IT'S A TRAP! Scandinavian Music Journal

Before the Show signs with PonyRec

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 14:07:58 -0700

PonyRec has signed Before the Show and will be releasing their new album "Years&Years&Years" on October 1.

Yourspace @ Roskilde 2011 (sampler)

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:40:20 -0700

A selection of Copenhagen's finest indie/punk labels -- Bad Afro, Hjernespind, Orpheus, Play/Rec, PonyRec and Red Tape -- join forces to compile a sampler showcasing the acts they have appearing at this year's Roskilde Festival (and beyond). If you can't find something to like here, you don't like indierock.

Green Pitch to release trio of EPs

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 12:10:59 -0800

Danish act Green Pitch has announced their intention to release three new EPs over the course of 2011. The first one, entitled "Asleep", was supposed to come out in the fall and is now confirmed for release on January 24 and will be available on vinyl or as a paid download. Label PonyRec says the 2nd should be out this summer, but no date has been confirmed yet.

Green Pitch to NYC, new EP coming in fall

Thu, 20 May 2010 12:54:42 -0700

Danish indie act Green Pitch will be doing a one-off date at Littlefield in NYC on June 16. The band will also be releasing a new EP (title tba) on September 6 via PonyRec.

Alcoholic Faith Mission Let this be the last night we care PonyRec/Paper Garden Records

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 12:14:56 -0700

My first exposure to Alcoholic Faith Mission was quite pleasant, but, with the exception of a few tracks, it was not an enduring experience. Still, I knew there was something there, a delicate concept that had not fully formed on "421 Wythe Avenue". In my review I compared the group to acts such as Broken Social Scene and fellow Danes Slaraffenland, whose "Private cinema", while a far more ethereal work, is a kindred spirit of Alcoholic Faith Mission's gentle, yet driven take on pop music. I also noted that "There is a tragic beauty here, one that blends the emotional registers of Mixtapes & Cellmates and Moonbabies, yet remains quite distinctively an original construct, and it is this ingenuity that sets Alcoholic Faith Mission apart from many of their contemporaries." All of this remains true on "Let this be the last night we care", but the promising intimations are now fully realized -- while retaining the airy, spacious attributes of "421 Wythe Avenue", there is an anthemic, Arcade Fire-like quality permeating the compositions; for fear of waxing poetic, it is as though the intricate clouds of dust of their previous effort have found a way to manifest themselves in a more concrete fashion. "Let this be the last night we care" is brilliant -- engaging even at its most haunted and distraught moments, such as "Sobriety up and left"; moving even when playful; gorgeously layered and focused, all in the same breath. I have had the distinct pleasure of reviewing a number of very strong albums over the past few weeks, and still Alcoholic Faith Mission's stands out from the crowd. It's rare to stumble upon an album like this, one that is reminiscent enough of other acts as to be somewhat nostalgic and yet remains so markedly unique, capable of reminding us where we've been while concurrently functioning as our soundtrack to the present.

Download Anchorless

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 11:51:54 -0700

It wasn't supposed to happen until tomorrow (May 1st), but it appears that the new Anchorless (ex-Lack) EP is already available as a free download direct from the band and label PonyRec: http://www.ponyrec.dk/music/download/ANCHORLESS_Anchorless.zip
To grab the vinyl (the only other available format), go here: http://www.ponyrec.dk/shop.php

Anchorless signs with PonyRec

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:41:49 -0700

Anchorless, the new band from ex-Lack members Jakob Nielsen and Jacob Johansen, have been picked up not by PlayRec as I would assume, but by the similarly-named PonyRec. Look for their self-titled debut EP in April.

Alcoholic Faith Mission 421 Wythe Avenue PonyRec

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Denmark has established itself as a sanctuary for offbeat pop musicians. I was easily won over by Slaraffenland's "Private cinema" and Larsen & Furious Jane's "Zen sucker", to name just a few, and it is within this eccentric, peripheral vein of pop music that Alcoholic Faith Mission exist. On "Gently", which begins (and continues on as) a lavish, beautifully layered composition, a female vocalist delicately sings: "Just 'cause I'm a whore, you know it doesn't mean I don't feel it when you fuck me." This strange juxtaposition of the beautiful and the base continues on in the next track, "Nut in your eye", a track that by name alone should be on a throwaway hip-hop album, but in substance falls not too far from the realm of Broken Social Scene. "421 Wythe Avenue", while moving away from the resplendent/sexual parallelisms, continues on musically in much the same way as the opening tracks -- ethereally layered electronic elements and vocals, solid acoustic and electric guitar work, all tethered to shifting centers and uncertain musical landscapes. There is a tragic beauty here, one that blends the emotional registers of Mixtapes & Cellmates and Moonbabies, yet remains quite distinctively an original construct, and it is this ingenuity that sets Alcoholic Faith Mission apart from many of their contemporaries.

Majessic Dreams Beautiful days PonyRec

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The influence of 1960s folk music is wrapped perfectly around the mechanism of Scandinavian pop music with Majessic Dreams. Finger-picked acoustic guitars find themselves awash in a sea of warm keyboards and distinctly Scandinavian voices, sometimes echoing the themes of The Radio Dept., other times recalling more Americana influences, especially with tracks like "Wish he was you". Like Promise and the Monster, this act crafts magnificent dreamscapes with their stratified instrumentation, the guitar strings retaining their staccato appeal without coming across as coarse or brash. The only failing of "Beautiful days" is that its emotional core seems rather stagnant -- tracks flow too easily into one another, and soon the entire affair becomes a beautiful blur instead of a collection of beautiful, individual songs. With repeated listens, this failing may slip away for some. Definitely worth a listen, if nothing else.

Gravy Glory to our brilliant name PonyRec

Thu, 18 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0700

Denmark's Gravy have two strong things going for them. One, they're a silly party band with some wickedly funny lyrics and many sing-along repetitive chants. Two, they're a highly-skilled trippy psychedelic groove band with plenty of extended instrumental breaks and radical mid-song transformations. Sometimes, like on the album opener "Depression is near", the combination works. The song's a swirling and seductive dark journey that's good for plenty of laughs and dance moves along the way. At other times, though, when the music demands to be taken seriously, the lyrics and vocals are too goofy to make it fully possible. Or, just when the lyrics have got you in their world, the music veers off in another direction altogether. The result is a record that is usually interesting and often very fun, but never quite penetrable. I'd hate to see them pick one tendency over the other, but they've got a ways to go in making those two elements work together consistently.

Munck//Johnson Count your blessings PonyRec

Thu, 30 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800

Still bummed because Minnesota mopemeisters Low got all rocked up on their last album and subsequently didn't provide the misery/melancholy quotient you counted on them for? Relax, my frowning friends; Munck//Johnson are here to help. On their second album, the Danish duo sound incredibly like Low at times, and Camilla Munck shouldn't feel at all belittled to be called the Danish Mimi Parker. Her voice is just as lovely, just as capable of expressing deep, private sorrow that doesn't reveal its source openly. "Last wish" and the evocative organ utilized on "The streets" are unquestionably Low-ish (never more than when those tight harmonies deliver the goods). But my favorite tracks are the beautifully eerie "This time," which features electric guitar washes distorted to create an evocative ambient soundscape over which sparse synth and the quietly sombre vocal effectively stir up your most buried emotions, and the graceful piano-laden "Be kind," which is truly lovely. Elsewhere, several tracks are just Moogie Johnson's simple acoustic guitar and Camilla's delicate voice ("Ellis of Davenport," "Sweet and lowdown," "Flesh and bone"). While this is often downbeat music, it's engaging and poetic, and it always feels genuine. With a little patience, anyone into introspective, soul-searching music should be able to appreciate this disc, which is a tad more consistent than last year's debut.

Halph Ode to you PonyRec

Sat, 11 Mar 2006 00:00:00 -0800

I'm going to be honest with you readers: the first time I listened to this Danish duo's latest release, it scared the hell out of me and I liked it. Singer Thomas Nygaard's baritone vocals (which are slightly reminiscent of Olympia, WA's very own Calvin Johnson) and guitar work are more dark and sinister this time around as the music takes a post-punk turn. Karsten Bagge's drumming fluctuates between intense and soothing, much like Nygaard's guitar. The album starts off on a seemingly quiet note with "Life part II" and builds up very nicely during "Nightlife". "Have fun dying" just makes it that much creepier to listen to.

Munck//Johnson Unlike you PonyRec

Tue, 23 Aug 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Most people I know wouldn't make it all the way through a disc as somber and musically sparse as this debut by Danish duo Camilla Munck and Moogie Johnson, but I suppose I'm a musical masochist. I like to suffer for other people's art, and all I ask is that it stir my emotions sincerely and have enough going on to hold my interest when I'm in one of my receptive moods. "Unlike you" bobs and drifts uncertainly toward that goal, and JUST makes it over the rope. That's mostly due to Camilla's unabashedly emotional, upfront singing (there's no denying the genuineness of her potently sad delivery) and the weird snatches of distorted keyboards and other stuff here and there that add sort of an alien atmosphere (though the primary accompaniment is simple acoustic guitar). Some tunes such as "The sky", "Ease me" and "Lilies" are merely quietly pretty and melodic. Others dive straight to the murky depths like "Sister Mine" which really creates a funereal atmosphere, but I love the blend of organ and acoustic guitar. And it takes a genuinely focused/emotionally committed artist to conjure the utterly spooky vibes of "Ghostdance" and "For my sweetheart", which out-Low the lowest of, uh, Low, this group's nearest comparison. Nothing here to rev you up for the hardships of life, but as a soundtrack to same, this is often gripping stuff.

Halph Answering machines PonyRec

Tue, 07 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700

When I first listened to "Answering machines" by this Danish duo, I was surprised to find out it reminded me of a lot of Fugazi with a touch of that Texas band Les Messieurs Du Rock. Really fuzzy, arty and haunting indie rock that my brother enjoys making art to. Singer/guitar player Thomas Nygaard's vocals are a perfect match for songs like "Bad wiring" and "Back door". Drummer Karsten Bagge's jazz-fused drumming provides a good backbeat to the above mentioned songs and makes "Evil one" almost danceable. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

Gravy s/t PonyRec

Mon, 30 May 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Starting this record I thought I was putting on a new, and better soundtrack, for "Van Wilder" (or insert any college-based comedy). As much as Gravy borrows from the Pixies (as Avi as judiciously pointed out last week) they still make every song their own with awesome arrangements, the awesome Doo-Wop backing vocals and xylophone bursting out of nowhere. This is just great, fun music that you cannot help but smile and enjoy.