Marigold

Billy the Zombie Kid – “The Blessing and the Curse” – EP

Billy The Zombie Kid is a band from Borlänge, who released the debut album “The Blessing and the Curse” a couple of months ago. It contains five songs with a melodic, alternative pop/rock spiced up with electronica, well a bit in the direction of The Killers. Here’s the title track “The Blessing and the Curse”:

Marigold – “Allt kommer bli bra”

The next band, Marigold is also from Borlänge. A month ago they released the single “Allt kommer bli bra” and last year the excellent EP “Och så kom regnet”. I can sense a part of The Killers here also, but here more in the direction of synth pop, as a melancholic, a bit eighties-like ambience sweeps into the room. Here’s the latest single together with “City Farewell” from the EP:

Sisilisko – “Waldeinsamkeit” – EP

I wrote about the duo Sisilisko, Albin Boman and Peter Engqvist, in the Autumn. Now they are back with the EP “Waldeinsamkeit”, an EP where their doom-folk music runs further into the dark woods to explore the mystique, nature and darkness. Here’s “The Woods” from the album:

Lerin/Hystad – “Mount Buzhou” – album

On the 25th of April the Swedish/Norwegian duo Simon Torssell Lerin and Bettina Hvidevold Hystad are releasing their debut album “Mount Buzhou”. The album title is taken from the name of a mountain in Chinese mythology, a mountain said to have supported the heavens.

The Chinese tradition also run through the music. In 2010 the duo travelled to Kunming in the south west of China, where over 1000 retired musicians gathered each day to play traditional Chinese music together. During two months they recorded this music, and later blended these recordings with their own instrumental music. Postrock and progressive rock meet Chinese traditions which create a very special atmosphere. Here’s one of the six songs on the album:

Read an interview with Lerin/Hystad on Alltformusik.se (in Swedish)

I Am Super Ape

Sigrin – “Million Dots” – album

Sigrin is what Anna Hansson calls her solo project and recently she released the debut album “Million Dots”. It’s an album that moves somewhere between Americana-influenced singer/songwriter-pop and indie pop, full of beatiful melodies and a comfortable warmth. There’s a fine variation in the arrangements and also in the ambience as she balances between the light and the dark. A quite enjoyable album and an impressive debut. Here are two songs:

Obsi – “She Turns Around”

Obsi is a new band from Göteborg with members from Lo Fi Funk, Augustifamiljen, Lucknow Pact and Fibes Oh Fibes. “She Turns Around” is the name of their debut single, a song that breathes of bossa jazz and a dose of indie. Here it is in a video created with clips from Jiří Trnkas “Ruka” and Eartha Kitt’s video for the turkish folk song “Uska Dara”.

I Am Super Ape – “Animals”

It’s been two years since I wrote about I Am Super Ape, hailing from Malmö. Here they are again in this colourful single and video, “Animals”. The video is produced and directed by Jakob Skote.

Wuthering Height

Kinetics – “The Ocean”

Here’s the third single, “The Ocean”, from the band Kinetics, hailing from Växjö. It’s a dramatic and grand-sounding tune which makes med think of american country-influenced rock. The band is currently working with songs for their debut album.

Nonono – “Hungry Eyes”

The trio Nonono will release their debut album “We Are Only What We Feel” on Monday. The single “Hungry Eyes” is a taste of what is to come, a quite catchy, grand pop track with a great vibe from heavy percussions.

Delorian – “Hide and Seek” – video

The band Delorian are showing us a postapocalyptic Sundsvall in the video to their debut single “Hide and Seek”. The video is a homage to these TV series with low-budget scifi which was produced in the eighties. The song itself, a great song, can also be seen as a celebration of the eighties I guess. You’ll find plenty of references to pop from that decade, in the melodies, in the synth sounds and of course the saxophones.

Wuthering Height – “Two Steps”

Wuthering Height is a band that consist of Marta Pettersson, Simon Häger, Boel Mogensen and Simon Andersson. They released their debut album “Dropped Minds” in January. I haven’t had the time to listen to the entire album yet, but I can show you a taste in the shape of the single “Two Steps”, a joyful and uplifting indie pop with an interesting voice from Marta Pettersson.

On The Cinnamon

Old Amica – “Old Oaken Pond”

The duo Old Amica have been our guests several times before here on Meadowmusic. Now they are preparing to launch a new album, “Fabula”, on the 26th of March. “Old Oaken Pond” is the first glimpse of the album and beside their own special indie-sound there is a nostalgic vibe in this song, as the song title implies. A bit like if  Hotennany Singers made a comeback and started playing folk indie.

Other People – “Somewhere Far Away” – album

Other People is an alias for the composer Jakob Lindhagen and his solo project. His new album is called “Somewhere Far Away”, an instrumental album focusing on Jakob’s minimalistic piano playing. Every tone seems carefully devised in these melancholic melodies, which sometimes are accompanied by a gentle cello or an ambient pad. The ambience and the melodies make me think of Björn J:son Lindhs “Bilder från en ö” and of music from some of the Swedish TV-drama series.

Up The Hill

Up The Hill is a four man strong band, who so far have released an EP with six tracks.  I can’t come up with a band to compare them with as they sound so special. Both in the way they mix their influences and in the way they build the songs. The soulful vocals is a strong characteristic of the songs, but in the end I feel that the songs still have a strong focus on the instrumental parts, where I hear progressive seventies’ vibes, Dire Straits-guitars, blues and folk indie. Quite dynamic songs which build up a strong groove sometimes. Here are two of them:

On the Cinnamon – “Indecency”

When the songwriter Jonas Lindsköld told me about the band On the Cinnamon’s debut single “Indecency”, he also wrote that they sound like their band name. I scratched my head and started wondering if he was referring to “Cinnamon Girl”, because there are certain Neil Young-vibes in the song: the simple sound, the guitars and the touch of Americana. But no, I found the explanation further down in the mail; the bandname was a direct translation of the Swedish expression “(att vara) på kanelen” (an old Swedish expression saying that someone is a bit drunk). I’m not quite sure how I should interpret this either as the song is a charming, warm and close pop song with a certain sheen of unpolished indie. And it fits quite well with the sunny, early-Spring weather we have here now.

Hurula – “22”

Hurula is releasing another single from his upcoming album ”Vi är människorna våra föräldrar varnade oss för”. It’s called “22”, a punkish pop-melodic track with a great rough sound. I really like the chorus, and it’s the best song I’ve heard from Hurula so far.

Prince of Assyria

The Litsos – “Guidance”

The Litsos have released their second song in their single trilogy. It’s called “Guidance”, and is also a child of the eighties’ new wave era, and I’d say that Echo and the Bunnymen is not far away from this sound.

Prince of Assyria – “Bring Along Joy”

Ninos Dankha was born in Iraque, but came to Sweden with his parents when he was only one years old and then grew up in Linköping. As an artist he calls himself Prince of Assyria and is on his way of releasing his second album “Changing Places”, after a five year long break. The song “Bring Along Joy” is a first taste of the album, a melancholic singer/songwriter-track which reminds me a bit of Junip in the ambience. “Annika” is another song of his, which was released last year, and it’s so beautiful that I just had to add that one too.

Center of Attention – “Dancing In the Rain”

Center of Attention is a newly formed band from Stockholm. They write that they have worked behind other artists before, like Veronica Maggio and Erik Saade, and performed in musicals like “Kristina from Duvemåla” and “Rock of Ages”. Their own musical influences seem to come from other directions, though, to judge from their debut single “Dancing In the Rain”. Scissor Sisters, The Killers and disco influences from the eighties come to mind when I listen to this catchy rock/pop track.

Peacock Farm – New EP

The psychadelia-inspired Peacock Farm, whom I wrote about last month, released the EP they announced before. And the four songs on the EP doesn’t dissappoint me at all, considering the expectations I had after last month’s “Monogram (Plum Run)“. A great EP with music I’d like to hear more of.

Danmarck – “don’t mean in don’t mean out”

And finally Danmarck with a video follow-up to the last one “neat neat neat“. Rock. High volume is recommended.

)