Meadow Music

I wrote about Profetian about a year ago. The project has taken shape and recently the duo released the EP “Stormen i Sågmon”. Now they sing entirely in Swedish and they call it doomsday pop and lo-funk. I’d like to add blackness and vibes from Swedish progressive music to this description.

According to the singer Christoffer Johansson, the name Profetian (“The Prophecy”) sort of grew out of the development of the songs, as these became darker and more serious. Christoffer wrote a poem with the name “Profetian”, with a content that in short meant “Everything’s going to hell, if we don’t shape up”. Since this ended up being an undertone in the songs they took it as their band name.

Profetian has a Facebook page and you can listen to and download the EP on Bandcamp.

Gråljus

I wrote about Profetian about a year ago. The project has taken shape and recently the duo released the EP "Stormen i Sågmon". Now they sing entirely in Swedish and they call it doomsday pop and lo-funk. I'd like to add blackness and vibes from Swedish progressive music to this description. According to the singer Christoffer Johansson, ...

Tobias Bergholm’s solo project, Lovers Forgive Me, is back with a new EP, “400 slag” (“400 Beats”). This EP differs quite a bit from the debut EP I wrote about earlier. The lyrics are now entirely in Swedish and the album feels more coherent. It’s also a different kind of darkness in these songs that have vibes partly from eighties’ new wave and partly from Swedish pop melancholy with a strong expression. And the songs have quite strong hooks too, especially the title song ”400 slag” and the song you can listen to here below, “Kärleksdöden” (“The Death of Love”).

I also took the opportunity to ask Tobias about the artist name, and he told me that the name came up 6 years ago when a band he had joined was going to be baptised. One of the suggestions was “Lovers Forgive Me”, but in the end another name was chosen. He got the idea when he was working in a clothes shop, where they were contantly playing music. He heard a song from the band Her Majesty with the line “Forgive me, Lovers Forgive Me for I am weak”. Right then, after he had just ended a relationship the words got to him. And when he was going to name his solo project 2 years ago, the line popped up again and just like Her Majesty named their band after a Beatles song, he named his project after one of their songs.

You can follow Lovers Forgive Me on Facebook. The EP is available on Bandcamp or on Spotify.

Kärleksdöden

Tobias Bergholm's solo project, Lovers Forgive Me, is back with a new EP, "400 slag" ("400 Beats"). This EP differs quite a bit from the debut EP I wrote about earlier. The lyrics are now entirely in Swedish and the album feels more coherent. It's also a different kind of darkness in these songs ...

Three years ago I wrote about Stefan Leoson and his album “Pennies and Heartaches”. He then also gave me a song as a taste of a follow-up album, that I included in the post. After a while, though, he felt that he ran into a dead-end with the route he was following, and decided to start all over again. He created the artist name HMS Leoson (His Majesty Stefan Leoson), and in January he released the debut EP “The One Man Tribe EP”.

And even if the nice melodies and the big sound are still there, this is a completely different Leoson we’re seeing here. It feels like if the cork has been removed from the bottle and out pours everything that he wants to say and do. It’s darker, rawer and sharper under the name of a character who wants to take on the world. It’s done with tounge in cheek but at the same time it feels honest and direct, a mix of who you want to be and who you’d like to pretend to be.

The EP is actually a first taste of the upcoming album “Superior Being” and the song here below, he describes as a program declaration for the album. You can follow HMS Leoson on Facebook. You can also listen on the Bandcamp page or on Spotify.

Royal Parasite

Three years ago I wrote about Stefan Leoson and his album "Pennies and Heartaches". He then also gave me a song as a taste of a follow-up album, that I included in the post. After a while, though, he felt that he ran into a dead-end with the route he was following, and decided to ...

A lot of things have happened to Oh My!‘s sound since I wrote about them two years ago. Back then, they had entered a studio, recorded and mixed five songs in less than 20 hours, while their current productions hardly can be created that fast. They have, since a while back, stepped out of the garage and put themselves on a bigger stage.

The base is still there, though: a feelgood indie with nice melodies and raw guitars. So far they have released a few singles, that have gained quite some traction in for example national Swedish radio, and now on February 29th, they will release a three-track EP on vinyl. Additionally, a week ago, the new song “Fifteen Minutes” was the starting track on a new  collection from their label A West Side Fabrication.

As usual I asked how the band name was born, and obviously it had something to do with Christoffer Walken:

As a celebration to the American actor Christopher Walken’s magical, beautiful hair, the band chose to call themselves “Christopher Walken’s Hair, Oh My!”. They even tried to contact Mr. Walken to check out that he didn’t mind, but to no avail. But pretty soon the guys realised how complicated and unnecessary the long name was. So they settled for the shorter Oh My!
(translated from Swedish)

You can keep track of tha band’s doings on their site or on Facebook, and their songs are also available on Spotify.

Fifteen Minutes

A lot of things have happened to Oh My!'s sound since I wrote about them two years ago. Back then, they had entered a studio, recorded and mixed five songs in less than 20 hours, while their current productions hardly can be created that fast. They have, since a while back, stepped out of ...

Friday night is here and I aim to finish this week by helping you get a good feeling for the weekend. And for this I get help from Six Figure Transatlantic’s new album “The Owl”, which in fact is their debut album, even though they started already in 1999.

I wrote about the band a couple of years ago, and then the album was on it’s way, but you know, if you’re waiting for something good… And good it is, at least if you like soft americana, singer/songwriter and a nice retro sound. If you’ve encountered the band before, you’ve probably heard some of the songs on their earlier EP:s.

It was the singer and guitarist Mattias Dahl who came up with the name, Six Figure Transatlantic. Sick in fever, he read the name on a truck during a subway trip. The band was looking for an unusual name, it sounded sweet for them and they settled for the name. Afterwards it turned out that there weren’t any truck companies with that name; Mattias had misread the whole thing.

To listen to “The Owl”, you can go to Spotify or similar services. The band also has a Facebook page and a home page.

Last Waltz
All Over Town

Friday night is here and I aim to finish this week by helping you get a good feeling for the weekend. And for this I get help from Six Figure Transatlantic's new album "The Owl", which in fact is their debut album, even though they started already in 1999. I wrote about the band a couple of ...

The Tranq, hailing from Örebro, recently released their debut EP “Peninsula”. It’s an EP and a sound with the roots firmly set in the eighties dramatic alternative rock/pop: the big rooms, the guitar sound, the snare drum, the lead synths, the male choirs and the drama expression in the vocals. And good for us they don’t take it too far, but pour some indie vibes into the mix as well, creating their own sound.

About the band name they tell me that they liked the harsh pronounciation of the name and the touching points with the song lyrics, which they want to be imbued with a subtle and calm social criticism.

You can listen to the four songs on their Soundcloud page or on Spotify. You can find the band on Facebook and on their site.

Kalinga

The Tranq, hailing from Örebro, recently released their debut EP "Peninsula". It's an EP and a sound with the roots firmly set in the eighties dramatic alternative rock/pop: the big rooms, the guitar sound, the snare drum, the lead synths, the male choirs and the drama expression in the vocals. And good for us ...

On February 28th The Mary Onettes will release the new EP “Love Forever”. For the first time, they have collaborated with an external producer, Dan Lissvik, which of course also affect how they sound. They write about the change:

Gone are the echoing reverbs, the 80′s guitars and the big, splashing drums. “Love Forever” is a wonder of genre-blurring fearlessness drawing on ambient textures, avant-garde rhythms and intricate arrangements.

As a taste of the EP, they have released the first song, “Love’s Taking Strange Ways”, which you can listen to and download below. You can find The Mary Onettes on Facebook or on their site.

Love’s Taking Strange Ways

On February 28th The Mary Onettes will release the new EP "Love Forever". For the first time, they have collaborated with an external producer, Dan Lissvik, which of course also affect how they sound. They write about the change: Gone are the echoing reverbs, the 80's guitars and the big, splashing drums. "Love Forever" is a wonder ...

Last year Joakim “Budji” Buddee” released the album “Eldsjälar och bananskal” (“Driving spirits and banana peels”), a hip hop album which doesn’t sound like I would expect hip hop would sound like, seen from my perspective as someone who just occasionally dive into the genre. Here I don’t find any drum machine beats or synth backgrounds; instead the sound is built upon drums , bass, piano and foremost acoustic guitars.

It works perfectly well, and I guess it’s a sign of the span in hip hop today. The formula of the songs is the traditional verse-rap + pop refrains and he does both really well. There are sticky, melodic refrains where he gets help from a number of singers like Hilda Dahlberg, Lovisa Birgersson and Tom Goren, and tight rap lyrics performed in a nice relaxed way by Budji himself plus a few guests like PelleP and Adam Opinio, lyrics that add a needed sharpness with social criticism about shallowness, comersialism and cynical politics.

You can download “Eldsjälar och bananskal” for free on Whoa, and you can listen to the album on Budji’s site, the Facebook page or on Spotify. Here are two songs:

Sjukt kallt
Dygnet har vänt på mig

Last year Joakim "Budji" Buddee" released the album "Eldsjälar och bananskal" ("Driving spirits and banana peels"), a hip hop album which doesn't sound like I would expect hip hop would sound like, seen from my perspective as someone who just occasionally dive into the genre. Here I don't find any drum machine beats or synth ...

Joakim Jakobsson is a former member of The Search and last year he started the band Duellen (The Duel) together with Argentinian Brian Biezki. Brian soon left the band and instead the former The Search-members Tina Bergström and Mikael Saltzman plus Olle Bilius (Jeniferever) and Simon Lundström entered the band. Then in december the five-track debut EP was released.

It’s indie pop in Swedish, rather darkly colored, radiating with vibes from the eighties’ new wave scene. They vary smoothly from synth based songs to guitar driven ones without losing the atmosphere. Straight melodies that stick quite fast on a good EP that promises more.

You can listen to the EP on Duellen’s Bandcamp page and on Spotify. You can follow the band on Facebook.

Sanningen

Joakim Jakobsson is a former member of The Search and last year he started the band Duellen (The Duel) together with Argentinian Brian Biezki. Brian soon left the band and instead the former The Search-members Tina Bergström and Mikael Saltzman plus Olle Bilius (Jeniferever) and Simon Lundström entered the band. Then in december the five-track debut EP was ...

Pal is Albin Johansson hailing from Malmö. In December he launched the 7-track debut album “Weeks”. It’s about a rather soft, dreamy pop, a bit minimalistic. The mix of analogue synths, guitars, old drum machines and often a nice rolling bass give a special feeling to the sound. It feels a little retro and I can’t help thinking of Air when I listen to the harmonies and the bass figures. A very nice new acquaintance and you can listen to the entire album on Pal’s Bandcamp page.

The name Pal, Albin invented in 2007 when he uploaded his first home recordings to Myspace. He wanted to be anonymous and he liked the combination with the hint to his first name and the meaning of the word.

You can also find Pal on Tumblr, Facebook and on Spotify.

Anything

Pal is Albin Johansson hailing from Malmö. In December he launched the 7-track debut album "Weeks". It's about a rather soft, dreamy pop, a bit minimalistic. The mix of analogue synths, guitars, old drum machines and often a nice rolling bass give a special feeling to the sound. It feels a little retro and I ...