Tag: Reviews
7
This Barr, not to be confused with the American band Barr, plays quite the relaxing psych-folk with amazing vocal harmonies reminscent of Crosby, Stills & Nash. At four songs, it's easy to recommend listening to the whole lot, as it's sa ixteen minutes long breeze-by like the afternoon bottle of wine you enjoy on the porch. With a light, airy feel that would fit in between José González and the Kings Of Convenience, Barr is surely to become more well-known, and I can only hope to hear a full-length by them before the summer's out (specificially August), as it could make the appropriate closing to anyone's summer.
- Matt Giordano
8
Marit Bergman played a short, yet very stellar set last night opening for Smoosh and The Pipettes. With her on guitar and flanked by three background singers dressed all in white, whom she intrduced as Joy, Nina (Persson) and Kat. Sticking mostly with mellow numbers from her most recent album "I think it's a rainbow", she breezed through a very brief twenty-five minute set. Highlights included absolutely gorgeous and intimate versions of "Today will be the day when mourning ends", "No party", "I will always be your soldier", "Eyes were blue" and "Mama, I remember you now" and she closed with a new song. The trio of backing vocalists aided the whole set, either by emphasizing the hook of "No party" or by making "Today will be the day when mourning ends" one of the prettiest songs I have ever heard performed. Marit was the perfect opener for a great night of pop music and was given quite the reception by the crowd at her set's completion.
- Matt Giordano
8
It's finally here: the Shout Out Louds second album. I was wondering when the band would stop touring and record and last fall they entered the studio with Björn Yttling. In contrast to their debut album "Howl howl gaff gaff", where I thought the production overshadowed the both the songwriting and performance, everything is hit in stride and the songwriting has grown up a bit. With the single "Tonight I have to leave it" invading clubs and venues worldwide, the album is being set up to be one of the biggest indie releases of the year. Standout tracks such as "You are dreaming", "Normandie", "Time left for love" and "Blue headlights" (keyboardist Bebban Stenborg's singing debut) really connect with the listener, with both strong hooks and great lyrics. The album closes out in style with "Hard rain", a track that is most akin to "Howl howl gaff gaff" in feel, but not overpowered by production. Instead the production values allow the song to breathe and unfold before your ears. Although I thought the band should have gotten better known with their debut, this record surely will; and has been one of the records I have listened to the most so far this year.
- Matt Giordano
4
This is not the impression I have of those prankters in Slagsmålsklubben. Frej and Co. always equals party-startin' and joyful madness! Or they used to at least. "Boss for leader" shows a much darker and stern side of the lads originally from Norrköping, Östergötland. Although "Hänt" and "Malmö beach night party" resembles somewhat of the 'old' Slagsmålsklubben (with hits like "Övningsköra", "Wellington Sears" and "SMK hittar munspelet", all taken from "Den svenske disco", a great album), "Boss for leader" never really becomes that great album I'd hoped for. And that's a shame, since this was going to be their big introduction to the masses. "Boss for leader" just ain't a fair representation of the band. Not that I think the hardcore fans will ever care, to them (and me) Slagsmålsklubben will always be the band to start up parties and "Övningsköra" will always be the song on max volume on everybodys boombox on every festival you go to.
- Christian Stenbacke
8
There are records, and then there are records. Petter Seander, one of the two Sleeping Beauties, said it himself in a recent interview "There are lots of bands, especially in this British punk/rock-hype that's going on right now, that initally makes me go 'Fuck yeah!'. But when you listen to the record for the fith time everyting just sounds the same." After listening to "Embrace" for the fifth time, everything definitely don't sound the same. On the contrary, "Embrace" needs at least five spins before you're able to penetrate the beautiful thing that it is. At first sight, Sleeping Beauty comes on like a band with a problem deciding what they actually want to sound like. They mix everying from blues and Americana to easy-listening pop and roots rock. But that's not nessecarily a bad thing - given time, "Embrace" grows on you tremendously. The wide spectra of the songs becomes somewhat of a strength and it keeps you interested. Each song affects the other, the first couple are quite the kick start with grand gestures, where the ballads are genuine ballads, slow and oozing with heart-stricken emotions. As a whole, "Embrace" will take you for quite a ride.
- Christian Stenbacke
4
This record has been tough for me to listen to, not necessarily as a result of the music, but to even open up the case to put the cd in the player. The artwork is so atrocious (which is an understatement) that I really struggled to get past that barrier to listen to what's underneath. It's a bit of a shame too, because some of the tracks on here ("Episode 3 1! 2! 3! 4!", "SmallBlondeFreakyMother" and "Dearest dearest") are pretty good. But it's just left me a bit confused, because if a band puts this much effort into writing songs and compiling them into an album, they'd have better artwork (that would actually refelct their indie/alt rock circus sound) rather than really, really bad graffitti sketches that would even look out of place in the early nineties. In the music industry, (sadly) image sells as much as the recorded output, and if they're projecting themselves to be bad visually, then one would assume the plastic circle inside is bad as well, which is quite defeatist, and ultimately disappointing to me.
- Matt Giordano
8
Masterful. This album will make you readdress what you thought you knew of Brun. Smokey vox and bewitching string segments set stall on this career busting 17 song span of live tracks recorded towards the tail end of 2006. The collection foists great merit on her performances. At times Brun eclipes Åström, Weeping Willows, Madrugada in the bitter sweet stakes. The big sounds wailing blue, alt-country (I should be shot for using that description) on such 'beauts as "Lift me" (with equally beguiling Nina Kinert as opposed to Madrugada's Sivert Høyem), and the more up tempo "No. 6", are just two very strong highlights. "Balloon ranger" darts violin, the double bass. KT Tunstall would be proud of "So you did it again".
- Jason Christie
6
Dimmu Borgir's seventh album is the first black metal album to ever have a number one chart position in any country (number one in Norway). That alone should turn "real" black metal fans off. This is the follow up to "Death cult armageddon", and it would be so easy to shoot down this band as just being black metal for beginners. Well, that is a true statement, however you can't deny the great musicianship and the actual songwriting talent these guys possess. The music is actually a bit heavier than the last few albums and less orcestrated. Shagrath is taking a step forward as a singer and Hellhammer (Mayhem) beats the shit out of the drums as he should. Black metal or not, it's still entertaining music, but not enough to keep me interested the whole album through.
This concept album takes place in medieval Europe and I can't say I'm very intimate with its story, but the main theme is of a priest's assistant that discovers that he has nothing to do with Christianity, and that his powers are greater than he thought. Not a very frightening story but I would probably love this if I was still in my teens.
- Richard Wilson
8
As the first song of the album goes: Nu händer det igen ("It is happening again"). A Scanian artist takes the special Scanian accent and makes it into an integral part of the music. Originally from Hässleholm, the same town that gave us Sophie Rimheden and Andreas Tilliander, one-man band Familjen gives us yet another electro hero. Filled with playfulness, without rose-eyed 80s nostalgia, Familjen feels very modern. He blends naive 80s melodies, 90s beats and 00s glitches into a cohesive whole. That combined with his squealing 303s and subtle guitars makes it all sound like it was recorded tomorrow. Album standout (and former IAT MP3 Of The Day) "Det snurrar i min skalle" should become one of the biggest hits of the summer, but the album is filled with songs almost as good. Finally, the lyrics must be mentioned. Familjen has a way with words, and has a knack for finding phrases that catch on. Music you can dance to, plus makes you think? Shocking!
- Hanzan
3
Reading through Frost's webpage, I get the impression that the duo think they are a much better band than they actually are. The purpose of their new album, "Love! Revolution!" is, supposedly, to "search for the lost pop of that golden era when joy and creativity had as big a place in pop music as pure commerciality and copyism has had in the last decades." Fine. I'll admit that they're a good step or so above Britney Spears. But, joyful? Creative? Don't make me laugh. Or hurl. Or both. I've heard this whole 'female vocals over minimalistic synth/electro - pop beats' before. Done exceptionally well by the likes of Ladytron, Frou Frou/Imogen Heap and even Circ, I might add. So I expect a new take on the genre, some quirkiness in the beats, some deftness in the lyrics to bring a smile to my lips. But there is none of that here. The lyrics aim to be poignant and touching, but wind up being cheesy and, at times, very, very painful to listen to. Even the cheap, 'lyrics be damned' side of me that will occasionally listen to the cheesiest techno on the airwaves couldn't be swayed by this mess; especially since there is only one catchy track on the whole album in "One hundred years". Ultimately, the only thing Frost have going for them is Aggie Peterson's frail, wistful vocal style, which will no doubt ensure that a good percentage of the tracks on "Love! Revolution!" will get the remix treatment and earn the duo some recognition on the club scene (and possibly some revenue). In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if that might have been their sole, sorry objective all along. "Joy and creativity", my ass. Frost are only kidding themselves.
- Heinrich Souza
7
"Szklarska Poreba", the last major release by Fun invoked images in my mind of a vacation gone horribly wrong, à la "The hills have eyes", or the original "Texas chainsaw massacre". Between the distorted facial expressions on the cover art, the wild, screw-core riffs and barely intelligible lyrics sung with screaming, almost spit-inducing vocals, it isn't hard to see why. Ultimately though, the album proved much too chaotic for me to fully enjoy. Which is why I'm so pleasantly surprised by their new release, "Zu-pa!". Credit engineer Steve Albini, or a new found maturity on the part of the band, but "Zu-pa!" is a much more focused, deliberate piece of work. This time around, the mood is more sinister and still more disturbing, with the same energy of their earlier efforts. The songs feature the same vocal style and great riffs, but everything seems more deliberate, like the calm, collected mind of a cold, calculating serial killer. With songs like "Angora", "Conflictaholic" and the deliciously creepy "I've got a truck", I can't help but think of the band playing some dive in the middle of nowhere and making observations about the disturbed clientèle that frequent the place. A great sophomore effort overall, leaving me hungry for more Fun. Oh, and there's a friggin' shark on the cover.
- Heinrich Souza
6
It has snowballed in a fast way for these Norwegian lads and I understand why. In these days, when every other band out there gets their kicks playing indierock with an epic touch, Heroes & Zeros perform with an edge that stands out. Sure, they sound a lot like Muse at times in their most energetic songs and the U2-influences is sometimes too obvious but, hey, that is in no way a bad thing. When a band can combine such influences with great songs, such as "The foolproof" and "Cellophane", a lot is won. In fact, the latter kind of sounds like Sparta and for that I applaud them. If this record contained more of that strong material I would reconsider the 6 out of 10 I eventually gave it. I'm not worried though; Heroes & Zeros will surely put out more of this arena rock judging by how young the band members are. Word has it that they're really good live so I'm awaiting some tour dates in Sweden to check them out. Meanwhile, I will put on "Porcelain" again and I suggest that you do the same.
- Jonas Appelqvist
8
Peeling off the layers of music has always been an interesting way to evolve for a band. And it certainly feels as if Karl Larsson finally found his home musically. This, the 5th album, is simply packed with rawk that has an astounding appeal. The man knows how to write catchy songs, but this collection are his masterpiece. And speaking of catchy, "Who's on the phone?" can possibly be the catchiest song to be released this year. Other favourites are the somewhat epic "Melbourne" and the sensitive and driven "Two ply glass". LDOA is a one-man project nowadays, but never is it a dull project. On the contrary, it is very much alive and kicking, something that the album title refers to. With Fredrik Granberg from Randy behind the drums and Mathias Oldén from Logh on bass, it's a combo that really tightens the sound together. And once and for all; I think we can finally erase that "emo rock"-mark LDOA have been labelled with for so long now.
- Jonas Appelqvist
8
The newest from Norway's Lionheart Brothers is a sweet little pop-rockin' 10-song confection that bears a heavy Beach Boys influence (the "Smile" era of Brian Wilson and crew, that is). Everything here is bright and peppy, with horns, organ and loads of other instruments adding delightful adornments to the concise tunes. Marcus Forsgren's lead vocals tend to be in the high register and they're mostly smooth as honey. The signature track is probably "Down at my place," which dazzles with a slinky mid-tempo arrangement, an infectious lead vocal and distinctive wordless backing vocals. Also stellar is "I burn myself on you," a cleverly constructed song that straddles major and minor keys in a compelling manner. Peter Rudolfsen's drumming is more than just timekeeping - there's artful intricacy in his playing. And the presence of instruments such as vibraphone, bouzouki and clavinet keeps the sound mix fresh and appealing - "Bring it down" is a good example of this. Although consistent and self-assured, one or two more really top-notch songs would have elevated this one a bit. But it's still a genuinely charming album, and I'd bet on Lionheart Brothers being one of the next Nordic outfits to gain attention stateside.
- Kevin Renick
4
Lordi would make Kiss proud. They have a restaurant, a Visa card, comics, their own cola and both a movie and a theme park in the works. And sometimes they even make music. Titles like "The deadite girls gone wild", "It snows in hell", "The chainsaw buffet", "The night of the loving dead" and "Would you love a monsterman?" say it better than anything I could write. It's cheesy, 80s heavy metal with a tongue pressed firmly in the cheek. Some of the songs are catchy. After all, it was not merely image that had them winning the Eurovision. And as a concept, Lordi is just brilliant. But the fact is that nothing on this CD is anywhere as fun or awesome as the comic I saw in Finland. The one where Mr Lordi, with his powers, forces Hitler to kill himself.
- Hanzan
Ane Brun
Familjen
Fun