Huzzah! Randy is making good on their word and returning to the US yet again in April. Unfortunately, it's another big punkrock package show with Avail, The Bouncing Souls, The Unseen and Let It Burn, but I'll take what I can get. Dates so far (subject to change, confirmation):

04/18 - Skate & Surf Fest, Convention Hall Complex, Ashbury Park, NJ
04/21 - Pops, Suget, IL
04/22 - Granada, Lawrence, KS
04/23 - First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN
04/24 - The Metro , Chicago, IL
04/25 - Bogart, Cincinatti, OH
04/27 - Magestic Theater, Detroit, MI
04/28 - The World, Pittsburgh, PA
04/29 - The Nation, Washington DC
05/02 - State Theater, Portland, ME
05/04 - Phoenix, Toronto, Ont
05/05 - Sphere, Buffalo, NY
05/06 - BB Kings, NYC

There might be dates with Bad Religion in Europe coming soon, but I don't have any official word yet.

That song that Randy recorded with Fat Mike in SF was called "Dont let your babies grow up to be punk rockers" and I guess that definitely means they didn't play it at the show I saw. It'll be on an upcoming Burning Heart comp. The band also says they might come back in April, but nothing's set yet. Wait and see!

It has been brought to my attention that the UK's Must Destroy Music label has signed The Fine Art Showcase, the new band fronted by Gustav Kjellvander. That name probably sounds familiar because of Gustav's brother Christian who has a successful solo career, but the two also worked together on the project Songs of Soil. Anyhow, there's no release date set quite yet, but I'll post details when I get them. Any word on a Swedish label...?

Must Destroy is also releasing the new Randy "X-ray Eyes" 7" single on March 15. I've mentioned it before, but here's a reminder.

Okay, first off let me announce the winners of the KVLR CD giveaway. Congrats go out to Charlie Moats of Washington, DC, Thomas Ruetti of Switzerland and Gerda Adelgren of Sweden. Your CDs will be in the mail shortly.

I went and saw Randy last night and, in typical San Francisco fashion, the band ruled and the crowd sucked. I guess it's hard to motivate a lackluster audience when you're the opening act. Anyhow, I said hi to the guys quickly before the show and they told me that they spent the day in studio with Fat Mike of NOFX/Fat Wreck Chords recording a song for a comp due out later this year. I didn't press for specifics, but I assume it was Mike's own in-house studio Toast. As for the song, they said they were gonna play it, but I didn't hear anything new. More details later?

Lastly, Monday is a holiday in the US. I probably won't be updating.

Tonight: Randy at The Fillmore in SF. Should be fun! I think it's been about eight years since I've seen headliners Bouncing Souls.

Between Us has announced that they'll be heading out on the road in March with fellow Burning Heart bands Randy and Voice of a Generation on the 'In Close Up We Trust' tour. Full dates for the band (all in Sweden unless otherwise noted):

01/30 - Tilflykt, Kongsberg (NOR) w/Damage Control, The Change, Award and Turn Cold
01/31 - Magasin 15, Trollhättan The Change releaseparty w/Damage Control and The Change
02/13 - Slakthuset, Nyköping w/Award and Labour
02/14 - Calhall "Heartbreaks and Fights", Falun w/The Change, Path of No Return, Award and Parade
02/19 - Ungdomens Hus, Uppsala w/Bruce Banner and Hero Dishonest
02/20 - Kungen, Sandviken w/Hero Dishonest
02/21 - Stallet, Umeå w/Rabid Grannies and Auktion
02/22 - Club 25, Vaasa (FIN)
02/23 - Lutakko, Jyväskylä (FIN) w/Security Threat and Abduktio
02/24 - Tvo, Turku (FIN) w/On a Solid Rock, While I'm Alive and Unity Murder
02/25 - tba (FIN)
02/28 - LKPG HC Fest, Linköping
03/05 - Kartago, Sölvesborg w/Voice of a Generation

In Close Up We Trust w/Randy and Voice of a Generation:
03/06 - Festival 035, Halmstad
03/11 - Debaser, Stockholm
03/12 - Sticky Fingers, Göteborg
03/13 - The Rock, Linköping
03/17 - Ungdomens Hus, Uppsala
03/18 - Club 35, Strängnäs
03/19 - Klubb Kaliber, Mariestad
03/20 - Garage, Oslo (NOR)
03/24 - Tavastia, Helsinki (FIN)
04/01 - Inkonst, Malmö
04/02 - Perrong 23, Hässleholm
04/03 - Stengade 30, Copenhagen (DK)

Here are some of the nominees for the Swedish Grammies:

Best Pop Female:
Jill Johnson - Roots and Wings
Lisa Miskovsky - Fallingwater
Miss Universum - Selfelected
Pauline - Candy Rain
Elin Sigvardsson - Saturday Light Naive

Best Pop Male:
Magnus Carlson - Ett Kungarike För En Kram
Per Gessle - Mazarin
José González - Veneer
Peter LeMarc - Det Som Håller Oss Vid Liv
Mauro Scocco - Beat Hotel

Best Pop Group:
Alcazar - Alcazarized
Bo Kaspers Orkester - Vilka Tror Vi Att Vi Är
Da Buzz - More Than Alive
David & The Citizens - Until The Sadness Is Gone
The Knife - Deep Cuts

Best Rock Album (solo):
Eagle-Eye - Cherry Sub Rosa
Christian Kjellvander - Introducing The Past
Lars Winnerbäck och Hovet - Söndermarken
Moneybrother - Blood Panic
Thomas Rusiak - In The Sun

Best Rock Group:
Bad Cash Quartet - Midnight Prayer
Broder Daniel - Cruel Town
The Cardigans - Long Gone Before Daylight
Fireside - Get Shot
Randy - Welfare Problems

Best Songwriter:
Karin & Olof Dreijer
Per Gessle
Lisa Miskovsky & Joakim Berg
Peter Svensson
Moneybrother (Anders Wendin)

Best Lyrics:
Timbuktu (Jason Diakté)
Per Gessle
Peter LeMarc
Nina Persson
Lars Winnerbäck

Best Producer:
Joakim Berg/Simon Norberg
Karin & Olof Dreijer
Pelle Gunnerfeldt
Jari Haapalainen
C. Öfwerman, C. Lundquist & P. Gessle

Best Hip-hop/Soul:
Advance Patrol - Utskrivna
Kaah - Jideblasko
Ken Det - Bortglömda
The Latin Kings - Omerta
Timbuktu - The Botten Is Nådd!

Best Hard Rock:
Backyard Babies - Stockholm Syndrome
Evergrey - Recreation Day
The Haunted - One Kill Wonder
Mustasch - Ratsafari
Opeth - Damnation

Best Jazz:
E.S.T. - Seven Days Of Falling
Rigmor Gustavsson - with I Will Wait For You
Nils Landgren and The Fleshquartet
Jonas Kullhammar Quartet - Plays Loud For The People
Oddjob - Koyo
Bobo Stenson/Lennart Åberg

Best Club/Dance Song:
Hundarna Från Söder - Hundarna Från Söder BAM
Koop - Waltz For Koop - Alternative Takes
Physics - First Flight NSD
Plej - Electronic Music From The Westcoast
Sophie Rimheden - Hi-Fi Mitek

Best Pop/Dance Band:
Barbados - Hela Himlen
Fame - Give Me Your Love
Jan Johansen - X My Heart
Jill Johnson - Discography
Lasse Stefanz - Det Här Är Bara Början

Go here for the full list: http://www.ifpi.se/02.images/01.top/02.subnav_pdf/08.grammis/pdf/Grammisnomineringar_2003.pdf

Updated US tour schedule for Randy:

02/06 - Alex's Bar, Long Beach, CA
02/07 - Double Down Saloon, Las Vegas, NV
02/08 - Nita's, Tempe, AZ
02/09 - Spaceland, Los Angeles, CA
02/10 - Club SLO Brew, San Luis Obispo, CA
02/11 - Veterans Auditorium, Santa Cruz, CA
02/12 - The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA
02/13 - Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA
02/14 - Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA
02/15 - Soma, San Diego, CA
02/16 - House of Blues, Anaheim, CA

All dates between 02/10 and 02/16 are with Hot Water Music and Bouncing Souls. I'll be at the Fillmore show barring any unforseen industrial accidents and the like.

Here's the nominees for the Swedish Manifest awards:

Pop/Rock:
Hell on Wheels - Oh my God What have I done
Radio Dept. - Lesser matters
Concretes - Concretes
Franke - Optimismens hån
The Knife - Deep cuts

Hardrock/Punk:
Arch Enemy - Anthems of rebellion
Burst - Prey on life
Cult of Luna - The beyond
Katationa - Viva emptiness
Nasum - Helvete

Hip hop/R&B/Soul:
Chords - The garden around the mansion
Speech Defect - Freshcoast gettin' rowdy
Soul Supreme - The Saturday nite agenda
Advance Patrol - Utskrivna
Kaah - Jideblasko international

Postrock/electronica:
Namur - Conquer me
Sagor & Swing - Allt hänger samman
Sophie Rimheden - Hi-fi
Slagsmålsklubben - Den svenske disco
Tape - Milieu

Dance/house/techno:
Hundarna från Söder - Hundarna från Söder
Forss - Soulhack
Plej - Electronic music from the Swedish leftcoast
Stateless - Art of no state
Steve Angello - ...presents tracks

Folk/World music:
Lisa Rydberg - Östbjörka
Frifot - Sluring
Anders Nygårds & Magnus Stinnerbom - Dalahyl
Anders Norrudde, Leo Svensson and Göran Fredriksson - Med hull och hår
Cerro Esperanza Band - Nubes del alma

Singer/Songwriter:
Ane Brun - Spending time with Morgan
Ulf Stureson - Allt jag ville säga
Christian Kjellvander - Introducing the past
Johan Borgert - Johan Borgert
José Gonzàlez - Veneer

Best live artist:
Looptroop
Moneybrother
Randy
Timbuktu med Damn
Killers

Best newcomer:
Miss Universum
José Gonzàlez
Shout Out Louds
Radio Dept.
Paris

Winners are chosen by the SOM (Svenska Oberoende Musikproducenter) (Swedish Independent Musicproducers) and will be announced at an awards ceremony on January 29 at Debaser in Stockholm.

Other notables/honorable mentions:

Cult of Luna - The Beyond & s/t reissue (Earache)
Crushing doom in the vein of Neurosis and Isis, but with a touch of something else that separates them from the rest of the imitators. Hopefully these guys will tour the US because I bet they kill live.

Shout Out Louds - Howl Howl Gaff Gaff (Bud Fox)
Broder Daniel - Cruel Town (Dolores)
These are two of the best Swedish indiepop records this year and I think I actually like the former a bit more than the latter. Broder Daniel has some better songs when taken on their own, but the Shout Out Louds made a better album. I was hoping the latest Bad Cash Quartet would rate too, but it was a huge disappointment.

Zyklon - Aeon (Candlelight)
Ex-Emperor guitarist Samoth proves he can move on and still make quality music. One of the few black-metal releases this year that really caught my interest. Either the scene is stagnant or I've lost interest, not sure.

Motorpsycho & Jaga Jazzist Horns - In the Fishtank (Konkurrent)
It's about time the rest of the world was exposed to these guys. I can do without that one awful funk track, but the rest of this is great stuff. Hopefully the increased international profile of this release will help them get their own music recognized and appreciated.

Randy - Welfare Problems (Burning Heart)
I don't listen to much punk-rock these days, but Randy always delivers. Looking forward to the US tour in February.

The Cardigans - Long Gone Before Daylight (Stockholm Records)
I was really put off by the mellow 70s vibe at first, but once I got over it I found out there were some pretty great songs here. Definitely not what I was expecting, but worth a second glance if you passed it over before.

Ricochets - Ghost of Our Love (White Jazz)
Tiger Lou - Trouble And Desire (Startracks)
Mustasch - Ratsafari (Majesty/Capitol)
Seven Feet Four - Departure/Arrival (Coalition)
Four solid releases from four very different acts. Nothing life changing here, but all still quite good and definitely worth investigating.

Jaga Jazzist - The Stix (Smalltown Supersound)
Supersilent - 6 (Rune Grammofon)
v/a - Money Will Ruin Everything 2xCD + Book (Rune Grammofon)
Norway is really a hotbed for experimental genre-expanding music right now and these three releases are a great place to start. You won't find that elusive "next big thing" here, just music that will make you think. Both Smalltown Supersound and Rune Grammofon are labels to keep an eye on.

Top ten: 2003

As promised, Randy is returning to the US on tour, this time with Bouncing Souls and Hot Water Music. It's just a week on the west coast, but that works out just fine for me. Can't wait!

02/08 - The Joint, Las Vegas, NV
02/10 - SLO Brewing Company, San Luis Obispo, CA
02/11 - Veterans Hall, Santa Cruz, CA
02/12 - The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA
02/13 - The Troubadour, West Hollywood, CA
02/14 - The Troubadour, West Hollywood, CA
02/15 - SOMA, San Diego, CA
02/16 - House Of Blues, Anaheim, CA

FWIW, I've seen two sets of dates and am unable to confirm what's correct so far with regards to the 11th and 12th. I'll update as soon as I hear.

The Hives will premiere their brand new single at the P3 Gold Awards on January 23 at Storan in Göteborg. Other acts set to play include Nicolai Dunger, Lisa Miskovsky, Patrik Isaksson, Elin Sigvardsson, Timbuktu, Broder Daniel and Soundtrack Of Our Lives. As for the awards themselves, here's the nominees:

Guldmicken (best live act):
José González
Moneybrother
Randy
Robyn
Timbuktu

Best song:
The Cardigans - "For What It's Worth"
Per Gessle - "Här Kommer Alla Känslorna (På En Och Samma Gång)"
Lisa Miskovsky - "Lady Stardust"
Timbuktu - "The Botten Is Nådd"
Broder Daniel - "When We Were Winning"

Best group:
Alcazar - "Alcazarised"
Bad Cash Quartet - "Midnight Prayer"
Broder Daniel - "Cruel Town"
The Cardigans - "Long Gone Before Daylight"
The Knife - "Deep Cuts"

Best male artist:
Per Gessle - "Mazarin"
José González - "Veneer"
Moneybrother - "Blood Panic"
Timbuktu - "The Botten Is Nådd"
Lars Winnerbäck - "Söndermarken"

Best female artist:
Lisa Miskovsky - "Fallingwater"
Miss Universum - "Selfelected"
Pauline - "Candy Rain"
Sophie Rimheden - "Hi-Fi"
Elin Sigvardsson - "Saturday Light Naïve"

Best newcomer:
José González
Miss Universum
Moneybrother
Pauline
Radio Dept.

Best rock:
Arch Enemy - "Anthems of Rebellion"
Cult Of Luna - "The Beyond"
Mörk Gryning - "Pieces of Primal Expressionism"
Nasum - "Helvete"
Satirnine - "Void of Value"

Best dance:
Jesper Dahlbäck - total production 2003
Eric Prydz - total production 2003
Forss - "Soulhack"
Hundarna från Söder - "Hundarna Från Söder"
Plej - "Electronic Music From The Swedish Leftcoast"

Best pop:
Franke - "Optimismens Hån"
The Knife - "Deep Cuts"
Radio Dept. - "Lesser Matters"
Sophie Rimheden - "Hi-Fi"
Tape - "Milieu"

Best hip-hop/soul:
Advance Patrol - "Utskrivna"
Fattaru - "Jordnära"
Ken - "Det Bortglömda"
Latin Kings - "Omerta"
Timbuktu - "The Botten Is Nådd"

For more info, go to P3 Gold's website.

Randy says they will play two shows in Sweden sometime in January and will still hopefully make it over to the US soon after. The band also plans to record a new song for an upcoming Burning Heart Records comp due out in January. It's supposedly a collaboration someone special, but they aren't saying who yet.

Sad to say, but the time has come for those Randy live mp3s to go away. Sorry, but that's the way it goes. However, in it's place I've got a few more of those live Hederos & Hellberg tracks as well as a special new mp3 from KVLR. As some of you out there might've heard, It's a trap! is branching out into the record business and our first release will be the new self-titled album from these guys. "Slow Clapping" is the first single and Chalksounds will be putting it out as a 7" real soon. Stickman will be handling the release in Europe around January (I think) and I'll be getting it out in the US sometime around early March. Dates and more details coming soon!