PopMatters reviews Eric Malmberg's "Verklighet & beat": https://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/eric-malmberg-verklighet-beat/

Christian Kjellvander
I saw her from here/I saw here from her
Startracks/V2

Whereas "Faya" was more an extension of "Songs from a two-room chapel"; on his third solo album, Christian Kjellvander has not only been able to carry his lyrical ability through, but the arrangements on this album are such leaps forward. With the tempo brought up to Loosegoats levels on "Poppies and peonies", the single "Two souls" and "The road", the captivation is set for the true improvements: the soft numbers. Strings and distorted guitar solos flesh out "While the birches weep" over a very soft, yet pulsating beat; "Sons of the coast" is over held organ chords and ambiance. Kjellvander's trademark fingerpicking only really comes through on "Somewhere else" although a bit more sparse that usual, but fitting in context of the album. I have not seen much press on this album to date, but on "I saw her from here/I saw here from her", Christian Kjellvander has quietly delivered his best solo outing thus far.
- Matt Giordano

PopMatters reviews Norwegian ECM artist Frode Haltli: https://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/51204/frode-haltli-passing-images/

Mange Schmidt
Känslan kommer tillbaks
Razzia Records

About four years ago Mange Schmidt became semi-famous by doing Swedish versions of classic hip-hop tracks, then he released his first album last year and got a hit with "Glassigt". Schmidt raps in Swedish and his lyrics are really, really terrible; his rhymes are some of the worse I've ever heard in Swedish, and it grates on the ears to listen to him deliver one weak rhyme after another. He (or his producer) has got a knack for writing infectious hooks though, "Giftigt" and "Jag talar ut" are catchy songs with very poppy choruses that have a high hit factor. The beats on the album are actually not that bad, and I'm surprised that the once esteemed Thomas Rusiak has produced three songs on the album, it's a shame that Schmidt ruins all of them with his awful rapping. There's been a lot of talk about ringtone rappers this year, and I guess you could call Mange Schmidt Sweden's first real ringtone rapper. Lucky him!
- Simon Tagestam

Johan Hedberg
s/t
Cosy Recordings

This, the four song debut EP of Suburban Kid Johan Hedberg [the Labrador licensed rerelease adds an extra track, hence the "5 spårs EP" -ed], I actually find more a logical step from the band's earlier EPs Nos. 1 & 2. The Caribbean beach style beats, horns, and mariachi leaning guitar strumming are all highly present, along with Hedberg's sad croon. The two major differences are that the vocals are in Swedish and that there is much better production. The latter actually makes this more enjoyable for repeat listens, especially on tracks like "Grammisgalan" and "Har du själ?". At four songs it's obviously a bit short, but with some acts, formats such as this prove to be a wise decision.
- Matt Giordano

PopMatters reviews the international release of Aerial's "The sentinel": https://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/51618/aerial-the-sentinel/
Also reviewed. The State of Samuel's "Here come the floods": https://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/51489/the-state-of-samuel-here-come-the-floods/

The Washington Post reviews Sami neo-folk act Adjagas live in DC: https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/06/AR2007120602521.html (scroll down)

Themilkfactory reviews Norwegian artist Silje Nes: https://www.themilkfactory.co.uk/st/2007/12/silje-nes-ames-room-fat-cat-records-splinter-series/

E-Type
Eurotopia
Lulubelle Records/Universal

It's something of a miracle that E-Type can still peddle his music, let alone that he has been allowed to keep on doing it for so long. Why, after more than 10 years of sonic torture, haven't people taken to the streets and forced the Swedish government to ban E-Type from recording ever again? Is he perhaps big in Germany or Russia, and the Swedish people are scared of being invaded if they do something about this musical toxin? Last week Iran decided to start a war against obscene rap music, but if they had their priorities right they'd do the world a favour and concentrate their efforts on E-Type instead. If they did that, I'm sure that we'd all turn a blind eye to their plans to build nuclear arms.

Criticizing E-Type is perhaps like shooting fish in a barrel, but I think I'm justified to do this since I've had the extreme displeasure of listening to "Eurotopia" in its entirety while on public transport. It made me feel ashamed and depressed, as if I was sitting there and having my ears raped voluntarily. Being subjected to this album has definitely been one of the most unpleasant experiences I've had in 2007, although deleting it from my ipod gave me a serene feeling of having my soul cleansed.
- Simon Tagestam

PopMatters reviews Norwegian hype noiserockers Ungdomskulen: https://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/51540/ungdomskulen-cry-baby/

Dusted reviews the latest Witchcraft album "The alchemist": https://www.dustedmagazine.com/reviews/4002

Various Artists
Whispers from the forest, screams from the mountains
The Wire

I know it probably seems odd to review a free comp with limited availability (it was primarily distributed to subscribers of UK mag The Wire with copies of the December issue), but when you consider how well this collection captures the most exciting aspects of Sweden's current music scene, it should hopefully make sense. Simply put, Häpna, Ideal Recordings and Kning Disk are the top three Swedish labels currently releasing a consistent stream of interesting, forward-thinking music. Even with the few artists I'm not so fond of such as Nicolai Dunger's A Taste of Ra, I would never fault their craftsmanship or imagination. It might not appeal directly to my own personal tastes, but it has my utmost respect and that is of crucial importance. There's always something to admire, even when you are not inclined to investigate further.

As for the styles of music explored in this collection, it's incredibly rich and diverse. There's everything from pop melodicism (Anna Järvinen, Eric Malmberg, Balroynigress) to dark, terrifying drones (Sewer Election, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words, The Skull Defekts), fractured experimentalism (Hans Appelqvist, Tape, Folke Rabe) and classical composition (Erik Enocksson, Jerry Johansson and Library Tapes). All in all, a perfect portrait of where to look for the future of Swedish music. Ignore it and get left behind.
- Avi Roig

Pitchfork reviews the latest album "My last day" from Norwegian artist Kim Hiorthø: https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/47094-my-last-day

Ebba Grön
We're only in it for the drugs/Kärlek och uppror/Ebba Grön
Mistlur/MNW

Swedish legendary punk band Ebba Grön only recorded three studio albums, but since their demise in 1983 (after being together for 6 years), three compilations, one live album and a four disc box set have all been released (the last compilation was released in 2005). The reason for this is simple - Ebba Grön still sell records in Sweden, due to the simple fact that they were really good (their singer Joakim Thåström also had a successful career after Ebba Grön, both with Imperiet and currently as a solo artist). Earlier this year all of their studio albums were reissued with a couple of bonus singles and b-sides not featured on the original albums stuck onto each disc. Ebba Grön's first album "We're only in it for the drugs" (don't let the English title fool you, Ebba Grön, on their records, strictly sang in Swedish, and also - the title is ironic) came out 1979 and it's without a doubt their finest work and one of the best Swedish albums of all time. After that they went a bit too soft and acquired too much of that 80s swing that sounds so dated today. If you'd like to check out some classic Swedish punk, I'd recommend you to get "We're only..." or "Ebba Grön samlingen". "We're only..." is raw and energetic whereas with the follow-ups, Ebba Grön became more and more pop and less punk. "Kärlek och uppror" is a bit hit and miss and their third (self-titled) album is more miss than hit, despite having classics such as "Flyktsoda" on it. The Swedish punk scene in the last 70s and early 80s was perhaps vibrant and some great songs were certainly produced, but overall it didn't really make too much of a mark. Ebba Grön are the exception to this, they were in a different league to the rest, a bit like what Refused were to Swedish hardcore in the 90s.

Individual Scores:
We're only in it for the drugs: 10
Kärlek och uppror: 7
Ebba Grön: 5
- Simon Tagestam

Rigas
The hardest pocket to pick
Flora & Fauna

Starting off with the Radio Dept.-like "Keep pushing it forward", Rigas and company establish the modus operandi for their second album: to lambaste us with melodic, quirky electro pop. So, not much has changed really, and, depending on whether you are already a fan or not, this is either great or disappointing news. While they never return to the slower, more reflective mood of the opening track, Rigas compensate with dirty beats and catchy synth leads evoking dance floors of the early 90s and the more idiosyncratic compositions of hip-hop artists like Robyn. If 'playfully bizarre' sounds like something you're into, you can't go too far wrong with "The hardest pocket to pick". Not stellar, but definitely not boring.
- Lars Garvey Laing-Peterson