.com/johanbergqvist.

Cobolt, Umeå's kings of sadcore, finally got themselves a website. About time, doncha think? Check it out.

The new Cult of Luna record is reviewed in the May issue of Rolling Stone. Short, but sweet.

Famed Swedish producer/musician/songwriter Dan Swanö has announced plans to reform metal band Edge of Sanity to record a new album via his official message board. Here's his full statement:

Hello Everyone...
Since Black Mark [his record label] have been clever enough to announce a new EDGE OF SANITY release called "CRIMSON II" even though I begged them to keep it a secret, what can I do??? I don't want to lie to my friends.
The first two weeks of May will be dedicated to the writing and recording of an album I have had bubbling inside of me ever since I started the fight for a more "accessible" Bloodbath (Which we all know didn't happen)
I have a bunch of good riffs that sounds SOOO like Edge Of Sanity that it would be ridiculous to start yet another project and sound just like something I invented years ago.
Black Mark have been asking me to re-join the band since the moment I quite and they never really got the fact that I wanted nothing to do with it. After "Evolution" I felt it was all over and went on to do my thing.
Then the "other" Edge Of Sanity split up and let the world "Edge-less"
That's when the ball began rolling. And after a long discussion over a good meal at the Black Mark house I decided to start thinking about the stuff I was writing as a new EOS album.
On the train ride home I started toying around with the idea of a follow up to "Crimson" and when I got home it seemed like the only right thing to do.
I am not in the mood for some "singer songwriter, wanna have a hit single" Metal.
I want Epic-goddamn!!!
So there will be one big piece this time as well, (With track numbers for index, this time!!)
It will be a mind-blowing powerful blend between E.O.S. (duuh..) Pan Thy Monium, Godsend, Karaboudjan, Diabolical Masquerade, Odyssey and maybe even some passages of old Nightingale thrown in. A Massive Swanö-style pomp-death overkill!!!!!
Some of the stuff I have this far is the most classy pomp-death stuff I have ever written and I feel very confident in myself.
The main reason to why I do such a sacred and weird this, as to revive EDGE OF SANITY is...I want this album to be known, to sell, to get through the fucking jungle of albums, to be reviewed everywhere...I know this album will kick ass and I don't want it to drown in some "new project with the guy from EOS" formula..
If it IS called EDGE OF SANITY it will be given a serious listen and trust me..
no one will be disappointed, it will be among the best EOS albums.
August it is..

"Dude, where's my lighter?" - The Venue have put up the first part of their tour diary from their recent US excursion for SXSW.

The guys from Supersilent got a few more gigs lined up at the Molde International Jazz Festival in Norway. First up, Helge will be playing with Norwegian folk singer Unni Løvlid and percussionist Terje Isungset on July 14. Next, Jarle plays the farmer's market on the 17th with festival "artist in residence" Michael Brecker and Ståle will duet with drummer/percussionist Thomas Strønen on the 18th. And finally, the full band will perform on the 19th at Kulturhuset.

In related news, Supersilent-member Arve will play with the combination British/Norweigan quartet Food during a festival tour of Canada:

6/25 - Jazzfest International, Victoria
6/27-28 - Vancouver International Jazz Festival
6/29 - Festival International de Jazz de Montréal

More details available here.

Nightwish will be entering their own home-studio on October 27 to record basic tracks for the follow-up to last year's "Century Child". From there, they'll go over to Finvoxx Studios in Helsinki to track vocals and guitars.

Her Majesty has just signed a publishing deal with Sony/ATV Music. The album "Happiness" comes out in May.

Petter, Doggelito and Daddy Boastin all make guest appearances on the debut Don Diego album "Mitt Liv", due out April 14 on Flava Records.

A-ha has decided not to release their new double live album "How Can I Sleep With Your Voice In My Head" in the UK due to lack of support from their label, Warner Music. The record is doing well in their home of Norway and is poised to do well also in Germany where the band has previously enjoyed healthy sales. No word if another label will step in to take over for a wider release.

Norway's eclectic 10-piece electronic-jazz act Jaga Jazzist will touring Europe in support of the wide release of their first album "The Stix" on Ninja Tune which comes out April 15. The dates:

4/15 - Belgium Brussels Ancienne Belgique
4/16 - France, Rennes Ubu
4/17 - France, Paris New Morning
4/18 - France, Lyon Ninkasi
4/19 - France, Strasbourg Laiterie
4/20 - Switzerland, Martigny Caves Du Manoir
4/23 - Switzerland, Zurich Moods
4/25 - Italy, Verona Interzona
4/26 - Italy, Rome La Palma
4/30 - UK, Brighton Beach Club (tbc)
5/1 - UK, London Ocean
5/2 - Ireland, Dublin The Village
5/3 - UK, Bristol Croft (tbc)
5/5 - Netherlands, Haarlem Bevrijdings Festival
5/6 - Netherlands, Rotterdam Nighttown
5/7 - Netherlands, Amsterdam VPRO (TV recording)
5/8 - Netherlands, Tilburg 13
5/9 - Netherlands, Groningen Vera
5/10 - Netherlands, Utrecht Tivoli
5/12 - France, Montpellier Rockstore
5/14 - Spain, Pamplona (tbc)
5/15 - Spain, San Sebastian Gaeztezena
5/16 - Spain, Madrid Teatro Jacinto
5/17 - Spain, Mieres Jovellanos
5/18 - France, Arles Cargo de Nuit
5/20 - Austria, Vienna Wuk
5/21 - Germany, Dresden(tbc)
5/22 - Germany, Berlin Maria Am Ostbahnhof
5/23 - Poland, Katowice Hipnoza
5/24 - Poland, Warsaw Jazzgot
5/26 - Germany, Halle (tbc)
5/27 - Germany, Cologne (tbc)
5/28 - Germany, Hamburg (tbc)
5/29 - Germany, Hannover (tbc)
5/30 - Denmark, CopenhagenJ azzhaus
5/31 - Denmark, Aarhus SPOT Festival
6/14 - Spain, Barcelona Sonar Festival
7/5 - Norway, Kongsberg Kongsberg Jazz Festival
7/6 - France, Belfort Eurockeennes Festival
7/9 - Switzerland, Montreux Montreux Jazz Festival
7/10 - Luxembourg, Luxembourg Kulturfabrik (tbc)
7/11 - Belgium, Dour Dour Festival
7/12 - Belgium, Bruges Cactus Jazz Festival
7/13 - Netherlands, Hague North Sea Jazz Festival
8/3 - UK, Malvern Big Chill Festival
8/4 - UK, London Jazz Cafe
8/8 - Norway, Oslo Oya Festival

Komeda will release their long-awaited new album "Kokomemedada" on June 2.

Lotta Wenglen plays Tavastia in Helsinki on April 15 in support of the new single "Ambassador of Love". Buddaboys will also perform.

Advance Patrol are hitting the road and now confirmed for Roskilde:

4/12 - Mejeriet, Lund
4/17 - Frölunda Fritisgård, Göteborg
4/18 - Tivoli, Helsingborg
4/25 - KB, Malmö
4/26 - TBA, Uddevalla
5/1 - Första Maj-Fest, Slottsparken, Malmö
5/2 - Culturen, Västerås w/Ison & Fille
5/14 - Rust, Köpenhamn (DK)
5/31 - Universitetet, Stockholm
6/28 - Roskildefestivalen, Roskilde (DK)

Speaking of Roskilde, Norway's Turbonegro and Cato Salsa Experience are now both confirmed to play, too.

Finnish experimental techno label Symptom Records will be putting out their second 12" release on April 22 containing three tracks from artists who will remain anonymous. Preview the music here: www.symptomrecords.com/preview.

The Haunted are coming back to the US in May with Shai Hulud and Skinless. Darkest Hour and Bleeding Through will also support on select dates. The itinerary so far:

5/08 - Krome - South Amboy, NJ *
5/09 - Rainbow - Montreal, QC, CANADA *
5/10 - Club Rockit - Toronto, ON, CANADA *
5/11 - Majestic - Detroit, MI *
5/12 - Newport Music Hall - Columbus, OH +
5/14 - Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA *
5/15 - Bridge Street Music Hall - Syracuse, NY *
5/16 - Club Laga - Pittsburgh, PA *
5/17 - The Palladium/New England Metal and Hardcore Fest - Worcester, MA
5/18 - Jaxx - West Springfield, VA +
5/19 - Ziggy's - Winston-Salem, NC +
5/20 - Uncle Doctor's - West Columbia, SC +
5/21 - State Theatre - St. Petersburg, FL +
5/22 - The Factory - Fort Lauderdale, FL +
5/23 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA +
5/24 - Tek World - Louisville, KY +
5/25 - Engine Room - Houston, TX +
5/27 - Emo's - Austin, TX +
5/28 - Tree's - Dallas, TX +
5/29 - Launchpad - Albuquerque, NM +
5/30 - Marquee - Tempe, AZ +
5/31 - Huntridge Theatre - Las Vegas, NV +
6/01 - Troubadour - Los Angeles, CA +
6/02 - The Pound - San Francisco, CA +
6/05 - Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO +
6/06 - The Bottleneck - Lawrence, KS +
6/08 - Agora Ballroom - Cleveland, OH +
* w/Darkest Hour
+ w/Bleeding Through

Amorphis will be honored with a 10-year retrospective collection called "Chapters" coming out June 3 from Relapse Records. Features include rare tracks, extensive liner notes and a DVD. View the cover art here. As mentioned before, Amorphis' new album "Far From The Sun" comes out on Virgin in Finland on May 20.

Marit Bergman has signed with BMG in Sweden making her labelmates with Kent, Sahara Hotnights, and the Backyard Babies. There's obviously been quite a bit of interest in her from the majors since her self-released debut solo album "3.00 A.M. Serenades" did so well and garnered many accolades. Now she's happy she no longer needs to worry herself about promotion, royalties or any of that other behind-the-scenes business and can concentrate 100% on the music.

The buzz is getting louder for Radio Dept. as their "Leibling" 7" was just played recently on the UK's legendary John Peel radio show.

And speaking of John Peel, don't forget to check out The Hellacopters playing live on-air tomorrow.

Read a short, gushing review of the new album "Souvenirs" from the Netherland's The Gathering. As mentioned in therein, the album features guest appearances from Mathias Elk of Jaga Jazzist and Trickster G (Kris Rygg) of Ulver, and yes, I agree that it really is great.

Reviews and samples of new releases from Ulver, Katatonia, JR Ewing and more from Aquarius Records. Mailorder, too.

As already reported, Arve and Jarle from Supersilent will be appearing solo and as part of the Tord Gustavsen Trio on May 10 at the Maijazz festival in Stavanger, Norway. It's not confirmed that Supersilent themselves will also be playing the fest on the day before. In other news, Arve makes a guest appearance on the new Jørn Simen Øverli album "Pengenes Oppmuntrende Virkning" along with Stian Carstensen from Farmers Market.

Mustasch is entering the studio on April 22 to record a new album under the tutelage of producer Jacob Hellner (credits include Rammstein, Clawfinger, and Fläskkvartetten). They expect to have it out around fall.

Here's an interview with Ebbot from TSOOL talking about touring the US among other things. (in Swedish)

25 years ago the first Swedish punk single "Vårdad klädsel" from Kriminella Gitarrer came out. There's gonna be a show celebrating this event at Vågen in Göteborg on October 4 featuring Brända Barn, Asta Kask, Attentat, Stry Terrarie and Freddie Wadling plus more to be announced. Tickets go on sale April 11.

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Mew - Comforting Sounds
03. Kwan - Shine
04. Kashmir - Surfing The Warm Industry
05. A-ha - The Sun Always Shines On TV
06. C21 - You Are The One
07. Bertine Zetlitz - Girl Like You
08. Roxette - Opportunity Nox
09. Winta - Emotions
10. The Cardigans - For What It´s Worth

Challengers:
01. Left Lane - Walk after you
02. HIM - Funeral of harts
03. Ralph Meyrz & The Jack Herren Band - Think Twice
04. Whyte Seeds - Slow motions
05. Don Diego - Min lat

Go to the MTVE.com site to watch and vote for your favorite.

Lotta will be playing Tavastia in Helsinki on April 15 with Buddaboys. Even better, Yle Radio X3M will be broadcasting the show live.

Orange Crunch has a new EP coming out on Dead Frog in May. They play Alcazar in Stockholm tomorrow night, too.

The Svensk Rockarkiv will be making a roadshow appearance at Hultsfred fest this year. The archive was started in 1993 as a place to keep documentaries, photos, records and so on from all sorts Swedish artists through the ages.

The winners of the 2002 SAMA awards have been announced:

Best newcomer: Melody Club
Best song: Melody Club – Electric
Best album: Covenant – Northern Light
Best artist: Apoptygma Berzerk

Read more about the SAMAs here.

Download an mp3 of Randy's new single "A Man in Uniform". The new album "Welfare Problems" comes out April 14 on Burning Heart.

Hedningarna, Radio Dept., Tyskarna från Lund, Colony 5, Kamera, Interlace, Stairland, Magenta, Necton and The Celophane Flowers are few of the new Nordic bands confirmed for the upcoming Arvika Festival. Other new bands confirmed include Ministry, Mono and DAF.

The final list of nominees for the Swedish hip-hop awards has been announced. Go here for the full list. The ceremony will April 25 at Nalen in Stockholm. Performing live will be Spotrunnaz, Prominent, Don Diego, Peshi, DJ Confuse, Narcissists, Ison & Fille & Hemmalaget, Ken & BB Entertainment, Sam-E, and Timbuktu.

Speaking of Timbuktu, he'll be hitting the road in May along with Chords, DJ Amato and the live-band Damn!. The dates:

5/6 - Stockholm, Göta källare
5/7 - Göteborg, Nefertiti
5/8 - Göteborg, Nefertiti
5/9 - Malmö, KB

Here's a short interview with Jocke Ahlunds from The Caesars talking about the filming of the video for "Jerk it Out" in Havana, Cuba. You can also view the video from that page, too. (in English)

Check this article on up-and-coming Swedish pop groups Franke, Laakso, José Gonzales, The Embassy, Radio Dept., and Her Majesty from Dagens Nyeter. (in Swedish)

Ulf Lundell is hitting the road this summer:

7/4 - Varberg, Fästningen
7/5 - Sundsvall, Gatufesten
7/6 - Leksand, Sammilsdal
7/8 - Visby, Kneippbyn
7/11 - Christinehofs Slott
7/17 - Stockholm, Skansen
7/19 - Karlstad, Mariebergsskogen
7/22 - Borgholm, Slottsruinen
7/24 - Karlskrona, Bastion Aurora
7/25 - Västervik, Gränsö Slott
7/26 - Halmstad, Brottet
7/29 - Fjällbacka, Hamnen
8/1 - Uppsala, Fyrishovsparken
8/2 - Mariestad, Folkets Park
8/8 - Norge, Wrightegaarden
8/9 - Norge, Fredrikstens Festning
8/10 - Norge, Oslo, Rockefeller
8/15 - Linköping, Slottsparken
8/16 - Göteborg, TrSdgsrdsföreningen

Finnish electronic act Mr. Velcro Fastener will be playing at The Egg in London on May 9.

Finland's Amorphis has signed a deal with Virgin Records to release their new self-produced album "Far From The Sun". It will come out May 20 with the first single "Day Of Your Beliefs" coming later this month. Guitarist Esa Holopainen comments:

Having had to go through all the contractual differences in the past, the future does really look bright at the moment. The process of making the album was easy and the schedule for the summer and autumn live dates is developing steadily. We aim to play European festivals over the summer and hit the road on our own in the fall.

Despite the recent death of guitarist Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta, Finntroll has decided to soldier on with their upcoming European tour with Katatonia. The official statement:

We do this with heavy hearts, as the sudden loss of Teemu 'Somnium' Raimoranta, a close friend and one of the leading forces behind this band, gave us a blow from which the recovery will take a long time. We feel that dropping everything now, canceling the tour and all the plans we together agreed for this band, would be an insult on Teemu's memory. Going back on the road was also the particular wish of his family and close ones. We feel that this is the best way to honor our friends' memory, taking the music out to the fans. On the following gigs the second guitar will be played by a long-time friend for all of us, Mikael Karlbom (The Seventh Planet), who has played as a stand-in guitarist for us several times in the past.
During the tour, we wish some courtesy on the part of fans, members of the press and others concerning questions about Teemu's departing, future of the band and such. We will share information in due time.
Thanks to all those who have contacted us, expressed their condolences and honored our brother's memory.

Christian Kjellvander will be playing the opening of the Handikappåret 2003 at the Kulturhuset in Stockholm on April 11.

The Caesars are heading back to the UK in May with the French Kicks. The dates:

5/11 - Oxford, Zodiac
5/14 Manchester, Roadhouse

The Swedish pop group Natural scored a number 2 position on the Japanese radio charts last week with the tune "Put Your Arms Around Me".

Charlie's Magazine will release their new album "Traffic" on April 22. The female-fronted band previously enjoyed a taste of success with the single "Sweet Alibi" back in 2001.