No idea if this will get taken down or what, but here's the brand new Thåström single "Beväpna dig med vingar" which just premiered recently on SR P3. The official release date is January 23.

Here's a quick preview of the upcoming Thåström live concert movie + doc premiering this weekend on SVT2. I fully expect torrents to be available Sunday morning for us folks outside of Sweden, that is, unless SVT isn't streaming it themselves.

01. The Playtones - Rock'n roll dance party
02. Sophie Zelmani - I'm the rain
03. Tomas Andersson Wij - Spår
04. Björn Skifs - Da capo
05. Dark Tranquillity - We are the void
06. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
07. Nordman - Korsväg
08. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
09. Rigmor Gustafsson & Radio String Quartet Vienna - Calling you
10. Kent - Röd
11. Shout Out Louds - Work
12. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
13. The Knife - Tomorrow, in a year
14. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
15. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
16. Zekes - En sån natt
17. Freda' - Ett mysterium
18. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
19. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
20. Mando Diao - Give me fire!

01. The Playtones - Rock'n roll dance party
02. Björn Skifs - Da capo
03. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
04. Zekes - En sån natt
05. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
06. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
07. Kent - Röd
08. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
09. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
10. Nordman - Korsväg
11. Divine - Divine
12. Freda' - Ett mysterium
13. Willy Clay Band - Blue
14. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
15. Irya's Playground - Irya's playground
16. Mando Diao - Give me fire!
17. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
18. Mustasch - Mustasch
19. Tomas Ledin - 500 dagar om året
20. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling

01. The Playtones - Rock'n roll dance party
02. Björn Skifs - Da capo
03. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
04. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
05. Zekes - En sån natt
06. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
07. Nordman - Korsväg
08. Freda' - Ett mysterium
09. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
10. Kent - Röd
11. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
12. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
13. Willy Clay Band - Blue
14. Divine - Divine
15. Mando Diao - Give me fire!
16. Zillah och Totte - Totte (g)apar igen
17. Date - Här och nu!
18. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
19. Meshuggah - Alive
20. Hästpojken - Från där jag ropar

01. The Playtones - Rock'n roll dance party
02. Björn Skifs - Da capo
03. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
04. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
05. Zekes - En sån natt
06. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
07. Nordman - Korsväg
08. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
09. Freda' - Ett mysterium
10. Kent - Röd
11. Date - Här och nu!
12. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
13. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
14. Babian - Hälften dör av fetma
15. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
16. Louise Hoffsten - På andra sidan vättern
17. Boppin' Steve & The Playtones - Mr Big
18. Dan Berglund - Tonbruket
19. Anne Sofie von Otter - ombre de mon amant - french baroque arias
20. Irya's Playground - Irya's Playground

01. Torgny Melin - Dansbandsnatt
02. Zekes - En sån natt
03. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
04. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
05. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
06. Nordman - Korsväg
07. Freda' - Ett mysterium
08. Kent - Röd
09. Dan Berglund - Tonbruket
10. Willy Clay Band - Blue
11. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
12. Gentlemen - Awaken me
13. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
14. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
15. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
16. Date - Här och nu!
17. Nils Landgren Funk Unit - Funk for life
18. First Aid Kit - The big black & the blue
19. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
20. Joel Alme - Waiting for the bells

01. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
02. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
03. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
04. Nordman - Korsväg
05. Kent - Röd
06. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
07. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
08. Joel Alme - Waiting for the bells
09. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
10. Andreas Grega - En sak i taget
11. Dan Berglund - Tonbruket
12. Gentlemen - Awaken me
13. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
14. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
15. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
16. Hästpojken - Från där jag ropar
17. Jill Johnson - Music row II
18. Martin Stenmarck - Septemberland
19. The Refreshments - 8 cd collection
20. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom

Album: Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
Childrens album: Bröderna Lindgren - Presenterar meningen med livet!
Folk music/ballad: Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
Hard rock: Mustasch - Mustasch
Jazz: Jeanette Lindström - Attitude and orbit control
Club/Hip-hop: Promoe - Kråksången
Composer: Amanda Jenssen & Pär Wiksten - Happyland
Female artist: Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
Male artist: Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
Newcomer: Erik Hassle - Hassle
Pop: Fibes, Oh Fibes! - 1987
Rock: Kent - Röd
Producer: Kent & Joshua - Röd
Lyrics: Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
Song: Mando Diao - Dance with somebody
Video: Timbuktu - Välj mej (dir. Daniel Wirtberg & Jonas Rudström)

Full list here: http://www.musikindustrin.se/artikel/1396/Universal_Music_arets_stora_vinnare_pa_Grammisgalan.html

01. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
02. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
03. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
04. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
05. Gentlemen - Awaken me
06. Kent - Röd
07. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
08. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
09. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
10. Jill Johnson - Music row II
11. The Refreshments - 8 cd collection
12. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
13. Hästpojken - Från där jag ropar
14. Divine - Divine
15. Takida - The darker instinct
16. Hans Martin - Höstglöd
17. Kent - Kent box 1991-2008
18. Europe - Last look at Eden
19. Sofia Karlsson - Det allra bästa 1999-2009
20. Matz Bladhs - Entré

01. Erik Grönwall - Erik Grönwall
02. Calle Kristiansson - Calle Kristiansson
03. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
04. Hästpojken - Från där jag ropar
05. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
06. Kent - Röd
07. Jill Johnson - Music row II
08. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
09. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
10. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
11. Streaplers - Ett år i taget
12. Gentlemen - Awaken me
13. The Refreshments - 8 cd collection
14. Irya's Playground - Irya's Playground
15. Niklas Strömstedt - 30 år i kärlekens tjänst
16. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
17. Larz Kristerz - Om du vill
18. Hans Martin - Höstglöd
19. Takida - The darker instinct
20. Sofia Karlsson - Det allra bästa 1999-2009

10. [ingenting] - Tomhet, idel tomhet (Labrador Records)
A record that is expansive in sound, but still very direct in feeling. [ingenting] aimed for the stars with this one and nailed it.

09. Agent Side Grinder - Irish recording tape/The transatlantic tape project (Enfant Terrible)
Enjoyable as separate entities, though far better when considered as a matched pair. This band has not only mastered the sound of old-school industrial, they can also write great catchy songs (see: "Irish recording tape") and create engrossing abstract soundscapes ("The transatlantic tape project").

08. Pistol Disco - Evergreen (Celebrity Lifestyle)
This group gets better and better with every release and now, with the addition of live drums, they've soared to new heights of brain-roasting awesomeness. Listen LOUD!

07. The Bear Quartet - 89 (Adrian Recordings)
A no-brainer. Still reigning as Sweden's best band.

06. The Fine Arts Showcase - Dolophine smile (Adrian Recordings)
The rawest of breakup records, the grandest of pop. Gustaf Kjellvander's defining moment as an artist (thus far).

05. Wadruna - Runaljod - gap var Ginnunga (Indie Recordings/Fimbulljóð Productions)
Pure pagan beauty, performed in the old ways to appease the old gods. If you don't like this, you're no fan of Scandinavian music.

04. Björn Kleinhenz - B.U.R.M.A./Head held high on fearsome pride (DevilDuck Records/SellOut! Music/Tomt Recordings/Eget Bevåg Grammofon)
Another twofer, except this time I've listened to all these songs on shuffle so many times I can't separate them anymore. 2009 was the year that Björn Kleinhenz dedicated himself to his art 100% and it shows. I always have high expectations for his work, but these two records blew me away.

03. Samuraj Cities - Mixed up record collections (Imperial Recordings)
The music reflects the title; a brazen mix of different sounds and ideas, leading the way for the future of Swedish indierock. Sometimes it's a noisy mess, but that's also what makes it so great.

02. David Åhlén - We sprout in thy soil (Compunctio)
Devotional music is incredibly powerful when performed with such fervent conviction and grace as this. There is a new strain of inspirational music coming out of Sweden right now and its artists are creating some of the most exciting music I've heard in years.

01. Elmo - Once (BD Pop)
Far and away my absolute favorite album of 2009. Elmo takes the melodramatic teen-angst pop of Broder Daniel and ups it to near-farcial levels of hysteria, but they never ever falter. When frontman Magnus Ekelund said that this was the "ultimate Elmo album", he was telling the absolute truth. You can't go up from here.

Honorable mentions

2009 was a very good year for music and there are many worthwhile albums that didn't quite make the cut. Here's 5 more in alphabetical order:
Pintandwefall - Hong Kong, baby! (Supersounds Music)
Thåström - Kärlek är för dom (Universal)
C.Aarmé - World music (Spegel)
Turboweekend - Ghost of a chance (Mermaid Records)
Dear Euphoria - Heal my violence (La Paloma)

Heard too late

These records would've made the list if I had properly heard them at their time of release:
The Scrags - s/t (Alleycat Records)
Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Lost in reflection (Fang Bomb/iDEAL Recordings/Release the Bats/When Skies Are Grey)
Tyrant - The rebirth (reclaim the flame) (Listenable Records/Hells Cargo)

Contributor Lists

Simon Tagestam

Albums

01. Samtidigt Som - Flykt, kärlek & broderskap (Luxury)

02. jj - jj n° 2 (Sincerely Yours)

03. Fever Ray – s/t (Rabid)

04. Lorentz & M.Sakarias - Vi mot världen (Epic)

05. Frida Hyvönen – Silence is wild (Licking Fingers)

06. Maskinen – Boys II Men (Pope Records)

07. Taken By Trees – East of Eden (Rough Trade)

08. Körsbärsfettera - Alla ska ha linne (self-released)

09. Sad Day For Puppets - Unknown colors (HaHa Fonogram)

10. Christopher Sander - Hej hå! (Vesper Records)

Songs

01. Montt Mardié – Gloria

02. jj – Are you still in Valda?

03. Anna Järvinen – Äppelöga

04. Samtidigt Som – Tienes mi corazón

06. Maskinen – Pengar

06. Alexis Weak – Disney på is

07. Lorentz & M.Sakarias - Unicorn

08. Christopher Sander - Fattig bonddräng

09. [ingenting] – Halleluja!

10. Makthaverskan - German boy

Arnulf Koehncke

01. Moritz von Oswald Trio - Vertical ascent (Honest Jon's Records)
While technically hardly a Scandinavian album (percussion is handled by Finn Vladislav Delay, electronics and programming by German techno- and dub-mastermind Moritz von Oswald plus modular synths by German Max Loderbauer), I just can't not list this record here. For me, it's this year's equivalent to last year's highlights by Auton or Viktor Sjöberg New Jazz Ensemble: A demanding record that pulls you in with its hypnotic patterns and movements, makes you smile at its more obvious moments, and makes you miss it when you're without the beautiful gatefold vinyl and a record player.

02. Kings of Convenience - Declaration of dependence (Virgin/EMI)
I was looking forward to this album and the accompanying gig this fall. The gig did not disappoint -- like always, Erlend still wants to own the stage while Erik charmingly stresses his storytelling-skills and seems to divide his time between his baby and the gym nowadays. But the album surprised me at first. Judging from the last record, I had expected more sixties pop and less starkness and quietude. But I like how this album is less easily had, doesn't let the listener in as easily, but will grow on you nonetheless.

03. [ingenting] - Tomhet, idel tomhet (Labrador Records)
This records sees [ingenting] exchange the more obvious references in their music for more subtle nods to pop music's giants paired with impressively direct lyrics and straight-to-the-point arrangements. If maturity didn't have such negative connotations, one could call the album just that. And "classic" of course, like 80's indiepop is classic, or Sibiria and Vapnet maybe, though in more cynical ways than this record. It seems only fitting that [ingenting] chose to finally drop those "nothing"-puns from their album titles.

04. Frida Hyvönen - Silence is wild (Licking Fingers)
I've always been unsure about the reference points of year-end lists. Is it calender years or more likely personal years? I'm in favor of personal, so I list this album because to me, despite technically being from 2008, it's really a 2009 record. Somehow, the album's full potential -- its melodies, its power, and most of all, its soul (in the secular, Phil Spector meaning of the word)---had passed me by until I saw Frida and her bandmates play live in Berlin in the spring of 2009. So I'm only making up now for not listing it in 2008.

05. The Whitest Boy Alive - Rules (Bubbles)
A friend of mine once compared TWBA to IKEA. They make highly functional music that's devoid of any ornaments and goes straight to the point. And like IKEA-furniture, TWBA's music works extremely well for its purpose: I've seen them play in a gallery's shopwindow for more than 1000 dancing people gathered in the February-cold street before them, and their songs never fail to fill any indie-dancefloor. I guess I'd rather have IKEA than the "next big thing" from England then.

Singles

01. [ingenting] - Dina händer är fulla av blommor
From the first time I heard this song when [ingenting] performed it on Nyhetsmorgon, I was struck with its directness, the way it seems to speak to every single listener. I really like how non-cynical popmusic can do that sometimes!

02. The Fine Arts Showcase - Friday on my knees
It's great how Gustaf and his bandmates deconstruct this song about two-thirds through, dropping riff and chorus for 120 gloomy seconds of noisy guitar and bass, only to shortly resurrect it all before the end. Who needs radio-oriented hits when we can have this instead?

03. The Radio Dept. - David
Yet another year without an album by The Radio Dept. And still I consider them my favorite Scandinavian band. I'm left hoping the new album will sound more like this single and less like its unfocused b-sides. Still, allowing myself a nostalgic moment, they most probably just won't make another "Lesser matters".

04. The Whitest Boy Alive - 1517
We all need our functional dancefloor-fix from time to time, don't we? Especially when it's this well-done.

05. Kommun - Death of a CEO
I've been looking forward to the Kommun-record ever since the people behind Vapnet and Sibiria announced that, since everyone was making "serious" Swedish records now, they'd make a "non-serious" English record instead. And while I haven't fully connected with the album yet, I can't really escape this deeply political singalong about a businessman's afterlife.

Less obvious non-scandi mentions (besides those Grizzly Bears, Animal Collectives, and Pains of Being Pure at Heart): My friend's sister's project Music for Your Heart, Brooklyn's giddy Uninhabitable Mansions, the new Au Revoir Simone record, that Thom Yorke song on the "New Moon" Soundtrack (less movie, more music), and finally moving to and living in Phnom Penh.

Matt Giordano

01. [ingenting] - Tomhet, idel tomhet (Labrador Records)
It was always going to be difficult to follow up "Mycket väsen för ingenting", and for a while I thought that this one fell short. The one day it clicked, I could not even compare the two. This is another stellar release for the band.

02. The Bear Quartet - 89 (Adrian Recordings)
A triumph, but honestly I did not even expect less. The Bear Quartet have returned in the only way they could -- a bludgeoning, brooding album that closes their decade of output by making the audience reconsider what The Bear Quartet is once again.

03. Markus Krunegård - Prinsen av Peking / Lev som en gris dö som en hund (V2)
I try to imagine what pop music in English would sound like if we had an artist like Markus Krunegård. But then I realize that the industry here is exponentially more vapid, someone like Markus would be swept into the corners of dimly lit rooms, never to see his due.

04. Asha Ali - Hurricane (3NO)
Three years after her magnificent debut, Asha Ali gave us a devastating album of loss and internal strife. This album is so personal and fragile it must have been difficult to release it.

05. The Fine Arts Showcase - Dolophine smile (Adrian Recordings)
Another album of loss, but with a very different approach. Gustaf Kjellvander gives us an outside view of the degradation of his relationship, which is always quite to difficult to do. However, in typical TFAS fashion, he succeeds greatly.

06. Pistol Disco - Evergreen (Celebrity Lifestyle)
Falling into the category of noise and shoegaze, which I've been listening to a lot lately, Pistol Disco reach amongst the highs. Put this record on and just ease your mind, and it will take your imagination places.

07. Kristofer Åström - Sinkadus (Startracks)
A new Kristofer Åström album always yields quality. This time, he has rotated three backing bands on record, and it adds so much to his already well-honed songwriting craft.

08. Jonathan Johansson - En hand i himlen (Hyrbis)
What a way to start a career. Jonathan Johansson created one of the better pure-pop albums of the year.

09. jj - jj n° 2 (Sincerely Yours)
Another very good debut, and another very good pop album. jj borderlines on twee, yet mixes soft beats and great vocals.

10. Montt Mardié - Skaizerkite (Hyrbis)
David Pagmar keeps getting more bombastic with each release. Top-notch songwriting and arranging keeps Montt Mardié fans guessing where he'll take his sound next.

Songs:

01. Peter Bjorn and John - Stay this way

02. Elias and the Wizzkids - Mr. Right Guy

03. Montt Mardié - Bang bang (An echo in Warsaw)

04. Asha Ali - The contract

05. The Bear Quartet - Northern

06. Ingenting - Lång våg

07. Markus Krungegård - Prinsessan av Peking

08. The Fine Arts Showcase - London, my town

09. Kristofer Åström - A song for while I'm away

10. Markus Krunegård - Kär i en borderline

01. Pelle Lindroth (Parken, the best companion there is)

02. We call it Skweee (documentary by David Giese and Iacopo Patierno)

03. Mattias Alkberg (the man)

04. winter bathing (the activity)

05. Rigas balsam (the drink)

06. Thåström live at Storsjöyran

07. Can it be all so simple - Wu Tang Clan

08. Gävle (the city)

09. Hjälmaren (the restaurant)

10. Nya Sampans Tangoorkester

---------------------------
The new Rigas album "Let's get gone" will be out in February and there will also be a new Markis Sage album as well. Look for a new Bethlehem Beard Corporation album on F&F soon, too. Eventually Henrik plans to take a holiday sometime in 2010, but we'll see if it actually happens.
http://www.brilliant.nu/
http://rigas.blackside.org/
http://www.myspace.com/102670709

01. Lotta Engberg - Jul hos mig
02. Kent - Röd
03. Carola - Christmas in Bethlehem
04. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
05. Jill Johnson - Music row II
06. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
07. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
08. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
09. Sanna, Shirley, Sonja - Our Christmas
10. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
11. Amy Diamond - Swings and roundabouts
12. Takida - The darker instinct
13. Martin Stenmarck - Septemberland
14. Jessica Andersson - Wake up
15. Christer Sjögren - Schlagerminnen
16. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
17. Arvingarna - Underbart
18. Nisse Hellberg - En modern man
19. Caroline af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
20. Larz Kristerz - Om du vill

01. Thåström - Be-bop-a-lula hela jävla dan (1989-2009)
02. Kent - Röd
03. Carola - Christmas in Bethlehem
04. Jill Johnson - Music row II
05. Jessica Andersson - Wake up
06. Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
07. Lotta Engberg - Jul hos mig
08. Streaplers - Eett år i taget
09. stefan Sundström - Ingenting har hänt
10. Jessica Andersson - Wake up
11. Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
12. Martin Stenmarck - Septemberland
13. Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
14. Sanna, Shirley, Sonja - Our Christmas
15. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Samling
16. Amy Diamond - Swings and roundabouts
17. Takida - The darker instinct
18. Hellfueled - Emission of sins
19. Sofia Karlsson - Det allra bästa 1999-2009
20. Peter Lemarc - Klassiker

Album:
A Camp - Colonia
Agnes - Dace love pop - The love love love edition
Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
Caroline af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
Erik Hassle - Hassle
Kent - Röd
Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
Mando Diao - Give me fire!
Takida - The darker instinct
Thåström - Kärlek är för dom

Folk music/ballad:
Cajsastina Åkerström - Sånger om dej och mej
Esbjörn Hazelius - Blunda och du ska få se
Miriam Aida - Letras ao Brasil
Olle Adolphson - Tystnaden smyger som en katt... 1956-2004
Sofia Jannok - Åssogáttis - By the embers
Sofia Karlsson - Den allra båsta (1999-2009)
Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
Stefan Sundström - Ingenting har hänt
Taken By Trees - East of Eden
Väsen - Väsen Street

Hard rock:
Candlemass - Death magic doom
Crucified Barbara - 'Til death do us party
Dead By April - Dead By April
Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
Hardcore Superstar - Beg for it
Lillasyster - Det här är inte musik, det här är kärlek
Mustasch - Mustasch
Raised Fist - Veil of ignorance
Renegade Five - Undergrounded universe
Wolf - Ravenous

Jazz:
Alice Babs - As time goes by
Bengt Berger - Beches brew
Georg Wadenius/Arild Jensen - Jul på Svenska
Jan Lundgren Trio - European standards
Jeanette Lindström - Attitude and orbit control
Jonas Kullhammar Quartet - The half naked truth
Lina Nyberg - The snow
Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
Magnus Lindgren - Batucada jazz
Trummor & Orgel - Visions

Club/Hip-hop:
Andreas Tilliander - Show
J-Son - Never half stepping
Ken Ring - Hip hop
Lorentz & M Sakarias - Vi mot världen
Mange Schmidt - Odenplan Stockholm 1988
Maskinen - Boys II men
Mohammed Ali - Processen
Näääk - Näääk vem?
Promoe - Kråksången
Swingfly - God bless the IRS

Composer:
Amanda Jenssen & Pär Wiksten - Happyland
Anna Järvinen - Man var bland molnen
Christian Walz - The corner
Deportees - Under the pavement - the beach
El Perro Del Mar - Love is not pop
Joakim Berg & Martin Sköld (Kent) - Röd
Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
Nina Persson, Niclas Frisk, Nathan Larsson (A Camp) - Colonia
Salem Al Fakir - Astronaut
Thåström - Kärlek är för dom

Female artist:
Agnes - Dace love pop - The love love love edition
Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
Anna Järvinen - Man var bland molnen
Caroline af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
Jenny Wilson - Hardships!
Laleh - Me and Simon
Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
Pernilla Andersson - Ashbury apples
Sarah Dawn Finer - Moving on

Male artist:
Christian Walz - The corner
Erik Hassle - Hassle
Freddie Wadling - The dark flower (Den mörka blomman)
John Me - I am John
Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
Markus Krunegård - Lev som en gris dö som en hund
Olle Ljungström - Sju
Salem Al Fakir - Astronaut
Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
Tingsek - Restless soul

Newcomer:
Adiam Dymott - Adiam Dymott
Dead By April - Dead By April
Erik Hassle - Hassle
John Me - I am John
Jonathan Johansson - En hand i himlen
Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
Lorentz & M.Sakarias - Vi mot världen
Maskinen - Boys II men
Miike Snow - Miike Snow
Name The Pet - Name the Pet

Pop:
A Camp - Colonia
Asha Ali - Hurricane
BWO - Big science
Calaisa - Grafton Street
El Perro Del Mar - Love is not pop
Fibes, Oh Fibes! - 1987
Jill Johnson - Music row II
Melody Club - Goodbye to romance
Miike Snow - Miike Snow
Peter Bjorn And John - Living thing

Producer:
A Camp - Colonia
Amanda Jenssen & Pär Wiksten - Happyland
Bloodshy & Avant (Miike Snow) - Miike Snow
El Perro Del Mar & Rasmus Hägg - Love is not pop
Goran Kajfes (Magnus Carlson & The Moon Ray Quintet) - Magnus Carlson & The Moon Ray Quintet
Jenny Wilson - Hardships!
Kent & Joshua - Röd
Laleh - Me and Simon
Salem Al Fakir - Astronaut
Thomas Rusiak (Adiam Dymott) - Adiam Dymott

Rock:
[Ingenting] - Tomhet, idel tomhet
Bob Hund - Folkmusik för folk som inte kan bete sig som folk
Deportees - Under the pavement - the beach
Dundertåget - Skaffa ny frisyr
Europe - Last look at Eden
Florence Valentin - Spring Ricco
Kent - Röd
Mando Diao - Give me fire!
Takida - The darker instinct
The Bear Quartet - 89

Lyrics:
Amanda Jenssen - Happyland
Anna Järvinen - Man var bland molnen
Caroline af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
El Perro Del Mar - Love is not pop
Joakim Berg (Kent) - Röd
Laleh - Me and Simon
Lars Winnerbäck - Tänk om jag ångrar mig och sen ångrar mig igen
Louise Hoffsten/Peter Lemarc - På andra siden vättern
Melissa Horn - Säg ingenting till mig
Thåström - Kärlek är för dom

For the full list in a hard-to-read format, go here: http://www.grammis.se/

01. TALK 1
02. Kommun - I don't say anything
03. On Volcano - Out of sight
04. Turboweekend - Something or nothing
05. TALK 2
06. The Idle Hands - Hearts
07. Thåström - Linnéa
08. Fronda - Mitt allt
09. TALK 3
10. We Are the Storm - A song for our city
11. High Hats - The end
12. Wardruna - Kauna
13. Halph - New money
14. The Scrags - TV messed up mind
15. TALK 4
16. They Live - Magic glasses
17. Ison & Fille - Jag skratter idag
18. Nitad - Rädslan
19. TALK 5
20. Elmo - Shine down on us

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.

01. Sarah Dawn Finer - Moving on
02. Malena Ernman - La voix du nord
03. Drifters - Ljudet av ditt hjärta
04. Erik Hassle - Hassle
05. Scotts - Längtan
06. Irya's Playground - Irya's playground
07. Rolandz - Efter regn kommer solsken
08. Lasse Stefanz - Truck stop
09. Hans Edler with String Orchestra - Remember the sixties
10. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
11. Elisabeth Andreassen - Spellemann
12. E.M.D. - A state of mind - Deluxe
13. Erik Linder - Inifrån
14. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
15. Cajsastina Åkerström - Sånger om dej och mej
16. Tomas Ledin - 500 dagar om året
17. Dead By April - Dead By April
18. Siena Root - Different realities
19. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
20. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom

01. Jong Pang - Liar liar
02. TALK 1
03. The Bear Quartet - Least loved (of the unloved)
04. Tortyr - Jag faller
05. Pistol Disco - Evergreen
06. TALK 2
07. Magnus Carlson and The Moon Ray Quintet - Sea lion woman
08. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
09. Okkultokrati - Hand of glory
10. Syster Lycklig - Djuret
11. TALK 3
12. Tredje Mannen - Cul-de-sac
13. The Psyke Project - Winter
14. Titiyo - Longing for lullabies
15. TALK 4
16. The Silent Section - Loss of consciousness
17. Firefox AK - Winter rose
18. [ingenting] - Dina händer är fulla av blommor
19. TALK 5
20. Marvins Revolt - New Year's in Warsaw

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.

01. Gocart System - Always been the same
02. TALK 1
03. [ingenting] - Halleluja
04. The Kid - Transient dance
05. Thåström - Kort biografi med litet testamente
06. TALK 2
07. Small - Sunshine lover
08. Heroin and Your Veins - The trigger
09. Kongh - Tank pa doden
10. Villebråd - Vaknar aldrig
11. TALK 3
12. Anna Leong - Guillotine
13. Ison & Fille - Jag skrattar idag
14. Dyno - Burning blood
15. TALK 4
16. The Bear Quartet - Sweet beef
17. Entombed - State of emergency
18. Skatan - Top of the mountain
19. Familjen - Mine øyne de ska se
20. TALK 5
21. Suzy Thunder - Big

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.

01. Tomas Ledin - 500 dagar om året
02. Lasse Stefanz - Truck stop
03. Benny Andersson Band - Story of a heart
04. Rolandz - Efter regn kommer solsken
05. The Refreshments - A band's gotta do what a band's gotta do
06. Sten & Stanley - Allsånger på vårt sätt
07. The Poodles - Clash of the elements
08. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
09. Dead By April - Dead By April
10. Style - Vill ha dej igen
11. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
12. Smurfarna - Smurfparty 2
13. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
14. Hans Edler with String Orchestra - Remember the sixties
15. Blackjack - Summertime blues
16. Cajsastina Åkerström - Sånger om dej och mej
17. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
18. Tingeling/Kapten Krok - Grotescos tingeling
19. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
20. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig

01. Zacke ft. Movits - Spela mig på radion
02. TALK 1
03. Florence Valentin - Såld är såld
04. Ikons - Guns (Pistol Disco remix)
05. Logh - Death to my hometown
06. TALK 2
07. Thåström - Långtbort
08. Le Corbeau - Night stroll
09. Skriet - Fåglarna
10. TALK 3
11. Kongh - Unholy water
12. C.Aarmé - Blodet
13. TALK 4
14. The Bell - On and on
15. Heroes & Zeroes - Cipramillion
16. Ison & Fille - Jag skratter idag
17. 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.

01. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
02. Johan Palm - My antidote
03. The Poodles - Clash of the elements
04. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
05. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
06. Tingeling/Kapten Krok - Grotescos tingeling
07. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
08. Dead By April - Dead By April
09. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
10. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
11. Sten & Stanley - Allsånger på vårt sätt
12. The Boppers - Vibrations
13. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
14. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
15. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
16. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
17. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
18. Alcazar - Disco defenders
19. H.E.A.T - Heat (bonus spår)
20. Jack Vreeswijk - Jack Vreeswijk sjunger Vreeswijk

01. Dead By April - Dead By April
02. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
03. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
04. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
05. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
06. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
07. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
08. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
09. The Boppers - Vibrations
10. Innocent Rosie - Bad habit romance
11. Sten & Stanley - Allsånger på vårt sätt
12. Maia Hirasawa - GBGvsSTHLM
13. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
14. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
15. Alcazar - Disco defenders
16. Alf Robertson - En flisa av granit
17. Lili & Susie - Nu och då - Det bästa med Lili & Susie
18. Promoe - Kråksången
19. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
20. Moneybrother - Real control

01. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
02. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
03. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
04. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
05. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
06. The Boppers - Vibrations
07. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
08. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
09. Innocent Rosie - Bad habit romance
10. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
11. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
12. Promoe - Kråksången
13. Alcazar - Disco defenders
14. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
15. Intohimo - Us; the hollows
16. Pauline - Never said I was an angel
17. Moneybrother - Real control
18. Lili & Susie - Nu och då - Det bästa med Lili & Susie
19. Theresa Andersson - Hummingbird, go!
20. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home

01. Thorleifs - Sweet kissin' in the moonlight
02. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
03. Promoe - Kråksången
04. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
05. The Boppers - Vibrations
06. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
07. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
08. Alcazar - Disco defenders
09. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
10. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
11. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
12. Innocent Rosie - Bad habit romance
13. Melody Club - Goodbye to romance
14. Moneybrother - Real control
15. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
16. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
17. BWO - Big science
18. Bob Hund - Folkmusik för folk som inte kan bete sig som folk
19. Susanne Alfvengren - Bbortom tid och rum - det bästa
20. Shirley Clamp - För den som älskar...en samling

01. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
02. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
03. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
04. Alcazar - Disco defenders
05. The Boppers - Vibrations
06. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
07. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
08. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
09. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
10. Kevin Borg - The beginning
11. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
12. Moneybrother - Real control
13. Maia Hirasawa - GBGvsSTHLM
14. Melody Club - Goodbye to romance
15. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
16. BWO - Big science
17. Pauline - Never said I was an angel
18. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
19. Magnus Lindberg - Ett eget liv
20. Stiko Per Larsson - Kap farväl

01. Rigas - It's a shame
02. TALK 1
03. Sonic Ritual - Take the edge off
04. Logh - Death to my hometown
05. Hanna Hirsch - Framtid och besvär
06. The Amazing - Dragon
07. TALK 2
08. Promoe - Growing up on the road
09. Robert Svensson - I was summer, you were
10. Thåström - Linnéa
11. TALK 3
12. Murmansk - Sumac
13. Röyksopp - This must be it
14. Fy Fan - Snick snack
15. We are the Storm - A song for our city
16. TALK 4
17. Truckfighters - Monte gargano
18. The Psyke Project - For us to see for us to help
19. Dear Euphoria - Tell me
20. TALK 5
21. Samuraj Cities - 2 close 2 yr hrt

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.

01. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
02. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
03. Moneybrother - Real control
04. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
05. Alcazar - Disco defenders
06. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
07. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
08. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
09. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
10. Marit Bergman - The tear collector
11. BWO - Big science
12. Shirley Clamp - För den som älskar...en samling
13. Caj Karlsson - Tillsammans med mig
14. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
15. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
16. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
17. Salem - Astronaut
18. Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
19. Kent - Kent box 1991-2008
20. Anna Ternheim - Leaving on a mayday

01. Sonic Ritual - Take the edge off
02. TALK 1
03. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
04. Elenette - Att göra en hit
05. Maskinen - Bränner
06. TALK 2
07. The Skull Defekts - Habit
08. Grave - Into the grave
09. Murmansk - Moth
10. TALK 3
11. Kite - My girl and I
12. Laakso - Worst case scenario
13. Samtidigt Som - Denna sida mot fienden
14. TALK 4
15. David Åhlén - We sprout in thy soil
16. Knife and Ape - Buck teeth
17. Existensminimum - 1993
18. Cut City - Departure in particular
19. TALK 5
20. Masquer - Hanging garden

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.

01. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
02. Malmö Opera Kör & Orkester - Jesus Christ superstar
03. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
04. Alcazar - Disco defenders
05. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
06. Lisa Ekdahl - Give me that slow knowing smile
07. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
08. H.E.A.T - Heat (bonus spår)
09. Agnes - Dance love pop - The love love love edition
10. BWO - Big science
11. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
12. Maia Hirasawa - GBGvsSTHLM
13. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
14. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
15. Kevin Borg - The beginning
16. Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
17. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
18. Hello Saferide - More modern short stories from Hello Saferide
19. Sahara Hotnights - Sparks
20. Kent - Kent box 1991-2008

01. Kent - Kent box 1991-2008
02. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
03. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
04. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
05. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
06. Miss Li - Dancing the whole way home
07. BWO - Big science
08. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
09. Alcazar - Disco defenders
10. Maia Hirasawa - GBGvsSTHLM
11. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
12. Caj Karlsson - Tillsammans med mig
13. Bob Hund - Folkmusik för folk som inte kan bete sig som folk
14. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
15. Shirley Clamp - För den som älskar...en samling
16. A Camp - Colonia
17. Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
18. Jill Johnson - Baby blue papery
19. Takida - Bury the lies - platinum edition
20. Kevin Borg - The beginning

01. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
02. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
03. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
04. Måns Zelmerlöw - MZW
05. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
06. Bob Hund - Folkmusik för folk som inte kan bete sig som folk
07. Alcazar - Disco defenders
08. Shirley Clamp - För den som älskar...en samling
09. Lili & Susie - Nu och då - Det bästa med Lili & Susie
10. Kevin Borg - The beginning
11. Maia Hirasawa - GBGvsSTHLM
12. Raubtier - Det finns bara krig
13. Anna Järvinen - Man var bland molnen
14. Marit Bergman - The tear collector
15. Salem - Astronaut
16. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
17. Adiam Dymott - Adiam Dymott
18. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
19. Christer Sjögren - Mitt sköna sextiotal
20. A Camp - Colonia

01. Caroline Af Ugglas - Så gör jag det igen
02. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
03. E.M.D. - A state of mind - deluxe
04. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
05. Alcazar - Disco defenders
06. Salem - Astronaut
07. Fever Ray - Fever Ray
08. Lili & Susie - Nu och då - Det bästa med Lili & Susie
09. Kevin Borg - The beginning
10. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
11. Adiam Dymott - Adiam Dymott
12. Zillah & Totte - Det låter apa
13. A Camp - Colonia
14. Mikael Wiehe - Sånger från en inställd skilsmässa
15. Olle Ljungström - Sju
16. Takida - Bury the lies
17. Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
18. Jill Johnson - Baby blue paper
19. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
20. Mando Diao - Give me fire!

01. Thåström - Kärlek är för dom
02. Larz Kristerz - Hem till dig
03. Sofia Karlsson - Söder om kärleken
04. Kevin Borg - The beginning
05. Alcazar - Disco defenders
06. Zillah & Totte - Det låter apa
07. Olle Ljungström - Sju
08. Hammerfall - No sacrifice, no victory
09. H.E.A.T - Heat (bonus spår)
10. Jill Johnson - Baby blue paper
11. Veronica Maggio - Och vinnaren är...
12. Mikael Wiehe - Sånger från en inställd skilsmässa
13. A Camp - Colonia
14. Takida - Bury the lies
15. Mando Diao - Give me fire!
16. Laleh - Me and Simon
17. Bengt Hennings - Låt kärleken slå till
18. Perssons Pack - Öster om heden
19. Sahara Hotnights - Sparks
20. Jenny Wilson - Hardships!

01. The news of new Bob Hund stuff.
They did a couple of shows then news emerged of a 2009 tour accompanied by a new album. They have been my heroes for a long time and it's going to be great to hear some new stuff.

02. Jonathan Johansson – Innan vi faller. From Musik med: on PSL.
Can be found here: http://blogg.svt.se/psl/2008/10/17/musik-med-jonathan-johansson/
It's even better than the original version, which is also fantastic and can be found here: http://www.myspace.com/jonathanojohansson

03. The discovery of Burial.
As the case with Jonathan Johansson, I didn't think music could move me in this way any more. Burial takes me places, gives me wishes and urges and even though the album, his second one (at least I think Burial is a he) is a 2007 release, I just discovered it.

04. Fennez and Sakamoto.
Another 2007 release and another album that has found it's way onto my list. Two of my favourite sonic elements; acoustic piano and future noise/glitch.

05. My own record being released.
After two and a half years of on/off work happiness/frustration the record finally got done and released. Some might say that I should have this at number 1, but the fact is that my own music doesn't move me like the music of my heroes or people making music sounding like they've plugged into my head. With my own music it's the creation part, which exceeds all other feelings in completion. Maybe that should have been at number one; creating music. Maybe next year.

06. Hints about a Jason Lytle solo album.
Well, not so much hints as an out right statement, found here http://www.jasonlytle.com/
Nothing has surfaced yet though. When he played in (and let's face it; was) Grandaddy he was a huge influence on me sound wise.

07. Spotify.
The future of everyday music consumption. I'll bet you that everyone will tag along. iTunes 9 will surly have an equal functionality. Found here: http://www.spotify.com/en/

08. Mac + iTunes
I bought a Mac this year. Had to in order to keep working with the audio recording software that I like. I know that iTunes also is available on PC, but I never really got around to checking it out. I am however checking it out now! I don't think I have ever bought so much music.

09. Concert: Thåström live at Slottskogsvallen
Never really liked Thåström. I don't know why. This concert however changed my mind. He played as opening act to Kent and the setting was less then ideal; the stage was too big for his four piece; the sun was out (in fact it was full daylight); the sound was so-so, but they pulled it of and the rendition of his songs by monophonic synth, drums, bass, and acoustic guitar was superb.

10. Pocket organ.
I turned thirty this year. Sux ass. I got a nice gift from some of my friends; a pocket organ, just like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTO_Hq50FKs
Expect to hear it on my next record!

---------------------------
Tomas Halberstad's debut solo album "The anger" is out now.
tomashalberstad.wordpress.com

A metronome, an echoing lonely piano and over that, Nina Ramsby's voice. It's strange that the best song on the Sällskapet album doesn't even feature Thåström's unique voice. But Nina brings out an utter desolation, capturing a cramp that turns everything to ice. On the album, "Järnstaden" is the song that doesn't hide itself in noises, indirectly giving it the feel of being the centerpiece. The anchor. On its own, it's just achingly beautiful loneliness.]]> Wed, 16 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2776 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2776 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2776#comments The debut single "Nordlicht" from Thåström's new band Sällskapet will be released on February 20. More details: http://www.thastrom.se/nyheter.html]]> Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4783 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4783 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4783#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Peter Jöback - Flera sidor av samma man
02. Lars Winnerbäck - Efter nattens bränder - 1996-2006
03. Patrik Isaksson - Patrik Isaksson
04. Tomas Ledin - Plektrum
05. Jonas Gardell - Nästan vackra
06. Sofia Karlsson - Svarta ballader (sjunger Dan Andersson)
07. Amy Diamond - Still me still now
08. Benny Anderssons Orkester - Bao på turné
09. Peps Persson Oh boy - Det bästa med Peps Persson
10. Carola - Från nu till evighet
11. The Poodles - Metal will stand tall
12. Ola - Given to fly
14. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
15. Eric Gadd - Eric Gadd
16. Marie Fredriksson - Min bäste vän
17. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
18. Sabaton - Attero dominatus
19. Totta & Wiehe - Dylan
20. Robert Wells and His Rhapsody Lounge Orchestra - Full house boogie]]> Thu, 17 Aug 2006 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4882 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4882 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/4882#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Peter Jöback - Flera sidor av samma man
02. Lars Winnerbäck - Efter nattens bränder - 1996-2006
03. Patrik Isaksson - Patrik Isaksson
04. Tomas Ledin - Plektrum
05. Backyard Babies - People like people like people like us
06. Sofia Karlsson - Svarta ballader (sjunger Dan Andersson)
07. Eric Gadd - Eric Gadd
08. Benny Anderssons Orkester - Bao på turné
09. Peps Persson Oh boy - Det bästa med Peps Persson
10. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
11. Carola - Från nu till evighet
12. Amy Diamond - Still me still now
14. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
15. Robert Wells and His Rhapsody Lounge Orchestra - Full house boogie
16. The Poodles - Metal will stand tall
17. Marie Fredriksson - Min bäste vän
18. Totta & Wiehe - Dylan
19. Sabaton - Attero dominatus
20. Laleh - Laleh]]> Thu, 10 Aug 2006 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27970-mp3-ebba-gron-were-only-in-it-for-the-drugs-no-1 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27970-mp3-ebba-gron-were-only-in-it-for-the-drugs-no-1 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27970-mp3-ebba-gron-were-only-in-it-for-the-drugs-no-1#comments It's Midsummer weekend so that means half of Scandinavia is probably out in the country getting sloshed right now, if they aren't already. Not me - I'm stuck in front of the computer at work as usual. At least we're promised a weekend of scorching hot summer weather up here in the Pacific Northwest. I know I'll probably be sick of it by tomorrow afternoon, but what can ya do? Anyhow, I've got a guest post today from frequent contributor Simon Tagestam on Swedish punks Ebba Grön:

Believe it or not, but just like The Ramones were ripping up New York, and The Sex Pistols were spitting on their English fans, there was a thriving Swedish punk scene around the late 70s and late 80s (admittedly a bit after the Americans, but almost at the same time as the UK). Most of these bands reacted, just like their worldwide counter parts, against the hippie community and their naïve ideas of peace, love, and understanding. The most prominent of these bands were Ebba Grön, and even though their last album came out in 1982, they're still selling lots in Sweden (a box set came out in 1998, and another compilation was released as late as last year). This is not down to clever marketing, but three angry and frustrated teenagers meeting up at a house party in a suburb of Stockholm in 1977, who decided to form a band (initially calling themselves The Haters). Ebba Grön unfortunately only released three albums (all of them classics, in my opinion). "We're only in it for the drugs No. 1" is the first song from their first album ("We're only in it for the drugs", released in 1979). Don't let the title fool you though! Even if it's in English, Ebba Grön, just like all other Swedish punk bands from this era, sang almost solely in Swedish. The title of this track is deeply ironic and the lyrics are about how it's no wonder that teenagers start taking drugs and being up to no good when their government doesn't provide anything for them to do and that when the kids take matters into their own hands and start arranging gigs, etc., they're forcibly shut down. Ebba Grön's lyric are all very political and it's hard not to pay attention to lead singer Thåström's furious delivery. Thåström did go on to became very successful after Ebba Grön's demise, first as a member of Imperiet, then as a solo performer (his last album from last year was surprisingly good, and dealt lyrically a lot with his years in Ebba Grön), but nothing he's ever done can be compared to those three Ebba Grön albums.]]> Fri, 23 Jun 2006 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6472 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6472 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6472#comments Check out the video for "Om Black Jim" from Thåström: http://www.thastrom.se/ljudvideo/BLACK%20JIM%20.mp4]]> Fri, 24 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6500 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6500 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6500#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Sebastian - Sebastian
02. Linda Bengtzing - Ingenting att förlora
03. Petter - P
04. Christer Sjögren - King creole
05. The Sounds - Dying to say this to you
06. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
07. Rigmore Gustafsson - On my way to you
08. The Knife - Silent shout
09. Ulf Lundell - När jag kysser havet - det bästa 75-84
10. Laleh - Laleh
11. Da Buzz - Last goodbye
12. In Flames - Come clarity
13. Ulf Lundell - Venus & jupiter - det bästa 94-05
14. Magnus Uggla - Ett bedårande barn av sin tid
15. Ulf Lundell - Danielas hus - det bästa 84-93
16. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
17. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
18. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
19. The Concretes - In colour
20. Andreas Mattsson - The lawlessnes of the ruling classes

PopMatters gives high praise to the Envelopes: http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/envelopes_demon/]]> Thu, 23 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6583 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6583 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6583#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Petter - P
02. Sebastian - Sebastian
03. Christer Sjögren - King creole
04. The Knife - Silent shout
05. Rigmore Gustafsson - On my way to you
06. Laleh - Laleh
07. Magnus Uggla - Ett bedårande barn av sin tid
08. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
09. Andreas Mattsson - The lawlessnes of the ruling classes
10. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
11. Sanna Nielsen - Nära mej - nära dej
12. Cue - Guide in blue
13. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
14. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
15. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
16. In Flames - Come clarity
17. Agnes - Agnes
18. Thåström - Solo vol 1
19. Darin - Darin
20. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber

The Village Voice covers the special Opeth show "Chronology MCMXCIV-MMV" in which they played rarely heard songs from the entire band's career: http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0611,bosler,72487,22.html]]> Fri, 17 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6693 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6693 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6693#comments This week's top 20 Swedish student radio chart:

01. (04) Morrissey - "You Have Killed Me"
02. (11) Franz Ferdinand - "The Fallen"
03. (NY) Laakso - "Never Satisfied"
04. (02) The Radio Dept. - "The Worst Taste in Music"
05. (01) Arctic Monkeys - "When the Sun Goes Down"
06. (06) Dub Sweden - "We're so Loud"
07. (14) Ane Brun w/Teitur - "Rubber & Soul"
08. (20) Jaheim - "The Chosen One"
09. (NY) Damian Marley w/Bobby Brown - "Beautiful"
10. (10) The Streets "When You Wasn't Famous"
11. (07) Hard Fi - "Cash Machine"
12. (04) Soviac - "Ogashaga"
13. (13) AFC - "5 för 5"
14. (05) Firefox AK - "Madame Madame!"
15. (NY) Ghostface Killah w/Ne-Yo - "Back like that"
16. (09) Håkan Hellström - "Jag hatar att jag älskar dig och jag älskar dig så mycket att jag hatar mig"
17. (NY) Jamie Foxx med Ludacris - "Unpredictable"
18. (17) Placebo - "Song to say goodbye"
19. (NY) Sleepy Brown - "Me, My Baby and My Cadillac"
20. (ÅT) Robyn - "Crash and Burn Girl"

Leaving the chart: Soundtrack Of Our Lives, Thåström, Depeche Mode, I'm From Barcelona, Danko Jones and System of a Down.]]> Thu, 09 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6694 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6694 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6694#comments music videos, via)]]> This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Sebastian - Sebastian
02. Christer Sjögren - King creole
03. The Knife - Silent shout
04. Magnus Uggla - Ett bedårande barn av sin tid
05. Laleh - Laleh
06. Sanna Nielsen - Nära mej - nära dej
07. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
08. Andreas Mattsson - The lawlessnes of the ruling classes
09. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
10. In Flames - Come clarity
11. Thåström - Solo vol 1
12. Agnes - Agnes
13. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
14. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
15. Darin - Darin
16. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
17. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
18. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
19. Anna + Idde - Vägar hem
20. Robyn - Robyn

The Alligator Films website has Elvira Nikolaisen's video for "Love I can't defend" for streaming: http://www.alligatorfilm.no/ (under films->music videos, via)]]> Thu, 09 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6803 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6803 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6803#comments This week's top 20 Swedish student radio chart:

01. (02) Arctic Monkeys - "When the Sun Goes Down"
02. (NY) The Radio Dept. - "The Worst Taste in Music"
03. (04) Morrissey - "You Have Killed Me"
04. (NY) Soviac - "Ogashaga"
05. (18) Firefox AK - "Madame Madame!"
06. (01) Dub Sweden - "We're so Loud"
07. (13) Hard Fi - "Cash Machine"
08. (NY) Soundtrack Of Our Lives - "Infinite Zero"
09. (11) Håkan Hellström - "Jag hatar att jag älskar dig och jag älskar dig så mycket att jag hatar mig"
10. (NY) The Streets "When You Wasn't Famous"
11. (NY) Franz Ferdinand - "The Fallen"
12. (NY) Thåström - "Om Black Jim"
13. (NY) AFC - "5 för 5"
14. (NY) Ane Brun med Teitur - "Rubber & Soul"
15. (15) Depeche Mode - "Suffer Well"
16. (ÅT) I'm From Barcelona - "We're From Barcelona"
17. (NY) Placebo - "Song to Say Goodbye"
18. (06) Danko Jones - "Baby Hates Me"
19. (19) System of a Down - "Lonely Day"
20. (12) Jaheim - "The Chosen One"

Leaving the chart: Youngblood Brass Band, The Concretes, Foo Fighters, Maxïmo Park, Sandy Mouche, Architectures In Helsinki, Timo Räisänen, Ed Greene, Robyn and Martha Wainwright.]]> Fri, 03 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6824 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6824 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6824#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Magnus Uggla - Ett bedårande barn av sin tid
02. The Knife - Silent shout
03. Christer Sjögren - King creole
04. Laleh - Laleh
05. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
06. In Flames - Come clarity
07. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
08. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
09. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
10. Sanna Nielsen - Nära mej - nära dej
11. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
12. Agnes - Agnes
13. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
14. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
15. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
16. Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
17. Darin - Darin
18. Robyn - Robyn
19. Torgny Melins - Dansbander
20. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund

Pitchfork reviews Diskaholics Anonymous, the collaboration between Swedish sax player Mats Gustafsson with Thurston Moore and Jim O'Rourke: http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/record-reviews/d/diskaholics-anonymous-trio/weapons-of-ass-destruction-live-in-japan-v1.shtml]]> Thu, 02 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6895 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6895 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/6895#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. The Knife - Silent shout
02. Laleh - Laleh
03. Christer Sjögren - King creole
04. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
05. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
06. In Flames - Come clarity
07. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
08. Sanna Nielsen - Nära mej - nära dej
09. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
10. Agnes - Agnes
11. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
12. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
13. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
14. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
15. Darin - Darin
16. Robyn - Robyn
17. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
18. Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
19. Kent - Du & jag döden
20. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått

Aversionline on Norwegian black-metal act Ljå: http://www.aversionline.com/blahg/2006/02/shame-and-indemnification.html (scroll down past Bleeding Through)]]> Thu, 23 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7005 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7005 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7005#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Laleh - Laleh
02. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
03. In Flames - Come clarity
04. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
05. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
06. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
07. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
08. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
09. Agnes - Agnes
10. Darin - Darin
11. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
12. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
13. Kent - Du & jag döden
14. Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
15. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
16. Torgny Melins - Dansbander
17. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
18. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
19. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
20. Jenny Wilson - Love and youth

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7116 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7116 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7116#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. In Flames - Come clarity
02. Laleh - Laleh
03. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
04. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
05. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
06. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
07. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
08. Agnes - Agnes
09. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
10. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
11. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
12. Torgny Melins - Dansbander
13. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
14. Darin - Darin
15. Kent - Du & jag döden
16. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
17. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
18. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
19. Jenny Wilson - Love and youth
20. Christian Kjellvander - Faya

Swedish noiserockers Gemene Man have posted a couple new tunes on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/gemeneman]]> Thu, 09 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7135 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7135 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7135#comments The winners of the Swedish Grammi awards:

Artist: Laleh
Album: Robyn – Robyn
Pop female: Robyn – Robyn
Pop male: Håkan Hellström – Ett kolikbarns bekännelser
Pop group: Bodies without organs – Prototype
Rock album (solo): Thåström – Skebokvarnsv. 209
Rock group: Kent – Du & jag döden
Songwriting: Robyn/Klas Åhlund –Robyn
Lyrics: Jason Diakité (Timbuktu) – Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
Producer: Laleh
Newcomer: Laleh
Hip-hop/soul: Timbuktu – Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
Hard-rock: Candlemass – Candlemass
Jazz: Esbjörn Svensson Trio – Viaticum
Club/dance: September – In orbit
Song: Sofia Karlsson – Svarta ballader
Open category: Allan Edwall – Alla Allans visor
DVD: Abba – Abba the movie
Video: Kent - Dom som försvann / Director: Adam Berg
Export prize: In Flames

Full list: http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=2198&a=519658&previousRenderType=6]]> Wed, 08 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7220 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7220 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7220#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Laleh - Laleh
02. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
03. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
04. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
05. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
06. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
07. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
08. Agnes - Agnes
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
11. Torgny Melins - Dansbander
12. Kent - Du & jag döden
13. Darin - Darin
14. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
15. Jenny Wilson - Love and youth
16. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
17. Mia Marianna & Per Filip - Våra mest älskade sånger
18. Matz Bladhs - Gobitar 2006
19. Weeping Willows - Singles again
20. Christian Kjellvander - Faya

Norwegian black-metal act Satyricon has signed with Roadrunner for all territories excluding Norway and North America (where they are on Sony). Read more: http://www.bravewords.com/news/39354]]> Thu, 02 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7335 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7335 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7335#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Lisa Ekdahl - Pärlor av glas
02. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
03. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
04. Laleh - Laleh
05. Agnes - Agnes
06. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
07. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
08. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
09. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
10. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
11. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
12. Emil Sigfridsson - Äntligen
13. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
14. Darin - Darin
15. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
16. Matz Bladhs - Gobitar 2006
17. Wahlströms - Tillbaka igen
18. Eddie Meduza - Dragspelsrock
19. Kent - Du & jag döden
20. Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Updated German tourdates for The Je Ne Sais Quoi:

03/09 - White Trash, Berlin
03/10 - Sunday Service Festival @ Knust, Hamburg
03/11 - Trinkhalle, Rheine
03/12 - Blue Shell, Köln]]> Thu, 26 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7443 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7443 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7443#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
02. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
03. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
04. Agnes - Agnes
05. Laleh - Laleh
06. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
07. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
08. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
09. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
10. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
11. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
12. Kent - Du & jag döden
13. Emilia De Poret - A lifetime in a moment
14. Darin - Darin
15. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
16. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
17. The Soundtrack of Our Lives - A present from the past
18. Ane Brun - Duets
19. Jan Johansson - Jazz på Svenska
20. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
]]> Thu, 19 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7559 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7559 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7559#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
02. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
03. Agnes - Agnes
04. Laleh - Laleh
05. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
06. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
07. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
08. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
09. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
10. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
11. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
12. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
13. Robyn - Robyn
14. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
15. Darin - Darin
16. Peps Blodsband - Äntligen!
17. Nanne - Alltid på väg
18. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
19. Moneybrother - To die alone
20. Eva Dahlgren - Snö

Aversionline on Crimes Against Humanity Records and Finnish black-metal act Gaurithoth: http://www.aversionline.com/blahg/2006/01/if-this-is-life-of-crime-sign-me-up.html]]> Thu, 12 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7669 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7669 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7669#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Håkan Hellström - Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått
02. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
03. Agnes - Agnes
04. Laleh - Laleh
05. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
06. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
07. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
08. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
11. Robyn - Robyn
12. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
13. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
14. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
15. Nanne - Alltid på väg
16. Darin - Darin
17. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
18. Emilia De Poret - A lifetime in a moment
19. Peps Blodsband - Äntligen!
20. Eva Dahlgren - Snö

Decoy Music counts down the top 50 instrumental releases of 2005 with Norway's Samuel Jackson Five claiming the #1 spot: http://www.decoymusic.com/vb/showthread.php?t=6776
Other Scandinavians in the list include The Low Frequency in Stereo (#37), Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson (#36), Ellis the Vacuumchild (#17), Sigur Ros (#8) and September Malevolence (#4).]]> Thu, 05 Jan 2006 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7735 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7735 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7735#comments The final top 20 Swedish album chart for the year:

01. Agnes - Agnes
02. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
03. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
04. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
05. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
06. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
07. Laleh - Laleh
08. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Darin - Darin
11. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
12. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
13. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
14. Nanne - Alltid på väg
15. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger
16. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
17. Sven-Ingvars - Livet är nu - 50 år det bästa med sven-ingvars
18. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
19. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
20. Peter Lemarc - Sjutton sånger - lemarc sjunger lemarc
]]> Thu, 29 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7801 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7801 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7801#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart is exactly the same as last week:

01. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
02. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
03. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
04. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
05. Darin - Darin
06. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
07. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
08. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Nanne - Alltid på väg
11. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
12. Laleh - Laleh
13. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
14. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
15. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
16. The Soundtrack of Our Lives - A present from the past
17. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
18. Carola - Jul i betlehem
19. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger
20. Peter Lemarc - Sjutton sånger - lemarc sjunger lemarc

Believe it or not, long-running legendary Swedish grind act General Surgery has actually completed work on their debut full-length album. Read the press release over at DigitalMetal: http://www.digitalmetal.com/news.asp?cid=7025]]> Thu, 22 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7901 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7901 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7901#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Björn Skifs - Decennier sånger från en annan tid
02. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
03. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
04. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
05. Darin - Darin
06. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
07. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
08. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Nanne - Alltid på väg
11. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
12. Laleh - Laleh
13. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
14. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
15. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
16. The Soundtrack of Our Lives - A present from the past
17. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
18. Carola - Jul i betlehem
19. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger
20. Peter Lemarc - Sjutton sånger - lemarc sjunger lemarc

The nominees for the Swedish Grammis have been announced:

Best pop female:
Amy Diamond - This is me now
Ane Brun - A temporary dive
Frida Hyvönen - Until death comes
Jenny Wilson - Love and youth
Robyn - Robyn

Best pop male:
Darin - Darin
Håkan Hellström - Ett kolikbarns bekännelser
Mauro Scocco - Herr Jimsons äventyr
Peter LeMarc - Sjutton sånger - LeMarc sjunger LeMarc
Son of a plumber - Son of a plumber

Best pop group:
Alcazar - Dancefloor deluxe
Bodies without organs - Prototype
CDOASS - Extra fingers
Doktor Kosmos - Ett enkelt svar
Suburban kids with biblical names - #3

Best rock album (solo):
Christian Kjellvander - Faya
Freddie Wadling - Jag är monstret
Moneybrother - To die alone
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209
Tomas Andersson Wij - Tomas Andersson Wij

Best rock group:
Kent - Du & jag döden
Soundtrack of our lives - A present from the past
The Ark - State of the Ark
The Cardigans - Super extra gravity
The Hellacopters - Rock & roll is dead

Best composer:
Anders Wedin (Moneybrother) - To die alone
Joakim Berg - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Robyn/Klas Åhlund - Robyn
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209

Best lyrics:
Håkan Hellström - Ett kolikbarns bekännelser
Jason Diakité - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö
Joakim Berg - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Thåström - Skebokvarnsv. 209

Best proder:
Anders Hansson & Alexander Bard
Bloodshy/Avant
Klas Åhlund
Laleh
Lars Halapi

Best hip-hop/soul:
Hearin'aid - The Boom Lucy
Jaqee - Blaqalixious
Looptroop - Fort Europa
Masayah - p.s.
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Best hard-rock:
Candlemass - Candlemass
Hammerfall - Chapter V: Unbent, unbowed, unbroken
Hardcore Superstar - Hardcore Superstar
Meshuggah - Catch thirtythree
Opeth - Ghost reveries

Best jazz:
Bobo Stenson/Anders Jormin/Paul Motian - Goodbye
e.s.t. - Viaticum
Jonas Kullhammar Quartet - Snake city north
Putte Wickman & Jan Lundgren - An intimate salute to Frankie
Torbjörn Zetterberg - Krissvit

Best club/dance:
Arash - Arash - new version
v/a - Inside Scandinavia vol 2
Hundarna från söder - Troika
September - In orbit
Spånka Nkpg - The City of the golden king

Open category:
Allan Edwall - Alla Allans visor
v/a - Du Beppe, Beppe Wolgers mästerverk
Peps Blodsband - Äntligen!
The Latin Kings - Familia Royale
Totta Näslund - Totta 8: Greatest hits!

Best newcomer:
Amy Diamond
Bodies Without Organs
Darin
Frida Hyvönen
Laleh

Best album:
Bodies without organs - Prototype
Kent - Du & jag döden
Laleh - Laleh
Robyn - Robyn
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Best artist:
Kent
Laleh
Moneybrother
Robyn
Timbuktu

Best music dvd:
Abba - Abba the movie
Cornelis Vreeswijk - Cornelis
Evergrey - A night to remember
Marit Bergman - Marit Bergman - Live at Rival
Timbuktu - Funken styr våra steg

Best song:
Amy Diamond - What's in it for me
Darin - Money for nothing
Kent - The hjärta & smärta ep
Robyn - Be mine
Timbuktu - Alla vill till himmelen men ingen vill dö

Full list of every category here: http://www.dn.se/DNet/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=2198&a=503182]]> Thu, 15 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7967 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7967 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7967#comments Here's the Swedish nominees for this year's Rockbjörnen:

Female artist:
Amy Diamond
Anna Ternheim
Laleh
Lena Philipsson
Robyn

Male artist:
Darin
Håkan Hellström
Lars Winnerbäck
Moneybrother
Timbuktu

Group:
Bodies Without Organs
Cardigans
Kent
Millencolin
The Ark

Song:
Darin - Step Up
Laleh - Live Tomorrow
Robyn - Be Mine
Thåström - Fanfanfan
Timbuktu - Alla Vill Till Himmelen Men Ingen Vill Dö

Album:
Darin - Darin
Håkan Hellström - Ett Kolikbarns Bekännelser
Kent - Du Och Jag Döden
Laleh - Laleh
Robyn - Robyn

Newcomer:
Amy Diamond
Bodies Without Organs
Darin
Hello Saferide
Laleh

Vote here: http://www.aftonbladet.se/ettor/webb/2805_normal.html]]> Fri, 09 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7991 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7991 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/7991#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
02. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
03. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
04. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
05. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
06. Darin - Darin
07. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
08. Nanne - Alltid på väg
09. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
10. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
11. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
12. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
13. Laleh - Laleh
14. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
15. Carola - Jul i betlehem
16. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
17. Daniel Lemma - Dreamers & fools
18. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger
19. Emilia De Poret - A lifetime in a moment
20. Hardcore Superstar - Hardcore superstar

Dagbladet's top album picks for 2005, both international and Norwegian-only: http://pub37.bravenet.com/forum/3172289350/show/572948 (via)]]> Thu, 08 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8070 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8070 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8070#comments This week's top artists for the It's a trap! Last.fm/Audioscrobbler listening group:

01. Belle and Sebastian
02. Franz Ferdinand
03. José González
04. Architecture in Helsinki
05. The Postal Service
06. Håkan Hellström
07. Broken Social Scene
08. Kent
09. Coldplay
10. Death Cab for Cutie

Top tracks:

01. The Postal Service - Such Great Heights
02. Thastrom - Fanfanfan
03. The Postal Service - Sleeping In
04. The Embassy - Information
05. The Embassy - It Pays To Belong
06. Christian Kjellvander - Drunken Hands
07. The Embassy - Stage Persona
08. Wolf Parade - Grounds for Divorce
09. The Embassy - Lurking (With A Distance)
10. The Embassy - Time's Tight

Want to see your favorites listed here? Join us! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/]]> Mon, 05 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/26357-thastrom-skebokvarnsv-209-universal http://www.itsatrap.com/n/26357-thastrom-skebokvarnsv-209-universal http://www.itsatrap.com/n/26357-thastrom-skebokvarnsv-209-universal#comments Joakim Thåström is very much a legend in Sweden. He started out playing guitar and singing in the excellent punk band Ebba Grön who were active in the late 70s and early 80s, when they released some magnificent records that still sound crazy nice, even if you don't speak Swedish. After Ebba Grön, he fronted Imperiet (more new wave/romantic than punk), then he went on to do some solo albums (most of which were influenced by industrial music). His latest offering is something of a nostalgia trip that deals with his past in almost every song, and the music is very "back to basics", acoustic guitar based and melodic. All in all, "Skebokvarnsv. 209" is a bluesy and mellow affair that suits dark winter nights perfectly, and even if it now and then feels a bit naff, I enjoy the album's cheesiness. At one stage when I was a kid Ebba Grön was the only thing I listened to, but I never really got into Thåström's other stuff, so it's a bit surprising that I like most of the songs on here as much as I do, but I do, I really do, whether or not this got anything to do with nostalgia from my part I do not know nor care about.]]> Sun, 04 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 reviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8097 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8097 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8097#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Son of a Plumber - Son of a Plumber
02. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
03. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
04. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
05. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
06. Darin - Darin
07. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
08. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
09. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
10. Nanne - Alltid på väg
11. Daniel Lemma - Dreamers & fools
12. Laleh - Laleh
13. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
14. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
15. Brolle Jr - Brolle jr tolkar cornelis - en stund på jorden
16. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
17. Carola - Jul i betlehem
18. Barbados - Stolt
19. Hardcore Superstar - Hardcore superstar
20. Jussi Björling - Från operans värld till svenska sånger

Indieworkshop reviews Silence the Foe: http://indieworkshop.com/music/2136/]]> Thu, 01 Dec 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8182 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8182 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8182#comments This week's top 20 Swedish album chart:

01. Thåström - Skebokvarnsv 209
02. Lena Philipsson - Jag ångrar ingenting
03. Jill Johnson - The christmas in you
04. Nanne - Alltid på väg
05. Eva Dahlgren - Snö
06. Monica Zetterlund - Z - det bästa med monica zetterlund
07. The Cardigans - Super Extra Gravity
08. Darin - Darin
09. Sophie Zelmani - A decade of dreams 1995-2005
10. Laleh - Laleh
11. Björn Afzelius - Björn Afzelius bästa
12. Amy Diamond - This Is Me Now
13. Embassy - Tacking
14. Hardcore Superstar - Hardcore superstar
15. Bodies Without Organs - Prototype
16. Rikard Wolff - Allt du kan önska! det bästa från: Rikard Wolff
17. Christian Kjellvander - Faya
18. Grönwalls - En på miljonen
19. September - In Orbit
20. Hans Martin - Minnenas promenad

Brothers Demand has posted samples from every track on their new album "A cod in lipstick": http://www.streamroadmusic.se/]]> Fri, 25 Nov 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8426 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8426 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8426#comments This week's top 20 Swedish student radio chart:

01. (03) Test Icicles - "Circle Square Triangle"
02. (08) Arctic Monkeys - "I Bet U Look Good on the Dancefloor"
03. (04) Tiger Lou - "The Loyal"
04. (05) Christian Kjellvander - "Drunken Hands"
05. (17) The Strokes - "Juicebox"
06. (NY) The Embassy - "It Pays to Belong"
07. (06) Saïan Supa Crew - "La Patte"
08. (04) Queens of the Stone Age - "Burn the Witch"
09. (07) David Sandström Overdrive - "The Crotch of a Saturday"
10. (NY) The Pipettes - "Dirty Mind"
11. (11) Katie Goes to Tokyo - "Moving From This Town"
12. (09) Willowtree - "Attention Ms"
13. (15) Röyksopp - "What Else is There?"
14. (NY) Pharrell - "Angel"
15. (01) Kristian Anttila - "Paul Weller"
16. (NY) The Sunshine - "Simon Le Bon"
17. (12) Sophie Rimheden - "Can You Save Me?"
18. (NY) Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah - "Is This Love?"
19. (18) Randy - "Razorblade"
20. (20) Loveninjas - "Keep Your Love"

Leaving the chart: Architecture in Helsinki, Bloc Party, Princess Superstar, Thåström and Tiga.]]> Wed, 02 Nov 2005 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8482 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8482 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/8482#comments This week's top 20 Swedish student radio chart:

01. (01) Kristian Anttila - "Paul Weller"
02. (05) Tiger Lou - "The Loyal"
03. (NY) Test Icicles - "Circle Square Triangle"
04. (NY) Queens of the Stone Age - " Burn the Witch"
05. (07) Christian Kjellvander - "Drunken Hands"
06. (14) Saian Supa Crew - "La Patte"
07. (04) David Sandström Overdrive - "The Crotch of a Saturday"
08. (NY) Arctic Monkeys - "I Bet U Look Good on the Dancefloor"
09. (03) Willowtree - "Attention Ms"
10. (05) Tiga - "You Gonna Want Me"
11. (06) Katie Goes to Tokyo - "Moving From This Town"
12. (19) Sophie Rimheden - "Can You Save Me"
13. (09) Bloc Party - "Two More Years"
14. (NY) Architecture in Helsinki - "Do the Whirlwind"
15. (12) Röyksopp - "What Else is There?"
16. (NY) Thåström - "Fanfanfan"
17. (NY) The Strokes - "Juicebox"
18. (ÅT) Randy - "Razorblade"
19. (15) Princess Superstar - "My Machine"
20. (11) Loveninjas - "Keep Your Love"

Leaving the chart: Acid House Kings, Brakes, CDOASS, Paris, Pharell, Pete Philly & Perquisite and The Rakes]]> Fri, 28 Oct 2005 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9119 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9119 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9119#comments Thåström's new acoustic album "Skebokvarnsvägen 209" will be out November 16.]]> Fri, 09 Sep 2005 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9985 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9985 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/9985#comments Check out the video for "Miss Huddinge" from Thåström: http://www.thastrom.se/ljudvideo/huddinge.wmv]]> Fri, 24 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/10810 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/10810 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/10810#comments Thåström has a new website: http://www.thastrom.se]]> Tue, 26 Apr 2005 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/16600 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/16600 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/16600#comments The latest on The Hellacopters:

Carl Von Schewen (Wild Kingdom Records, founder of White Jazz Records), Henrik Walse (Hellacopter minister of art) and Nick Royale are running a club night at Debaser in Stockholm together called Club Wild Kingdom. Not only are they claiming to spin the best hard-rock, power-pop and classic punk records around, but they also have a hot house band called The Wild Kings with features members of The Hellacopters, Sator, The Turpentines, The Republicans and Thåström. They'll be playing all sorts of classic cover tunes and also promise to host surprise guests. Check out a flyer here: http://www.hellacopters.com/news/bomp.jpg

Strings' new band Thunderexpress has a 2-track single coming out soon on Razzle and will follow up with a full-length later this year.

There's still no official release date, but "Cream of the Crap, Vol. 2" is coming very soon. Or so they say.

Frontman Nick Royale also has a new band with Scott Morgan (The Rationals, Sonic's Rendezvous Band, The Hydromatics, Powertrane) called Soulmover. They will be recording an album of old-school soul/r'n'b which should hopefully be out on Wild Kingdom before the summer.

And lastly, Nick reports that the new Kurt-Sunes Med Helvetes Hundarna 7" will be out soon on Birdnest Records. "What it is?" he says, "I'm part of it but I don't have a clue." Check out www.birdnest.se for more info.]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/17642 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/17642 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/17642#comments The Bukks premiere their new video for the track "The Move" tomorrow November 18 at Alcazar in Stockholm. The band, who's debut album is due out shortly, consists of ex-Popsicle drummer PA Wikander, famed producer Micke Herrström (credits incl. Popsicle, Stefan Sundström, Thåström and Hederos & Hellberg, etc.), Lars Bygdén ($1000 Playboys) and Niklas Barve. Mattias Hellberg and Stefan Sundström will DJ the event. More info: http://www.dustmusic.net/]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19228 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19228 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19228#comments Was it just me, or did World Cafe not stream that TSOOL performance yesterday? Did I miss it? Anyone else record it?

Katatonia has put up a 45-second teaser of the new song "Evidence"on their homepage. As stated before, the new album "Viva Emptiness" comes out March 24.

The Hives won two categories at the recent NME awards: 'Best International Band' and 'Best Dressed'. The full list of winners is here.

Isolation Years will release the first single from the new album "It's Golden" on February 17. The track is called "Open Those Eyes" and I have no doubt it will be awesome. The album follows on March 14.

Madrugada is planning to release the song "Majesty" as the next single. It's already been doing quite well in the charts. The rumor is that they're doing an EP and it'll be out on March 5. No word on the b-sides at this time.

Read the transcript of MTVE.com's webchat with The Cardigans. There's actually some pretty good questions from the fans getting asked and answered.

Ulver reports that the "1993-2003: 1st Decade in the Machines" remix comp is now complete. Contributors include the band themselves, Alexander Rishaug, Information, Third Eye Foundation, Upland, Bogdan Raczynski, Martin Horntveth, Neotropic, Stars of the Lid, Fennesz, Pita, Jazzkammer, V/Vm, and Merzbow. It'll be out in March on Jester Records.

In other Ulver news, the band also has announced their next EP will be called "A Quick Fix of Melancholy". It will contain three tracks and over 30 minutes of music that they say will "reflect the title." Author Christian Bök provides the lyrics.

Flow Magazine has themselves an exclusive mp3 from Paragon. The track is called "När Gon Spottar" and was produced by Michel Rocwell. Look for it on the upcoming debut album "Stadsbarn".

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

01. (01) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (06) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 03. (09) Coldplay "Clocks" 04. (05) The Knife "Heartbeats" 05. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 06. (08) Caesars Palace "Candy Cane" 07. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 08. (NY) Erlend Öje "Sudden Rush" 09. (NY) Laakso "Long Beach" 10. (11) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out"

11. (NY) Placebo "The Bitter End" 12. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 13. (18) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (04) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 15. (NY) Maceo Parker "Come By And See" 16. (14) Eve "Satisfaction" 17. (13) The Libertines "Time For Heroes"18. (NY) Calexico "Quattro" 19. (15) Zwan "Honestly" 20. (NY) Red Hot Chili Peppers "Can't Stop"

Leaving the chart:
(07) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer"
(10) Supergrass "Seen the Light"
(12) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed"
(17) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home"
(19) Paola "Interstellar Love"
(20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Big Bongo Records is doing a comp to be called Twenty Years Too Soon One Year Too Late - A Tribute To The Nomads" featuring contributions from Sewergrooves, The Hellacopters, Maryslim, bob hund, The Dictators, Entombed, Sons of Cyrus and Nitwitz. In case you are unaware, The Nomads are the forefathers of Swedish garage rock and two of the members now make up The Hellacopters' rhythm section. I don't have a release date, but it should be out soon.

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
06. A Teens - New arrival
07. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
08. Melody Club - Music machine
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
11. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
14. Thåström - På röda sten
15. Joybells gospel choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
16. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
17. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
18. Eric Gadd - Life support
19. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
20. v/a - Fame factory vol 2

Swedish singer/songwriter Sofia Loell has done a song to be featured in the upcoming Gwyneth Paltrow film "A View from the Top". Read more here. (in Swedish)

The new Lost Patrol record is scheduled to be out in May. For those that don't know, LP is the solo side project of Dennis Lyxzén from The (International) Noise Conspiracy. Among the various guests to appear on the album are singer/songwriter Lisa Miskovsky, David Sandström (The Facers, ex-Refused), Stefan Granberg (Randy), and Peder Stenberg (Bittersweet). Read more here. (in Swedish)

Nasum reports they have completed their new album "Helvete" which was recorded at the band's own Soundlab Studios by singer/guitarist Mieszko Talarczyk. The tracklisting:

01. Violation
02. Scoop
03. Living Next Door to Malice
04. Stormshield
05. Time to Discharge
06. Bullshit
07. Relics
08. We Curse You All
09. Doombringer
10. Just Another Hog
11. Drop Dead
12. I Hate People
13. Go!
14. The Final Sleep
15. Slaves to the Grind
16. Breach of Integrity
17. The Everlasting Shame
18. Your Words Alone
19. Preview of Hell
20. Illogic
21. Whip
22. Worst Case Scenario]]> Thu, 13 Feb 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19233 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19233 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19233#comments If I installed a message board, would you use it? Just curious - let me know. Otherwise, there's always the guestbook.

Here's the winners of today's P3 Gold Awards:

Best Male Artist – Håkan Hellström "Det Är Så Jag Säger Det"
Best Grouppp – Kent "Vapen & Ammunition"
Best Female Artist – Marit Bergman "3.00 A.M. Serenades"
Best Newcomer – The Sounds
Best Live – The Ark
Best Dance – Håkan Lidbo "Sexy Robot"
Best Rock/Metal – Opeth "Deliverance"
Best Hiphop/Soul – Looptroop "The Struggle Continues"
Best Pop – Doktor Kosmos "Reportage!"

For more info and to listen to the presentation, go here. And don't forget to check out P3 Live over the next two days as a lot of the nominees will be performing.

More dates have been added to the upcoming Sahara Hotnights tour with Ikara Colt and Washdown. They are as follows:

02/27 - Bowery Ballroom New York, NY
02/28 - Maxwell's Hoboken, NJ
03/01 - North Star Philadelphia, PA
03/02 - Black Cat Washington, DC
03/03 - Alley Katz Richmond, VA
03/04 - Cats Cradle Carborro, NC
03/05 - The Echo Lounge Atlanta, GA
03/06 - Jack Rabbits Jacksonville, FL
03/07 - The Social Orlando, FL
03/08 - The Orpheum Tampa, FL
03/10 - Shim Sham Club New Orleans, LA
03/13 - TBA Austin, TX
03/14 - Stubbs Austin, TX
03/15 - Trees Dallas, TX
03/16 - Green Door Oklahoma City, OK
03/17 - TBA Albuquerque, NM
03/18 - Mason Jar Phoenix, AZ
03/19 - Roxy Los Angeles, CA
03/20 - TBA Los Angeles, CA
03/21 - Slim's San Francisco, CA
03/22 - Dantes Portland, OR
03/23 - The Royal Vancouver Canada 03/24 - Graceland Seattle, WA
03/28 - El Torreon Kansas City, MO
04/02 - Mohawk Place Buffalo, NY

As previously noted here, there's going to be quite a few Scandinavian acts at this year's SXSW festival in Austin Texas. Ten from Sweden, seven fren Denmark and Norway and 3 from Finland and Iceland. The three bands Sondre Lerche, Madrugada and Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band will perform together at a Scandinavian showcase show and the rest will be playing other seperate dates during the event. For more info about the Norweigan acts go here. For a list of all the bands performing, go here.

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. A Teens - New arrival
03. The Sounds - Living in America
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. v/a - Fame Factory volym 3 final 2002
07. Melody Club - Music machine
08. Barbados - Rewind
09. Thåström - På röda sten
10. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
11. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
12. Sophie Zelmani - Sing and dance
13. The Knife - Deep Cuts
14. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
15. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Tyskarna från Lund - Metamorphobia
18. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
19. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
20. Benny Anderssons orkester - Benny Anderssons orkester

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

01. (04) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 02. (02) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Fireside "Throw It Away" 04. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 05. (11) The Knife "Heartbeats" 06. (NY) Håkan Hellström "Den fulaste flickan i hela världen" 07. (NY) Turin Brakes "Pain Killer" 08. (03) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 09. (08) Coldplay "Clocks" 10. (NY) Supergrass "Seen the Light"

11. (07) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 12. (06) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 13. (10) The Libertines "Time for Heroes" 14. (NY) Eve "Satisfaction" 15. (09) Zwan "Honestly" 16. (16) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (12) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 18. (13) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 19. (NY) Paola "Interstellar Love" 20. (20) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(14) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders"
(15) Oasis "Songbird"
(17) Massive Attack "Special Cases"
(18) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On"
(19) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space"]]> Thu, 06 Feb 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19240 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19240 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19240#comments Looks like The Soundtrack of Our Lives have been added to the bill of the next Coachella Fest on April 27 and 28. Check the TSOOL US site under 'schedule' for updates.

Peter, Björn and John have lined up the following shows:

1/31 Västerås, Culturen (+Venue & Virtues)
2/1 Stockholm, Debaser
3/28 Hässleholm

The band also says they are planning on doing a new single and video in March.

Download the new video for the song "Eagleheart" from Stratovarius here. Be forewarned, it's a 40+ meg .avi file.

Rumor has it that Motorpsycho will reissue their album "The Tussler" later this year with ten bonus tracks. Apparently it's a soundtrack to the Italian film of the same name and was originally released in 1994.

Some of the bands for the upcoming Emmaboda festival have been announced. The Swedish acts include Doktor Kosmos, Laakso, Whyte Seeds, Speedmarket Avenue, Teenage Idols, Mando Diao and Talking to Teapots. More info here.

Madrugada will doing a tour of Norway right before heading over to the US to play SXSW. The dates:

2/5 - Bredtveit Fengsel, Oslo
2/6 - Hydranten, Hamar
2/7 - Folken, Stavanger
2/8 - Hulen, Bergen
2/9 - Hulen, Bergen
2/13 - Uka 2003, Lillehammer
2/14 - Drammen teater og kulturhus, Drammen
2/15r - Studentenes Hus, Gjøvik
2/18 - Rust Club & Scene, Ørsta
2/19 - Strøget, Tromsø
2/20 - Sinus Bodø
2/21 - Studentersamfunnet, Ås
2/22 - Rockefeller, Oslo

MTVE.com put up the video for "Candy Kane" from Caesars Palace. It's pretty entertaining, so check it out. Nothing like doing donuts in a Volvo, eh?

Sophie Zelmani covers Bob Dylan's song "Most Of The Time" for the soundtrack of the upcoming movie "Masked and Anonymous". The film will star Dylan himself along with John Goodman, Penelope Cruz, Jessica Lange, Luke Wilson and Jeff Bridges. More info here.

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

01. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
02. The Sounds - Living in America
03. Melody Club - Music machine
04. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
05. Magnus Uggla - Klassiska mästerverk
06. Barbados - Rewind
07. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
08. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
09. The Knife - Deep Cuts
10. Thåström - På röda sten
11. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
12. Eric Gadd - Life support
13. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
14. Johannes Kotschy - And that's why I love you
15. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
16. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
17. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
18. Kent - B-sidor 95-00
19. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
20. Roxette - Ballad hits

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

01. (03) Fireside "Throw It Away" 02. (12) Foo Fighters "Times Like These" 03. (01) Caesars Palace "Candy Kane" 04. (02) The Cardigans "For What It's Worth" 05. (05) Badly Drawn Boy "Born Again" 06. (07) Ed Harcourt "All of Your Days Will Be Blessed" 07. (NY) Ms Dynamite "Put Him Out" 08. (NY) Coldplay "Clocks" 09. (04) Zwan "Honestly" 10. (06) The Libertines "Time for Heroes"

11. (ÅT) The Knife "Heartbeats" 12. (14) Dub Sweden "Walk Me Home" 13. (NY) N.E.R.D. "Provider" 14. (08) The Raveonettes "Attack of the Ghost Riders" 15. (11) Oasis "Songbird" 16. (09) Paris "Streetlights" 17. (NY) Massive Attack "Special Cases" 18. (10) Johnny Marr & The Healers "Bangin' On" 19. (NY) Teenage Idols "Teenage Idols from Outer Space" 20. (NY) Her Majesty "I'm Fire C'mon!"

Leaving the chart:
(13) Mando Diao "The Band"
(15) The Coral "Dreaming of You"
(16) The Hellacopters "Carry Me Home"
(17) The Datsuns "Harmonic Generator"
(18) Echoboy "Automatic Eyes"
(19) The Music "Getaway"
(20) Audio Bullys "We Don't Care"]]> Thu, 30 Jan 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19246 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19246 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19246#comments A number of Swedish artists will be coming together on February 20 at Club Debaser in Stockholm to honor the memory of Joe Strummer from The Clash. The list of names is long, but here they are: Infinite Mass, Weeping Willows, Thåström, Randy with Howlin Pelle (The Hives), Ian and Ebbot from Sountrack Of Our Lives, Joppe Pihlgren, Nomads, Dregen & Nicke Borg (Backyard Babies), Jocke Åhlund (Caesars Palace, Teddybears STHLM), Eggstone and Brända Barn. Wow. Tickets are limited, so act fast.

Opeth will tour Australia in April. Dates coming soon.

In Flames has lined up the following summer festival gigs:

6/14 - Provinsirock / Finland
7/25 - Piteå Dansar och Ler, Piteå / Sweden
8/23 - Summer Breeze / Germany
8/24 - Metal Fest Vienna / Austria

Melody Club seems to have gotten a favorable write-up in Aftonbladet for their live show. There's a decent video clip posted, too. (in Swedish)

Turns out the info yesterday about The Ark's trip to Belguim was false. Members Ola and Sylvester are actually spending today on a press mission in Amersterdam.

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

01. The Sounds - Living in America
02. Kent - Vapen & ammunition
03. Melody Club - Music machine
04. Barbados - Rewind
05. v/a - Fame factory vol 2
06. Robyn - Don´t stop the music
07. Eric Gadd - Life support
08. Håkan Hellström - Det är så jag säger det
09. Christian Kjellvander - Songs from a two-room chapel
10. Roxette - Ballad hits
11. Hans Martin - Landet där solen ej går ner
12. Helen Sjöholm - Visor
13. The Hellacopters - By the grace of god
14. The Knife - Deep Cuts
15. v/a - Fame Factory volym 1
16. Mando Diao - Bring´em in
17. Joybells Gospel Choir - Oh happy day - 14 gospel klassiker
18. Björn Skifs - Ingen annan
19. Nicke & Nilla - Pannkakor med sylt
20. Kent - B-sidor 95-00

Swedish songwriter Jeanette Olsson wrote the single "Haven't Told You" for Kelly Rowlands' (Destinys Child) new album "Simply Deep", due out February 10. Apparently, Billboard magazine calls Jeanette "Sweden's best kept secret."

For those curious, Nicolai Dunger's backing band on his upcoming European tour will be as follows (dates in yesterday's post):

Jari Haapalainen (Bear Quartet, Kristofer Åström & Hidden Truck, Heiki) - drums
Jonas Kullhammas (Jonas Kullhammar Quartet, Nacka Forum) - saxophone, flute, clarinet
Thomas Tjärnkvist - guitar
Johan Berthling (Vega, Nacka Forum) - upright bass
Kjell-Erik Eriksson (Hoven Droven, Triakel) - violin

I'm not sure if the same folk will be continuing on with Nicolai to America, but I'll let you know when I find out. (tack Niklas!)

Norweigan singer/songwriter St. Thomas recently finished up with his recording session in Nashville for his next album. Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Will Oldham) produced 22 songs were completed, including covers of "Don't Believe In A Mushroom" by Ring and "Who'll Stop The Rain" by Creedence Clearwater Revival. And that's not all - quite a group of illustrious guests will appear on the album, too:

Tony Crow (Lambchop)
Matt Swanson (Lambchop)
Jeremy Barnes (Neutral Milk Hotel and Bablicon)
Howe Gelb (Giant Sand)
Espen Mellingen (Ai Phoenix and Poor Rich Ones)
Bosse Litzheim (Ai Phoenix)

Five of those tracks ended up the on just-released EP "A Long Long Time". Listen for the title-track single on Norway P3 Radio. A video will be coming out soon, too.]]> Thu, 23 Jan 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19257 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19257 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19257#comments The archive is being updated. Done. I'm also still waiting for a mailorder shipment of new CDs before I update the playlist. Patience, my friends. I may however have some live mp3s from The Ark coming soon. We shall see...

A new Fireside mp3 for the track "Throw It Away" will be available next Monday from Startracks! The album isn't coming out till April.

Finland's HIM recently spent some time shooting the video for "Funeral of Hearts" with director Stefan Lindfors. Check out some pics from the shoot here.

Dungen will be on P3 Live January 20. You can listen online over at the P3 website.

Poet Bob Hansson has a spoken word album called "Kör Solen Kör" coming out January 27. Guests on the record include Ola Salo (The Ark) and Thåström. The first single will be "En Helt Vanlig Dag" featuring Ola.

Caesars Palace is finally gonna make it over to England, this time with Echoboy. If you remember, their December tour with (International) Noise Conspiracy was cancelled. Anyhow, The Caesars (as they're known outside Sweden) have an EP single for the song "Jerk It Out" coming out February 24, the follow-up to "(I´m Gonna) Kick You Out" which is already out. The album "Love For The Streets" comes out May 19 over there. As I've said before - watch out for this band. I expect big things. And I'm not the only one either - read this profile from Britain's Q Magazine. Here's the dates:

January 13 The Barfly, Camden
January 15 The Old Firestation, Bournemouth
January 18 The Junction, Cambridge
January 22 The Boston Arms, London
January 22 Arts Centre, Colchester
January 23 Casbah, Sheffield
January 24 Sumo, Leicester
January 26 The Barfly, Liverpool
January 27 King Tuts, Glasgow
January 28 The Cockpit, Leeds

Also on Q's 2003 bands to watch list is The Hellacopters. Read what they have to say here.

Eggstone will be the backing band and production talent on the new solo album from Weeping Willows frontman Magnus Carlsson. It will be his second attempt at going at it alone following his debut "Allt är Bara Du Du Du" from 2001.

Curious about Swedish jazz? Read this interesting article/interview concerning the recent activities of the Norrbotten Big Band.

The Cardigans will premiere a new song entitled "For What It's Worth" at the upcoming Rockbjörnen Awards on January 27. The show will be broadcasted on Swedish television and will also feature 'comeback' performances from Thomas Rusiak and Dilba along with contemporaries In Flames, Håkan Hellström, The Sounds, Mando Diao and Melody Club.

In Flames will be touring the US beginning in late March. Dates soon.

Be sure to check out 'Rock Over Sweden' today on Rocket 95.3 FM Stockholm. Listen here live or go here for more info. The program starts at 5pm local time. Or maybe not - the show is every other Monday, but it seems like today's scheduled broadcast ain't gonna happen. Next week?

Now scheduled to play the January 18 date of the Inferno Fest in Oslo is a one-off performace by a cover band made up of members from Dimmu Borgir, Red Harvest, The Kovenant, Blood Red Throne, Mayhem, and Susperia. They will reportedly run through various songs from much-respected metal artists such as Death, Black Sabbath, Slayer, and Anthrax and the whole thing is to be recorded for a possible future release on Edgerunner Records. Other bands scheduled to play the fest include Immortal, Children of Bodom and Taake.]]> Mon, 13 Jan 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19259 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19259 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19259#comments Read my reviews of the new albums from Ulver and Björn Olsson over at indieworkshop.com. Look for the links on the right, under 'Featured Reviews'.

TV4 Gothenburg has put up an acoustic set from The Soundtrack of Our Lives back on their website. Check it. (thanks to tsool.tk)

The movie Jungle Book 2 comes out in February featuring a track called "Jag vill va som du" from Dungen. A double A-side single with that song plus "Har du vart i Stockholm" comes out February 10.

Energy Rekords has signed EBM/Electro act 8kHz Mono. You can sample them on the "Virtual Energy vol.4" comp.

Even more award nominees! This time, the Manifest awards, Sweden's alternative to the (Swedish) Grammy:

Pop/Rock
The Bear Quartet - Ny våg (A West Side Fabrication/MNW)
David & The Citizens - For All Happy Endings (Adrian Recordings/Border)
Doktor Kosmos - Reportage! (NONS/MNW)
Marit Bergman - 3.00 A.M. Serenades (Sugartoy/Border)
Embassy - Futile Crimes (Service/Border)

Hardcore/Punk
In Flames - Reroute to remain (Nuclear Blast/MNW)
Thåström - Mannen som blev en gris (Mistlur/MNW)
Spiritual Beggars - On fire (Music For Nations/Zomba)
Totalt Jävla Mörker - Det ofrivilliga lidandets maskineri (Distortion/Border)
Vomitory - Blood rapture (Metal Blade/Border)

Hip Hop/R&B/Soul
Loop Troop - The Struggle Continues (David Vs Goliath/Burning Heart)
Timbuktu - Wåtts Dö Madderfakking Diil? (Juju/Playground)
Heli - Öronknark (Streetzone/Border)
Masayah - Masayah (Swing-A-Ling/MNW)
Ison & Fille - Vår sida av stan (Hemmalaget/V2)

Postrock/Electronica
Hans Appelqvist - Tonefilm (Komplott)
Mokira - Plee (Mille Plateaux/Border)
Nova Express - One (Rocket Number Nine)
Pallin - Far From Yokohama (URU)
Testbild! - The Double Life Of Testbild! (Radio Khartoum)

Dance
Adam Beyer - Ignition Key (Truesoul)
The Mighty Quark - Silverdale (Play)
Eerik & Arvid - Shimmer (Raw Fusion)
Koop - Waltz for Koop (Superstudio/Diesel/Sony)
Sunday Brunch - No resistance (SVEK/Goldhead/Next Stop)

Folk/Worldmusic
Ellika Frisell & Solo Cissokho - Tretakt Takissaba (Xource/MNW)
Golbang - Saali nó (Stran)
Harv - Töst (Drone/CDA)
Olle Lindvall (Drone/CDA)
Sumer - Iraq (Sw/Eden/Border)

Lyrics
Mattias Alkberg (Bear Quartet)
Timbuktu
Uje Brandelius (Doktor Kosmos)
Ison & Fille
Petter Herbertsson (Testbild!)

Live Artist
Doktor Kosmos
Jmyhaze Beatbox
Spotrunnaz
In Flames
Ellika Frisell and Solo Cissokho

Best Newcomer
Totalt Jävla Mörker
Hans Appelqvist
Marit Bergman
Sunday Brunch
Embassy

Winners will be announced at the ceremony on January 31 at the Kulturhuset in Stockholm. The Teenage Idols, Ison & Fille, Totalt Jävla Mörker, and Jmy Haze Beatbox will perform.

The good people over at Chalksounds have finally gotten their online store up and running. The featured album for sale is "On Planted Streets" from KVLR, one of my faves. Highly recommended. Besides their own label's goodies, you can also order records from bands such as Fireside and Isolation Years. Again, both highly recommended.

Grave will be playing this year's coming March Metal Meltdown V to take place in Irvington, New Jersey on March 7-8. The new album "Back From The Grave" comes out January 28th on Century Media.]]> Fri, 10 Jan 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19261 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19261 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19261#comments Here's a short little article with some info concerning the next record from The Soundtrack of Our Lives. Drummer Fredrik makes comments. (in Swedish)

Beyond Dawn has had the new album "frysh" pushed back to March. In other news, a video is being made for the track "Among the Sedatives" by Vildensky featuring "clip-art animation of the band performing various heroic deeds."

I had no idea, but KEXP Seattle has a great archive of live-in-the-studio recordings of bands such as The Soundtrack of Our Lives, Sahara Hotnights, Kings of Convenience, Cato Salsa Experience and much much more. Check it.

Enter to win a $250 gift certificate for Ben Sherman from The Soundtrack of Our Lives and Filter mmm here.

Vote for your choices in the Swedish Alternative Music Awards (SAMA) right here. Vote for one of nominees or write in your own choice.

Joakim Thåström will be releasing a live EP on January 24. It's called "Thåström på Röda sten" and will feature six tracks from his Kalas tour performance in Göteborg last summer and the video for "Släpp aldrig in dom".

Here's the nominees for the P3 Guld awards:

Best female artist
Awa Manneh - "Sounds Like Me"
Frida Snell - "Black Trillium"
Marit Bergman - "3.00 A.M. Serenades"
Paola - "Stockcity Girl"
Robyn - "Don't Stop The Music"

Best male artist
Christian Kjellvander - "Songs from a Two Room Chapel"
Håkan Hellström - "Det är så jag säger det"
Stephen Simmonds - "For Father"
Thåström - "Mannen som blev en gris"
Timbuktu - "Wått´s Dö Madderfakking Diil"

Best group
Caesars Palace - "Love for the Streets"
The Hellacopters - "By the Grace of God"
Kent - "Vapen & ammunition"
Looptroop - "The Struggle Continues"
Mando Diao - "Bring ´Em In"

Best newcomer
The Sounds
Melody Club
Paola
Mando Diao
Marit Bergman

Best song
"Calleth You Cometh I" - The Ark
"Dom Andra" - Kent
"Keep This Fire Burning" - Robyn
"Kom igen, Lena!" - Håkan Hellström
"Someone New" - Eskobar feat Heather Nova

Best live artist
The Ark
Doktor Kosmos
The Hellacopters
Marit Bergman
Looptroop

More info and voting here.

The Hellacopters latest record "By the Grace of God" has gone gold in Sweden with sales of over 30k. It's their 2nd gold album, the first being "High Visibility".

Finland's Enternal Tears of Sorrow have broken up. The statement from the band:

With mixed feelings we have to announce that Eternal Tears of Sorrow have decided to split up. EToS have been on a break since March 2002. During the break, it has become obvious that it is time to quit.
This band started as a free-time activity about ten years ago. As we got more success, we also needed to give more and more of our time to the band. Day by day, we realised the band had become a full-time job for us. Now it's time to move on and do something different. This band achieved much more than we could imagine when we formed up this band.

However, we don't stop making and playing music. Check out the official EToS website regularly for information about the members and their other projects and bands. The site has been online for almost seven years now and will remain as it is. Only the address has changed: www.etos.tk.

We thank all our fans for support! A huge number of nice things happened to us between 1994 and today, thanks to you! On behalf of Eternal Tears of Sorrow in early January 2003, Jarmo Puolakanaho & Altti Veteläinen (the founding members)

Dave Lombardo (Slayer!) plays on four songs from the new upcoming Apocalyptica record "Reflections". If you didn't already know, Apocalyptica is the Finnish cello trio made famous for their covers of Metallica songs.]]> Wed, 08 Jan 2003 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19273 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19273 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19273#comments Word on the street is that you Europeans dig ICQ over AIM and the like, so I went and got myself a number. It's over on the contact page. Go ahead and bother me at work, why doncha?

"I poured water over the microphone because I wanted to die. I didn't think, I just wanted to do something "on life and death"......"

Håkan Hellström tries to kill himself? Apparently so according to this article (in Swedish). Thanks to Zander for the scoop.

Looks like The Sounds are gonna get their chance to make it in America. James Iha (ex-Smashing Pumpkins) will be releasing their album on his label Scratchie Records in association with New Line. They'll also be making an appearance at the legendary Austin, TX South by Southwest Festival. Next big thing? My money's still on Caesars Palace aka The Caesars, but we'll see. The Sounds may be a bit easier on the eyes, though.

Speaking of South by Southwest, here's some of the other Scandinavian acts already confirmed: Bergman Rock aka Bob Hund, Madrugada, Children of Bodom, Meanwhile, The Teenage Idols, Sondre Lerche, RinneRadio, Pineforest Crunch and The Venue. For the full list, go here. It's already shaping up to be a bad-ass lineup, so make your travel plans now if you can.

Turbonegro are getting two of their old albums reissued with new bonus features. The album "Apocalypse Dudes" will have three added video tracks including "Get It On" and "Are You Ready For Some Darkness" plus a live version of "Age Of Pamparius". As for "Ass Cobra", that CD will now have the video for Denim Demon" on it. Look for 'em both on Epitaph Records in the US or Burning Heart in Europe. The band is also still hard at work on their comeback album now that they're reunited. Bassist Happy Tom promises it will be "most destructive party record you've ever heard!"

Millencolin and The Peepshows are gonna be doing a Scandinavian tour in 2003. Here's the dates:

March 13 Stockholm, Arenan
March 14 Skelefteå, Folkparken
March 21 Göteborg, Kåren
March 22 Lund, Mejeriet
March 23 Oslo, Rockefeller

The winners of the P5 Stockholm Badge awards have been announced. They include Kent for best band and best song ("Dom Andra"), Thåström for best male artist, Paola for best female artist, and The Giri Sound for best demo.

Listen to a recording of the Bad Taste Records fest online! Check out performances from the following acts: (requires Quicktime)

DankoJones
Langhorns
Last Days Of April
Logh

Misconduct will touring Europe with 25 Ta Life next June and July. Look here for dates as they are confirmed.

Remember when I said that the video for "Sister Surround" from The Soundtrack of Our Lives was being added to the MTV 120 Minutes playlist? Well, it hasn't happened quite yet, but the video does premiere on there this coming Sunday the 22nd. In the meantime, preview the video here: Real / Windows]]> Thu, 19 Dec 2002 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19301 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19301 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19301#comments The good people over at Flex Your Head and Bad Taste Records have put together a Satanic Surfers contest. Check it out.

Håkan Hellström will headline the Rocktåget tour package next summer. Rocktåget took the year off last summer as the bands Kent, Thåström, The Hellacopters and Mando Diao all had their own smaller, but successful tours. Håkan is no stranger to Rocktåget, having played the tour in 2001 with Magnus Uggla and The Ark.

Speaking of The Ark, they will be making some appearances on Swedish TV in the near future: Ola on SVT 1 on Dec. 5 at 8:45 pm (reruns at 2 pm Dec 6 and 12:15a m Dec. 9) plus the whole band on "Grynets Show" on SVT 1 Nov. 15 at 7 pm.

You probably could care less, but in celebration of 50 years of existance, the British music asked the public to vote for their all-time favourite singles. And of those selected for the top 100, Abba are one of the best represented acts with five entries to their credit. They're also the only Swedish act on the list. Their highest ranking track is "Dancing Queen" at number 8.]]> Wed, 13 Nov 2002 00:00:00 -0800 news