Junior Senior recently completed a remix for the Le Tigre track "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo" that should see the light of day in various formats around mid-October. "We have always been big fans of Le Tigre and it's an honour for us to have worked with them," they say. There's plans to do yet another as-yet-unnamed remix and then it's back to the studio to work on the next album.

Junior Senior is finally taking a break from touring and will be entering the studio to work on their next album. No word on when it'll be done, but they're hoping to have it recorded by the end of the year for a spring 2005 release.

Streaming playlist: Summertime

Danish label Crunchy Frog, home of bands like Junior Senior and Powersolo, has signed indie-rock act epo-555 who they describe as "drawing on the same musical qualities as Bob Hund, Pixies, My Bloody Valentine, The Flaming Lips, The Velvet Underground, Calexico and other cool cats." Read more about them here: http://www.crunchy.dk/asp/default.asp?News_Id=109

Denmark's Crunchy Frog Records has announced the details for their upcoming Vibracrunch Festival in Malmö, Sweden on August 14. So far confirmed on the bill are Moongringo and Money Your Love, the latter featuring Lars I Lommen who tours as a backup singer in Junior Senior's band.

Music biz mailing list Recordoftheday.com has selected Denmark's Hush as their, uh, "record of the day" featured soundclip. They say "Hush should do great business and will benefit from having a worldwide deal with the same label which has recently broken Junior Senior across Europe."

Some of these have already been mentioned, but here's the complete list of acts from around Scandinavia heading over to Austin, TX in March for the SXSW festival: Kristofer Åström (SWE), Alamo Race Track (NL), Bettie Serveert (NL), The Defectors (DK), Demons (SWE), Division Of Laura Lee (SWE), Thomas Dybdahl (NOR), El Caco (NOR), Janne Haavisto & The Farangs (FIN), Hardcore Superstar (SWE), Hell on Wheels (SWE), The Hives (SWE), Holden (SWE), Hush (DK), The (International) Noise Conspiracy (SWE), The Jessica Fletchers (NOR), Junior Senior (DK), Kamera (SWE), The Latebirds (FIN), Randi Laubek (DK), League of XO Gentlemen (NL), Learning From Las Vegas (DK), Erja Lyytinen (FIN), Marynka and Some Lovely Girls (NL), On Trial (DK), Persil (NL), Powersolo (DK), St Thomas (NOR), Silver (NOR), Singapore Sling (ICE), Tasha's World (NL), Venus Flytrap (NL) and zZz (NL). And no matter what they say, Danko Jones is not from Sweden. Read more, get artist profiles and listen to samples: http://www.sxsw.com/music/

The results of the 2003 Pazz & Jop music poll from NYC's Village Voice have been announced and you can check the results here: http://www.villagevoice.com/specials/pazznjop/03/albums_winners1.php
Scandinavian entries on the list include Junior Senior at 27 and The Raveonettes at 56. Jr. Sr. did much better on the singles list, charting at #9.

New, updated Junior Senior tourdates:

03/16 - House of Blues, New Orleans, LA w/B-52s
03/18 - Stubbs, SXSW, Austin, TX w/B-52s
03/20 - Salon 21, Mexico City (MEX)
04/01 - Club Quattro, Osaka (JAP)
04/02 - Club Quattro, Nagoya (JAP)
04/04 - Club Quattro, Tokyo (JAP)
04/05 - Club Quattro, Tokyo (JAP)
05/01 - Coachella Festival, Indio, CA (US)

Here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Backyard Babies - Minus Celsius
02. The Rasmus - First Day Of My Life
03. Eskobar - Love Strikes
04. Redrama - Hang It Up
05. Safri Duo feat. Clark Anderson - All The People In The World
06. Erik Faber - Century
07. Junior Senior - Shake Your Coconuts
08. Tim Christensen - Whispering At The Top Of My Lungs
09. Christine Milton - Superstar
10. Lisa Miskovsky - Lady Stardust
11. L.O.C. - Undskyld
12. Eagle Eye Cherry - Don´t Give Up
13. Majid - Boys And Girls
14. The Latin Kings - Cashen Dom Tas
15. Fattaru feat. Masayah - Ton för ton
16. September - We Can Do It
17. Negative - The Moment Of Our Love
18. Briskeby - Halleluja
19. Paperboys - Hey Man
20. Slow Train Soul - In The Black Of Night

Challengers:
01. Dogsound - Go Figure
02. The Crash - Still Alive
03. The Knife - Handy Man
04. Outlandish - Walou
05. Bosson - A Little More Time
06. Beats And Styles - Girls´ Anthem
07. Grand Avenue - Take It As It Comes
08. Pauline - Babylon

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

The Hives and Junior Senior are the first Scandinavian acts to be officially confirmed for SXSW, as listed on their site: http://www.sxsw.com/

Apparently the Cleveland Plain Dealer name Junior Senior's "D-d-don't don't stop the beat" as the album of the year, beating out both Outkast and White Stripes. And my local paper, The SF Chronicle named "Move your feet" as single of the year and even went as far as to call it "the best song EVER!"

Here's this week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart. The top 20 remains the same as last time, but at least there's new challengers to vote for.

01. The Rasmus - First Day Of My Life
02. Backyard Babies - Minus Celsius
03. Tim Christensen - Whispering At The Top Of My Lungs
04. Moneybrother - It's Been Hurting All The Way With You Joanna
05. Redrama - Hang It Up
06. Eskobar - Love Strikes
07. Erik Faber - Century
08. Outlandish - Aicha
09. Lisa Miskovsky - Lady Stardust
10. Fattaru feat. Masayah - Ton för ton
11. Paperboys - Hey Man
12. Beats & Styles - Dynamite
13. C21 - One Night In Bangkok
14. Christian Kjellvander - Portugal
15. The Latin Kings - Cashen Dom Tas
16. Negative - The Moment Of Our Love
17. Carpark North - Wild Wonders
18. Slow Train Soul - In The Black Of Night
19. Fintelligens - Vaan Sil On Väliä
20. Hardcore Superstar - Still I´m Glad

Challengers:
01. Eagle Eye Cherry - Don´t Give Up
02. Junior Senior - Shake Your Coconuts
03. Safri Duo feat. Clark Anderson - All The People In The World
04. Briskeby - Halleluja
05. Christine Milton - Superstar
06. Majid - Boys And Girls
07. September - We Can Do It
08. L.O.C. - Undskyld

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

The end-of-the-year chart at MTV UpNorth:

01. The Rasmus - In The Shadows
02. Outlandish - Aicha
03. The Sounds - Rock n´ Roll
04. The Cardigans - You´re The Storm
05. Outlandish - Guantanamo
06. The Rasmus - In My Life
07. Killer - Naughty Boy
08. C21 - She Cries
09. A-Teens - Perfect Match
10. Mew - Comforting Sounds
11. Junior Senior - Rhythm Bandits
12. HIM - Funeral of hearts
13. Kashmir - Surfing The Warm Industry
14. The Cardigans - For What It´s Worth
15. Jon - Right Here Next To You
16. HIM - The Sacrament
17. Timbuktu - The Botten Is Nådd
18. Redrama - Hang It Up
19. Lisa Miskovsky - Lady Stardust
20. Winta - Emotions

Drum roll please! Here it is at last, the It's a trap! top 10 records of 2003...

10. Junior Senior - D-d-don't Stop the Beat (Crunchy Frog/Atlantic)
This record is 100% mindless entertainment and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, especially when it's done so well. For some reason, the geniuses behind the American version decided to tack on two bonus tracks and totally kill the way the album ends. I don't get it - it ruins the purpose of the fade out that runs back into the first song. Ridiculous.

09. Opeth - Damnation (Koch)
I've always been a big fan of Opeth's softer moments, so I eagerly anticipated the release of this record and was not let down at all. Besides being one of the better live shows I saw this year, this proves that the band can transcend the boundries of the metal genre into realms of prog and melodicism far beyond their peers. The fact that a number of my non-metal friends also consider this one of 2003's best proves it.

08. Kaizers Orchestra - Evig Pint (Broiler Farm)
Take the music of Tom Waits, add a dash of Sixteen Horsepower, throw in a heathy dose of Nordic/Eastern European folk, add some pump organ and metal percussion and you're just about there. The Kaizers manage to strike a great balance of huge pop hooks with a subtle dark and dangerous edge. Don't let the fact they sing in their native Norweigan tongue scare you off because you'd be missing out. I don't need to know what they're saying to know they're good.

07. The Knife - Deep Cuts (Rabid Records)
This is not your usual electropop. The brother/sister duo of Karin and Olof Dreijer use the same elements of others in the genre, but in the process they manage to craft something far more interesting and multifaceted. It may sound like simple dance music at first, but there is far, far more at work here. Karin's unique vocals may put you off at first, but trust me - they are just another part of what makes The Knife great. Give it time.

06. Isolation Years - It's Golden (MNW)
It took me all year to finally understand the qualities that make this record great. I decided to put this on during a drive through the pine forest while on vacation and suddenly it all made sense when combined with the scenery. Isolation Years is a great example of what I love about the Scandinavian scene, especially the bands from around Umeå. Their sound is so distinctive, yet I can't quite put my finger on it. I just know it when I hear it in their lyrics and melodies. So evocative.

05. José González - Veneer (Imperial Records)
This record was surrounded by so much hype I was ready to pan it just because of my contrary nature. But you know what? Sometimes there's tons of hype for a reason. Maybe not quite the second coming of Nick Drake like you may have been led to believe, but still damn good.

04. Moonbabies - The Orange Billboard (Chalksounds/Hidden Agenda)
I've said it before and I'll say it again - this is the pop record of the year. It's almost too flawless, it's so meticulously put together. If it doesn't grab you immediately, I'd check your pulse.

03. Beyond Dawn - Frysh (Peaceville)
Probably the only record this year from a band who followed up a previously great release (the amazingly titled "Electric Sulking Machine") with something even better, other than Logh (see #1). Beyond Dawn never ceases to amaze me as they grow and innovate. You can still hear traces of their doom metal past in their refined, modern sound, but they have moved into a realm beyond genres. Listen to their cover of Autopsy's "Severed Survival" and maybe you'll understand. It really is a crime how underappreciated this band is.

02. Carpet People - More Bad Weather Coming Out of the Rain (Chalksounds)
The perfect companion soundtrack for a long northern winter. The utterly fearless way they let the songs expose themselves by stripping down the instrumentation is stunning. So sparse, somber, striking and dark, but yet so starkly beautiful at the same time.

01. Logh - The Raging Sun (Bad Taste Records)
I can barely think of where to begin here, this album is just too good. Logh never ceases to amaze me with everything they do. Every release of theirs in another gem in their crown and I'm thoroughly convinced at this point that they can do no wrong. Another band who epitomizes what I love about Scandinavian music and whose sound conjures up images of cold Swedish landscapes.