07/08 - MTC, Köln (GER)
07/09 - tbc
07/10 - Star & Garter, Manchester (UK)
07/11 - Underworld, London (UK)
07/12 - Winston, Amsterdam (HOL)
07/13 - Juha West, Stuttgart (GER)
07/14 - 59 to 1, München (GER)
07/15 - Cassiopeia, Berlin (GER)
07/16 - 007, Prague (CZ)
07/17 - tbc
07/18 - tbc
07/19 - Truckstop Alaska, Gothenburg (SWE)
07/20 - Slottsfjell Fest, Tonsberg (NOR)

My question is, who's gonna give me a ride out to Truckstop on the 19th?

"Music For The Statues of Gothenburg is a piece written for three statues along Kungsportsavenyn, the main street of Gothenburg. It is an observation on the sonic landscape of the city and a question about the usage rights of the public space." Composed by Andreas Bygdell (The Touch) and performed by Martin Molin (Detektivbyrån). More: http://felsteg.com/project/music-for-the-statues-of-gothenburg/

03/08 - Paletten, Viborg (DK) w/The Kandidate
03/09 - Beta, Copenhagen (DK) w/The Kandidate
03/10 - Kansas City, Odense (DK) w/The Kandidate
03/16 - Red Rooster, Berlin (GER)
03/17 - Rockstation, Halle (GER)
03/18 - tba, Dresden (GER)
03/19 - Cafe na pul cesty, Prague (CZ)
03/20 - Galerie u Mloka, Olomouc (CZ)
03/21 - Stwst, Linz (AUS)
03/22 - tba (ITA)
03/23 - Swamp Club, Massa Carrara (ITA)
03/24 - tba (ITA)
03/25 - Ponyhof, Frankfurt (GER)
03/27 - Dachstock, Bern (CH)
03/28 - Rocas Cafe, Luxembourg (LUX)
03/29 - Bastard, Osnabrück (GER)
03/30 - Cafe Nova, Essen (GER)
03/31 - Glocksee, Hannover (GER)
04/01 - Molotow, Hamburg (GER)
04/02 - MAU Club, Rostock (GER)
04/05 - L' Orient, Linköping (SWE)
04/26 - Fritz's Corner @ Strand, Stockholm (SWE)
04/27 - Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg (SWE)
04/28 - Loppen, Copenhagen (DK)

Svensk Musik talks GBG pop with up-and-comers Katakomb.

10/18 - Thekla, Bristol (UK)
10/23 - Nefertiti, Gothenburg (SWE)
10/24 - Koncerthuset, Studio 2, Copenhagen (DK)
10/26 - Odeon Theater, Vienna (AUS)

Look for another NYC gig to be confirmed shortly as well.

You probably know Philip and Henrik Ekström as one-half of The Mary Onettes -- a Swedish quartet who makes music as warm as a hug from a friend, and as big as the whole 1980s. However, the siblings, spurned on by little more than a mysterious muse, recently started making music in their own tongue. The resulting band/album Det Vackra Livet ("The Beautiful Life"), is another such warm-hearted affair -- brimming with shimmering synths, oversized echoes, and driving drum machines. While non-natives are unlikely to understand a damn word, every song seemingly leaps from the stereo with such indelible familiarity that the album is ripe for repeat listens (if not mushy-mouthed sing-alongs).

It's a Trap! recently sat down with Philip Ekström to discuss linguistic barriers, creative expression, and why the Carina Nebula may hold all the band's musical secrets.

What very important (or perhaps not so important) Swedish phrases should an indie rock fan learn before visiting Jönköping/Göteborg?

If you visit Jönköping you should know that the town is not much of a music city. They have one festival there and they're not even interested in the local music scene. So maybe you should learn to scream: Wake up you dead animals! But somehow I love the city. Weird. In Gothenburg you should only learn to shut up!

After writing two albums in English, did writing the album in your mother tongue help speed the process?

Maybe. The whole process was a creative outburst. And apparently I had lots of words and meanings that I needed to let out. I guess this time it was just easier and more powerful to do it in Swedish. Can't really explain it in a better way. But just a month before the album was done I could never dream I'd make an album in Swedish. I'm really glad we decided to do the album; the meaning and the weight of the words had never been the same in English.

Are there phrases (or sentiments) that just sound better sung Swedish?

Well, hard to say. You can't hide yourself in another language. The words need to be more convincing. And that sounds better in many ways. But still English is more easy to use in a metaphorical way. Wish is very beautiful!

For those of use who don't speak Swedish (and thus have all the lyrics muddled into oblivion by Google Translate), how would you describe the general emotional tone of the album?

Just storytelling. Very emotional for me. Some songs are personal stories from me and my brother's life, and a lot of the stories revolve around our family, yet some of the stories are imagination-based on an another person's life and stories. For example: my grandmother's simple life. But yet so grand in my head!

If you were suddenly grained the ability to record your next album in any language of your choosing (with perfect comprehension) what would it be?

Hmmm... maybe it's boring, but I'd just keep on doing it in Swedish and English. Feels like I've got a lot more to learn in those languages. Feels like I've just begun my linguistic journey.

When your grandchildren ask about the circumstances surrounding the recording of this album, how will you explain it to them?

This album is a part of your history! That will do. Some parts of it I will try to keep a mystery as well. They will have to use their imagination too...

Given that in the digital era you can access almost every piece of music that's ever been recorded at a second's notice, do you feel comfortable with the idea of your music (both The Mary Onettes and Det Vackra Livet) being labeled "retro" or "revivalist" pop?

I can't focus on those things. How people label the music is not important to me. As long as people listen to it and feel something...

You seem to be the official Labrador Records video director as of late. If you had to choose one image to represent The Mary Onettes, and the other to represent Det Vackra Livet, what would they be?

Maybe a picture of space. The pictures of the Carina Nebula are nice, it feels extremely matching with all my feelings and music. I always get knocked down when I see pictures of it...

When I spoke with Suburban Kids with Biblical Names last year, we talked about how there seems to be less of an emphasis on popular success in Sweden, and more on personal expression. Do you find that to be the case? (Or is this wishful thinking from a country that's suffering through the 10th season of American Idol?)

Yes I feel that. It's just like it should be. The main purpose of writing music should always be personal. That is my absolute momentum. As for many Swedes doing music maybe... I often think that music that is personal is more sympathetic and that makes it, in many cases, addictive.

Do you believe that pop songs have the power to contain deeper (or even universal) truths?

Absolutely! Music is bigger than fucking God.

Interview by Laura Studarus, photo by Henrik Mårtensson

I have been following P3 Guld/P3 Gold, Sveriges Radio/Swedish Radio's annual awards ceremony, for a long time now, almost as long as the event has existed. Which also happens to be about as long as I've been seriously following Swedish/Scandinavian music and running this site. There's no doubt that SR has been a huge part of my Swedish musical education over these years, both due to their outstanding website and online streaming offerings, but also because of their devotion to quality programming and the promotion of domestic acts. Of course, Sweden's outstanding music scene makes the latter a no-brainer, but you know that if someone's gonna mess it up, it's gonna be a state-run institution. Anyhow, I usually try to listen in to the show's audio broadcast every year (Swedish Television/SVT's live stream is blocked for international users), but never in my life did I ever expect the opportunity to attend in-person. The idea never even occurred to me. So as soon as I received an email asking me if I wanted to go, I immediately jumped at it. Who wouldn't? Even with a scarce one-week notice, I would be a fool to pass up the offer.

So off I went, spirited halfway 'round the world in some sort of fever-dream, all for a gala previously thought unaccessible. But before we get into my personal experience of the event, let us first take a history lesson.

P3 Guld was started by Swedish Radio nine years ago, evolving out of and superceding the then-current Popstad (Pop City) live music event. "So we have Grammy awards in Sweden as well and this was a year that there was some controversy surrounding them," says SR's Pia Kalischer, the official "mother" of P3 Guld, "They said they would no longer have anything to do with quality, they would only be based on sales and we thought that was kind of dumb so I saw a gap in market and I figured, well we should do something that's an event that will have to do with new music and also live music, as we broadcast a lot of concerts [see P3 Live for example]. So I figured it would be fun if we could do something that was open to an audience with live music and let's throw in a few awards to have a reason to throw this thing."

"Today I'm the Commissioner of Music and Events at Sveriges Radio, before that I was Head of Music for P3 for ten years. I was also a program manager and before that I was a producer and I've always had my heart in the music and for as long as I was working as Head of Music, I was continuously working with the P3 brands musically so that it would be connected to new Swedish music. That was the whole idea that people would associate P3 with new Swedish music."

And so P3 Guld came to be. The first year was small and humble, taking place at a tiny theater in Växjö (home of The Ark, Melody Club and uh, Birdflesh) before relocating permanently to its current home in Göteborg, Sweden's second city. Pia explains: "The city of Gothenburg came to us and said, "Please, come over, we'll help you. We have a very strong music scene in this city and all kinds of genres as well." It's the home of Swedish heavy metal and also lots of indiepop and also hip-hop, it's got everything basically. And a good organization within the city that helped us to get connected with the venues, the arenas, the people... so we grew from a small theater to a little bit of a bigger theater which seated 900 people, to [another] which seated maybe 1000 and then suddenly our partners said "Let's do this big" so we went to Scandinavium which is a huge arena that usually has hockey games. So went from 900 to 3000 people in a couple years. And we did that for 2 years in Scandinavium and that was huge." This year, however, the event has been scaled back and moved to the slightly smaller Lisebergshallen at the Liseberg amusement park. Seating approximately 2,500 with the complex, multi-tiered stage setup to allow for quick set changes, this is the first time the event was slated to include a standing audience. As to whether it was a fully conscious choice or rather the result of Scandinavium being booked for the European handball championships, nobody seemed too daunted or disappointed by the switch. "I personally feel that it was wonderful and it was fun and it just suddenly exploded, but for me," says Pia, "I've always wanted the P3 Guld to be sort of intimate. I want it to have a club feel so that audience gets closer to the bands and the bands get close to the audience. When the bands and audience connect that's when you get that certain electrical feel that really makes for good radio and good television. When it's real. That sounds so trite, but I really mean it."

All the same by me, as a newcomer to the P3 Guld live experience. I'm more than happy to play the part of the humble guest, letting myself get shuffled here and there for whatever pre-arranged activities my hosts have in mind. Well, except for the P3 Live-sponsored pre-pre-party on Friday night -- I really don't need to see some (ex?) cokehead pop-music producer's feeble attempt at playing in a rock band, so I opted out for a quality evening with my local friends, exploring the exciting, burgeoning world of Swedish craft beer. So then on Saturday, after a slow day of recovery and light window-shopping around Haga, we're spirited away to the official pre-party at the Brew House, a swirling mess of tabloid photographers snapping shots of the various pop artists who decide to make an appearance, mixed in among far greater numbers of industry reps and hanger-ons. I say hellos to the few folks I recognize and am introduced to many more, including a project manager from Music Export Norway down from Oslo to check things out (Øyvind, I'm ready to come over anytime!). Then there's also Watain, lurking on the fringes, looking seriously bummed and out of place. And intimidating -- no way am I going to attempt to introduce myself though a picture with the band would've surely been awesome. My fellow guest DJ Grace and I do a short interview on the air for the pre-show (I manage to be coherent enough to give props to the year's current best single, "Coming from you" by Paper) and we're off again, following a trail of torch-wielding sentries on our way to the venue.

As for the show itself, the live broadcast (on both P3 and SVT) demands a strict schedule. Pia has prepared us: "Some other award shows like the Swedish Grammis they have 21 prizes to give out. So you have to sit there for what? 3 hours? And they can only fit in 4 or 5 musical acts. So we do it in 90 minutes, 9 prizes and I think we have 10 bands this year. So it's very fast-paced. And there are always some of the big acts [who] really like to debut new songs... we don't only do the big hits of last year, we want them to play new music." Once things start moving, they stay moving and there is no downtime whatsoever.

The actual array of categories at P3 Guld is an interesting sidenote. Unlike every other music award, there are very few niches. "P3 Guld is really just a segment of the Swedish music business because we felt that we wanted to do something that reflects the music format of P3," Pia tells me, "The Grammis also gives out awards for, y'know, new children's music, classical music, jazz, every genre... which I really personally think is great. I think they should concentrate on being a very grand prize. And we basically do a rock show. [laughs] So it's pop, rock, some soul and hip-hop, some heavier stuff, but it's one piece of the cake of the whole musical landscape. So there's no jazz award, there's no opera award." And more importantly, there's also no longer an award based on gender. "We used to have two prizes for the best female artist of the year and the best male and we changed that two years ago," Pia informs me, a decision that apparently did not come without unintended consequences. "Last year we got lots of criticism because [P3 Guld] didn't feature enough females. Now it's hard for us to change the recording business where men seem to have an easier time than women, but we really tried to think about that this year. We really worked very hard to change and we also decided to joke around a bit with it." As we would later discover. Furthermore: "Part of the reason I'm afraid that we didn't have enough women solo artists last year, because not a lot of women released records. Or rather there were so many men last year who released records that were really good, that it was hard. But this year there are more females that have had a stronger... that have put their foot down I suppose."

"Is that just on stage or behind the scenes as well?" I ask.

"Well the thing is with P3 Guld is that behind the scenes, it's 98% women. I think that's due to me actually. Without thinking about it I appointed a female producer, we have female bookers and one of the TV producers is a woman and so in the production team, as it comes to the people who make the decisions, 70% are women."

"So do you think that's reflected in other parts of Sweden or do you think that this is a special thing you've created?"

"I don't know, I just know that... of course I'm a feminist. Yes I am. But I'm maybe not the most conventional one, I don't always count heads. I think that there's different ways of gaining equality, but I do think it was a good thing we were criticized last year and I do think we've really shaped up. There's a big discussion and I think the discussion in itself makes for change. What's been interesting is that you've seen all these women who've gone solo, women in the indie bands like Jenny Wilson, Sophia Somayo. They've decided to do everything by themselves as a way of being empowered and I think that's interesting. So that's kind of specific to the Swedish scene -- lots of women working and doing everything every step of the way, writing the songs, into the production, and gaining full control of the final product. Which I think is amazing."

Not to mention artists such as Marit Bergman and Robyn, I might add. The intersection of gender and music is an ever-evolving, fascinating subject, so it's especially interesting to see a prominent event such as P3 Guld tackle the issue head-on.

Which doesn't mean I could necessarily follow the discussion every step of the way during the actual show. I could understand when Howlin' Pelle of The Hives awarded Robyn the Guldmicken for Sweden's "2nd best" live act, I could understand host Kitty Jutbring's recurring references to Ace of Base thanks to the musical cue, but as far as gender-relations go, I could only really pick up on Kitty's vagina dress and her coinciding use of the word "fitta", which apparently is totally acceptable for broadcast. Not that I wasn't fully entertained. Like I said above, the show was action-packed and unrelenting and my language barrier did little to interfere.

Local fave Håkan Hellström kicked things off in style with "River en vacker dröm".

Säkert! performed an exceptional take on the song "Influensa".

Those Dancing Days killed it with "Reaching forward", as previously mentioned.

Awards were given, speeches were made. There were also a few surprises, a rarity for such a highly-scripted, high profile event. The biggest and most obvious: This Is Head winning Best Pop over Robyn. Another: Skudge winning Best Dance over the far more popular Swedish House Mafia, though it must be reiterated, P3 Guld is not necessarily a popularity contest. While some categories are decided by audience votes, the specialist genres are done by jury. Once again, Pia gladly fills in the details: "We have one jury that takes out the nominees for the audience to vote for and those are made up of the music editors that work within P3 and a couple of people from outside; we have one person from SVT [Per Sinding Larsen], so he's with us to do the five open categories. And then when it comes to specialist juries, there's a head of jury who's always that person who has that type of specialist program [at P3] and the brief to them was to select people that are experts in their field. So it's either very senior music editors and music journalists or very genre-specific experts [so we] have quality before the quantity or sales, which is not a parameter in this at all. But of course sometimes those things sort of match." As is the case with Robyn, who has deservedly won almost every award she's been nominated for this year.

Another highlight: the unexpected collaborations. Hello Saferide and Detektivbyrån from 2009 is a definite standout in my memory, Pia cites Anna Ternheim's collaboration with Max Peezay as hers. She says, "I like all the stuff that really goes under your skin and becomes exclusive for this event, things that touch people." As for 2011's best song medley by Orup and Spiderdogs, well, it was certainly nothing I expected, though I'm not so sure it will go down in history. What was far better however, was Tove Styrke doing "Million pieces" together with Familjen:

See, now that's the kind of perfect collaboration I'm talking about.

As with all major events, P3 Guld comes in three stages. We had the pre-party, the party itself and then of course, what remains at last is the after-party. Once Robyn brought the house down with her 3-song medley/finale (thankfully, rumors of a surprise Roxette appearance did not come to pass), we gathered our coats and made our way back through the cold to the Hotel Elite where, as with most large gatherings in Sweden, I felt like a fish out of water and about a foot shorter than everyone else, a feeling most easily remedied by the consumption of alcohol. Which is exactly the point -- the post-show party is when everyone finally starts to relax and feel comfortable enough to simply hang out and enjoy themselves. Free from expectations, they were all smiles and I was excited to reacquaint myself with numerous people I have met on previous trips over the years, or merely communicated with via email. And rub elbows with bonafide Swedish popstars: somehow I ended up getting my picture taken with a member of Kent, no fooling. Not at all what I expected, but more than welcome. Beyond that, what goes on at the after-party is off the record as far as I'm concerned, though it's not as if anything scandalous went down in my presence (besides the telling of tales from previous years). Perhaps everyone was holding out for the after-after-party, but with me scheduled for an early flight home only hours away, that was not even a remote possibility. The bar shut down, I went to bed, I was happy. Even if I never get a chance for a repeat visit, I'm more than content with my experience.

1. Pascal - Orkanen närmar sig
Pascal is getting better all time and their third album is all I hoped it would be. Cave rock at it's best!
http://www.kyssmig.com/

2. The Black Angels - Phosphene Dream
I loved their first album and was quite disappointed with their second so i am very glad to hear they are back in great form.
http://www.theblackangels.com/

3. Wolf People - Tidings
I got all these singles/EPs and have loved them to bits but it's great to have them collected in one place. Don't miss out on this. Also check out "Steeple", their proper debut album.
http://www.wolfpeople.co.uk/

4. This Is Head - 0001
A more or less perfect debut album. Great stuff.
http://www.thisishead.com/

5. Archie Bronson Outfit - Coconut
Fine mix of psychedelic garage rock, swaggering grooves, stabbing riffs, and gouging pop hooks.
http://www.archiebronsonoutfit.com/

6. Clinic - Bubblegum
I've been a Clinic fan since day one and i really like this softer and poppier sound.
http://www.clinicvoot.org/

7. Riddarna - Släpp allt, glöm allt!
Riddarna (The Knights) are a trio from Gotland/Gothenburg in Sweden and they are best described like Dungen's obnoxious country cousins born and bred on stoner-rock. In other words, loudmouth rock'n'roll in Swedish that sounds quite unique. Great debut EP.
http://www.riddarna.com/blog/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1-vu-l9aaE

8. The Bear Quartet - Monthy Python
Not being a big BQ fan from the beginning I was surprised how great their album "89" was and now when they follow it up with this it is even better.
http://www.thebearquartet.com/

9. Mattias Alkberg - Nerverna
A quite dark and beautiful album.
http://www.mabd.se/

10. 2011 (Paper and Katharina Nuttall)
As always, stuff I have listened to and enjoyed immensly won't be released until next year. Paper will release a fantastic second album called "Mischmash" and Katharina Nuttall will release her third called "Turn me on". Both fantastic in their own ways. Also, Riddarna will release their debut album and Pascal a new EP. How could I not long for next year.
http://www.myspace.com/paperstockholm
http://www.katharinanuttall.com/

---------------------------
Daggan runs Novoton Records who will be doing a bunch of stuff in 2011 as outlined in #10 above.
http://www.novoton.se/

04/01 - Stadtmitte, Karlsruhe (GER)
04/02 - Underground, Köln (GER)
04/03 - Juha, Rosswein (GER)
04/04 - Exit Chmelnice, Prague (CZ)
04/05 - Randal, Bratislava (SLO)
04/06 - Feierwerk, München (GER)
04/07 - Rockhouse, Salzburg (AUS)
04/08 - Bloom, Mezzago (ITA)
04/09 - Init, Rome (ITA)
04/10 - Dynamo Werk21, Zürich (CH)
04/11 - Glazart, Paris (FRA)
04/12 - Underworld, London (UK)
04/13 - White Rabbit, Plymouth (UK)
04/14 - Arts Centre, Colchester (UK)
04/15 - Trix, Antwerpen (BEL)
04/16 - Perron55, Venlo (HOL)
04/17 - Hafenklang, Hamburg (GER)
04/18 - Templet, Lyngby (DK)
04/19 - Henriksberg, Gothenburg (SWE)
04/20 - tba
04/21 - Debaser Slussen, Stockholm (SWE)
04/22 - Klubi, Turku (FIN)
04/23 - Lutakko, Jyväskylä (FIN)
04/24 - Nosturi, Helsinki (FIN)

2. The summertime and how much wine i drank

3. White Ring - Black earth that made me

4. The trip I took with Hamngatan to Kiruna, I love Hamngatan

5. Bear Quartet - Monty Python

6. My new home Gothenburg

7. When I discovered Madvillain (Chicagojazzen introduced me to the Madvillainy album)

8. When the bassplayer in Hamngatan woke me up with a pizza

9. My graduation

10. Salem - King Night

---------------------------
Mother Of The Forest released three EPs this year, all of which are available for free download at his website. Look for his debut LP to be released next spring.
http://motheroftheforest.blogspot.com/
http://www.myspace.com/motheroftheforest

Neghantil - 1990-1996 (2xCS box)
Trepaneringsritualen - Judas goat (7")
Martin Herterich - Kustlandet (CS)

And still in the works for the future:

Jasper TX - The black sun transmissions (CD)
v/a - Sub Gothenburg 10/11 (CS)

05/28 - Primavera Sound Festival, Barcelona (ESP)
06/08 - Great Scott, Boston, MA
06/09 - Knitting Factory, Brooklyn, NY
06/10 - Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY
06/12 - Turner Hall, Milwaukee, WI
06/13 - Lincoln Hall, Chicago, IL
06/16 - Eagle Rock Arts Center, Los Angeles, CA
06/18 - Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, CA
06/19 - Vera Project, Seattle, WA
07/21 - De Affaire Festival, Nijmgen (NL)
07/23 - Boomtown Festival, Gent (BEL)
08/12 - Haldern Pop Festival, Rees-Haldern am Niederrhein (GER)
08/12 - Way Out West Festival, Gothenburg (SWE)
08/15 - Summer Sundae Festival, Leicester (UK)

Andreas Tylden (from JR Ewing) and Sten Ove Toft (Utarm, Ryfylke, Roggbif, etc.) have formed what Andreas describes as "an avant garde metal, post metal band", whose influences include Phillip Glass and John Cage. "We're a brand new band, we've only done five shows," he explains. That might explain why the crowd for the show was small, but everyone present -- include NME reporter Matt Wilkinson, and Edgar Smith of leading British indie mag Loud and Quiet -- instantly became a loyal fan.

Sten tells IAT: "it would be too easy to do nothing but noise, nothing but metal... but at its best, black metal is one of the most carefully composed musical genres, with great melodies, it's just that there's lots of noise around them."

So far, so civilised. They are even sharing their Tuborg with everybody -- nice guys. So Altaar aren't into burning down churches, then? "There are other ways to break down Christianity," muses Andreas. "If we burned down a church the state would have to pay for it and it would cost the tax payer money, so that's why we wouldn't want to do that." Sten adds: "Burning down churches makes the Christians feel stronger and makes them unite. It's better to ignore them." There were certainly enough candles on stage to fill any Catholic crypt, and it took the band some time to personally blow them all out before they left the stage.

Also getting a warm reception in frosty Oslo were Iceland's Seabear, who are playing again tonight. Initially a solo project by Sindri Mar Sigfuson -- who was once described by Rolling Stone as "the Icelandic Beck", the group from Reykjavik now has seven permanent members.

Tonight will see a repeat performance from Bergen's Social Suicide, too, whose set yesterday was arguably the festival's most exciting so far. Any New Yorker who hung out upstairs at Max's Kansas City in 1970s would, I imagine, have felt quite home here last night. The bigger name bands to have played so far include Casiokids and Oh No Ono, but many of us were far more taken by a group of Gothenburg Krautrockers called Fontän. Member Johan Melin tells IAT "I hope people hear us, like us and like the fact that something is going on in the psychedelic scene. We have a disco thing going on in Scandinavia right now. We're influenced by bands like Can but it's nice to merge different genres. We're trying to do it. I'm into drum and bass and electronic music, and when I was 15 I listened to a lot of British hip-hop like Killer Instinct, but you wouldn't guess that to listen to us... We listen to everything."

I'm going back into the conference now, but if anyone has any tips for bands I should check out while here, please drop me or Avi a line [or post a comment here -ed]. Apologies for my poorly articulated reporting, but I am very hung over.

Over and out for now Scandi-philes.
- Sophy Grimshaw

Elmo's second album "Once" blew me away the first time I heard it, a rare occasion in these fickle times. It's an album filled with the same sort of angst and melancholy perfected by countrymates Broder Daniel, but also enhanced by an overwhelming sense of youthful desperation and a strong melodicism that only can come from Norrland. Sadly, the band comes to an end this week with their final performance ever at LuleåKalaset on July 31, so I made sure to catch up with main singer/songwriter Magnus Ekelund before it's all over to see what brought him to this point and where he is going next.

You're from Jokkmokk, right?

Yes, that is correct. I lived there until I finished 9th grade.

Are you still living there?

Well, I've been moving around quite a bit. First I moved to Luleå for the music gymnasium they had there. Which, by the way, was quite terrible. And then I became really sick. So I moved back home for a year or so. Then, after that, I moved to Gothenburg at the same time as I got signed on a Luleå-based record company named BD Pop. And they sold half of the contract to Stockholm-based Bonnier Amigo. So the timing with me living in Gothenburg was slightly bad. I had to travel to Luleå and Stockholm all the time. So after one year I moved up to Stockholm. This was in 2007.

I released "Kamikaze heart" when I lived there. But then they dropped me from Bonnier Amigo, and I moved home to Jokkmokk again to live in my parents house for a while. But now, about one month ago, I moved back to Luleå again. And it feels like I want to stay here.

I've only been as far north as Umeå, so I'm curious as to what it's like. How does it compare to other parts of Norrland/the rest of Sweden?

Jokkmokk is nothing but nature. If you don't like silence, snowy winters, midnight sun and great views, it is not the place to be. I kind of like the heavy season changes. It's cruel and beautiful. But I think it's because I grew up there.

I like to take walks in the midnight sun out in the forest... Or at least I like the thought about taking long walks in the forest. It feels romantic. But it gets really boring in the long run. I can only live there for short periods of time. I don't want to grow old there. Or maybe that's exactly what I want to do. In a little house where no one else can find or disturb me. Maybe that's where I'll find peace.

How do you think your surroundings affect you as an artist? I can hear a definite Broder Daniel influence (intentional or not), but I'm curious as to what other influences you draw from, musical and otherwise.

I am a product of everything I see, hear and feel. I love Broder Daniel. Especially when I started to write music in my early teenage years. I don't really listen to them anymore, but I know that Elmo sounds very much like Broder Daniel. Disturbing for some people - 'cause they sometimes think that I want to become the new Henrik Berggren. But as a fan of the band, I know that no one can trespass on the symbolic status that he has, and the culture around the band.

So my music isn't very original. I think the power and integrity in my songs are that you can feel that I really mean what I sing. That it's for real.

I don't try to sound like anything else, and I don't try to sound like something you've never heard before. I just try to be honest with what I do. I think you can hear that if you listen to my music.

Another very big influence for me is Jakob Hellman. But I think its more likely to be heard in my new Swedish project. Since it's in Swedish.

Nowadays I mostly listen to instrumental music. The soundtracks from epic 80's movies like "Rocky II", "Karate Kid" and "The Neverending Story" go straight into my heart. If I listen to pop music, it's probably something uncool like Niklas Strömstedt or Enrique Iglesias.

I sort out and pick up small fragments of good melodies or lyric phrases and make them my own. You can call it stealing or whatever. That's how it's done. The song "Die alive" from my new album is, for example, heavily influenced by Springsteen's "Radio Nowhere" and the song "Once" is something Agnetha Fältskog did earlier.

I'm letting through more of my background and hometown in my new songs, compared to Elmo. My song lyrics always go hand in hand with my life. I write about things I know.

How so exactly?

I'm letting through more of my self in these songs. The are, in a way, closer to the chest. Mostly because it's in Swedish and the influences are more under the surface.

Do you find your subject matter changing as you get older?

I don't know really. I guess I've become more thoughtful. Less fuck off attitude and more pensive. But I think it's up to the listener to decide.

Is there a particular direction you aim to go?

It is hard to tell. I'd like to do more songs like "Skogens ljus". Kind of sounds like Sigur Rós, in a way. I think that vibe only can be found in the northern parts of Sweden. By the Arctic Circle. And I think it's unexplored. We'll see what happens.

So I understand you are putting the band Elmo to rest at the end of the month?

Yes, Elmo will be no more. Luleåkalaset will be the last gig.

How and why did you come to that decision?

It had to be done. "Once" is the ultimate Elmo record as I see it. I can't take it any further.

What exactly makes it the ultimate record?

The ultimate Elmo record. Important to say...

It is more clear. It is darker, more dreamy and the sound is messed up. It pends between dark blue and pitch black in the lyrics. With maybe one ore two exceptions. It is hard to talk about these things without sounding ridiculous.

The debut, "Kamikaze heart", is a very young, sunny and hopeful CD full of longing. With some dark undertones. "Once", on the other hand, is an album that speaks the truth. That tells it like it is - right here and right now. Emotionally.

That was the only goal I had. I did not care if it had a hit single, smooth sound or anything like that. Money had absolutely no power in the process of making this album. I did not listen to anyone else but me, and it turned out exactly as I wanted it to.

And why do you think you can't go any further?

It is complete. And Elmo is driven by a very youthful over belief in one's self. Elmo against the world. Very dramatic. I'm still like that, but that side of me had to make place for other things. It has not gone away with age, but it has gone aside.

What does "further" even mean to you in this context?

It just has to end.

So you are planning to concentrate on making music under your own name now?

Yes, full heartedly.

What are your plans for the future?

I want to see what happens to my Swedish songs. Maybe release an album and to play live, of course. I hope that people will like it, so I can go on and get appreciation for what I'm meant to do. I kind of see it like that. I can't really see me do anything else.

More here

Roskilde is undoubtedly the Holy Grail of Northern European summer festivals. It takes place close to the synonymous small Danish town, situated in the outskirts of Copenhagen. The festival opens its doors on the last Sunday in June with various warm-up gigs and events. The main programme kicks-off on Thursday and lasts until Sunday. More than 100,000 music lovers, volunteers, media, artists and merchants gather up in order to partake in this unique musical experience. The first-ever Roskilde took place in 1971 and was organized by two high school students and a promoter. Over the years it has grown so much it has become a point of reference in Scandinavia and one of the four largest festivals in the whole of Europe. Nowadays there are more than 170 bands playing on seven stages, of which the Orange Stage is the largest.

The weather this year was gorgeous, which had a direct impact on the mood of the hordes of aviator sunglasses-wearing, über-trendy Danes. Sun cream, Thai food and billions of liters of beer were consumed, while queuing up for attractions such as the "Human carwash"... The line-up consisted of names as big as Coldplay, Oasis, Pet Shop Boys, Slipknot, Nine Inch Nails, Faith No More and countless others. I am going to keep my lips sealed as far as these acts are concerned, since this is not the reason for which you are reading this website. Please look elsewhere if you really want to know about Chris Martin's improved Danish language skills!

Day One

Mew's gig at Arena, the second largest festival stage, is the one I was looking forward to the most at this festival. This is a great comeback after four years of silence since their critically acclaimed album "And the glass handed kites". Everybody is so eager and impatient to see them again on stage; there must be more than 15,000 people in the audience. And it is worth the wait. This is a smashing gig! They deliver glorious performances of "Am I wry? No", "Apocalypso", "156", "Circuitry of the wolf" and "White lips kissed" among others. They also give us a taste of what's yet to come with the new single "Introducing palace players". Magic atmosphere and gigantic sing-alongs, during the course of an easily won home game. The new album with the unusually long title – deep breath - "No more stories are told today, I'm sorry they washed away. No more stories, the world is grey, I'm tired, let's wash away", is out on August 25th and should be one of the most promising releases of the year.

Later on, DJ/producer Trentemøller is headlining the Orange Stage. This undisputed national hero successfully manages to please the masses with a longer-than-two-hour set. His performance is ranging from blatant mainstream to more peculiar sounds and mixed up tunes by Soft Cell, The Cure, Bruce Springsteen, Jesus & Mary Chain, Primal Scream, Britney Spears and, in the spirit of times, Michael Jackson. His onstage guests include Steen Jørgensen formerly from veteran Danish rockers Sort Sol, blues starlet Marie Fisker and most notably, Mikael Simpson. A crowd of 50,000 engages in a massive techno dance on an unforgettable summer evening.

Day Two

The morning after I head down to Astoria to listen to Faroese Orka, drawn by the hype that has been created since their recent collaboration with French "Amélie" movie soundtrack composer Yann Tiersen. They are a very interesting offering indeed, since they construct their own instruments entirely out of power tools and farm equipment and subsequently channel the sound through samplers and effect pedals. Their music is imposing, enigmatic and lifting at the same time.

Young Swedish sisters First Aid Kit are next on the bill in Astoria. Their mix of folk/country melodies with perfectly pitched harmonies recently attracted international attention. Plain orchestration creates a very intimate atmosphere and proximity. Apart from their own numbers, they even do two covers: Fleet Foxes' "Tiger mountain peasant song" and unexpectedly Kiss' "I was made for lovin' you", dedicated to their younger brother. Generally they do OK, but I think their music would work much better in a smaller venue.

Tromsø duo Röyksopp easily rule the Arena on Friday night. The venue had simply exceeded its capacity before Torbjørn Bruntland and Svein Berge appeared onstage. The crowd is very familiar with all their experimental dance-pop material. The most defining moment of the set by far is Robyn performing "The girl and the robot". The crowd simply goes mad! "Happy up here" and "Eple" are well received too. Fellow Norwegian Anneli Drecker appears wearing a mysterious owl costume. Apart from her own "You don't have a clue", she is charged with delivering "What else is there?", "Tricky tricky" and "This must be it", sung on record by Karin Dreijer, who is appearing also at the festival as Fever Ray. Partly because of a no-show and partly because of the actual performances the results on these three songs are slightly disappointing.

Day Three

A big number of Swedes in their early twenties (maximum!) are gathered in front of the Orange Stage to see Gothenburg's drama king Håkan Hellström. His 60's influenced pop works well under a blazing afternoon sun. Restless and exceedingly expressive, he is roaming across the stage while conducting his one-man-show. A charmer, Håkan doesn't miss an opportunity to flirt with the crowd and embrace their love in a very Swedish Robbie Williams way. Every word of "Klubbland", "Känn ingen sorg för mig Göteborg" and "För en lång lång tid" is sung religiously while confetti is thrown in the air.

The final Scandinavian act for me on Saturday evening and this Roskilde festival are Swedish jazz/fusion/acid/progsters Dungen playing on the Odeon stage. It's the music that counts here and not the show. They play a lot of stuff from their internationally well-received album "4". Tambourines, flutes, acoustic guitars and electric solos combined with brilliant basslines from Mattias Gustavsson are purifying for a tired and sleepless festival crowd. "Maleras finest" and "Det tar tid" are the best memories to take home with me. Thanks Roskilde.

Words and pictures by Vasilis Panagiotopoulos

05/15 - GBG Rocks (Henriksberg), Gothenburg (SWE)
05/16 - T-stube, Rendsburg (GER)
05/17 - Rote flora, Hamburg (GER)
05/18 - tba
05/19 - tba
05/20 - Tba, Leauven (BEL)
05/21 - AK44, Gießen (GER)
05/22 - Elfer music club, Frankfurt (GER)
05/23 - Kastanienkeller, Berlin (GER)
05/24 - Imbir club, Krakow (POL)
05/25 - Subway to Peter, Chemnitz (GER)
05/26 - Az conni, Dresden (GER)

03/26 - Herrgårn, Linköping (SWE)
03/27 - Umeå Open, Umeå (SWE)
03/28 - Debaser Medis, Stockholm (SWE)
04/01 - Pustervik, Gothenburg (SWE)
04/02 - Parkteatret, Oslo (NOR)
04/03 - Hulen, Bergen (NOR)
04/04 - Debaser, Malmö (SWE)
04/05 - Lilla Vega, Copenhagen (DK)
04/06 - Voxhall, Århus (DK)
04/08 - U&G Turmzimmer, Hamburg (GER)
04/09 - Knaack, Berlin (GER)
04/11 - Motel Mozaique Festival, Rotterdam (NL)
04/12 - Doornroosje, Nijmegen (NL)
04/14 - The Scala, London (UK)
04/15 - Night and Day, Manchester (UK)
04/16 - Sugar Club, Dublin (UK)
04/17 - Brudenell Social Club, Leeds (UK)
04/18 - Stereo, Glasgow (UK)
04/19 - Glee Club, Birmingham (UK)
04/20 - Le Grand Mix, Tourcoing (FRA)
04/21 - Botanqiue Rotonde, Brussels (BEL)
04/22 - Point Ephemere, Paris (FRA)
04/24 - Le Romandie, Lausanne (FRA)
04/25 - 59:1, Münich (GER)
05/04 - Kung Fu Necktie, Philadelphia, PA
05/05 - Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY
05/06 - Great Scott, Boston, MA
05/07 - il Motore, Montreal, Quebec
05/08 - Rivoli, Toronto, Ontario
05/09 - Schuba's Tavern, Chicago, IL
05/10 - Cedar Cultural Center, Minneapolis, MN
05/13 - Crocodile Café, Seattle, WA
05/14 - Doug Fir Lounge, Portland, OR
05/15 - Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco, CA
05/16 - Spaceland, Los Angeles, CA
05/17 - UCSD, San Diego, CA

Tell me your story! When did you discover rock'n'roll?

The High Hats are childhood friends and for as long as we can remember we've have listened to music in many forms. We listen to everything from dub to black metal...

What made you form the band? Just regular smalltown boredom or something else?

For no particular reason... we have played together in different bands before and one day we decided to start up the band as it is today. Actually, we had a hard night out and in the decadence the pieces fell into place. And let there be High Hats.

You seem very fond of your hometown, what is so good about Borås?

In some way Borås has gotten bigger the last ten years. More and better bands, probably the best football team in Sweden, the most good looking people and we've noticed that people from Gothenburg are a bit jealous of our home-town. hehe...

How about the Borås music scene? Which is the second best band?

Great. We have a lot of talented bands here like Killerchaps, Evocation, Brick Club and Moonlit Sailor and on and on and on. The scene has grown really fast over the last few years and it's keeping on getting bigger.

You have an especially big fan-base in Germany. Why is that?

Because we did a lot of really good shows there on our first tour and we also did a German-only-tour... and the Germans are really supportive when it comes to good music.

You have reputation of being a great live band, what's your recipe for a great show?

Since we only see each other during rehearsals and gigs we can focus our energy on having a good time instead of wasting our energy on disliking each other... The High Hats is like a bad marrige with really great makeup-sex.

Your latest EP was released for free. How come?

We had a few sessions and recorded some songs that we wanted to release for free. We have always been very generous with giving away songs for free.

What does the future have in store for The High Hats?

We are just about to record our second full-length album, but yet we don't know who will release it.. we have a few options but nothing is settled. Maybe we should give it away for free.

How do you think Elfsborg will do in this years Allsvenskan? It looks pretty grim...

They are going to win.

...And when is the next release due?

We don't know yet, but hopefully it will be out before the summer. Remember that we have a slow working process, since we can't stand each other in large doses.

Did you guys grow up in/around Gbg or did you gravitate there by choice? How exactly did the band end up coming together in the first place?

We grew up in places quite close to eachother, a bit north above Gothenburg. Two of us have been friends since we were kids. And we all met through other friends and around music when we all were in the same town for high school. We formed the band in the end of our high school years. We had all played in other constellations, but when the four of us got together and the band became Audrey it felt really good. With many dreams of what could come, but at the same time only a fantastic way of being creative together. So after finishing high school we all moved to Gothenburg and we were quite focused and started to seriously rehearse and play a lot more.

How do you think your surroundings influence you? In what ways does the geography, weather and/or people of Gbg effect your art?

I most definetely think that our nature and seasons affect us a lot. Really dark and foggy can be just as cosy as the light summernights, and the harsh cold but sparkling light snow can make you full of energy, and can give you the sun in a way that the summer can't. And that they are total opposites. And how you can long for them both, in different ways during different times. Because they have positive and negative sides with them.

Being close to the sea has always been a natural beautiful thing to me (Rebecka). And my mood is really affected by the weather. Like painters want to express in a picture what they see and how they feel we have a mix of what we all four feel, think about, and what we think is beautiful and awful. I guess it's not a written recipy how you let the surroundings affect you. Just that you know that they do. And also just as important how your friends and family feels and what people around you can influence you to do something, like them or something totally different, but in your own way.

Is the so-called "postrock" scene as much of a boy's club as I think it is? Has that changed at all over the years you guys have been playing together and touring? What else could be done to make it better..?

I guess I've never felt the negative thing from the people and friends that are closest to you, about us being all female. Instead I think many of our male friends playing in "postrock" bands have encouraged us! But more often it can be that your voice is your special thing, not the instrument. And that you can feel unsure about wheter they like you just because of your music or the fact that it is more exotic with females in this genre. I always try to turn it in the positive way, and listen to the good parts. Beacuse of course there will always be things that you can take in a negative way. And that you can feel hopeless for the whole situation with it being more unusal with women making and playing good music.

But we do what we like and hope that others will feel why we do it and hopefully encourage other women and also other men.

There seems to be quite a mix of great bands in Gbg - any under-appreciated acts you think deserve more attention?

Winter Took His Life is a splendid young woman full of talent!

Hajen is another great girl with a fantastic voice that breaks hearts and her way of playing piano is very rare to!

We recently played in Gothenburg with Euphoria and the Lazy Boy and he's got a cool sound and voice, I hope to hear more from him this spring.

And of course Gothenburgs finest Once We Were, they deserve the world!

Lastly, got a track to share? Tell me about it.

Ok, I think it has to be "11 years - with the Malmö based band Fredrik, it's supernice! I like the arrangements very much and the mystery that they keep trough the song. You can see the cool video here and listen to the song below:

MP3: Fredrik - 11 years

Gbg isn't exactly known for its hip-hop scene- what's up with that? What's the scene like there? How does it compare with Sthlm and Malmö?

Gothenburg used to be known its hip hop scene back in the day due to this club called Fatmilk that I managed together with some friends of mine. Each month we booked some US artist that we flew in only for this particular night and people from all over Sweden and Norway came to party with us. At the time we also had various freestyle nights for local acts so the culture here was really vibrant and alive back then.
Today it's nothing like that. I mean there's still a hip hop scene but everyone keeps more to themselves I think. It's probably more people active in the culture today but we don't have a natural meetingpoint where everyone hangs out like we used to. But to Gothenburg's defence we have loads of talented DJs that throws clubs almost every night if you like. Probably less going on then in Stockholm but at the same time, probably more so than in Malmö.

So much hip-hop seems wrapped up in regionalism, so do you consider yourself a Swedish rapper or do you think that Gbg has its own style? And why did you decide to rap in English?

I guess I consider myself a Swedish rapper with the potential to reach outside the Swedish borders since I'm rhyming in English. When I started rapping it was considered uncool to rap in Swedish. We all did it in English back then and I just stuck with it. Been doing it for ten years now and why fix it if it ain't broke you know what I mean? And no, I don't belive Gothenburg has its own style but oddly enough, lots of rappers rhyme in English over here. There are a lot of different theories as to why that is which I'm not going to get into, but style comes with the artist not the city he or she is from.

A lot of Swedish hip hop acts are making it across Europe right now in countries like Germany, Austria, Switzerland and France for instance. I think in general us Swedes are really talented when it comes to making music, no matter the genre. But in regards to hip hop, I think we stand our ground in most of the world, even in the U.S.A, but for obvious reasons it's extremely hard to make it as a rapper in America when you're not a native, don't live there and so on.
I don't listen to too much Swedish rap but sometimes I do, mostly friends of mine in the business. But overall I like all sorts of music so I listen to everything from rap to rock to pop to soul to electro etc. Pretty much anything but death metal, opera and classic music like Mozart and that kind of stuff.
But in regards to your last question I think that something has happened to Swedish hip hop this year. Finally we have broken out of our own mold and are not afraid to go our own way, so this is really the first time we have a chance of making it outside the Swedish borders I think.

Lastly, got a track you're willing to share? Tell me about it.

Sure thing, its the first track taken from my mixtape, "A new season" that came out just before my album and its called "More or less"...

MP3: Form One - More or less

Brainbombs - Fucking mess LP

White - Torment cassette

Ättestupa - Ättestupa LP

Current 93 - Birth canal blues EP

Agent Side Grinder - Untitled LP

The Tiger Lilies - 7 deadly sins CD

Skull Flower - Taste the blood of the deceiver LP

Lifelover - Konkurs CD

Various Artists - Sub Gothenburg 08 cassette

Leafes - Seedland cassette

---------------------------
Says Thomas: 2009 will be spent coming to terms with "Lost in reflections". Further more I will focus a lot more on Dead Violets. We are currently setting up tours in the US and in Europe as well as working on a slew of 7", cassette and LP releases.
www.deadwords.org
www.deadviolets.org

01. ESCAPE FROM PARIS - Paris' Zombie Zombie knows just what icing to put on the cake. Their record "A land for renegades" (Versatile, 2008) puts all the ingredients of the Neue Deutsche Welle-era, late 70's/early 80's John Carpenter with all the Snake Plissken you can muster and grinds that shit with some German monotonous kraut to pull fresh from the oven a contemporary goldie.

02. RELEASE THE BATS - Gothenburg can definitely be a dump and taking a dump on a dump will amount to nothing I guess. I have no idea if there are any fecal matters guiding We Live In Trenches as they continue to stir our musical cesspool but they've got their shit straight at least. So far only a single seven-inch, "Autonomy clinic" (Instigate, 2008), has surfaced but chances are that much more will follow in 2009. It's more of a progressive take on Black Flag than a Black Flag-take on prog-rock and I'm happy to say that.

03. ASPERA AD ASTRA - Back in a decade when fashion equaled velour and pants you could hide entire families in, Space emerged out of Marseilles and sold more records than you ever will. "Magic fly" (UA, 1977) is all you ever wanted, but never had. Period. You can easily see the line of heritage when listening to other French acts of today and it's a good thing.

04. CURSED SINCE BIRTH - I had to rewrite this entry since it took a whole other dimension this past Sunday (Nov. 30th) when I watched Fucked Up dump six persons worth of musical equipment into a foyer the size of a toilet stall (give or take an inch or two). An audience comprised of sweaty crusties and equally sweaty hipster scenesters and barely oxygen enough for two people hyperventilating, it was an ideal setting for an f'ed up kind of show. Though the entirety of the show, the sum of it, was an instant ejaculation, I must point out a few highlights that might have made your pants feel tighter around the groin: Pink Eyes stripped thirty-something seconds into the first song because apparently it must have been "too hot" (I've noticed from several clips floating around that it must be pretty hot everywhere they play because this loving pattern repeats itself wherever they play); he felt a sudden urge to sing one song from inside one of the bathroom which was neatly located adjacent to the stage; played pinball while the rest of the band dutifully finished the song without him; carried several members of the audience on his shoulders through the crowd just 'cause it had to be done. Ranting and raving but never did I think 'less talk, more rock' because there was all the rock you needed to get your yearly fix. Thank you: Pink Eyes, 10,000 Marbles, Mustard Gas, Mr Jo, Gulag and Young Governor!

05. SMELL NIGHT - Little did I know that, due to a severely sprained ankle, I was about to miss out on several good shows that coming Saturday at Way Out West. Still from knowing what I know now it mattered very little. On Thursday the 7th of August I was two steps shy of getting rear-ended by the bouncers at the Pustervik venue while they tried their very best to milk some extra cash from an audience that had already spent a small fortune on tickets. That, too, mattered very little. As I witnessed The Mae Shi, Health and No Age tear an ecstatic crowd new assholes, I could do nothing more than smile. The rest of this year I've looked in the rear-view-mirror and I know I saw something of definite worth that night.

06. BEFORE INTELLIGENCE - Carefully plotted jittery stemming from an unknown auxiliary den of creativity I know these kids-come-men dubbed Alarma Man have multiple things up their sleeves/skirts. Fuck me if this sees the light of day before the end 2008. It doesn't matter. It never did. As a working title for their recorded new long-player they chose "Swedish intelligence" and if in the end it stays just a draft, it still shows the importance of being unfuckwithable, a nice display the of wit they possess.

07. PEYOTE DUBBING - Joining an over-extended and much needed Summer of Love-vacation, the brains of Wooden Shjips conjure music to charm snakes to. It's undeserted desert rock, found under a San Francisco-ean pile of rubble. The self-titled ep/album(?) (Holy Mountain, 2008) clocks in at thirty-three-something minutes and comprises only five songs but, hey, who's counting. "Station to station" was only six songs and it's beautiful gem. Droning guitars? Check! Sinister organ? Check! Steady Kraut-pulse? Check! Do I love it? Check!

08. WORSE MEN - Let's rid this paragraph from drug-induced allegories of how prog-rock rules. just listen to Bad Dudes and their sophomore album "Eat drugs" (Deleted Art, 2008). Or better yet, check out the video with the same name. It's a classic on paper and it's a classic in its full flower.

09. THE HORROR, THE HORROR - I'm partial but that shouldn't deter anyone from dive head-first into the shallow end looking for these guys; Cat Party put out an astonishing 7" (Rich Bitch, 2008) and even more astonishing split 7" (Monoton Studios, 2008) and they will be hot shit in 2009. These guys are from San Clemente (same town that once housed the drummer from Battalion of Saints) and they carry a torch so light it'll blind your eyes. It's Easy Being Gay!

10. J IS FOR GENIUS - Ten is the amount of fingers you have on your hands. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten. Ten!

---------------------------
Max J Hansson is the singer and guitarist of Gothenburg's Cut City, an orchestra which 2008's whopping rap sheet include one postponed European tour, five rehearsals and the rear-ending of another van at the speed of 150 kilometers per hour (Americans please consult nearest metric converter) on the German Autobahn. Also, they released a split 7" which contained one new song. Busy boys.
www.cut-city.com
www.myspace.com/cutcity

Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Lost in reflections (LP+7")
Various Artists - Sub Gothenburg (CS)

DLSODW is, unsurprisingly, a late-entry contender for my year-end top 10. As for the "Sub Gothenburg" cassette, well, I should hope my enthusiasm for all things Gbg is obvious by now. If you want exciting new music, these releases are a good place to start.

You're still based in Gbg, right? What's kept you there all these years? Ever considering picking up and relocating somewhere else?

Yes I'm still here. Well one reason is I'm quite happy to have an apartment... some kind of safety thing I guess. I'd love to have a little shack in the Caribbean to go to in the wintertime though.

What makes the Gbg music scene special, if it's even special at all? The people, the geography, the weather... what are the primary characteristics that define the city and its artists?

I dunno if there is a special scene here. Think there's quite a good diversity of scenes/bands/clubs. People tend to say that the music from here is more working-class with a more "rough" touch. Maybe it used to be that way, but I don't think it's a general "tag" to put on the Gothenburg "sound" anymore. Maybe I'm wrong...

So you've started to do shows with Martin Hederos (The Soundtrack of Our Lives) again as Hederos & Hellberg -- why resurrect that project now? Why'd you even stop playing together in the first place?

Well, we were asked to close the Way Out West festival this summer in a big beautiful church. An offer we couldn't refuse. It was a bit scary but great fun at the same time and it was an amazing vibe in a packed church way after midnight. And of course nice to play together again. Then we did a weekend in our old hometown Karlstad and Oslo in November. But now we both got new albums to tour and promote (TSOOL & mine), so now there wont be much time for anymore reunions for a while...

Why we stopped playing together was because the project started to grow out of proportion, we had to say no to some quite good offers (tours) because it would interfere with TSOOL. So it was better to call it off and quit.

And now the new band The White Moose - how did this group come together? Do you see it as an extension of your solo career or it is more of a full band project?

I wrote the songs early this year and had already talked to Ludwig (Dahlberg, The (International) Noise Conspiracy) about him playing drums with me. Then I just asked Olle and Henke (Hagberg, Whyte Seeds and Lindén, Fox Machine respectively) to join in and the band was goin'.

I don't think I've had much of a "solo" career. This is something new. It can't really be a full-band project as I have to consider the other guys got other bands. We'll find a way to make it work though.

Obviously you keep yourself very busy with all sorts of musical adventures - got any more surprises we should look forward to? Anyone in particular you'd really like to worth with?

I'd love to learn how to play the Oud. I also have a dream about going to some foreign country and making music with local musicians.

Lastly, got a song you'd like to share? Tell me about it.

Ok I choose "Why is it so?" from the new album "Out of the frying pan, into the woods". It's actually the first song I wrote after Nymphet Noodlers split up back in '96.

I think I had some plans for a solo album back then already, but I was not much of a songwriter, so it got put on hold for sometime... The original version was an acoustic Stooges kinda "ballad" with different lyrics, same refrain though. This new version is something else... Maximum White Moose Jazz.

10/31 - GG, Uddevalla (SWE)
11/01 - Brew House, Gothenburg (SWE)
11/04 - Gleis 22, Munster (GER)
11/05 - Gleis 22, Munster (GER)
11/06 - Paradiso, Amsterdam (NL)
11/07 - Mod Club, Hasselt (BEL)
11/08 - Zakk, Dusseldorf (GER)
11/09 - Substage, Karlruhe (GER)
11/10 - Weekender Club, Innsbruck (AUS)
11/11 - Rockhouse, Salzburg (AUS)
11/12 - PPC, Graz (AUS)
11/14 - Kofmehl, Solothurn (CH)
11/15 - ISC Bern (CH)
11/16 - Roxy, Saarbrücken (GER)
11/17 - Knust, Hamburg (GER)
11/26 - Heartbreak, Gavle (SWE)
11/27 - Raw, Eskilstuna (SWE)
11/28 - S2, Borlange (SWE)
11/29 - Arena, Karlstad (SWE)
12/04 - Mejeriet, Lund (SWE)
12/05 - Debaser, Malmo (SWE)
12/10 - Kagelbanan, Stockholm (SWE)
12/12 - Satin, Orebro (SWE)

Fellow Swedes Nervous Nellie will support on all non-Swedish dates except Amsterdam.

When I set out on this Gbg Spotlight feature at the beginning of 2008 Viktor was at the top of my list - it was never matter of "if", only "when". And that time is now.

You moved to Gbg for school, right? How long has it been now? Think you'll stick around once you finish your dissertation?

Well, not exactly, I grew up in Pixbo just outside Gothenburg so I have pretty much always been here. I lived down south for little over a year though, which is where I met many of the people that are my closest friends today. Some of them has since then moved to Gothenburg, such as Johan (Gustavsson, aka Tsukimono). I have been living in central Gothenburg since around 2004 and I don't think that I would want to live anywhere else in Sweden, at least not in any other city. I am finishing up school right now (for real this time!) and who knows what the future holds? But I can safely say that if I were to leave Gothenburg I would go to California rather than anywhere else in Sweden or Europe.

What do think is the most charming aspect of Gbg? On the other hand, is there anything about the city you wish you could change?

My mother, my dog and a lot of my dear friends live here. That's fairly charming. I think it has a lot of possibilities and it can certainly be a beautiful place when it wants to be. I could get into a discussion on how right now I think that we probably have more things going on musically than Malmö or Stockholm, but that feels kind of irrelevant. It rains a lot and it's very windy and more than often overcast. These conditions make for creative indoor activities and good friendships.

As far as music goes, you seem to be involved with both the pop and experimental scenes. Is there a lot of crossover between the two? What characteristics do they both share, if any?

I don't what to say, really. I guess there are a few artists that walk this line separating "pop" and "experimental". Personally, I think that this a hard thing to do and I think very few people succeed. Thinking more about it, I find that I generally think it works best when so called "experimental" artists incorporate popular music into their work, rather than the other way around. (If this is done in a non-ironic manner that is.) Pop music with an presumably experimental edge is generally just a bad make-up job and one of the worst things in the world. One big exception that actually lives in Gothenburg is Erik de Vahl, who to me is an excellent pop artist that not only writes beautiful songs, but also is sonically restless. It seems to me that he explores new areas because he needs to, not because he wants to make up for something that isn't there. I have been listening to his unreleased new album for almost a year now and I think it's the best thing he's ever done. I hope he decides to put it out some day.

You always seem to have a ton of amazing projects going on all the time - what are you currently working on now? What about stuff your friends are doing; got any tips on artists I should be paying more attention to?

I am finishing up my follow up album to "On a winter's day", entitled "Breakfast in America". I have been working on it for pretty much two years and it's definitely my most fully realised project so far. It is very much a pop album and it is inspired by the feeling of greatness that pop music can provide you with at certain points in your life. It's about seeing America out of a train window with your oldest childhood friend, catching all those youthful dreams and finding new ones. It's about finding love in people, in the landscape and in the golden sunshine. Basically, loving life.

I am working with my New Jazz Ensemble in different ways, we just did a show as a quartet last week and we are doing another one as a septet this week. After that there'll be a small tour with Malmö popjazztrio Auton. We are playing Copenhagen, Malmö, Gothenburg and Stockholm. I am also putting out their debut album on my label, Structures Sonores this week, so there is a lot of work going on with that.

Gothenburg artists that you should check out? Well, I hope you listened to the song "Feeling small" by Johan Gustavsson's Gutted String project. He has another one that is called "Ferry from here" that is also fantastic and I know that he is working on some spectacular things. There's more things going on I guess, but that's the last thing that seriously blew me away. Oh yeah, and I like Madamm. She has the best guitar sound in town.

So do you have a song to share either from yourself or another artist you admire? Tell us about it.

Johan sent me this music while I was in California over the summer. I was sitting at the Escondido Public Library working on a paper when I suddenly got a hold of the library wifi and checked my email. I found this song in my inbox and I began listening to it over and over again. The idea of Johan singing his heart out on the other side of the globe was very appealing, but even more so it was a completely brilliant song. That the key line is dealing with drowning in noise is very fitting in so many ways. I hope to hear more things from Thee/The Gutted String asap.

So it was your birthday this week - how was the celebration?

We had a great night at Pusterviksbaren in Gothenburg! The Deer Tracks, Jonathan Johansson (just signed for Hybris) and We Are Soldiers We Have Guns gave us the best of pop!

So you've been booking indie/pop shows for 3 years now - how healthy do you think the scene is in Gbg? How do you think it compare to the way it was 3 years ago?

I think the indiescene in Gothenburg is pretty good right now. We have lots of nice venues and a bunch of dedicated club/promoters that bring nice bands/DJs to town.

Three years ago the scene for indiebands was smaller. Now there are shows almost every night where you can go and hear new music. That's good.

Likewise, how do you think the Gbg scene compares to other cities in Sweden or elsewhere? Is there anything in particular that makes Gbg special? Is there anything it is lacking?

I like Malmö. Malmö is the Swedish Berlin! Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö have tehri own scenes and they are pretty different from eachother.

The scene in Gothenburg is open and friendly for new acts. Not too much attitude.

Who's your favorite local act right now?

My friends in Fantasikrig are great! They will do a show at Klubb Populär @ Storan in Gothenburg next saturday. It will be nice.

Do you have a song from them you'd like to share?

The new myspace music is a total shitsystem, but I did manage to grab a track for reposting. Check it out below.

It's been quite some time since we've heard anything new from you guys - why the long wait? What have you been doing these past few years?

Since the release of our 12" split "Duets" you mean? We continued working on songs for a full length album and got the chance to move from our old place to Dieter Schöön's Lablaza (the same place we recorded our debut album). Lablaza was both chaotic and a very creative environment for us. A couple of month passed by. In October 2007 we felt pretty close to start recording the album. December came up and our landlord got an offer he couldn't resist. We were threwn out of Lablaza and Bandidos moved in. So there we were. No rehearsal room, no studio.

A week went by and we found a new home. We moved in together with a bunch of other creative bands/people (URAN, Dieter Schöön, FBFOS).
We started building the studio, in which our album where going to be recorded.
During this 1,5 months we wrote a bunch of new songs.
At this time the idea of collaborate with Adam Magnusson as a producer/sound engineer came up and he became a part of the process.
In march we hit the studio. We all study or work so it took a bit longer than expected to get it done. Now when the album is done we're looking for a label that wants to release it.

Besides working on the album we've been on a couple of tours in Europe and we've helped friends on live gigs and studio albums. (C.Aarmé, Cut City, Uran, Boy Omega and Dieter Schöön).

How does Alarma Man fit into the "Gbg scene"? Does a cohesive scene even exist?

When I hear "Gbg scene" I think of Håkan Hellström and a bunch of bands started by ex-members from Bad Cash Quartet, but I'm not sure if that scene really exists. There are too many band in too many genres to say what would be a part of it. Alarma Man has never felt like we're a part of any scene... If you need to be a part of any, we choose the "good band" scene.

We do have the Koloni/iDEAL scene here in Gothenburg. It's really inspiring to live in the same town as Christian Pallin (Koloni) and Joachim Nordwall (iDEAL). They manage to bring us bands that I've never heard of before and those bands are always good or totally crazy. Either way I'm always satisfied when leaving the venue.

So do you think there's such a thing as a Gbg sound? Or would you say that bands in Gbg are brought together by other circumstances or ideas?

Nowadays you don't need a "real" studio and expensive equipment to make music. I guess the "Gbg sound" was killed by Cubase and ProTools. When comparing Cut City, Uran, Repoman and other great bands from Gbg, I find it hard to see any similarity except for that they make good music. Gothenburg is known in Sweden for it's "loose" and friendly attitude. Perhaps that's the thing with bands from here. Gbg bands focus on the music instead of looking good on stage... haha!

Okay, so tell us about the new album. How is it different/the same compared to what you've done before?

This album is the best music we've ever done (yes I know it's a cliche, but it's true).

Lots of people are asking if there will be vocals on this album. Yes. There will be. A lot!
Adding vocals wasn't a big decision for us. We made "Duets" as an experiment and liked the idea of working with vocals. It might seem a bit strange when you've been known as an instrumental mathpunk band, but we feel comfortable with it. We've never had a plan to be an instrumental band forever and we didn't have a plan to start singing on our second album. It's just the way it turned out.

Another big difference is that we worked with a producer. We needed an outside persons thoughts and vibes in the recording process. Adam has a big part in the arrangements and how the songs turned out.

Our first album was a lot of high speed craziness and big guitar riffs. 4 years has passed by and our new songs are slower, darker and colder. I think a held back fever is a good way to describe the album.

Got a song you'd like to share?

Here's a song from the upcoming album. Its a three-faced song about being chased, therefore the name "Nightwolf". Look out for the saxophones in the chorus, played by our friend Joel Westberg!

10/02 - Romein, Leeuwarden (NL)
10/03 - Merz, Dordrecht (NL)
10/04 - De Spot, Middelburg (NL)
10/07 - Cafe Stiels, Haarlem (NL)
10/09 - Speakers, Delft (NL)
10/10 - Waterfront, Rotterdam (NL)
10/11 - Sonic Boom record store, Kettering (UK)
10/11 - Key Escape Club, Kettering (UK)
10/15 - Prince of Wales, Steeple Claydon (UK)
10/18 - Exeter Hall, Oxford (UK)
10/24 - Huset Magstraede, Köpenhamn (DK)
10/29 - Kåren, Halmstad (SWE)
10/31 - Fängelset (all ages), Gothenburg (SWE)
11/01 - Chalmers, Gothenburg (SWE)

First off, my standard intro question: how long have you lived in Gbg? What brought you there and what keeps you in town?

I moved here at age 17 to go to artschool. Lived here for 17 years, so half my life... I live in another town now, but I miss the sort of underground musicscene that Koloni, Kning Disk and Ideal bring to Gothenburg. It's amazing that a town of Gbg's size has such a big scene for this kind of stuff.

You seem to be working more visually these days as opposed to sonically - which medium would you say is your strong point? How often do the two overlap? If someone asks "so, what do you do?" how do you answer?

The way that I work is a cluster of things that I barely understand the logic of myself. But I try to overlap as much as possible. It's an ok place to be in, the twilight zone.

If someone asks me what I do, I lie and tell them I'm a horsewhisperer or something.

How was Way Out West? Were you satisfied with Silverbullit's set? See anything of note?

Playing with Silverbullit again was great. Always fun to see Simon play keyboardsolo in his patented rapestyle and we were touched by all the people that showed up.

But I didn't have time to see much else at the festival. The Bug had a great stomach-turning bass. My big festival moment this year was My Bloody Valentine at Roskilde. It was so loud that I experienced a physical reaction in my nose that I had never experienced before. It was kind of buzzing and humming the day after, very strange.

I understand you managed to get Freddie Wadling to make a guest appearance - who's idea was that? Was it a matter of mutual appreciation or did it take more wrangling to get it together?

We've been working on a track that Freddie gave us as a demo. The idea of playing together came to us in a DHL-package.

What current projects are you working on? What can we expect to see/hear from you in the next six months or so? What are the chances of a new Silverbullit album?

Just finished a video for a British band called White Lies. The track is called "Death". Today I'm in Gothenburg working at the Stadsteatern. I'm working on a play called "Butterfly Kiss" together with director Malin Stenberg. A dark and surreal text about a dysfunctional family with an urge to kill. It premiered 19th Sep for all you culture vultures out there.

Finally, got a song you would like to share, either from one of your own bands or from a local act you admire? Tell me about it!

I think people should have a listen to the band Kite from Malmö. They have a beautiful song called "My girl and I". I also like Prince of Assyria who is releasing an album on Kning Disk this fall.

Both Kite and Prince of Assyria obliged by sending in tracks for posting, but since Andreas recommended a specific Kite track, that's the one I'm going with today. Stay tuned for more on The Prince- a recommendation from Andreas Nilsson does not go unnoticed!

09/25 - Debaser slussen, Stockholm (SWE)
09/26 - Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg (SWE)
09/27 - Reeperbahn Festival, Hamburg (GER)
09/28 - Magnet, Berlin (GER)
09/30 - tba, Prague (CZ)
10/01 - Szene, Vienna (AUS)
10/02 - PPC, Graz (AUS)
10/03 - Garage, Milano (ITA)
10/04 - Biomill, Laufen (CH)
10/05 - Schuur, Luzern (CH)
10/07 - Schlachthof, Wiesbaden (GER)
10/08 - Die Röhre, Stuttgart (GER)
10/09 - Underground, Cologne (GER)
10/10 - Matrix, Bochum (GER)
10/11 - Ekko, Utrech (NL)
10/15 - tba, Bryssels (BEL)
10/18 - Stengade, Copenhagen (DK)

Ladies and gentlemen, I give to you the new Division of Laura Lee single "Central Park". This is the first single from their forthcoming album "Violence is timeless", due out in limited vinyl format on August 15 with the CD version to follow on October 29. But that's not all! They've also enlisted the help of many friends and peers to create videos for each and every track and will be slowly releasing them to the public as we get closer to the album's release. Peep the first clip for "Central Park" right here, courtesy of UK-based animation team Man vs Machine: [click here]

Also, seeing as how a new DoLL single ties in nicely with my weekly Göteborg Spotlight Series, I decided to track down drummer Håkan Johansson to answer a few questions. Read on...

First, my standard question: how long have you lived in Gbg, what brought you there and what keeps you hanging around?

Per (Stålberg, vocals/gtr) and I had been talking for a while about moving the band to Gothenburg and try to make some kind of music career, but it wasn't until I got approved to artschool that I grabbed my stuff and left Vänersborg. This was in 2001. Gothenburg has pretty much everything you need. Great music and art scene, clubs, bars and most important all the friends I have made during the years here.

I hear a very strong DC influence on the new album - is that a conscious thing? Are you trying to separate yourselves from the Gbg sound? Does such a thing as a Gbg sound even exist? Or are you just hanging out with Shelby Cinca¹ too much?

We have never really aimed for a DC sound, but after growing up with the Discord catalog on our record shelves I think it was unavoidable. When we started this band we wanted to create the same vibe that the DC scene had, and this has followed us throughout the journey. Yeah, hanging with Shelby in DC a lot the last couple of years reminds me of this frequently. The Gothenburg sound... ah yes.. I see us more of the outsider in this bunch. We are a part of the Gothenburg scene, but I don't know if we are a part of the sound. To be honest with you Avi, I'm not sure this "sound" even exists.

Speaking of Shelby and DC, are you still active with Man and Wasp/Frantic Mantis or have you consigned yourself to doing locally-oriented sideprojects like the rest of your bandmates? Do you think there's anything particular about the Gbg scene that makes it easier for folks to collaborate? Also, how awesome is Repoman?

Frantic Mantis are on a hiatus. Man and Wasp is the main sideproject at the moment. We are working on an album that might or might not come out in one shape or the other next year. All the side projects I have been involved in have never been planned. We just had some extra time to jam, and the ability to record it. When playing with Shelby everything just turns into gold. I think there are so many projects around here in Gothenburg 'cause everybody knows everybody, and playing music with people other than your regular bandmates is a way to play other styles and develop as a musician. Yeah Repoman is awesome! I am still bummed I wasn't asked to play drums for them.

Does the same sort of collaborative/cooperative community exist in the Gbg art world as well? I know of a few other local Gbg musicians who double as artists and vice-versa besides yourself, but do you think there's much crossover overall? How would you say the two worlds are the same/different?

Music and art just goes hand in hand. Just look at iDEAL as a label and artcollective, and then Silverbullit with Jon and Andreas who're doing awesome music, videos, projections and art. Nowadays, and even 10 years ago, the DIY way was the way to do it. When a band or artist wanted to release a record, a record cover had to be done. Then you wanted to make some merchandise, a website etc., but there was no money to pay for it. You had to do it yourself. And I think this has grown stronger over the years. Personally, I think doing a record cover for a free dinner is way more fun than doing a company branding that pays your rent for a full year...

Who came up with the concept of getting friends to film videos for each song on the new album? How do you think the experiment came out? Any favorites we can look forward to?

This was something that I Made This came up with. We loved it the second we heard the idea. I won't spill too much, but I love the one Kristofer Åström did. And although I haven't seen them yet, I am especially excited about the ones Joe Lally from Fugazi and Jason Lytle from Grandaddy are putting together.

Tell us about the new single "Central Park"!

I will quote Jonas (Gustavsson, bass) on this one:

"Music is time consuming. Four years, we waited for this song. When it finally arrived, it was finished in four minutes. Four chords. It's yours for free, because some secrets are to reveal."

LINK: http://www.violenceistimeless.com/

How long have you lived in Gbg? What brought you there and what keeps you hanging around?

During a drunken haze back in the year 2000 while stuck in my hometown, I threw a dart at a world map and figured that chance could have its way with me. Though aiming for internationally consensus-proven cool cities like New York, Berlin and Paris, I fell short and took the bus up to Gothenburg and started delivering mail with a disgruntled grin. In my bags I had a band lacking any basic nuance of ambition along with an appetite for spending more time on stage than off. It was an unhealthy equation, but by ditching (read: being ditched by) some of the members, I started Cut City with David Hagberg and it led me to fulfill some modest goals of mine. That was six years ago and though many of the people I know have since left town, I stay put. I'm too old to move and my wonderful girlfriend makes life tolerable here. Gothenburg can be quite abysmal at times, mostly during the fall, winter, spring and the majority of summer. There are things here that makes it worth living though: Koloni put on a whole lot of wonderful shows and pushes a healthy experimental climate; Release The Bats put out some amazing music as does Ideal Recordings. Without them, Gothenburg would have you jump for the Xanax bottle.

How do you deal with bandmates living in Malmö? Don't you know they barely speak Swedish down there? What's keeping you from ditching David and getting someone local? Or why don't you sell out Gbg and move south?

Rehearsing less than once a month is what we do and it's how we define work ethic. I've got a small studio (a grand euphemism for old computer) set up in a tiny walk-in closet and that's what keeps me sane. I'm from the south myself so the language barrier is easily broken down. I can't move to the south because I'm banned there and we can't give David the boot because he's a machine and we all know that machines will take over the world and we really, really want someone to be on our side when that day comes. To be honest, Sweden's such a small country that you run into friends pretty much without effort.

Do you feel any connection to the Swedish post-punk scene of yore or do you draw inspiration from elsewhere? Do you ever consider your city's musical heritage at all? Do you think there's any such thing as a Gbg sound?

I merely play the music I do because I lack the musical prowess to play metal. And that's the honest truth. When you read this I'm either at the Iron Maiden concert with 60,000 other heshers or discussing the grandeur of a mummified Eddie with everyone who failed to get a ticket. Post-punk is too broad of a term to stylistically distinguish band A from band B. But I do know what you mean my dear friend. I'll tell you this: my favorite guitarists among many are Roger Mcguinn, Richard Lloyd and Robert Quine - the triple R - and they inspire me in many ways. Trying to copy them while lacking the talent I make my style my own (oh, the hubris).
I moved here being totally oblivious to what this city had spawned band-wise and I knew next to nothing about what it had to offer with the exception of its metal scene and its very distinct Gbg sound. I would say I feel a whole lot more affiliated with the city now after befriending many of its contemporary musicians. I feel a kinship with the likes of Alarma Man, Silverbullit, Dieter Schöön and a slew of other bands that know better than to sing off-key.

How does the city inspire you? How does it stifle you? How do you think people could make it better?

I like to take long, long walks from one end of the city to the other and see how it transforms from big anxiety-provoking concrete blocks to huge beach mansions soon-to-be engulfed by the sea; from rich ghettos to poor ghettos. I like watching people hitting the bars on Avenyn; I like watching the young kids clubbing; I like seeing the contempt erupting from both sides of the coin. This city could mean everything to me and at the same time nothing. I can't say I could tell if it makes me or breaks me. I think people could make it better if they drank more. Juice.

Going to Way Out West this year? Anything in particular that you're looking forward to? Or dreading?

Yes. Deleted Art has two bands playing there this year: The Mae Shi and No Age. I'm amped up and ready to surf the crowd. Then there's Sonic Youth of course, as well as The National and they're both bands I love. Had only Journey been there playing the entire "Escape" album with Steve Perry holding the mic instead of some poor replaceable cover band member, I would literally be bawling. That's not going to happen though, so I might as well just sit back home watching "Frontiers and Beyond" or "Live in Houston". Dreading? I don't want to run my mouth off and take a piss on bands that probably deserves it because that would be rude and I'm not a rude person (Mando Diao). I dread queuing to the unsanitary toilets, shit and piss on the floors.

Lastly, got a song to share? Either from one of your own bands or another, it's all good. Tell me about it!

I don't know if copyright laws prohibits you from sharing "Bastards of young" by The Replacements with your frequent visitors. I would love for you to have that up there instead of being elaborate and unscrupulous enough to exploit this offer and have people listening to my own band. I know the answer to this and will offer you the second best thing to the Mats themselves: "Replacement". It's our own ode to Westerberg et al and a deliberate attempt at stealing the best things in music history.

Thanks!

No, thank you! Still they ride, on wheels of fire. They rule the night. Still they ride, the strong will survive. Chasing thunder.

First off, the standard question: how long have you lived in Gbg, what brought you there and what keeps you around?

Johan is born here and the other three of us are from Småland and moved here to exchange the rich soil and the pine trees for education and nightlife. Then we found friends and love and decided to stay. Frida moved here in 1996 and me and Maja came in 2000.

I hear a strong lineage in The Kid's music that connects it to the Gbg post-punk scene of yore, bands such as Cortex (obviously), but it's more than that. Do you think that's an extension of living in the same city or is it more predetermined? Was that the sort of thing you grew up on or did you discover it later?

Freddie Wadling is an icon, all the things he has been involved in is great such as Blue for Two, Liket Lever, Lädernunnan, Rukorna and Fläskkvartetten, the original punkscene of Gbg was great with bands like Göteborg Sound and Slobobans Undergång. We were listening to punk and post-punk long before we moved to Gbg. The Swedish post-punk scene was great, with bands like Commando M Pigg, Brända Barn and Reeperbahn. As a new Gothenburger you become proud of Gbg when you understand what this town has giving the world in forms of music and bands, but our taste in music was already formed when we all moved here.

Do you think it's important to keep that musical heritage alive?

When it comes to pop music, no.

Putting aside nostalgia for the moment, how would you say The Kid looks toward the future? Are there any current movements/scenes/happenings in Gbg (or elsewhere) worth paying attention to, whether you are personally involved or not?

We will continue struggling with the band trying to combine the sound of the early 80-ies with the sound of the new new wave/the new new romantic. Make some shows and some new songs. No big plans, just nice to have the possibility to do this and get paid for it. We've been around for a couple of years now and we are quite bored playing for stiff students. It's time for the new Gbg-scene with people in their 20ies to do the studentclub-mayhem. I think the new Gbg pop-scene is some form of an antiscene. They frown at the old Service glory days. They spit on electronic stuff like laptops and iPods, they play instruments and wear hats and love Håkan Hellström instead of The Embassy and Claes Ohlson-stroboscope. And they've got authentic good self-esteem; that's good but it's the total opposite of the classic Gbg scene.

Don't think that I'm a silly old fart, I love changes. And some of these kid are guests at my monthly 77-punk club and they know the lyrics to all the old Gbg punk songs. So the future is saved. They know their heritage.

I understand that a number of you are involved in other art projects besides The Kid- what else are you currently working on?

We are constantly working with other art(y)/music projects.

You will find a couple of them on our myspace–site under top friends. Otherwise, we are still working as Artists and Architects, and when we run out of money we take care of old people, trees and flowers. You can also visit www.mermermer.com and click on Frida Sjöstam and www.patrikbengtsson.com for some aesthetic-experience.

Would you say that Gbg is an artist-friendly city?

I'm sure that Gbg is the best music-friendly town in Sweden. All the interesting bands from the last 10 years are from Gbg. And the mood between the bands is nice and friendly.

Lastly, have you got a song from the new album that you'd like to share?

I think "Let's go kid" or "Bloodmoon" are two nice songs, you could use one of them.

My personal preference is demonstrated below...

First off, the standard: How long have you lived in Gbg, what brought you there and what keeps you there?

I've lived in Gothenburg for nine years and five months (since January 1999). I moved here to study web design. I got a job and a new band, so that pretty much kept me here. Nowadays I have a new job and a new band and that pretty much still keeps me here. And also Gothenburg is a pretty rad city to be in at the moment with a lot of nice people and some great things happening, music and otherwise.

You're involved in a lot of different artistic endeavors - which one currently takes precedence? like if someone asks "what do you do?", how do you respond?

Right now I'd probably say "play music", because that's where my heart is at the moment. I think I'm currently in some kind of work-denial state. Like acting really busy on work hours while making plans and stuff for the band, which probably isn't that good in the long run as I'm self employed.

I know there's a lot of other Swedish musicians who double as visual artists, but are there any in particular that you admire? Or what about visual artists who dabble in music?

One of the artists I admire is my old friend Johannes Heldén (www.johanneshelden.com). He's a visual artist (MFA, Valand Academy of Fine Arts, Gothenburg) a writer and a musician. His work is truly awesome. I give him credit for bringing Sci-Fi and mysticism into art and music. Well done, my friend!

How does the city of Gbg influence you and your art? Could you ever see yourself living somewhere else? What benefits does Gbg offer and on the flipside of that, what are the city's detriments?

Hard to tell how this city influences me. I don't even know if influences me at all. Or maybe it does more than I'll ever know. I can't really see myself living in another Swedish city. I've spent a lot of time in Malmö, I have a lot of friends there. There is one specific area there ("Möllan") which consists of... I don't know... maybe 8 blocks of houses and a square, and that area is fantastic. But the rest of Malmö is a terrible, aggressive, cold, cold place to be. They can keep it. If I'd move I'd probably go abroad, maybe Berlin or Barcelona (all my friends reading this are going "yeah, that'll probably happen..." haha), or Montreal, one of my favorite cities. One of the benefits with Gbg I guess is the size, both in people and area. It's not too big and it's not too small either. It's big enough for great things to happen, and it's small enough to actually notice them.

Tell me about the new band - how did you guys get together and what are your plans? Did you form with any particular goals in mind?

My new band is We Live in Trenches and here are all the boring details. Me and David Augustsson (drums, ex-C.Aarmé) formed the band in February 2007 after having played together in the brief punk adventure Haveri, which had broken up due to too hot weather and the fact that the other guys needed more time with their other endeavors (Cut City and Alarma Man). I was also on drum duties in Satanic Surfers, but we had a break at the moment (a break from which we never recovered, we broke up in March 2007). We initially formed as Trenches and I guess it sort of was the second coming of Haveri at first, only I'd switched from bass to guitar. As only two wrongs don't make a right, we needed some more humans to help sink the ship. I met my old friend Ulf Stöckel on a tram and convinced him to jump aboard as I knew of his screaming skills from previous bands (Comatose, Blå Ångest, The Virgins). We later got Oskar Karlsson on bass in May (also in Icos, ex-Last Security) and the Trenches line-up was finally complete. We recorded one song for a hardcore comp on Deleted Art (still not released) during the summer. Oskar turned out to be too busy with Icos as well as being a busy live sound tech for bands on tour (Burst, Red Sparrowes etc.) and he decided to quit the band a couple of months later. During the time without a bass player we started to record all of our songs in our rehearsal space. Anna Knutsson joined our merry bunch in November, halfway through the recording session, and we changed our name to We Live in Trenches shortly after. Now we finally have a booking agent and some upcoming shows, and we will promote ourselves in search for a record label to work with. Our plan is to rock as hard and often as possible, and our goal is to avoid a normal way of life as much as possible.

Lastly, got a song you'd like to share? Either from one of your own band(s) or otherwise? Something that's reflective of Gbg perhaps?

Yes. "Autonomy clinic" by We Live In Trenches. Because self promotion rocks!

First off, the standard question: how long have you lived in Gbg? Where did you move from and what keeps you there?

I have lived in Gothenburg all my life except for short stints as a chef in France and a mod in London. Now I got myself so tangled up in everything it would be impossible for me to move or even take a vacation. At least that's how it feels like.

I play bass with Bonnie & Clyde and The Spurts. I run my own managing company No Good Productions who take care of both my bands as well as the best band in the world; Ram Di Dam. I organise club nights and gigs under the name No Good Club. Now I'm planning on starting a record label as well that would be called No Good Records surprisingly enough.

I tend to keep busy.

How healthy do you think the local Gbg indie scene is nowadays? Good bands? Good venues? Is there enough diversity? How do you think it compares to the scene of 5/10+ years ago?

The Gbg indie scene in is dead! Long live the Gbg indie scene!

It's brilliant right now and it's getting better! There is a new scene on the rise with a couple of bands that I'm pretty sure will make it big. Bands without any ironic touch, silly gimmicks or iPods on stage. Bands that really know how to play and write fantastic music: The Fume, Bye Bye Bicycle, Ram Di Dam and I really hope for B&C and The Spurts as well of course.

There you got it! Gothenburg's soon-to-be legendary new indie scene. Remember where you heard it first!

Speaking of diversity, how much crossover do you see happening between various music scenes? Or does everyone stick to their own niche, more or less?

Well, basically none. It might sound harsh, but right now we are not so interested in what's happening on the other scenes around the city or anywhere else. We are to busy doing our thing. Or inventing it more or less.

What does Gbg have to offer that no other Swedish city can compete with? On the flipside, is there anything it lacks?

My father, who is musician as well, has written a song where the lyrics, translated from Swedish, go: This town is too small to live in but much too big to leave. Thats pretty much how it is and not even Henrik Berggren could have said it better.

We love our city as much as we hate it. It feeds us as much as it feeds on us. It's not always a healthy relationship but we like it that way.

Since you play in both the Spurts and Bonnie & Clyde, this may be difficult, but here's the deal: pick a favorite, give me a song to post and tell me how you came to your decision.

Bonnie & Clyde - I guess there's no one

It's the first track on our brand new EP ("The great tram robbery") and I'm really proud to be a part of it because I think its a great song. We had our release party yesterday (7/6), it was fantastic! Lots of sparkling wine!

Right now I am waiting for the painkiller to kick in so I can go buy some breakfast. I hope I made my point?

How long have you lived in Gbg? What brought you there and what keeps you around?

I've been living in or close to Gothenburg all my life. It's a beautiful city. Small enough to make me feel like a human and big enough to not bore me out.

What's the current punk/hardcore scene like in Gbg? Is there much interaction with other indie music scenes or is it more insular? Is DIY culture alive and well? What about sXe, veg*nism and other related issues?

Yes, I definitely think Gbg is a city where people live their projects and make things happen. It's very inspiring. Unfortunately there's a lot of division though. The edge-kids support their thing, the indie-kids know where to go and the crusties go to their shows. It's a bit depressing when all of these kids are doing cool stuff, but don't get the attention or credit they deserve for their efforts. But that's what it's like everywhere, more or less.

There's there's a good amount of vegan and straight edge-kids around at the moment which makes me very happy and generally a lot people engaging in important stuff. Gbg is traditionally a working class city and politics have always had an important role in alternative music.

How does the legacy of Gbg's musical history affect you, if at all? Do you ever stop to consider the kids coming up in the scene now who may take your place in the future?

I don't really know. Even though Gothenburg has got a massive history of alternative music the only band I feel like I have some sort of relation to at the moment is At the Gates or Skitsystem. My sister and brother played a lot of Gbg punk-bands to me when I was a kid and all of them have meant very much to me, but I could probably not name many of them at the moment.

Since I hear you do a lot of booking, who are the bands to watch these days?

In my eyes there's quite a few new bands around that are awesome. Maybe not specifically from Gbg but in Sweden in general.The Cutting Edge are incredible, Scraps of Tape have always been unique and amazing. Repoman are awesome and Another Year too. Loads of things to be discovered!

Got a track you'd like to share? Either from one of your own bands or one you admire?

My projects can be found at myspace.com/deadvows, myspace.com/theviiiarmsaroundyou and myspace.com/xanchorx. Dead Vows are recording a full-length at this very moment. Should be out around August in time for our European tour! A band I admire, that'd have to be Scraps of Tape. Check myspace.com/scrapsoftape out. Amazing band!

However, seeing as how Mattias didn't bother actually sending a track, I'm forced to go with something from one of his bands whether he likes it or not. Here's "Guilt ridden" from The VII Arms Around You.

I've been doing acoustic or semi-acoustic solo shows for years as well as as touring and playing one off shows with all members of MABD or just doing more punk rock gigs as a trio. I mean, playing solo is nothing new to me, I've been adjusting the sets according to circumstances for seven years or something now. But the question is will I go solo, right? Well, yeah. My plan is to release records under my own name from now on. But I will also keep on playing with The Bear Quartet and get involved with other people. I've had some cool offers already. But I can't really talk about it just yet. I disbanded MABD on Monday and made it public today [Wednesday]. It's a bit early, I think.

So what's up w/BQ then? Is a new album underway? Any clues as to what it will end up sounding like?

As nothing has turned out the way we thought it would the last two years or something regarding The Bear Quartet, I can't really say if there's gonna be an album out this year. But we are going to hook up in Calle Olsson's studio this summer, and I've got like 10-15 songs for that occasion. But how they'll turn out, or even if any of them make final cut, I don't know. Thing is, we used to work so fast before, and in my mind we've made like two or three records already. And I'm tired of them now, this one will sound nothing like the last two (imaginary) records. I know it sounds weird, but I can't explain it any other way. We've made an album full of Talk Talk-like ballads and a funk album. In my head. I have no idea what the other's records sound like in their heads. Same goes for the next one, the real one we are planning. But that's sort of the whole point, as far as we're concerned.

Seeing as how you've been playing acoustic, does that mean we can expect an acoustic album? Or do have other plans? Also, do you think you'll still be singing in Swedish as with MABD or will you also work again in English outside of BQ?

I will most certainly not make an acoustic record. Not in the singer/songwriter vein anyway. I lived under the illusion that I was making mainstream music for Swedish radio the last couple of years, when clearly I was not. I don't know why the radio didn't pick up really. But I think I will sing in Swedish for the most part. Swedes who sing in English kind of annoys me. That said, I think this year (and the last) some people have finally made great records in English although they're Swedes. I'm thinking of playing rockabilly in Swedish. With serious lyrics about real and engaging things. I don't think it's ever been done. But it's just an idea.

I want to take things all the way, that's what I mean. I did feel that MABD was quite mainstream on the last album, and don't get me wrong, that was all fully intended, but I think I prefer to work in the extremes more. Or, I don't know. I want to make a million different records before my head and heart explodes, that's all really. I just don't now where to begin just yet.

But I wouldn't rule out English completely. I just don't think there are enough good Swedish lyrics around and I still want to change that.

It seems odd to me that the mainstream didn't pick up on it more either - especially since the Swedish public seems to go crazy for even the most lackluster Swedish language pop. Maybe you should try your hand at a schlager/dansband record? But seriously, now that you've freed yourself to do your own thing, what do you think you'll do first? What kind of niches are you wanting to explore? How extreme are you going to take it?

Well, I want to make a real old-school hardcore record, a dark, dark post-punk/post hardcore one. And I want to finalize what was supposed to be the next MABD-record. Oh, and I have a full album, lyrics, songs everything written for the most annoying record in the world. It's like Greg Ginn's [Black Flag] solo albums, paired with prime-time Throbbing Gristle, Flipper, No Trend, early PiL and early Butthole Surfers. But with me smeared all over it like a rotten egg.

However, I have a large family that I can't and won't let down, who I (together with my wife) have to support and take care of. I have no education whatsoever, no steady income, or anything like that. Perhaps the most annoying record in the world won't put food on the table or pay the rent. On the other hand, I'm turning 40 next year; time is running out and I don't really have any other options, so I've got nothing to loose. I don't know who'd want to release these records, though. And since I'm already living on the absolute edge financially, I can't really release them myself. I don't know in which end to begin, really. But it's early days yet. Things might work out by themselves.

I dunno, it seems like more and more niche/fringe artists are able to make a go at it nowadays. I know that locally here we have hardcore bands like Sex/Vid blowing through thousands of 7"s in a few weeks that immediately fetch crazy prices on eBay. And they don't even have a web presence. Is it maybe that the underground in Sweden is dead? Or am I mistaken? Are you able to keep up with that stuff?

I started up a kind of community center for grown ups last year, you know, rehearsal spaces, a place for gigs and the occasional party. It was me, Jonas Teglund [Park Hotell] and a bunch of hardcore punks. They, the punks, have several gigs each months, bands from all over the world (I've seen Tervet Käädet, MDC and Born/Dead to name but a few only this year), and the local hardcore bands like Avskyvärld and Kranium are touring constantly all over Europe. They release 7" EPs and splits with other bands and sell them on gigs. You know, just like in the old days. But I don't think they sell thousands of records and I don't think any of them earns a living from touring either. I mean, the underground is not dead in any way, but it's a micro-genre in a small country. Then again, I suppose Kristofer Åström gets by playing his brand of country-rock doing the same thing for about the same sized crowds all over Europe. I don't think there's too much money in the punk/hardcore community. I understand that if I were to sing in English I could probably sell more records and tour more often and at a higher standard in Europe (since Sweden is kinda sick of me by now). But that line of thinking just triggers something profoundly Bear Quartet-ish in me, and I think fuck you, I'm gonna sing in Swedish anyway and even more. No compromise, not even in the face of armageddon, as they say in Alan Moore's Watchmen. I think it's a handicap, but I can't really help it. I just can't conform. Maybe when I grow up.

Ah, so even the hardcore scene is alive and well way up in Luleå, eh? Speaking of which, do you think that living up there has hindered your career at all? I mean, it seems like a big part of the reason MABD is no more is because everyone is so scattered. Do you think you'd be more successful in a more "major" city like Stockholm or Gothenburg? Or is that simply incompatible with your iconoclastic personality?

Hehehe. If I had thought of it as a career. Yeah, of course it's been a problem and will continue to be a problem, living in Luleå. One quite major part of us quitting was my inability to take the business/career side of it seriously, and feeling guilty that I was holding back the others who, in the beginning anyway, felt there was a possibility to actually earn a living from this. But I actually prefer to play Debaser Slussen in Stockholm as to play in Debaser Medis, which is a much bigger venue. I think maybe some of the others were hoping that we would play a even bigger place the next time we played Stockholm. But I didn't (and to be honest, still don't) care enough to make that happen, and they (not everybody, but some of them) haven't really told me to my face, but I think they were a bit disappointed about that.

Every now and then I try to shape up, be a proper Artist, with A Proper game-plan or whatever, but I can't be bothered. I just wanna go home and write some new songs instead, rehearse them, record them and put them out. I don't have time for careering. I'm about something else.

How soon until we get to hear something new then? Have you had any label offers yet or are you considering other distribution plans? My door is always open of course, though money is scarce/nonexistent.

I've had offers. Or rather, one expressed interest and one offer. I'm always considering other distribution plans. My problem is recording, not releasing. Or rather, I care more about being able to make the record(-ings) than getting it out. Record labels and/or means of distribution are the next step. The ideal thing would be to find a way to record whatever I want, and THEN get a label. As my plan is to make all sorts of records, I can understand if the majors and the more traditional indies hesitate to sign me, or to fund my recordings. By that I mean that I can't say anything about when or what will be released. But I'm up for just about anything. Although I'm not too keen on making home recordings. I want a actual studio, maybe a producer and someone to work the studio equipment.

And thanks for the offer. I will consider it.

LINK: http://www.mabd.se/

Why Göteborg? Why not Stockholm? Or London? Or Paris? Or anywhere else in the world? What keeps you there and what makes it special?

Gothenburg gives us enough quiet and peace to focus on our expression instead of drowning in impressions. We don't need to be where "it happens", there's enough happening inside of TTA. In addition to that, our families and almost all our friends live here. And it's by the ocean.

Do you think there's any sort of prevailing sound or attitude in Gbg that differentiates it from other cities? If so, how would you describe it?

Yeah, I know there is. I wouldn't try to describe it though. It's not my job as an artist to do those things, the deeper things that I can tell about Gothenburg is told in my art. It's up to journalists to analyze it if they feel a need to.

Are there any ways that the city directly influences your art? The geography? The weather? Or how about the people, or by extension, the labels, venues, publications or other ventures they run? How does it all come together, for better or worse?

Of course, our art is not an island.

Yes, but you also record and release your own records -- in what ways do you collaborate within your community? For example, your work with The Embassy -- how would you characterize that relationship? Is there any artistic competitiveness between you or is it purely inspirational? Furthermore, are there any local visual artists that you work with/are inspired by?

Not because they are from Gothenburg, but because they are our friends and our expressions seem to entwine anyway. Everything is a competition for us though, art especially. We have certain visual bonds with Frida Meuller, Louise Elmén and Johan Düfke.

Is there anything that Gbg lacks? If you could change one thing about the city, what would it be?

I'd like a proper Ralph Lauren store and a nice place to do illegal parties.

Are there any particular TTA songs that you feel are a direct reflection of the city? If so, please explain.

No, not direct.

Okay, so you have no songs that are directly reflective of Gbg, but what about indirectly? Is there a particular piece you feel would be a proper soundtrack to the city?

No, sorry. It may sound high-flown, but I couldn't chain our art to a geographical place like that. It's the soundtrack to a place we dream about, a place where diamonds never fade away. A soundtrack to reality.

So you're putting out this new compilation, "Gothenburg 08" - what's the inspiration? What is it about the current scene that merits this sort of documentation?

The idea of putting together a compilation with only Gothenburg based artists, was initially born from a feeling I had about what is going on in the city, the sense of something great happening, a unique scene that deserved to be compiled and documented. It's been growing for a number of years now, with a lot of great artists, labels such as iDEAL, Kning Disk, Release The Bats, and ourselves, galleries and vital concert bookers. It feels like Gothenburg has risen again, in a way. The cultural climate now quite similar to what was going on 20 or 25 years ago. Free, experimental, deep.

And that takes us to were I went to complete the concept. To 1984 to be specific, when Radium 226.05 released a compilation LP entitled "Gothenburg 84". This is now a legendary record, showcasing the fresh talent connected to the Radium organization at that time. CM von Hausswolff was on it, and so were Jean-Louis Huhta, Zbigniew Karkowski and Freddie Wadling - all of whom today are busy people, well respected and regarded as pioneers also from a worldwide perspective.

My conviction is that the Gothenburg scene once again allows for such a manifestation. And that is what "Gothenburg 08" is supposed to be.

Of the musicians you have selected, what is it that they have in common, beyond their chosen city of residence? A sound? An attitude? Can you put a label on it?

There is a sound and there is an attitude. But there is not only one style – rather, I think there is a kind of "anything is possible" approach going on here, and that can be heard in most of the recordings on "Gothenburg 08". For instance, when Anders Dahl mixes bird sounds with elements of noise, it fits! This attitude creates some unique artists. I guess we could call that attitude "punk", if the word hadn't already been used too much.

The thing is, many of the artists know each other well and have done so for a long time. They have collaborated, released records on each others labels, toured together, performed together. That binds it all together, that is what creates the "scene".

A number of the artists you are working with are active in other artistic endeavors, such as the visual arts- how much connection do you see between these various forms? Do you think that it's important for them to remain connected or can they each coexist on their own?

Man, you ask some tough questions ... No, I don't think that is necessary, even if they do feed off each other. But the same message can be encoded into either one of these media, and Thomas Ekelund of Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, who is also a skilled art director and graphic artist, might be the perfect example. He does most of his own artwork (I think all of it, from now on) and he is incredibly stringent, faithful to his concept to the end. What you hear in his music, you can also see in his graphic art.

One thing that troubles me about the experimental/noise music scene, is that it tends to be very male dominated. Do you find this to be the case in Gbg? What do think can be done to address it?

It is, just as everywhere else. Right now, from the top of my head and keeping the local perspective, I can really only think of one female artist that would fit your genre description - Variam, the solo/side project of Mariam Wallentin of Wildbirds & Peacedrums. And if we want to go a little bit softer, there's always Midaircondo.

I'm not sure what to do about the situation. I guess men are generally more into the nerdier aspects of life, and at least one part of the experimental music scene is synonymous to stamp collecting– hunting for still sealed Industrial Recordings releases from 1979, and brand new releases limited to 8 copies that you buy but never play, that sort of thing... Not that there's anything wrong with that, I do it too.

Also, I suspect that for as long as there are no, or very few, women at concerts, the male-to-female artist ratio will remain virtually unchanged. If something can be done, I'm not sure what it is. Maybe as the industrial iconography develops, a lesser amount of skulls would be a good idea?

Is there a particular song you would like to share, either from 84 or 08? Tell me about it.

It's hard to pick one song to represent the entire "Gothenburg 08" CD - it develops from soft to loud, from noise to dense drones to tracks that are almost "modern classical" in nature - so I've decided to just go with the first one. The track, composed and performed by Viktor Sjöberg and Jonas Lindgren, is entitled "Guldheden", which is also the name of one of the burroughs of Gothenburg. It's a solemn, beautiful piece and unintentionally, at least I assume it is unintentionally, it manages to connect with the very start of electronic and experimental music in Gothenburg, the muffled voices in the background being a reminder of Rune Lindblad's "Party" from 1953, the first ever recording by the city's earliest shining star in the world experimental music. Enjoy!

01. Viktor Sjöberg & Jonas Lindgren - "Guldheden"
02. Anders Dahl - "Strätta, Flockblomstriga 4"
03. Porn Sword Tobacco - "Feminin Arkitektur"
04. Sewer Election - "Mot Döden"
05. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - "Facelessness Erases Every Trace Of Humanity"
06. Jasper TX - "And I Closed My Eyes"
07. The Skull Defekts - "Invocation Of Brother Rune Lindblad"
08. Tsukimono - "Moan Jar"
09. Joel Brindefalk - "Monitoring My Own Death"
10. Porn Sword Tobacco - "Ett Jaläger Och Ett Nejläger"

I don't have a confirmed release date yet, but it has been sent off to be pressed, so copies should hopefully be available soon. I for one am very excited -- it's a stellar lineup.

How long have you lived in Gbg? What brought you there and what keeps you hanging around?

I moved here in summer 2003 so I have been living in GBG for close to 5 years now. I used to live in a small village in middle of the dark forests of the region Småland, later moved on to the nearest city and then spent one year in Jönköping. I guess I was longing for something more, something else, and eventually decided to go for GBG. In many ways there are only 3 options for young people in Sweden that want to escape the small town boredom: GBG, Stockholm and Malmö. Stockholm was never really an option for me for various reasons and Malmö always seemed a bit too small and boring. Since I already had friends and so on in GBG there wasn't really anywhere else to go at that point. 5 years later I have no intentions on leaving anytime soon, I love this city and for the moment I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I know you work with a lot of int'l acts, but you also seem to always have something going on w/the local scene. Do you see yourself as a regional label at all? How important do you think regional labels are in this day and age?

I actually really didn't release anything GBG-based until last year with the The Skull Defekts album ["Skkull"]. Ok, Tar... Feathers was kind of based in GBG for a while, but has to me always been more of a Stockholm-thing. I never really had the need to cover the music in this town before since other local labels like iDEAL and Kning Disk already did a very good job with that. But recently there has been sooo many amazing things happening here that it has been kind of impossible to not participate in one way or another! So yeah, RTB will definitely be exploring the current activities here a little bit more in the future than in the past with upcoming releases from Tsukimono, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, The Skull Defekts etc. Is it important with regional labels? Honestly I don't think labels are that important at all nowdays. Still I can see a purpose with regional labels, acting like some kind of centre of the scene with lots of things going on besides just releasing local acts (iDEAL being a way better example than RTB on that with club nights, festivals and so on).

Do you think there's a particular Gbg sound or attitude? Also, how do Gbg artists differ from those in other cities within Sweden?

GBG is known for having a very distinct sound when it comes to both Death Metal and Pop music for an example, but when it comes to the kind of music that RTB is releasing (whatever you want to call it, it's not like I even have a "typical" sound for the label...) I would say no. In that sense that I don't think anyone would be able to "hear" that a certain artist is from GBG when listening to it, just based on the actual sound. Attitude... I don't think this city differs from other Swedish towns really, but I know that outsiders tends to think that people in GBG are very open minded and easy to be around for some reason? If you should compare GBG to other Swedish towns when it comes to music and related activities, I think it's safe to say that no other town is even close to what's currently happening here! So many shows, new projects, new awesome releases and so on all the time! I also think musicians in GBG are usually a bit ahead of other places in Sweden, it seems like new impressions and ways to do things hits GBG first most of the time.

How's the health of the Gbg scene right now? Any particular artists that you're exciting about? What releases do you have planned? Also, anyone else you want to work with/wish you had signed?

Truly amazing things are happening here right now, I haven't been this excited about the local scene since I moved here, that's for sure. I don't know where to start... One of the best and most promising new acts is definitely the 3-piece Leafes. I put out a tape with them in December 2006 when they still lived in Jönköping and only had been a band for a few weeks. Then they put out a CD-R last year which is really, really good, moved to GBG and now they have just finished their debut album "Seedland" which will be put out on tape only! Kind of folky pretty song-based free jams for most of the time, usually arranged around acoustic instruments with a sparse use of electronics... In the vein of Sunburned Hand Of The Man and the likes, but with more melancholy. I really recommend everyone to check them out, and you will be hearing way more about them in the future for sure! Everything Dan of Sewer Election is doing is golden. Put out a Sewer Election/Altar Of Flies LP on RTB a few months ago. Another amazing project from Dan is White. Filthy lo-fi basement dwellings, disturbing shit. Modorra is great underground metal with my neighbour Jon on drums, haven't heard that much yet but it sure seems promising! Prostitute Finger is another new project, members from a few "famous" GBG acts. Rough feedback-mayhem, beautiful stuff. Relic was probably the most promising new band this town had seen in years but unfortunately it seems like they've just broke up? A damn shame if you ask me, the rehearsal tapes was some scary out there stuff and I could only imagine what this beast would have become in the future. Then there is the more well-known acts that is always doing brilliant stuff no matter what: Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, Tsukimono, Viktor Sjöberg, Gloomy Sunday, The Skull Defekts and so on. Plus the whole DJ/club-scene with Studio, Tiedye etc. Current favorite local labels: Harsh Head Rituals and Pillowscars. Upcoming GBG-related releases on RTB this year: Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Lost in reflections LP + 7" (split release with iDEAL, Fang Bomb and When Skies Are Grey, a minor masterpiece!), The Skull Defekts - The drone drug CD (natural follow up to last years "Skkull", minamalistic and nasty drone-filth with an industrial edge, grim sounding stuff!) and the vinyl version of Tsukimono's stunning "Time Canvas" (originally released as a limited CD-R on Kning Disk last year). All these 3 releases will hopefully be ready early summer. Kind of happy with the current RTB release schedule I must say, but it would definitely be fun to do something more with Leafes in the future. While I'm at it, the label Fang Bomb is putting out a Gothenburg 2008 compilation soon with the The Skull Defekts, Anders Dahl, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, Sewer Election, Viktor Sjöberg, Jasper TX etc...

Got a song to share to rep Gbg? Tell us about it.

It has to be "This room seems empty without you", the opening track from "Lost in reflections", the upcoming Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words album! A bit different from the rest of the album, and also a bit different from the previous DLSODW sound. Still one of the most underrated GBG-acts in my opinion, why last year's amazing "Fall, fall, falling" (Kalligrammofon) didn't get more attention is a mystery to me.

It's a mystery to me too, especially since I count it as one of my favorite albums of 2007. And now, listening to this, it looks like there's a strong chance of a repeat. Amazing stuff, to be sure...

You guys have declared war on Gbg indiepop. What is it about that stereotypical sound that makes you so angry? What do you have to offer instead? What do you hope to accomplish?

Well, me (Ronny) and Sonny were talking the other day about older Swedish women going to Gambia in Africa to find their toy boys, and we figured out it's the exact same women who enroll into Djembe drum classes. It's probably lost on an American like yourself, but anyone from here would understand what we're talking about. Gross women who take advantage of young guys.

Now that we have a really lousy singer, like all big bands from Gothenburg, we are just waiting for the fucking money to roll right in! People are so stupid!

While your distaste for the sound of Håkan Hellström/BCQ/Broder Daniel/Jens Lekman/etc. is clear, are there any Gbg bands that you actually like? Is there another local scene there worth investigating, either now or in the past?

There's no scene worth investigating really. And when we are done there will be no other scene to talk about except for the new thrash/punk scene! You should investigate older swedish women going to Gambia though. They are really nasty! Is it even legal?

Actually the only scene worth checking out in retrospect is the bay area thrash scene from 1981-1986. We fucking love the big 4. Except for Anthrax with Joey Primadonna. Plus they were really from NY.

So who are you guys exactly? Have you lived in Gbg for a long time or did you move there from somewhere else? What keeps you there? What makes Gbg better or worse than other big cities in Sweden?

If we told you who we are we would have the fucking cops and kronofogden on our asses in a split second! Plus Siewert Öholm would accuse us of being satanists.

Gothenburg is really rainy and windy and it makes us pissed off. It's a good feeling!

Next question!

What other things do you hate that you haven't written songs about yet? Is there anything that makes you happy?

We hate a lot of stuff. Not all of our songs are about hate though. Some are about getting wasted. We are happy when we are wasted. Happy drunks. We might write a song about people who buy records by bands from this city with singers who sing out of tune. They are the ones who are REALLY stupid! And they're gonna love us! Now where's my beer?

Got a song to share with our readers? Want to tell us about it?

We have this song called "Lars Ulrich". He's such an easy target, but we had to do it anyway. It's about how he can be such a lousy drummer, and still be in polls for "best metal drummer". It's almost as funny as saying Håkan Hellström is the best singer in Sweden. I wish he still wore that funny fucking sailor outfit though. He used to be so cute. Håkan that is. A funny sailor dude singing out of tune about how he's drunk and lonely and the masses go: "We love this guy!" Ha, ha! Lars Ulrich is kinda the Håkan Hellström of Metal. A funny Danish guy who's drunk and plays drums like a fucking windmill.

One last thing, what can we expect from Djembefitta in the future? Any chance you'll play live? Or put out a proper record?

If we can stay out of jail and someone gives us a shit load of money we'll do it. We are only in it for the money!

How long have you lived in Gbg and what keeps you there?

Alex: All my life, and what's keeping me here is Mikael. But I will probably move to Stockholm soon since my girlfriend is getting homesick.

Mikael: Lived here all my life, too. The idea of leaving has crossed my mind. But not yet.

You guys seem to gain appreciation from both the indie/pop and the avant/experimental scene. Is there any side that feels more "at home" to you? Or are the lines so blurred that it doesn't even matter?

Alex: I guess its so blurred it doesn't really matter

Mikael: Our "home", music-wise, has always changed and scattered (in a good way).

I noticed that you appropriated the Broder Daniel logo on your myspace page - is there a certain Gbg musical heritage that you are trying to play up?

Alex: Haha, no not really. Well, Broder Daniel has always been an exciting band, but we dont really play up any kind of heritage. We really like their music and the logo rip is more or less an homage. We played in France two years ago and the French thought the logo was really funny since "PD" (pronounced PeeDee) in French means "pedophile".

Mikael: Henrik, the singer of BD, once saw us wearing the 'PD' pin. Everyone was drunk, and I tried to explain to Henrik that 'this is a tribute, nothing else'. Of course he didn't belive me. But I was telling the truth, because I like that band, especially at pre-parties.

Are there any other cities in Sweden that you think have impressive music scenes? What about internationally?

Alex: I have no idea, really. But when we toured through Europe I was really impressed with the art scene that seems to be growing like weeds through concrete. Dennis Tyfus and all that stuff, people just going bonkers and doodling down whatever hits their mind. Really exciting stuff! Music wise, hmm, I guess Portugal became more attractive since Panda Bear moved there.

Mikael: I think Malmö has a great music scene, keeping in mind that Malmö is smaller than Gothenburg. Malmö has a number of interesting venues and the people arranging clubs seem a little more unpretentious and laid back than their Stockholm and Gothenburg counterparts. Other than that, I don't really know which place to go in this country, except my hometown. I guess you have to dig deep down the internet, there are different underground-ish festivals happening during summertime all around Sweden.

Alex: Yeah ,what Mikael said, Malmö is really great. The guy who made our latest cover art is from Malmö, His name is Rasmus Svensson (Push the Button) and don't you forget it! Also our dear friend Jason used to live in Malmö, he is now back in the states and is gonna release our next next album on his label Ormolycka. And we have to give a shout out to our label Celebrity Lifestyle Recordings (Stockholm), they are the best.

Do you have a particular song that you feel is reflective of the city?

Alex: Not really, but we have this new tune that is really great, we are recording in a studio now ("wow" I know!). Mattias Persson is the producer and he is a bless from heaven, I never knew we would have such luck to be produced by such an understanding and talented person.

Mikael: I am very happy with the drums in this track. Mattias Persson really knows the art of recording sound.

03/13 - Uppåt Framåt, Gothenburg (SWE) w/Jojo DJ Team
03/14 - Release Party, Copenhagen (DK) w/Jojo DJ Team
03/24 - Voxhall, Århus (DK) w/Vive La Fete
03/25 - Store VEGA, Copenhagen (DK) w/Vive La Fete
03/26 - Kulturbolagt, Malmö (SWE) w/Vive La Fete
03/27 - Storan, Gotheburg (SWE) w/Vive La Fete
03/28 - Nalen, Stockholm (SWE) w/Vive La Fete
04/10 - Rust, Copenhagen (DK) w/Familjen
04/11 - Studenterhuset, Odense (DK)
04/17 - Templet, Lyngby (DK)
04/17 - Rust Nightclub, Copenhagen (DK) w/Yelle
04/19 - Pakhuset, Århus (DK) w/Familjen
04/25 - Studenterhuset, Aalborg (DK)
04/26 - KulisseLagret, Horsens (DK)
04/30 - Bergen Fest, Bergen (NOR)
05/03 - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels (BEL)
05/08 - Rotown, Rotterdam (NL) w/Campsite
05/09 - Dqliq, Luxemburg (LUX)
05/10 - Ekko, Utrecht (NL) w/Campsite
05/24 - Café Kino, Copenhagen (DK)
05/25 - Stars, Vordingborg (DK)
08/02 - Knust, Hamburg (GER) w/Campsite
08/22 - PStereo Festival, Trondheim (NOR)

Would you say there is a particular Gbg sound or attitude? If so, how would you describe it?

Gothenburg stood for melody, while for example the Stockholm sound was more Punk / Rock influenced. However, the Gothenburg bands didn't have that much in common. They all had unique styles.

Was there already an established metal scene in Gbg back when AtG first started? Was there ever a point when you realized that there some something special or distinctive going on or did that only happen once you started to get international attention?

There was no metal scene at all. There was only Grotesque [vocalist Tomas Lindberg's old band with scene vet Kristian Wåhlin aka Necrolord plus fellow AtG founding member Alf Svensson] in the Death Metal scene. A couple of Thrash bands like: Intoxicate, Pagandom, Dead End, Valcyrie, Megaslaughter etc...
We didn't realize how big it was going until after we split up. At the Gates were never a big band. We were basically a very small punk band that played melodic death metal.

How close-knit was the Gbg metal community back in the early 90s? Were there any rivalries?

It was very close. Especially the Billdal scene with bands like Dark Tranquillity, Desecrator (Anders Iwers, now Tiamat, and Oscar Dronjak, now Hammerfall). It was a very creative atmosphere. If there was any competition, it was a silent one. i.e - you tried to create the best music possible.
We all met at eachothers' parties, and we hung out at gigs etc. It was basically a large group of friends.

How do you think the city influenced the sound? Are there any particular artists, labels, zines, venues, etc that stand out as having helped shape the scene?

Dolores records was very important. It was also a record store. Through them I got into Carcass in 1989, the rest is history.
I also think that the Gothenburg weather served as an influence for the sound somehow. It's really melancholic sometimes. Very grey and rainy. I think it's very similar to let's say: Seattle.

Are you still based in Gbg nowadays? If so, what keeps you there? How would say things compare now to the old days?

Me and Martin live in Gothenburg. Adrian lives in London. Tomas lives on the east coast of Sweden. Jonas in the middle of Sweden.
We are all older. We experienced the At the Gates thing when we were kids basically. Everything has changed. The venues are closed down. People have moved or they have quit playing music. Basically what keeps me here is friends and family, but I can almost live anywhere in the world. I don't like to be stuck at one place too long. I have lived in other places in Sweden for a while, but always seem to come back to Gothenburg in the end.

Lastly, do you have a particular song that you think best reflects the city?

Cold :D

HUGE thanks again to Anders for contributing and be sure to check out the various At the Gates reunion gigs happening this summer. Also, keep an eye out for a new record from his current band The Haunted as well!

How long have you lived in GBG?

I've basically been living here for a year now. The first 6-7 months I kept working in Skåne, the south of Sweden, where I'm from. That meant a lot of driving and more or less living in my car, traveling between 3 different cities all the time. But now I'm here and have been here full time since August 07.

Where did you move from and why?

I moved up here from Malmö for love. I met the greatest person and we decided to try and make it work out together. I was also losing my apartment in Malmö and I needed to get out of the situation I was stuck in at the time. Things have worked out for the better.

Favorite part about the city? Least favorite?

I really like Gbg in general, I like walking in the city even though I do it a lot less than I'd like. I live in Majorna and there is just a lot of nice things to look at and to take to heart.
Least favourite? The weather... for sure. Windy and rainy... but it's ok.

Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound? If so, how would you describe it?

Nah, I think what's so good about the music from Gbg is that it's all really diverse. You can find anything here, and most of the time it's pretty damn good too. And with people like Christian Pallin/Koloni around who organizes shows and happenings all year-round, you get pretty spoiled with opportunities to see interesting and odd bands/artists from all over the world.

How would you say the city inspired you?

I've been getting more back into punk and hardcore/metal again... which is great! There's a good scene here.
Started a few new bands, played with great people, met wonderful people with a real desire to do good and who have their hearts 100% in what they do. It's pretty hard to not get inspired by stuff like that. I've also been getting better at saying no and to not go everywhere and not do everything. To have the ability to not do things is very liberating.

Is there a particular piece that you've done that you feel was directly influenced by and/or provides a good reflection of the city?

Well, there's also a compilation coming out entitled "Gothenburg 08", which will be released by Fang Bomb... it'll feature me, Viktor Sjöberg, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words and many others... the track on there is about Gbg but since it's not released yet I'm not sure that's a good idea.
However, my new album coming out on Kalligrammofon, the "Heart attack money" cd, kinda touches on Gbg a lot too, so let's go for "Gloomy Sunday". It's being mastered this week Henrik Oja (The Spacious Mind, Säkert!) and Jonas Rosén (Female Anchor Of Sade, Asterisk*) so I'm super-psyched to hear the results soon.

Look for the album to receive a proper release soon, but in the meantime, here's the unmastered version of "Gloomy Sunday" to whet your thirst. Highly recommended!

02/09 - Loppen, Copenhagen (DK)
02/14 - Kafé 44, Stockholm (SWE)
02/22 - Sticky Fingers Top Floor, Gothenburg (SWE)
02/29 - Lark in the Park, London (UK)
03/02 - The Purple Turtle, Oxford (UK)
03/03 - Whistlebinkies (acoustic show), Edinburgh (UK)
03/04 - Whistlebinkies (electric), Edinburgh (UK)
03/05 - The 13th Note, Glasgow (UK)
03/06 - Wee Red Bar, Edniburgh (UK)

So how long have you lived in Gbg?

I've had Gothenburg as my base since 1996, but lived in London for a while in 1998 and traveled a lot.

Where did you move from and why?

I had lived in Paris and Umeå in the north of Sweden. Paris was great and I still see it as home when I go there and Umeå was kind of a disaster, so after one year of studies up there I needed to go south again and somehow ended up here. I didn't intend to stay for long, but accidentaly got stuck. It's quite easy to fall in love with Gothenburg.

Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound or feeling? How would you describe it?

Yeah sure. Gbg is friendly, rough sometimes and very democratic. It's a harbour town which and the second biggest in Sweden, similar in size to Oslo I guess.

What advantages does living in Gbg offer artists? Disadvantages?

The music scene has always been pretty good here, especially punk and rock, but also experimental stuff and dance. There's clubs to play, plenty of rehearsal space and we fool ourselves that we are close to Europe since we're only a few hours north from Copenhagen. Berlin is close too, you can drive there in ten hours if you're fast and sober. Disadvantages are that Gbg is small, not much new blood is coming in and the art scene sucks. We have very few good galleries here even though some known international visual artists live here. But then again, there's plenty of bars and illegal techno parties going down. Good ways to get loaded.

I know you work with a lot of scene veterans, but who do you think are the up-and-coming talents in Gbg right now?

Sure - there are a few of course. I like Pistol Disco - a duo doing Suicide-like dark electronic crack pop. The Extended Head seems to be doing some great stuff, his latest demo was a killer old skool dance punk thing. Other than that, some of my fav acts are from here. Like Studio, José González, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words and Contemporary Punk Unit.

Lastly, how has the city inspired you? Are there are any particular pieces from The Skull Defekts/The Idealist/iDEAL that provide a good sonic reflection of the city?

I am finding inspiration in loads of places. I live here, but travel a lot so my inspiration is honestly coming more from other places. Home is where I rest and work. I rarely lift my head to actually enjoy the view if you know what I mean. Gbg is a good place to be left alone and I leave it alone too hahaha. The Skull Defekts are recording and rehearsing in a hidden part of the hospital here which is of course extremely inspirational. We're there at night time only and it's a rather weird atmosphere up there. It's hard to name something but if I would choose one GBG anthem on iDEAL I'd probably name Henrik Rylander's "Traditional arrangements of feedback" but maybe more that Henrik is very Gothenburg to me than an actual sound to the damn thing.

Unfortunately, you'll have to go elsewhere to hear that Rylander piece, as Joachim specifically requested that The Skull Defekts accompany this post. And really, who am I to argue? Especially when the selected track is so good.

How long have you lived in Gbg?

We are all born in Gothenburg.

Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound?

No. I don't really think so... It's such a wide range of music that comes from our city, everything from pop, electro, noisemusic to metal. But there may be bands that sound a little bit similar. Maybe because people get inspired by each other or because some of the people play in many different bands.

What are your favorite Gbg hangouts? Any decent venues or record stores to recommend?

We really like Pusterviksbaren, a nice bar with alot of great concerts. Not so huge, but thats a part of why it´s so nice... Also there is a little pub called Skål, where we use to end up. Klaras is great too...

I like to run around in fleamarkets and by old vinylrecords. There are some good record stores like Blenda, Skivhugget and Bengans... the rest is pretty boring. When we come to new cities; record stores and musicstores is the first thing we are looking for...

How has the city inspired you?

Most of the things that inspires us, are not from Gothenburg. We are dreaming about going out on tour and seeing new places. It is very inspiring to see that some of our friends and many bands from our city are so successful, and most of the people we meet on tour are very friendly and positive towards you when you say you come from Gothenburg.

Is there a particular Samuraj Cities song that reflects the city?

We are working on a new song now called "Hisingen you give me the creeps".

Seeing as how that new song is unavailable to me, here's "Thxa1000000", the lead single off their 2006 debut album "Cheap deluxe". Hopefully we'll get to hear some new music soon.

02/28 - Svanen @ Jazzhuset, Gothenburg
03/06 - Indie Rocket Party @ the Rocket, Milano (ITA)
03/15 - Lades, Copenhagen (DK)

I understand that a new EP has been recorded and more dates are TBA, so I'll keep you posted when I learn more.

01/31 - Club Transmediale @ Maria am Ostbahnhof, Berlin (GER)
02/01 - UT Connewitz, Leipzig (GER)
02/02 - Gleis, Münster (GER)
02/03 - BeatPol (Star Club), Dresden (GER)
02/04 - Arena, Vienna (AUS)
02/07 - tba, Milano (ITA) w/Peter Broderick
02/08 - Sintetica, Firenze (ITA) w/Peter Broderick
02/09 - Init, Rome (ITA) w/Peter Broderick
02/10 - Bronson, Ravenna (ITA) w/Peter Broderick
02/12 - Ziegel Oh Lac at Rote Fabrik, Zürich (CH)
02/14 - Bad Bonn, Düdingen (CH)
02/15 - Rocking Chair, Vevey (CH)
02/16 - Nordklang Festival, St. Gallen (CH) w/Taxi Taxi!
02/17 - Tap Tab, Schaffhausen (CH)
02/19 - Apolo, Barcelona (ESP)
02/20 - NeuClub, Madrid (ESP)
02/22 - Le Florida, Agen (FRA)
03/06 - Sønderborghus, Sønderborg (DK)
03/07 - Musikcafeen, Aarhus (DK)
03/08 - Pitstop, Kolding (DK)
03/12 - Pustervik, Gothenburg (SWE)
03/13 - John Dee, Oslo (NOR)
03/14 - Store Vega, Copenhagen (DK) w/Lise Westzynthius
03/15 - Mejeriet, Lund (SWE)

01. Susanne Sundfør - I resign
02. TALK 1
03. Familjen - Det snurrar i min skalle
04. The Skull Defekts - The secret
05. Ted Gärdestad - Räcker jag till
06. TALK 2
07. CS Nielsen - Black spots
08. Kornstad - Turkey, Texas
09. Moonbabies - Take me to the ballroom
10. The Bombettes - I wanna
11. TALK 3
12. Promise and the Monster - Sheets
13. Repoman - Chemically obsessed
14. The Bell - I am history
15. Säkert! - Allt som är ditt
16. TALK 4
17. Mainliners - Olivia
18. Superfamily - The radio has expressed concerns about what you did last night
19. Karin Ström - Ordlös
20. TALK 5
21. Fun - I've got a truck
22. Tobias Hellkvist - Moment at ven
23. Juvelen - Hanna
24. TALK 6
25. Laakso - Worst case scenario
26. Closer - Sensing the wake
27. Asha Ali - A promise broken
28. TALK 7
29. Paper - My life is going under
30. Boeoes Kaelstigen - Flir
31. Lukestar - White shade
32. TALK 8
33. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
34. Aerial - You will all die, all things will
35. Sambassadeur - Subtle changes
36. TALK 9

Next week (12/29) I'm doing another special theme show on Swedish postpunk.]]> Sun, 23 Dec 2007 11:11:09 -0800 news sirius http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25756-top-10s-for-2007-johan-gustavsson-tsukimono-scraps-of-tape http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25756-top-10s-for-2007-johan-gustavsson-tsukimono-scraps-of-tape http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25756-top-10s-for-2007-johan-gustavsson-tsukimono-scraps-of-tape#comments In no particular order.

Touring Japan with Scraps Of Tape for two weeks in June. Probably the best trip I ever been on. Performing in front of 800 Japanese people at the O-East was mind-numbing. Meeting the guys from You.May.Die.In.The.Desert and touring with them. It was special... brothers separated since birth.

Moving together with my girlfriend in Gothenburg, actually realising what a sensible/working relationship is supposed to be like.

The European tour with Scraps Of Tape during spring. Standing at the Croatian border and having to bribe our way into the country with 6 t-shirts and a hoodie... they didn't want our music. Then 2 days later being busted by undercover cops outside of Münich, and Marcus saying "I'm a girl, I'm a girl" over and over to one of the policemen.

Playing live at the Release The Bats Headquarters, a rare occasion and a beautiful yet short evening.

Fritiof Nilsson Piraten and his amazing storytelling.

Jerker Kaj. Forever in your debt, thank you for saving our lives during the spring tour.

Harry Krook. A star is born.

Viktor Sjöberg. A gentleman at all occasions and a friend beyond mere friendship.

Actually, the evening both you and Björn mentioned. Randy and folköl after WoW. Made a good/weird evening into a perfect evening.

Once again beating angst and demons and not burning everything written down or painted or deleting everything recorded this year.

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Johan Gustavsson is involved in many, many musical projects such as Tsukimono (see the recent IAT.MP3 netrelease), Scraps of Tape, Conduo Orchestra, Alina, The Colour Black and probably a whole bunch more.
yourson-shine.blogspot.com
www.scrapsoftape.com
www.myspace.com/scrapsoftape
www.myspace.com/tsukimonoswe

]]> Sun, 23 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800 articles top10s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25751-top-10s-for-2007-martina-daniel-ledinsky-razzia-records http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25751-top-10s-for-2007-martina-daniel-ledinsky-razzia-records http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25751-top-10s-for-2007-martina-daniel-ledinsky-razzia-records#comments Martina:

01. The Wire on TV.

02. La Piovra on DVD!

03. Delivery - Babyshambles

04. My discovery of Césaria Évora. Love her.

05. Bess (the coolest dog on earth)

06. The trips to Japan with Maia & Annika

07. My discovery of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion

08. Arcade Fire

09. XBox360

10. Upp till kamp! on TV

Daniel:

01. Dolly Parton live in Stockholm. What can I say, amazing.

02. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Inter FC

03. Last King of Scotland, Forrest Whitaker

04. Säkert! Annika Norlin for president.

05. Way Out West Festival, Gothenburg August

06. Arcade Fire - Intervention

07. The Wire, strait out of Hamsterdam

08. Maia Hirasawa live at Allsång på Skansen.

09. Shout Out Louds – Impossible

10. UGK – Int. Players Anthem, R.I.P. Pimp C.

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Daniel and Martina Ledinksky are the folks behind Razzia Records, home to artists such as Säkert!/Hello Saferide, Maia Hirasawa, Jonna Lee, Timo Räsisänen, Thunder Express and many more.
www.razziarecords.se
www.myspace.com/razziarecords

]]> Tue, 18 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800 articles top10s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25741-top-10s-for-2007-winter-took-his-life http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25741-top-10s-for-2007-winter-took-his-life http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25741-top-10s-for-2007-winter-took-his-life#comments 2007 - Ten THANKS A LOT from Winter Took His Life:

Bless The Press Records - my supportive record label. It's been a great first year.

Tyskland - Germany. New on my top 3 of totally sweet countries.

Björn Kleinhenz - this year's fixer. German tour, my release party and the split tape release.

Malin Dahlberg - took me to germany with We Are Soldiers. Always there when I need her.

WTHL fans - everyone who has bought my album. I would like to thank you a lot.

Unikorus - a fantastic group of people that make me smile every Wednesday.

Beth Klemme - she took me to the States and her university to play.

Erik Neave - this year he got me a tour in the States.

Hagateatern - Gothenburg's nicest and cosiest venue.

Rotmos - i love mashed potatoes. Rotmos is even better. Alla tiders maträtt.

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Winter Took His Life released her album "You know what it's like to be alone and shut down" in late September. Her next big thing is a tour around Europe with Björn Kleinhenz and Cedarwell in January 2008.
www.wintertookhislife.net
www.myspace.com/wintertookhislife

]]> Sat, 08 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0800 articles top10s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25733-stockholm-perspectives-1-norma http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25733-stockholm-perspectives-1-norma http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25733-stockholm-perspectives-1-norma#comments I spent years reading about definitive moments in people's lives, often sitting outside the window of my shared boarding house room, huddled with a book on the bit of roof that extended from under the aperture, smoking a cigarette, watching the light soften and fade as afternoon became evening, as daylight transitioned into twilight and eventually darkness. Already a distant and asocial young expatriate, consistently reading about these moments made me feel even more removed from the spontaneity and vehemence of life. I began to regard those profound, life-changing experiences as works of fiction, accompanying true love and happy endings in some dark masquerade which most of us would never be invited to.

In 2002, I took my first breath of Swedish air and moved into a beautiful villa just across from the Tunnelbana tracks in Kärrtorp. I remembering smiling widely as Ella and Judy Torkelsson helped me with my things across the Arlanda parking lot into their blue Volvo station wagon. It wasn't so much that I was so desperate as to accept any weak breeze as the winds of change, my last year in British boarding school is saturated with many of my most treasured moments, and I grew and matured quite a bit as my A-Levels loomed, came, and passed. There was a genuine moment as I exited the airport into that grey day, the first definitive moment I'd ever had.

Over the coming months, I fell progressively more in love with Sweden, Stockholm in particular. While Ella was in school, I would walk down to the center of Kärrtorp, take the train into T-Centralen, and walk along the water, through the cobbled streets of Gamla Stan, and the parks of Södermalm. I started to feel less like a stranger or a voyeur observing the city around me. As the year wore on, I started to make friends, many of whom I am still in frequent contact with today, and began the life that I am now thoroughly involved in.

People ask me what it is about Stockholm that left me feeling this way, and I've never been able to give them a satisfactory answer, not for myself anyways. It's like asking a true Yankees fan what it is about the Bronx Bombers that attracts their loyalty. There are obvious things you can point to - friends, a coffee shop, the public transportation, universal healthcare, etc. - but much of one's admiration and allegiance is wrapped up in wordless swells of sentiment, and excluding them seems to detract from the whole.

Having one of the more prolific and creative music scenes in the world (in many ways putting breath into those "wordless swells"), I thought I'd ask various musicians in Stockholm the same question that has been posed to me - namely, "What is it about Stockholm?", amongst other pressing inquiries.

The following is the first attempt to scratch below the surface, to paint various pictures of a multifaceted city in the music and words of some of Stockholm's most talented citizens. My thanks to Norma for being my first test subjects.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson

How did Norma come about?

We're all kind of weird, in our different ways. I think that was what brought us together. Norma is all about us three. If you would exchange any of the members, the sound would be totally different. You could describe it as some sort of terrorbalance. We all have a lot of ideas going in different directions, but the result of the struggle is Norma.

Where in Stockholm do you guys rehearse? Where have you rehearsed in the past?

Right now, we actually don't have any place to rehearse. That is one of the biggest downsides of being a band in Stockholm, there are just no cheap dungeons for bands to evolve in. So for now, our apartment (Aron Sandell and Petter Bendelin's) will have to do. But you can't do live drums here, and if we continue like this, sooner or later our neighbours will come knockin'... In the past we've been in a couple of different shelters, but when your guitars start rusting and you have to do warm-up exercises for 30 minutes before you can play a song, you feel like there's just got to be a better way.

What inspirations are present on "1"?

Well, the songs that are on "1" all sprung out from sessions in a small shelter in Zinkensdamm in the summer of 2006. It was dark, humid, and kind of noisy because of the concrete walls. When we first came there, we didn't have an A-to-B plan of what we wanted to do, but because of the preconditions in the shelter, it was kind of hard for us to write proper 3 minute verse-chorus songs. So instead we ended up making 6-10 minute songs with non-traditional structures and few chords. You couldn't really tell if anyone changed chords anyway, so it was better to stick to as few as possible. Mentioning different bands as sources of inspiration is kind of boring, but everything from Pink Floyd and Neu! to Postal Service and Hot Chip inspired "1".

How much would you say living in Stockholm impacts you all as individuals and collectively as a band? Does Stockholm feel like home?

I think it impacts us a lot, both as a band and as individuals. Two of us are from the island Gotland which is a few hours by boat from Stockholm. There's a big difference in living on an island with 60,000 other people or in a city of almost 2,000,000. But I (Aron) would still say that I'm from Gotland and not Stockholm.

As for the band, I think it means a lot, too. Just look at the difference of bands coming from say Gothenburg compared with bands from Stockholm. A good thing about Stockholm is that everyone is really good at what they do, no matter if it's art, music, film or writing. So when people start to take notice of you here, you know that you've probably done something right.

Has Stockholm ever inspired a song - for good or ill?

"The storm" is a song inspired by life here, which of course is both good and bad.

Have any of you wanted to move away - and if so, where?

We've talked about moving to Germany because of the possibilities of getting ourselves a warehouse facility which is impossible here. Haven't made it there yet, but we'll see what the future holds.

What bars, coffee shops, dance nights, 'must see places', etc. would you recommend to a foreigner visiting Stockholm for a week or so?

I think all three of us would like to go out more, but there is little money and even less time, so none of us would be a great guide to Stockholm's club life. The classic, both as a concert venue and bar, is of course Debaser. All three of us have spent a lot of time there. Another favorite is Landet. Two of us used to live nearby. And AG, where we had the release party for "1", is cool. We mostly drink our coffee at home, or in the studio. And when it comes to must-sees, well Stockholm is more of a city that you have to experience by meeting people and hopefully learning where the greatest party of weekend is at.

Where do you guys typically hang out?

The new black is Kungsholmen, two of us just moved here. And then there's Söder, and the places I mentioned before.

On a Friday night, would you guys rather go out to bars/clubs, or to a house party?

We would rather go to our own house party than go out clubbing, because house parties tend to be more wild and you can play whatever music you feel like listening to. But, I mean, it's kind of tiring to clean up afterwards... So a little bit of both is a good recipe to a healthy and happy life.

What clubs have you played at in Stockholm? Which were your favorites and why?

Fritz's Corner, Ljummen i Gräset, Musik Scenario, and our release party. That's it. We've only made 4 appearances ever, if you don't count the ones a couple of years ago when we were experimenting a lot. My favorite was definitely Debaser, but all the gigs have been great. Norma live is awesome though, so hopefully we will hit the road soon.

The only show we ever did outside of Stockholm was on Gotland a couple of years ago; weird gig, we didn't have any finished songs, almost no lyrics, and the audience was really drunk... Did far better than you could expect under those circumstances.

Which bands inspired Norma? Are there any Stockholm-based bands that motivated you?

Our friends, Torpedo ( with Love Martinsen on synthesisers), Antennas and Existensminimum are all really great and huge sources of inspiration for us in many ways.

What does the future hold for Norma?

We're in the middle of recording our first album. Hopefully it will be released sometime this coming spring, and then following that there will probably be some kind of tour. We're improving every song we make, so we're already looking forward to making the next record, and then the next, and so on.

Norma is: Aron Sandell, Love Martinsen, and Petter Bendelin.

LINK: http://www.theamazingnorma.com/
LINK: http://www.myspace.com/theamazingnorma

01. Kristofer Åström - Just a little insane
02. TALK 1
03. Darkthrone - Canadian metal
04. Sambassadeur - Subtle changes
05. Niccokick - Love & neon lights
06. TALK 2
07. Death By Kite - Bhf. Asta
08. The Alpine - Iceland
09. Pluxus - Bootstrap
10. TALK 3
11. Graveyard - Thin line
12. Hospital - Something in the water
13. Attrap - Just a word away
14. TALK 4
15. Jonna Lee - I wrote this song
16. Paper - My life is going under
17. Broder Daniel - You bury me
18. TALK 5
19. Radio LXMBRG - Score on the floor
20. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
21. Rather Sound Than Safe - The beat
22. Det Gamla Landet - Det heliga landet
23. TALK 6
24. Paris - When I laid my eyes on you
25. No Hope for the Kids - Rainy day
26. Sir Eric Beyond and the Avant-Garde - If this is the way
27. Barra Head - Overseas
28. TALK 7
29. Superfamily - Warszawa
30. Oskar Schönning - S
31. Brick - Automen
32. TALK 8
33. Miss Li - Leave my man alone
34. Kasper Bjørke - Liquid propagnosia
35. Loveninjas - I wanna be like Johnny C
36. Anti Cimex - Only in dreams
37. TALK 9
38. Pan Sonic - Virta 1
]]> Sun, 18 Nov 2007 12:51:08 -0800 news sirius http://www.itsatrap.com/n/20140 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/20140 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/20140#comments European tourdates for Swallow the Sun:

11/13 - Musikzentrum, Hannover (GER)
11/14 - Zeche Carl, Essen (GER)
11/15 - Columbia Club, Berlin (GER)
11/16 - Alte Spinnerei, Glauchau (GER)
11/17 - Club Vaudeville, Lindau (GER)
11/18 - Z7, Pratteln, Switzerland
11/20 - Roxy, Saarbrücken (GER)
11/21 - Metropolis, Munich (GER)
11/22 - Colos-Saal, Aschaffenburg (GER)
11/23 - Helling, Utrecht (NL)
11/24 - Bibelot, Dordrecht (NL)
11/25 - Biebob, Vosselaar (BEL)
11/27 - Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg (SWE)
11/28 - Rockefeller, Oslo (NOR)
11/29 - Klubben, Stockholm (SWE)
12/01 - Nosturi, Helsinki (FIN)
12/19 - Pakkahuone, Tampere (FIN)
12/29 - Helldone Festival, Tavastia, Helsinki (FIN)
08/16 - Bloodstock Open Air, Catton Hall, Derby (UK)
]]> Fri, 09 Nov 2007 15:07:22 -0800 news live http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25727-profile-ikons http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25727-profile-ikons http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25727-profile-ikons#comments
Photo: Elin Liljeblad

Name: IKONS

From: Göteborg, Sweden

Sounds like: Dark, dirty and droning

Listen: Good things (into my mind)

Discography:
2005 – EP1 (Militärindustri)

Links:
www.1kon5.com
www.myspace.com/1kon5

Give me a wall of bracing feedback. No, make it a wave - I want to get lost in it and let it carry me away. That's the feeling I get from listening to IKONS. The band has been around a few years, always lurking just below the surface, but the time has come for them get the attention they rightfully deserve. Finally, some new Swedish rock'n'roll that actually succeeds at sounding dangerous.
- Avi Roig

Who are IKONS and where are you from?

IKONS are Torbjörn Johansson, Jonas Bengtsson, Martin Olsson, Rikard Johansson and Carl Riis. Additional players are Magnus Wahlström and Magnus Delborg. All members share the experience of growing up in suburbs outside of Gothenburg, close to airports and woods.

What separates Ikons from the various other bands you are involved in?

Jonathan from Samuraj Cities is not with us anymore. Magnus Wahlström's main- project is Boat Club and he joins IKONS whenever there is time, and Karl Riis, whose project Outmen right now seems to start off pretty good. Musically there are some differences, but on the idealistic there are none. Everyone has a good ear for what fits and what we are trying to do. And whenever IKONS is working or playing, nothing else exists.

What do you do when you're not playing music?

Universities and factories.

What's your take on the current GBG music scene? How does it rate with what's happening in the overall Swedish scene?

I don't see how IKONS has anything to do with the current GBG-scene. And I don't even know if there is one. It feels like the trend right now and the trend that has been for the last few years everywhere, has been some sort of freight for the use of analog instruments. Not that there is anything particularly wrong with using laptops or ipods, but it seems to be some sort of stagnation in the process of using it, it has no direction, a bit boring now, and has been going on a bit to long. There are some really great bands in Gothenburg, like Studio, or Pistol Disco who're doing their own thing. The "Krautscene", or what you should call it in Stockholm seems to have some really interesting stuff going on. And the Swedish music-scene? Don't know, maybe not that interesting, and probably has nothing to do with us.

Name one trend you'd love to see get popular. What about one you wish would disappear completely.

Everything that takes a really long time to do, maybe chess playing. Current flirts with rightwing idealistics and tennis fashion.

Best film you've seen recently?

"Persona" – Bergman.

What's the future for IKONS? Where will you be in 6 months? Next year?

We never know anything; this band could die at any time, or start conquering the goods. Right now we are in a good spin, with new songs and new people in the band, and some gigs coming our way. Hopefully we will have some release out, if well just found someone who would like to release it. Give us an EP! The new song "Good things (into my mind)" we'll post for you is some kind of new direction, but definitely not the only direction the music is taking. We like to see the songs as contrasts to each other, and give much room for them to evolve. Unity in songs can be really important, but for us right now it tends to be boring, we want to see the larger spectrum of musical opportunities. We are in a creative mood of experimenting; new songs will point in a more Krautrock direction as well as the psychedelic sides of bands like Spectrum, Spacemen 3 and Hawkwind. That's the ideals; the musical reality is something for us to deal with. But, there will be soul.

]]> Wed, 07 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0800 articles interviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19685 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19685 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/19685#comments New livedates for Circle:

11/16 - Festsaal Kreuzberg, Berlin (GER) w/Wooden Veil
11/17 - Psychedelic Network Festival, Würzburg (GER)
11/18 - Adler, Arnach (GER)
11/20 - Ljud, Aarhus (DK)
11/22 - Byens lys, Christiania, Copenhagen (DK)
11/23 - Nefertiti, Gothenburg (SWE) w/Skull Defekts
11/26 - Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff (UK)
11/27 - The Engine Room, Brighton (UK)
11/28 - Corsica Studios, London (UK) w/Guapo
11/29 - M/S Stubnitz, Amsterdam (NL) w/Acid Mothers Temple)
11/30 - Kunstencentrum Belgie, Hasselt (BEL)
12/01 - Dag in de branding, Den Haag (NL)
12/02 - Kampnagel, Hamburg (GER) w/Kammerflimmer Kollektief, Felix Kubin
]]> Mon, 08 Oct 2007 17:24:42 -0700 news live http://www.itsatrap.com/n/68 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/68 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/68#comments Taken By Trees will perform live this fall:

09/13 - Stenhammarsalen Gothenburg (SWE) w/Ass
09/14 - Inkonst Teatern, Malmo (SWE) w/Ass
09/16 - Södra Teatern, Stockholm (SWE) w/Ass
09/25 - Sugar Club, Dublin (IRL) w/Ass
09/26 - Bush Hall, London (UK) w/Ass
10/02 - Le Divan Du Monde, Paris (FRA)
10/04 - Botanique (Witloof Bar), Brussels (BEL)
10/05 - Privatclub, Berlin (GER)
11/24 - Crossing Border Festival, Haag (NL)

For all the trials and tribulations that went into Victoria Bergsman's decision to return to the stage, go here: http://www.takenbytrees.com/]]> Tue, 11 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/490 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/490 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/490#comments This week's It's A Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 tracks of the week:

01. Håkan Hellström – Ramlar
02. Jens Lekman – And I remember every kiss
03. Shout Out Louds – Tonight I have to leave it
04. Okkervil River – Our life is not a movie or maybe
05. Jens Lekman – Sipping on the sweet nectar
06. Modest Mouse – Dashboard
07. Maia Hirasawa – Gothenburg
08. Shout Out Louds – You are dreaming
09. The National – Green gloves
10. Jens Lekman – The opposite of hallelujah

Good to see a few of my posts actually make the chart! Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Join us! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/]]> Tue, 14 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/520 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/520 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/520#comments The playlist for this week's all-GBG radio show:

01. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
02. TALK 1
03. Hemstad - Sommar i Göteborg
04. Division of Laura Lee - We are numbers
05. Håkan Hellström - Kom igen Lena!
06. TALK 2
07. In Flames - Everything counts
08. Pistol Disco - Walking with Jesus
09. Viktor Sjöberg - W/nothing
10. TALK 3
11. Kristofer Åström - Just a little insane
12. The Knife - Listen now
13. Broder Daniel - Dark heart
14. TALK 4
15. Samuraj Cities - All along the shoreline
16. MPTP - Jim Morrison
17. At the Gates - Cold
18. TALK 5
19. The Book of Daniel - The camels parade
20. Silverbullit - Magnetic city
21. The Soundtrack of Our Lives - Nevermore
22. TALK 6
23. Nicolai Dunger - What tomorrow
24. The Kid - Portion control (Fatsuit haze/Zlatan wins the World Cup remix)
25. The Idealist - The knives are my eyes
26. C.Aarmé - Visions
27. TALK 7
28. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - I could have sworn I heard them SING
29. Junip - Official
30. Diabolique - Catholic
31. TALK 8
32. Convoj - My timekeeping heart
33. Tsukimono - Dear sister
34. Eric Beyond - Step off
35. TALK 9
36. Björn Kleinhenz - Out of style
37. Detektivbyrån - E18
38. TALK 10
39. Bad Cash Quartet - Too bored to die]]> Sat, 11 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27652-mp3-the-bear-quartet-mom-and-dad http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27652-mp3-the-bear-quartet-mom-and-dad http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27652-mp3-the-bear-quartet-mom-and-dad#comments A Bear Quartet post in the middle of a Gothenburg spotlight? What to do? Perhaps you were expecting the Bad Cash Quartet cover of "Put me back together"? No such luck! I won't take the easy way out with a mere cover song. Nosiree! Instead of posting some random GBG covering BQ, I bring you BQ live in GBG with the classic tune "Mom and dad". Enjoy!]]> Sat, 11 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s bq http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27653-mp3-in-flames-the-jester-race http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27653-mp3-in-flames-the-jester-race http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27653-mp3-in-flames-the-jester-race#comments The one thing that got me interested in Swedish music in the first place was the mid-90s Gothenburg metal scene. I don't remember exactly what year it was, but I picked up a copy of "Terminal spirit disease" by At the Gates on a whim and my life was forever changed. I brought the disc home and must've listened to it at least 3x in a row. It wasn't long before I was fervently reading liner notes, seeking out as many other new bands as I could. Of course, one of the first I discovered was In Flames. I haven't followed them so much in recent years, especially as the lines blur between them and what they do and the legions of shitty metalcore bands out there in the world, but I must say that "The jester race" is an unfuckwithable classic. This is what got me into the scene - the melodies of Iron Maiden, but played with the intensity and heaviness of death metal. The sound is totally played out nowadays, but you have to remember how fresh and inspiring it was when it was new. I certainly do.]]> Fri, 10 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27655-mp3-hakan-hellstrom-ramlar http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27655-mp3-hakan-hellstrom-ramlar http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27655-mp3-hakan-hellstrom-ramlar#comments You can't talk about music from Gothenburg without mentioning Håkan Hellström and his landmark album "Känn ingen sorg för mig Göteborg". So exuberant and full of life! No translation required, though you'd be hard-pressed to miss the call of "Dans! Dans! Dans!" in today's mp3 pick "Ramlar". Seriously, there is no other record that captures such an unbridled sense of euphoria as this. Even the slowest moments are bursting with joy, not that you'll find any here on this track. When I imagine summetime in GBG, this is my soundtrack.]]> Wed, 08 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27656-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27656-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27656-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg#comments I'm off to Göteborg today, so for the rest of the week I'm posting nothing but GBG-related music. I'll be covering some classics later on, but first I've got a repost of Maia Hirasawa's "Gothenburg". It's a great song that's made even better by the oh-so-charming video. I don't share Maia's apprehension about the city, in fact it's quite the opposite. I couldn't be more excited for my visit and anticipate only greatness. Good people, good music... really, what else do I need? Back with regular updates next week.]]> Tue, 07 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25704-festival-report-roskilde http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25704-festival-report-roskilde http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25704-festival-report-roskilde#comments Words by Jonas Appelqvist, pics by Martin Eriksson

Besides the music, you can sum up this years festivity in Roskilde in two words. Mud. And rain. The movie quote "dry land is not a myth!" is not at all overrated when speaking of how it was at the festival and camping area. Reminiscing back to 1997, the year that everyone talks about as "the one with all the rain and mud", this year's festival really had its moments weather-wise but it rained as much as it did in one week 1997 in just one day (Thursday, first day of the festival) this year, simply making it impossible to go anywhere without a pair of proper rubber boots. It poured down 0,9843 in (25 mm) on that day. It was hell to be exact.

Fortunate for me, I had rubber boots and managed to get around up until the last day when a throat infection and blisters from my newly bought boots brutally stopped me. Apart from that, I got around seeing lots of bands (not counting the Scandinavian acts reviewed here), drinking beer and meeting lots of friends and, hey, that's festival life for you. Due to the bad weather, Roskilde wasn't really the party I expected, but it was never dull. Roskilde never is. And I will definitely be back next year, you can count on that!

Some of the bands I saw: The Arcade Fire, Mastodon, Brian Jonestown Massacre, The National, Beastie Boys, Camera Obscura, Roky Erickson & The Explosives, Strike Anywhere, among others.

Unfortunately Cold War Kids had to cancel because their tour bus had broken down. It's a pity.

Death By Kite
It was with low expectations I went to see these Danes and luckily for me, I was wrong. Death By Kite really invited the crowd to a show with their indiepop as main attraction. And with a bang. Seeing as their recently released self-titled album (by the nice blokes at Quartermain Records) is somewhat of a hit in Denmark, they gathered quite an audience. Björn Lange and his partners delivered Placebo-esque rock with a touch of Sonic Youth and, hey, I'm not complaining. It's just that it's not too original, y'know. And a lot of the material is a bit similar. Other than that, it was an excellent show where the three members were well in tune with each other and when "Bhf. Asta" rang out, the roaring from the crowd nearly lifted the tent roof at the Pavilion Junior-stage.

Decorate. Decorate.
The fact that this band formed in 2006 does not at all affect the tight feeling they have developed. Playing arty rock in the vein of Interpol seems to be the new black in Denmark and these guys are good at it. That doesn't mean it's good. In fact, it's really dull at times. Doing their best to get the crowds attention from the beginning by playing the semi-hit "Karen" did more harm than good. The tunes that followed that one, which indeed is a great song, sounded like bleak carbon copies. Thumbs up for the artistic intentions. However, it was one big yawn, to be honest.

Detektivbyrån
Classic Swedish folk music mixed with dreamy psychedelic pop music - is that appreciated today? That's what I was wondering before I went to see Detektivbyrån, the charming trio from Värmland. And apparently, yes - approximately 2000 people went as well and saw a humble, playful band get lost in melodies and rhythms not far from Pluxus at times. But the huge difference between the two acts is that Detektivbyrån uses almost all acoustic instruments exclusively and that their tunes are so much better orchestrated. With just an EP out ("Hemvägen"), one brand new single called "Lyckans undulat" and a 7" split with Hemstad, this instrumental band has nothing to lose and a whole lot to win. And, I might add, when playing the single track it struck me that drummer Jon Ekström must have a metal background or something like that. I could tell from the first stroke. The tunes with a more waltz feeling, where the concertina takes a main role, kind of get me to think of Philemon Arthur & the Dung, but, of course, performed in a widely different way. Since PA&tD are long time favorites, I love the fact that these guys acknowledge them once again. Being Swedish, I, and a lot of people in the audience, could enjoy their banters when they apologized for their bad English and expressed sincere love for the people that went to see them. Definitely a nice afternoon gig. The only minus is that it can be hard to stay focused for that long listening to instrumental music.

In Flames
This death metal platoon is, by now, scene veterans and a worldwide name. Something that announcer Per Sinding-Larsen stated at the Orange Stage before the gig. Since the audience consisted exclusively of metal heads, that information seemed a bit unnecessary, but you know - a background like that calls for a band that can live up to it. As In Flames entered the stage, expectations rose and the sound knocked them down again. The first couple of songs suffered from the worst sound ever. Not only was it low, Anders Fridén's cordless microphone was not top notch. We did, however, get to hear "Leeches" third and by then, it was the band I expected to get to see. Being a group that started the well known Gothenburg metal-scene along with acts like At the Gates and Dark Tranquility, In Flames has taken quite a step from that scene and created a mix of neo-metal and heavy death metal. Something that, according to the puritans of metal, is off limits. in a way, I can agree. It just doesn't get me started. The rest of the crowd however, loved it unconditionally. Especially songs like "Trigger" from "Reroute to remain" where the singalong was deafening. Still, the experience was a bit disappointing.

Mando Diao
The first time I saw this Borlänge band they had just released the EP "Motown blood" and they were fresh, cocky youngsters. They're still cocky, but definitely not newcomers anymore. With three full-length records out they can sort out the hits and give the crowd what they want, namely rock. The horn section was a really great addition to the gig's intensity wherein the band often rely on the changing vocal harmonies of lead singers Björn Dixgård and Gustaf Norén. It added an extra dimension to the bands ecstatic performance. And when the two singers sang "Long before rock n' roll" in John & Paul-style; no one could really doubt this band's qualities. The fact that they, the day after this gig, was invited to play at the Live Earth-marathon around the globe is proof enough. On the downside, I'd appreciate some variations in their songs. But if you're just going to see one rock n' roll gig this year, it should be one where Mando Diao is headlining.

Quit Your Dayjob
Uncompromising, sadistic, humorous and mad. Hell yeah! QYDJ, one of Sweden's most insane bands, delivered a show at 3am like there was no tomorrow. One hour before the gig, people stood chanting the lyrics to "Look! A dollar". With songs that are rarely longer that 1:30 and a mixed-up surf/punk/electro sound, the band has found a winning concept. And it showed at Roskilde this year. Keyboardist Marcass tried his best to instigate the crowd (I made a bet with photographer Martin that he would strip off his clothes between the two first songs. I lost. But he did it later on as I had foreseen.) and singer and guitarist Jonass tried to beat his guitar to pieces while spitting the one-line lyrics into the microphone. And the people gathered at the Pavilion Stage loved it. And so did I, despite the fact that this was my 5th Quit Your Dayjob gig. The furious versions of "Pissing on a panda" and "Wasted" were masterpieces and the new material, taken from a forthcoming album due to be released this fall, sounded great. Speaking of new material, rumor has it that a female vocalist from one of Sweden's top pop/rock bands right now is doing guest vocals on one of the songs. I thought she would turn up for this gig but no, I was wrong again. Either way, I pity those who didn't take the opportunity to go see QYDJ at this year's Roskilde.

Slaraffenland
This quintet had the unpleasant task of performing at 12pm. in front of hungover festival visitors, but considering that their music can be categorized as free-jazz/indiepop with some postrock-vibes, they (and the crowd) did a terrific job. The atmospheric sounds they created was indeed a wake-up call and they demanded attention. With saxophone, trombone, oboe and a fantastic playful drummer accompanied by driven guitars, it's not hard at all to guess that this is a Rumraket-band, the label run by Danish act Efterklang. Considering their Swedish and Danish membership, you would have guessed that they would be quite well-known in Scandinavia, but apparently they've earned themselves an acclaimed name abroad instead. A pity really. 'Cause this band was appreciated at Roskilde and I'm sure they would be in the rest of the Nordic countries as well. It was epic and breathtaking at times. Especially in my favorite song, the last in the set, "Watch out" where the poppy side of the band breaks through and creates an atmosphere of well-being. And I'm not sure that that's what the band strived for when they wrote the tune, but that's the feeling that comes to me. And it's a good one. Over all.]]> Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 articles fest http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1008 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1008 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1008#comments Maia Hirasawa's brand new video for "Gothenburg" is now online: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG64DmsSQH4]]> Mon, 18 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25868-the-tough-alliance-a-new-chance-sincerely-yours http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25868-the-tough-alliance-a-new-chance-sincerely-yours http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25868-the-tough-alliance-a-new-chance-sincerely-yours#comments Peter Gabriel, UB40, and, to some extent, Madness, yet remaining distinctly a product of Gothenburg's electro scene, woven together with exceptional production, and as insinuating as a guilty pleasure, "A new chance" is a damned accomplished sophomore record. Infectiously sunny, but still subtle and complex, The Tough Alliance have crafted what is sure to be one of the standout albums of the summer, if not the year. Assembled around the hope that "every day is a new chance, a new romance," the songs on the record flow seamlessly together in their thematic explorations, further strengthening the record. There's not a single composition that I dislike, not even the kitschy, 90s-esque "Miami". Even the order of the tracks is faultless making it a record that can be enjoyed start to finish without any skipping. Summer hasn't technically started, a few weeks remain between us and the solstice, but I'd be rather surprised if I am not still listening to this fine album at a respectable frequency when autumn's chill reenters the evening air.]]> Wed, 13 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0700 reviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1121 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1121 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1121#comments Maia Hirasawa's next single will be "Gothenburg", my favorite song on her album. Listen at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/maiahirasawa]]> Fri, 08 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25693-live-report-loney-dear-shout-out-louds-maia-hirasawa-ica-london-uk-05-24-07 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25693-live-report-loney-dear-shout-out-louds-maia-hirasawa-ica-london-uk-05-24-07 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25693-live-report-loney-dear-shout-out-louds-maia-hirasawa-ica-london-uk-05-24-07#comments The trees outside the Institute Of Contemporary Arts are full, the dust from the track outside is arid and the air wet – thunder is needed.

Situated 150m downstream from Buckingham Palace the ICA is the only 'commercial' building permitted within St James' Park boundary, the juxtaposition monarchy and new music.

Back in London within a week of last visiting these shores Maia Hirawasa opened. Backed by cellist, double bass and pianist, her set was from recent album "Though, I'm just me", a truly veritable performance: "Well, she know's what she's doing," Andres Lokko pipes.

All the 'hits', no glitches commanding a three-quarters full venue, sounded tremendous - Can't beat the classic sensibility of this performance. Her set was peppered with anecdotes about meeting new friends and boys. The defining moment in her set came from the dramatic "Gothenburg", full of gently plucking and hushed vocals.

Note on Hirawasa: Each of four times T!T!T! has seen her perform, she has always worn stage dress, couture, aka: made the effort. It might be age catching me, but presentation is small effort and those boys need to shape up!

Anyways, still no thunder, but lightning did strike: Shout Out Louds need no intro, they were the main draw. They have visited London more times per album than any other Swedish act of similar career step in the last five years, and it shows – there were many here for this act alone.

New material which nudges the 'this sounds like....[insert band name here]' gene, came and went "Tonight I have to leave it" half a pace behind the massive songs "Impressive" and "You Are Dreaming" from the recent Our Ill Wills album.

Current 'myspace single,' "Tonight I have to leave it", as announced by vocalist Adam, was treated like an old favourite.

From "Howl howl gaff gaff", SoL has spared themselves certain mental illness and remodelled popular cuts, "Please, please, please" and "Very loud" turning them into new updated versions, we might call this critical security updates. Those two were more whacked out, new patches and ports opened to throttle the song back to life. They sounded great.

Loney, Dear has built up a formidable following from constant touring, and for someone who makes such gently music the crowd were whooping uncontrollably. Largely forgettable, but well received like a dose of McDonalds, we all have our weak moments and feel satisfied for a wee while. Loney, Dear is something of guilty pleasure.

With DJs from Off The Wall and Andres Lokko filling in between bands, and the theatre style announcer calling interval time, the night lent some nice touches to impressive production (great lighting) and sound and the agents... actually let's leave that one while the thunder abates.

Tack!Tack!Tack! is grateful to:
Anders Bergmark (Swedish Institute) & Avi Roig (It's a Trap!) and the god of T!T!T!'s understanding.

By Nick Levine / Jason Christie

]]> Fri, 25 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700 articles reviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27737-mp3-dark-tranquility-tongues http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27737-mp3-dark-tranquility-tongues http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27737-mp3-dark-tranquility-tongues#comments Dark Tranquility has a new album out, so I figured that it would be a great time to revisit one of their classic mid-90s records to see how well they hold up. As for the new record... it's okay, I guess. While I agree with Richard that it's somewhat of a return to form (the last few records have been pretty weak, to say the least), I have a hard time getting all that excited about it. I can handle the subtle keyboards and even the clean singing, but the modern metal recording style drives me crazy! It's so overcompressed and lacking dynamics. The guitars all have that horrible, overused Mesa dual-rectifier tone. No matter how the good the songs are, I still can't listen to it.
1997's "The mind's I" was my first exposure to Dark Tranquility. It came out at a time when I was purchasing anything and everything that came out the Gothenburg metal scene and for awhile, was one of my favorite new records. Of all the mid-90s melodic death metal from the era, it's certainly a top-10 contender. However, DT was always kind of an also-ran compared to the likes of At the Gates and In Flames. They were always a bit more pretentious and more likely to take risks, often alienating fans. I'm all for band evolution, but 1999's "Projector" was not good. What I like about "The mind's I" and this track in particular, is the clean, organic sound. Two guitars, drums, bass (which you can actually hear quite cleanly) and vocals - no useless overdubs, no excessive production tricks. The musicianship is impeccable, too. Put on headphones and check out the way the hard-panned guitars interact. The solo is killer as well - it leads perfectly into a powerful bridge in which singer Mikael Stanne sounds absolutely anguished, even if the lines he's singing are total gobbledygook. This is exactly what got me into Swedish/Scandinavian music in the first place. Every once in awhile, it's good to remind myself why.]]> Fri, 04 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25687-profile-agent-simple http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25687-profile-agent-simple http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25687-profile-agent-simple#comments Name: Agent Simple

From: Göteborg, Sweden

Sounds like: Charming indie pop with peculiar lyrics and a lo-fi feel.

Listen: I can't think of anything

Discography:
2007 – Shaking an egg EP (Fridlyst)
2005 – I got mad at the kids EP (Bedroom recordings)

Links:
www.myspace.com/agentsimple
www.fridlystmusic.com

Agent Simple got under my skin a couple of years ago, and now with his second EP out I think it's time for more people to get him under their skins. I'm willing to share this musical treasure with the whole world; you should feel honoured.
- Simon Tagestam

Band members:
Stefan Strömberg

Who is Agent Simple? How did you come to be? How long have been making music under this name?

I'm just a regular guy from Gothenburg, you wouldn't notice me on the street. Two years ago I quit the rock band I'd been in for some time and thought I'd stop making music. Then I ended up writing tunes on my own and that's how Agent Simple came about.

What are you inspirations?

I can't think of a time when I've ever felt inspired and I don't really know how what it is. People seem to be able to get inspired by things all the time, like waking and it's sunny. That makes me feel good, not inspired. Bad feelings and anger don't make me write music either. I don't really know what does.

What do you do besides the music?

I have to get up at five in the morning and take the bus to a job on the factory floor of a car manufacturer in Gothenburg. It's no good, but at least it's a job. That's the kind of job you get without a proper education. The one good thing about the job is that i get to listen to my Ipod ten hours a day and discover music that I wouldn't have time to under other circumstances.

What's in the near future for Agent Simple?

Well, I'm releasing an EP right now titled "Shaking an egg" on Fridlyst that excites me, and I've started working on the songs for my debut album, which I intend to finish in the near future. If all goes well, I think I might be going abroad to play some shows as well.

How do you record your songs?

I'm particularly bad at drumming, so I have a guy doing that for me. The rest I basically play myself. My new EP is recorded in my friend's apartment.

What can one expect from a concert with Agent Simple?

To play an instrument if there are band members missing.

What's your personal favourite Agent Simple song? Why?

At the moment it's probably one of the songs that I haven't recorded yet. Probably the one about Dundee where my girlfriend lives.

What album/film/ book did you like in 2006?

My favourite album of 2006 is Vapnet's "Jag vet hur man väntar". That one and Euros Child's "Chops". I don't have the attention span to read an entire book. If I did, I'd probably be smarter and have a better job. I know I've seen good films this year, but I can't think of any.

]]> Tue, 01 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700 articles interviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25919-dark-tranquility-fiction-century-media http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25919-dark-tranquility-fiction-century-media http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25919-dark-tranquility-fiction-century-media#comments Dark Tranquility can still deliver top notch melodic death metal after some 15 years in the business. Together with At the Gates and In Flames, they are the founders of the so called Gothenburg sound. Where most bands would long since peaked, Dark Tranqility at this point sound better than they've done in a long time. I dare say "Fiction" is their best album since the classic "The gallery" from 1995. They make smart use of keyboards and sometimes create a gothic mood, and the variation of really fast and aggressive songs alongside slower material makes this album a very versatile affair. And the fact that vocalist and growl-master Mikael Stanne once again uses his clean voice on two songs is a great move. Songs like "Blind at heart" and "Nothing to no one" is the ultimate proof that this band should achieve the same kind of breakthrough as other Swedish death metal bands like Arch Enemy or In Flames!]]> Wed, 25 Apr 2007 00:00:00 -0700 reviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1748 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1748 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/1748#comments Last night's playlist for my show on Sirius Blog Radio:

01. Isolation Years - Yellow cross on blue
02. TALK 1
03. Johndoe - Nattskift
04. Montys Loco - Wasteland
05. Once We Were - Cut corners
06. TALK 2
07. [ingenting] - Mycket vasen for ingenting
08. Margaret Berger - Robot song
09. Namur - Marching
10. Lampshade - New legs
11. TALK 3
12. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg
13. Mixtapes & Cellmates - Quiet
14. Fattaru - 100:-
15. Juvelen - Hanna
16. TALK 4
17. Säkert! - Allt som är ditt
18. Sonores - 16th of June
19. Detektivbyrån - E18
20. TALK 5
21. At the Gates - The swarm
22. Barra Head - Kill the lights
23. TALK 6
24. The Tough Alliance - Leg 7
25. Torpedo - My evil twin
26. Alog - Catch that totem!
27. TALK 7
28. Valley Days - 10k angels
29. A-ha - Celice
30. Victims - Who the fuck are we?
31. TALK 8
32. The Vicious - Alienated
33. Viola - Unreal life
34. Zweizz - Nowadays the only boring everything is so frustrating
35. Viktor Sjöberg - Winter guitars
36. TALK 9
37. Closer - The talker
38. Aerial - My god, it's full of stars!
39. The Kissaway Trail - La la song
40. Laakso - Italy vs Helsinki
41. The Psyke Project - Panic
42. TALK 10
43. C.Aarmé - We are the world

Next week: expect lots more killer jams including totally a brand new track from Closer and maybe even a spotlight set on post-rock/ambient music. Good times!]]> Sat, 21 Apr 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2096 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2096 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2096#comments Maia Hirasawa managed to sneak into this week's It's A Trap! Last.fm listening group top 10 track chart amidst all the various international indie flavors-of-the-moment:

01. The Arcade Fire - Keep the Car Running
02. The Arcade Fire - Black Mirror
03. The Arcade Fire - No Cars Go
04. The Arcade Fire - Intervention
05. LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great
06. The Arcade Fire - My Body Is A Cage
07. The Arcade Fire - The Well and the Lighthouse
08. Modest Mouse - Dashboard
09. LCD Soundsystem - Get Innocuous
10. Maia Hirasawa - Gothenburg

Do you listen to music on your computer or with an iPod? Join us and share your tastes! Go here to learn more: http://www.last.fm/help/]]> Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0700 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27777-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27777-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg http://www.itsatrap.com/n/27777-mp3-maia-hirasawa-gothenburg#comments Maia Hirasawa's debut single "And I found this boy" is classic indiepop through and through, right on down to the big dance number in the video. A little sugary sweet perhaps, but perfect for that transition from winter to spring. But what of the rest of the record? Thankfully, it's more than cutesy girlpop and songs about boys. There are moments of that, sure, but it's all very well-done and balanced with other, more introspective and contemplative material. In the same way that I suspect some people were turned off from Hello Saferide because of "the lesbian song" ("My best friend"), understand that there's much more to it. It's the non-single tracks that elevate the album as a whole. Take "Gothenburg" for example - a song about a very specific place and time. The music is totally different, but I can't help but be reminded of Jawbreaker's "West Bay invitational". That's a song that is even more time/place specific, but its essence - the power of capturing that singular moment - is what's important and what makes it so strong and memorable. This will be a song to revisit in years to come.]]> Mon, 19 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0700 mp3s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25674-profile-grande-roses http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25674-profile-grande-roses http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25674-profile-grande-roses#comments Name: Grande Roses

From: All over Sweden

Sounds like: Raucous country rock'n'roll

Listen: Burst

Discography:
2006 - Arctic heart EP (New Noise)

Links:
www.granderoses.com
www.myspace.com/granderoses

I like country and I like punk-rock. Marry the two together and the results actually come out pretty damn good. Bands like X and Social Distortion paved the way, Grande Roses continues the tradition. Frontman Göran Messelt Andersson recently took some time to answer a few questions about the band and explain why their first release took them so long.

Who are you guys and where are you from? How did everyone meet and start playing together?

Well to start with, we're all from diffrent parts of Sweden. I'm from Hammarö, an island outside Karlstad. Johan, Eb and Ekan are from Östersund and Anders, our pedal steeler's from Vargön. But now me, Eb and Ekan live in Stockholm, Johan is in Östersund and Anders in Gothenburg. But it works fine - I'm the least talented one so I'm the only one that needs to rehearse.

Why country music? Was it a natural evolution over time or something you simply jumped into?

Some years ago I lived in Tärnaby, go north and when there's 3 hours between the villages... turn left.

I had no one to play with and I got sick so I called a friend with a classic fostex portable 4-track studio and told him to put it on a bus...

You know woods, mountains, -30 degrees... It just wasn't an option.

Fast songs only? What's up with that? Do you have something to prove or are you just scared of embracing your emotions?

This is where the actual Grande Roses story (curse) begins... Actually 2 1/2 years earlier...

I lived in a small town called Duved, not too far from Östersund, and they have or had a counrtyfestival. Every year I signed up... But I needed a some one to play pedel steel so I got in touch with Johan. It turned out he'd never played it before, but was an outstanding guitarplayer. We recorded some songs and and found it quite fun. Then we got a record deal with a small company and everything was fine. I went into the studio with 8 written songs and 4 half-written and planned to record it under 5 days... I couldn't. So we focused on the fast ones... And I didn't get them finished either. So me and Johan recorded five slow ones (emotional and heartbreaking) in his studio as a compliment to the fast ones. But it turned out the sound was so diffrent from the first recording, so we'd figured, "well let's do this as an EP." The record label didn't like it. And it took us over a year to sort things out. Some of us did not accept it, the company didn't accept the other way and I was stuck in between not caring at all. Resulting in me almost losing my bandmembers for my huge ego... haha. But we dropped everything, went in to Johan's studio once again and this is what came out. Oh, when we recorded the song "Arctic heart" and only had the vocals left, the tape got screwed and it was useless... So up with the drums and everything again, starting over and... screwed again. But this time it wasn't compleatly ruined, we toggled it out and you can hear the result in the second refrain. Then everything after that's just like a small stone in your shoe (we just laugh at it). We were on the Razzia Xmas compilation [ed: "Oh no... it's Christmas!"] and the first verse is missing... and when the send us the records there's been a mistake and it wasn't enough stamps, so I had to bail 'em out. And the same story with the 7"s. The Swedish post office missplaced the address so we didn't know they were in Sweden and when we tried to get them 2 weeks later, we couldn't get them at first 'cuz they didn't know how send them (terrorists are growing on trees here you know). Things just got delayed... 2 1/2 years to be exact.

So for now on we leave our plans at home... They don't work anyway.

You grew up with punk-rock, right? Do you think there's still an element of that in what you're doing now?

I grew up punk and then I got old... haha. No, there still some left. Well to start with, we play a lot faster than others and then we have a pretty hard "we don't really care attitude". But we're way too nice and kind to be really punk... I'm married and have a job, how punk is that!?

What's your take on the current punk scene in Sweden?

I dont really know. I'm not into it any more but our record label [ed: New Noise] handles a few good ones.

Who's your hero? What kind of person do you aspire to be?

Well, I would like to say Roky Erickson. There's so many songs from the Elevators and the solo things after that... It's so brilliant. I remember sitting at a friends house listning to At the Gates "The red in the sky is ours" album and then he put on the "Evil one" album and I was hooked... I listen to it almost every day since then. Musically - Roky Erickson, mentally - no. I like Union Carbide as well and Neko Case... Let's say we're a mix of those three without the brilliance. The Ikea version, almost the same, but not quite the same and we have missing parts... haha

Lastly, what's the future for Grande Roses look like? When will we hear some of those slow songs?

Well, last time we sat a date for a release it took us 2 1/2 years. Let's just end there.

]]> Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0800 articles interviews http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2810 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2810 http://www.itsatrap.com/n/2810#comments Updated live dates for Swedish electro/goth act Hearts of Black Science:

03/08 - The Luminaire, London (UK) (Single release party)
03/09 - Betsey Trotwood, London (UK)
03/10 - Water Rats Theatre, London (UK)
03/27 - London Brixton Windmill, London (UK) w/SonicFlyer
03/28 - BBC 6 Radio Live Session w/Gideon Coe
03/28 - Buffalo Bar, London (UK)
03/29 - Bootle Street Circus, Manchester (UK)
03/30 - Sticky Fingers, Gothenburg (SWE) (Album release party)
04/02 - tbc, Stockholm (SWE)
04/14 - Lark In The Park, London (UK)
04/16 - George Tavern, London (UK)
04/17 - Industry, London (UK)
04/20 - Hope & Anchor, London (UK)
04/21 - The Engine Room, Brighton (UK)

The band's new album "The ghost you left behind" comes out April 2 via UK-based label Club AC30. In other news, check out the ridiculous, intentionally cheesy ItaloDisco remix they did for friends Hotel Motel: http://www.myspace.com/hotelmotel
The overdubbed guitar riff on the second verse made me LOL.]]> Wed, 31 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0800 news http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25659-top-10s-for-2006-thomas-ekelund-dead-letters-spell-out-dead-words http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25659-top-10s-for-2006-thomas-ekelund-dead-letters-spell-out-dead-words http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25659-top-10s-for-2006-thomas-ekelund-dead-letters-spell-out-dead-words#comments In no particular order:

Edwige - The Inconsolable Widow Thanks All Those Who Consoled Her (Album)

Tsukimono - Née (Album)

Jonas Lindgren - Lights Will Bring You, Home (EP)

Wolf Eyes - Human Animal (Album)

Ronnie Sundin - The Amature Hermetic (Album)

Violet - Blind From Staring At The Sun (Album)

Om - Conference of the Birds (Album)

Viktor Sjöberg - On A Winter's Day (Album)

The New Alchemy - Organic Universe (Album)


---------------------------

Thomas Ekelund is a musician, artist & graphic designer working in Gothenburg, Sweden. His second CD as Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words entitled "Old ghosts, new ghosts, all ghosts" is out now on Ideal Recordings. Planned releases for 2007 include "Fall, fall, falling" CD on Kalligrammofon, "Lost in reflections" CD on Ideal, "Drowning in a see of hiss" CDr on Mystery Sea and the much anticipated debut album of Dead Violets, a drone core project with Jeff Surak of Violet/Zeromoon.
www.deadwords.org
www.nullvoid.net
www.whenskiesaregrey.se

]]> Mon, 18 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0800 articles top10s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25646-top-10s-for-2006-closer http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25646-top-10s-for-2006-closer http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25646-top-10s-for-2006-closer#comments 01. Tool (live in Gothenburg)

02. Mew (band)

03. The Baritone (instrument)

04. MySpace (hack)

05. Converge - No Heroes (album)

06. God Damn Trio (band, www.goddamntrio.com)

07. Satyricon (live in Gothenburg)

08. Caché (movie)

09. Halloween (costume party)

10. Laleh (live on Swedish morning show Nyhetsmorgon)


---------------------------

Closer is officially booked to record their second EP during the first week of January. They are currently in the midst of rehearsing, preparing and arranging. It might get darker and even more intricate this time around.
www.closersounds.com
www.myspace.com/closersounds

]]> Fri, 08 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0800 articles top10s http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25645-interview-sarah-assbring-el-perro-del-mar http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25645-interview-sarah-assbring-el-perro-del-mar http://www.itsatrap.com/n/25645-interview-sarah-assbring-el-perro-del-mar#comments I few weeks ago I had a special chance to sit down at a café with Sarah Assbring of El Perro Del Mar, and the following interview, actually moreso a conversation is what I recorded down. It was refreshing to just relax and chat and talk about music, and more importantly what goes into the music in her create process. The show review was already posted, but this took place in the early evening the day before, and I had a great time, and I hope she did too, and I hope you, the reader does as well. I would like to thanks Filip for setting it up for me, and Sarah for providing me with a lovely time.
- Matt Giordano

MG: So how have the shows gone, from your perspective, in the States?

SA: Really, really well. I'm really, really happy about them. The first place I played at was very small and very intimate and was amazing and the second place was very different, but also amazing; and last night was also very good, and the venues have been very varied, and I like that.

MG: At first I was thought it was going to be just you coming over here, but was pleasantly surprised to learn that it was going to be full band. Did you bring a horn section with you?

SA: No, I don't. That's something I'm going to do later when I have greater possibilities, and it's very sad that I cannot do that, but I just have to accept the fact that I can't. So, it becomes a translation of the songs in another kind of way, with bass, guitar, and backing vocals.

MG: Knowing that the Scandinavian version of your album was released in May 2005, and the others not until the Spring 2006 (UK) and now November 2006 for the US release, how has that affected you working on new material?

SA: In one way you can say the build up, and the development has been perfect for me because it's been going at a very natural pace and I've been very happy about it. But, at the same time I can't deny the fact that was released a long time ago so it's not old, but I'm very anxious to get on to record new stuff, and I've been writing songs for so long. It's been difficult touring and singing a lot, because it delays the work even.

MG: Do you end up playing a lot of the new stuff live?

SA: No, I don't, especially not this yet, because it's going to be very, very ambitious, very orchestral. I'm going to try to do it.

MG: I can see that happening, especially with how Look! It's El Perro Del Mar closed out. The last three or four tracks contain a lot of subtle textures, I'm not sure if it's organ or strings that play with one another, and I could see you playing live with something akin to a string quartet, as well as a horn section.

SA: Well, that was my plan, my dream. I think I've said to people: "I'm never going to perform live unless it's with a big orchestra" because that would give me a amazing opportunity, but that's something to dream about one day.

MG: How is, from inside the Swedish music scene looking outward? A lot of artists have begun to get a lot of press, especially in the UK and the States.

SA: I get that question so much, and it's very difficult to say, and it is a whole different thing looking from the inside; and I understand from the outside it's thought of as "what's happening over there" people always ask what's in the water and things like that. For me, it's very hard to come up with an answer for it, because when I'm making my music I'm doing what I did, and I could have made it on an island on the middle of the ocean. I had no idea what was going on music-wise, because I wasn't listening to any contemporary music at all during that time. I didn't know any bands, and I didn't know anyone when I made the record, but, at the same time, trying to think of the reason that would set us apart from any other country. I think that a lot of the bands that are coming here and getting press and being written about, they are mostly independent bands, very very independent bands: running their owns labels, setting up studios. Most of them are totally independent, and there's not a big machine, and they're totally involved in music, and the music speaks for itself.

MG: I see a lot bands collaborating with each other.

SA: Yes, and it's all about the music, working with other people because you love each others' music.

MG: And that's the most amazing part to me, everyone meeting and just an amalgamate of ideas. It's like Rem Koolhaas working with Arne Quinze to complete a building. So, do you have any artistic outlets other than music?

SA: No, I don't, but I have an urge to paint, and I did paint a lot when I was younger. But, I feel I have an urge for it sometimes. I really like going into something very meditative. But making music for me, because I write and produce and play everything, I think I can get so many different aspects of feeling this music. It can both be very creative and abstract, and very concrete and practical and practical as well; and it's very satisfying. It's very much going into something, and tweaking. I think it's very much that I have found a way of making music that satisfies the whole aspect of being creative, and the feeling of the need to be creative. It's fun, and it's hard and it's as difficult as it is, it's meditative, and it's everything.

MG: So when you get back to Sweden are you going to relax for a bit after the tour?

SA: No, when I get back, I'm very anxious to get back to the studio and to begin working on new material, and I have been for so long.

MG: I'm curious, what is your studio set up like?

SA: I built a studio together with my boyfriend, and we have been building it up slowly for a lot of years, and now I can do everything I want. Now I'm at the stage where I work alone, and when it's time to rework I record other musicians. But now I'm at the point where I'm doing everything, my own recording.

MG: Is it in a wood cabin?

SA: No, it's not. Actually it's in an industrial kind of cellar and it's really cosy, it's a perfect haven. It has no windows, and when you close the door, it's as if you're out of time. It's exactly how I want it. I have the perfect food of thought for things, and it's what a studio should be like for me.

MG: I guess that's the other thing, having your own comfort. You don't want to go into some huge studio and be overwhelmed by everything,

SA: Yes, exactly; having it be handled by someone, some other person, and at someone else's place, that would just be totally wrong, and not very creative at all. The studio is an art, it's the place where you have all the pains, go crazy and do whatever you want, so that's what I guess the studio is for me.

MG: You could also live there if you want, not all the time, but maybe have a cot available if you work late.

SA: If I could, definitely. That's another part of it that's really good that I've come to learn: it is an artistic profession, but it is my profession, it is my job. I go there and I work very focussed and then I go home, and the working day is over. I mean, I like that. I didn't ever think that I would come to a place where I felt that's the aura, the whole beauty of it. I think it's good to have that look upon it as well: this is my job, and I have to as professional as I can about it. You need to have a routine, because then if you don't, it would just be scrabble. It's a good thing, the feeling that you have this creativity, and you have a knowledge of how it works, where you work.

MG: What did you do before, I mean, Sweden is a smaller country, and you can play a lot of shows, but you do not want to over-play. Did you work odd-jobs?

SA: I did. For quite a long time I studied, and then I had a job at the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, and that was a perfect haven to be in. And then for the last two and a half years I've been able to make music full-time.

MG: I guess maybe working there, had a direct influence on what you want to do next.

SA: Definitely, definitely.

MG: So, when you work on a song, do you think of the vocal melody first and base the music on that, or will you write the instrumentation first?

SA: It varies, but I think it is very much based on a phrase, a phrase of the lyrics. I get a mood and a harmony out of a phrase. I have a notebook with one or two sentences on a page, and when I do the very "Nick Cave" kind of writing, I take my notebook, and I go through them and I find something and I work with that. Other times, I get the instant melody and the instant song. Sometimes the "Nick Cave", the going in the office and writing a song aspect works, most of the time that works, and that's what's so satisfying. It's very satisfying when you can have a very professional attitude towards your music, and you can feel it, It's coming from a very inner soul. The phrases that I write down in my notebook, they are instant, and they are preserved as the phrase in the notebook, and when I look at them a month later, I can see what I meant, and I can instantly reconnect to that feeling.

]]> Thu, 07 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0800 articles interviews