IT'S A TRAP! Scandinavian Music Journal

Mutant Sounds: v/a - Tand mörkret!

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 18:32:45 -0800

Just posted for download via Mutant Sounds, the book/comp "Tand mörkret!" featuring a wide array of 70s/80s Swedish punk/postpunk/experimental eclecticism: http://mutant-sounds.blogspot.com/2011/02/va-tand-morkret-book-and-compilation-cd.html
If the acts I do know are any indication (Dom Dummaste, Ståålfågel, TV3, Kitchen and the Plastic Spoons), it's well worth grabbing.

Sirius playlist week #40

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 12:25:51 -0700

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:

01. TALK 1
02. Robert Svensson - Runaway
03. My Poor Lover - Lovesick
04. Fun - Williams house
05. TALK 2
06. Hero Dishonest - Birth, Sports Illustrated, death
07. Hanna Hirsch - Framtid och besvär
08. Haleiwa - Observatorielunden
09. Pistol Disco - Pool
10. TALK 3
11. MF/MB/ - The grand chase
12. Ståålfågel - Stupet
13. The Nature - Northern lights
14. TALK 4
15. The Loveable Tulips - Fortune favours the brave
16. Anna von Hausswolff - Track of time
17. Hunt - Ashes of a secret heart
18. The Bells - No Waves
19. TALK 5
20. Makthaverskan - Know love

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.

Sirius playlist week #32

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 11:34:53 -0700

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU, an all-Swedish synth show (aside from the new Säkert! single of course):

01. Säkert! - Fredrik
02. TALK 1
03. The Knife - Girls' night out
04. Optic Nest - Thirst
05. Dmitry Fyodorov - Thinking of space
06. TALK 2
07. Strip Music - Oh my god
08. The Kid - Transient dance
09. Universal Poplab - I could say I'm sorry (Zeigeist remix)
10. TALK 3
11. Pearl Fiction - The ruby fever
12. Adolf Filter - 1982
13. Agent Side Grinder - Life in advance
14. TALK 4
15. Adolphson & Falk - Blinker blå
16. Ståålfågel - Stålfågeln
17. Kite - Ways to dance
18. TALK 5

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.

Sirius playlist week #5

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:17:43 -0800

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:

01. The Scrags - Death of a rock'n'roll band
02. TALK 1
03. On Trial - Mountain
04. The Psyke Project - In the mist
05. Hello Saferide - X telling me about the loss of something dear, at age 16
06. TALK 2
07. Moto Boy - A room without you
08. If There Is Something - Hommage á Roy Orbison
09. Tiger Lou - So demure
10. TALK 3
11. Honey Is Cool - Nach heart
12. Heroes & Zeros - Oslo fadeout
13. Livaventura - Keep on driving
14. Masshysteri - Tvivel
15. TALK 4
16. Samtidigt Som - Vid min sida
17. Ståålfågel - Kung Misär
18. Fredrik - Black fur
19. Scraps of Tape - Grand letdown
20. TALK 5
21. Boeoes Kaelstigen - Radius

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.

MP3: Abcess Exil - Stormens öga

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:20:03 -0700

I got a lot of new music while traveling around Sweden, but the main thing I was on the prowl for was old Swedish postpunk vinyl. I only found one Cortex record (the "Animals" 7") as Nostalgipalatset in Stockholm (tack igen for the recommendation Joakim!), but I did manage to put together quite a stack of other albums from my list: Commando M. Pigg, Camouflage, Reeperbahn, Lolita Pop, Ståålfågel and so on, as well as the "För fulla segel" LP from Abcess Exil. They're not a band I know much about, but I know their tracks on the 4-way split with Cortex, Mystikens Vacuum and Bumsen Muss Mann are great, so I figured why not? It's not as if I'll ever stumble across it again here in the US. I'm glad I did too because it's pretty great classic dark Swedish postpunk/new-wave, though the record does veer a bit towards new romantic pop at times, sometimes even reminding me a bit of early INXS (not necessarily a bad thing). It's hard to pick a good song to represent the whole, but I like "Stormens öga", the first track on side two, because of that sinister synthbass pulse and the heavy percussion breakdown so that's the song you get today. However, should you be curious the hear more, I suggest you head over to Med Denna Verkliga Kniv because they just posted a quality rip of the full album a few days ago. Thanks for saving me some work!

MP3: Ståålfågel - Något senare...

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 11:27:22 -0800

Of all the Swedish postpunk acts that I have become acquainted with, Ståålfågel are by far the best example of what I consider to be "mutant pop". The fucked-up synthpunk sound of their 1980 self-titled debut is unrivaled. The use of drum machines give them a rigid, off-kilter sound similar to Devo, but with a different, angrier energy. Devo is fun, Ståålfågel not so much. This particular track I've posted today is awfully similar to The Bear Quartet's "The supremes" in that it starts off with near-unintelligible screaming before kicking off into the song. The BQ track is ultimately far, far harsher, but those first few seconds share an eerie resemblance. I doubt it's intentional, but it's definitely the first thing I thought of when I heard it. Anyhow, it's a great track so if you're even remotely curious about Swedish postpunk, I strongly suggest you check it out.

Sat, 29 Dec 2007 19:00:31 -0800

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show, a special feature on 80s punk/postpunk:

01. Cortex - Warrior night
02. TALK 1
03. Docent Död - Solglasögon
04. Dansdepartementet - Wankers!
05. Camouflage - Syster sol
06. TALK 2
07. Di Leva - The single man
08. The Leather Nun - No rule
09. Lolita Pop - Salta diamanter
10. TALK 3
11. Ståålfågel - Något senare
12. Secret Service - A flash in the night
13. Tant Strul - Hela mitt guld
14. TALK 4
15. Kitchen & the Plastic Spoons - Happy funeral
16. Reeperbahn - Främling
17. KSMB - Jag vill dö
18. TALK 5
19. En Halvkokt i Folie - Röda rattor
20. Dom Dummaste - John
21. Unter Den Linden - Film noir
22. TALK 6
23. Ebba Grön - 800°
24. Black Uniforms - F.O.A.D.
25. Lustans Lakejer - Begärets dunkla mål
26. TST - No government
27. TALK 7
28. Sator Codex - Leech
29. Strasse - A stairway to you
30. TT Reuter - 2000 år
31. Syster Lycklig - Drömgränd
32. TALK 8
33. Odd Stories - Dance
34. Stadion Der Jugend - Väktare av mörkret
35. Samedi - Between two hearts
36. TALK 9
37. Ur Kaos - Loved missile
38. Adolphson & Falk - Blinker blå
39. Abcess Exil - Hav av hat
40. Commando M Pigg - Att kasta spjut
41. TALK 10
42. Cortex - Arkham

MP3: Syster Lycklig - Drömgränd

Fri, 21 Sep 2007 11:20:07 -0700

More Svensk postpunk for you in this week's Friday post, this time coming from the band Syster Lycklig. Petter Brundell started the band in the fall of '82 after leaving synthpunk act Ståålfågel (another band definitely worth checking out) and the new trio displayed a far more straightforward, pop-friendly sound. Straightforward compared to Ståålfågel, that is, though you can certainly draw comparisons between Syster Lycklig and other acts of the era such as U2. They certainly have that same kind of big, shimmery guitar sound 'cept that the track I'm featuring today puts it through more a weird, wind-tunnel effect. The way the echoes of delay resonate over the syncopated bass/drum line is simply fantastic. Even better, if you like this song, you can download the band's entire discography from their website (look under 'Lyssna'). How awesome is that?

Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700

The playlist for this week's radio show:

01. Laakso - Worst case scenario
02. TALK 1
03. Superfamily - I want my money back
04. The Bear Quartet - Ask me don't axe me
05. Ståålfågel - Små gröna män
06. TALK 2
07. Printer - Satisfaction (radio edit)
08. NEI - New morning
09. Paper - Out of it into it
10. Darkthrone - Canadian metal
11. TALK 3
12. Sweatmaster - Animal
13. Bloodbath - Buried by the dead
14. Moneybrother - Guess who's gonna get some tonight
15. TALK 4
16. The Perishers - Victorious
17. The Skull Defekts - Unholy drums are singing
18. Hell On Wheels - Alexander
19. TALK 5
20. Karin Ström - Ordlös
21. Kompjotr Eplektrika - Skulldrummantra
22. Scraps of Tape - How your heart gets thrown
23. TALK 6
24. Brainbombs - Stinking memory
25. M:40 - Brännmärkt
26. Logh - Bring on the ether
27. TALK 7
28. CS Nielsen - Happy
29. Amorphis - Weaving the incantation
30. Juvelen - Hanna
31. TALK 8
32. Killerchaps - Equally dumb
33. Dinosau - Derr lady
34. Knugen Faller - Inte som ni
35. TALK 9
36. The Kissaway Trail - La la song
37. Pg.Lost - Yes I am
38. Suburban Kids with Biblical Names - Marry me
39. TALK 10
40. Don Juan Dracula - Take me home