Mikael Persson has played in different bands during thirty years, but it took until 2011 before he released his solo debut album “Moving With Mrs. Carter”. After a couple of  EP:s he’s now out with the follow-up album “Marks & Bleeds”, an album where he has invited guests as songwriters and musicians like Greg Copeland, Janni Littlepage, Luisa Jordan-Killoran, Citizen K among others.

It’s a rather varied record which revolves around country rock and Americana and Mikael’s dark, laidback and expressive vocals. There’s quite a few excursions with other influences too; I can hear Irish folk vibes, nice power pop-like choruses, the Dire Straits-sounding “St. James’ Park” and a beautiful cover of Yazoo’s “Only You” to name a few. There’s plenty of guitar candy on the album as well as a great sense of sticky melodies, which you have two good examples of here below. The album is available on Spotify and on Wimp.

Some 50 Roads
Man With Hound By His Cottage

The quintet Rambling Nicholas Heron, hailing from Göteborg, started out in 2006 and have since then released ten album DIY-wise, that is, on CDR:s, cassettes and the like. But they waited until last year, though, before they released their first official full length album “Cannot Feel At Home In This World Anymore”.

It’s an album that breathes of the seventies in what they call indie-folk-rock-boogie-blues. You can find numerous references to artists from that decade on this varied album, as they pass from country songs, playful american folk, boogie grooves, blues rock and other stuff. I like their simple sound, which keeps it all in line together with the singer’s special tone, which I would describe as a mix of how Dylan could sound in the seventies, Canned Heat and Steve Miller. There’s a lot to enjoy on this album: Strong compositions and hooks with quite a few great melodies, a delicious guitar sound, a dynamic production sweet for the ears and from time to time a groove that makes my feet involuntarily move to the beat.

Rambling Nicholas Heron’s site – on Facebook – on Spotify – on Wimp – on Soundcloud

The quartet The Dead Pollys released their first EP “Waiting For Tomorrow” a few weeks ago. Here are four songs with a lot of Pogues vibes, country and folk rock. Glittering slide guitars and nice melodies come together with the harder lyrics and Niclas “Nizze” Nilssons rougher punk troubadour expression. Try them out here in the starting track “Summer of the Madmen”.

The Dead Pollys’ site – on Facebook – on Spotify

Summer of the Madmen

Here’s a good dose of country rock from Buford Pope in his fourth album “Matching Numbers”. I hear Jackson Browne from the middle of the seventies in this, and also parts of  Eagles, Springsteen and Tom Petty from the same era. His voice makes this quite special; it feels a little like the early Rod Stewart, well in that direction at least, and a voice you really react to the first time you hear it. It’s a warm, pleasant sound and a beautifully melodic collection of songs on the album, where they sometimes hit that little extra nerve in for example “Somebody Like You” here below and “Yours and Mine”.

Buford Pope’s site – on Facebook – on Spotify

Somebody Like You

Hellsingland Underground recently released their third album “Evil Will Prevail”. From the title one could almost expect some type of dark heavy metal, but it’s far from that. Instead it’s about uplifting rock with roots in southern rock and country rock. Well, it’s uplifting when it comes to the music but the singer Charlie Granberg’s lyrics don’t hold back when in comes to being cynical in describing the world he sees around himself. Dark and at the same time very personal.

I get the feeling of the band that continued playing while Titanic were sinking, which the band manifest already in the first song “Singing While the World Dies”. Even if they are faithful to their roots across the album, they give plenty of room for variation and exploration of some of the biggest rock influences from the seventies, where I hear Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Boston, powerpop, Americana and psykadelia in different songs. Listen for yourself in the Springsteen-vibing “You Shine the Dark Away” here below.

Hellsingland Underground’s site – on Facebook – on Spotify

You Shine the Dark Away