Sweet Serenades released earlier this year a very strong debut album, “Balcony Cigarettes”. It contains a bunch of contagious songs with high humming factor. It’s playful, romantic, melodic, dramatic in a modern indie pop which let their roots shine through.

Coming from Timrå, Martin Nordvall and Mathias Näslund formed Sweet Serenades in 2002. Among the numerous gigs since the start, they have frequently performed in Swedish prisons. They have tested their songs on the internees and, as they say, thrown away songs that haven’t provoked any dance, cries, tears or riots.

Listen to the album “Balcony Cigarettes” on Sweet Serenade’s Myspace page and read more about them on their site.

Mona Lee:

On My Way

Today’s band is the interesting Örebro band Yes I Am. This autumn they released the EP “Nightmares”, from which you can listen to a track here below.

I can sense the Coldplay inspiration but also some indie vibes. Especially I like the singer Christoffer’s voice that in a nice way blend with the music.

You can listen more on Yes I Am’s Myspace page.

Lovesick

It just hit me how few of the artists I present here on Meadowmusic that actually sing in Swedish. After all, the purpose of the blog is to present new Swedish music, but I guess that’s more or less how it is on the Swedish music scene today. If that’s good or bad I’ll let you decide for yourself.

But when I listen to the indie-soul, sung in Swedish, from År & Dar, as a Swede, I definitely feel closer to the music. There’s nothing in the way and the words find their way inside me directly. This is not about soul from a glamorous scene, it’s soul with rolled upp sleeves, which walks beside me as I travel under the cold and grey November skies. And it feels a little lighter, a little bit warmer.

Adam Pålsson’s voice is made for this. It’s earthbound, unpolished and soulful, and lifts the music to another level. Listen for yourself here below where you’ll find two videos and the song “Vad blir det av oss” (“What becomes of us?), which you can listen to and download.

You can find År & Dar on their Myspace page.

Vad blir det av oss:

Har du tröttnat än:

Vad blir det av oss?

The trio Greta & The One Night Stands has an excellent ability to create those obvious pop melodies that seem to get stuck inside the head. They serve them in a nostalgic synth dress, often with vibes from the eighties. And skirt.

I have to mention the skirt. Greta & The One Night Stands have volunteered to act as changers, and intend to allocate the skirt as something that men could wear, which symbolise their challenge in what’s feminine and what’s masculine.

The band has recently released a new song, “Familiar to Me”, which you can listen to at their Facebook page or their Myspace page.

Here’s two tracks with Greta & The One Night Stands:

Hearts & Bones
I Could Never Learn

The Malmö band Mono Stereo is today releasing their debut EP “Space Out” (360 Degrees Music). They have found their own niche with a sound that first of all makes me think of the sixties’ psychadelia, but with an intensity and massive sound that reminds me somewhat of 80’s/90’s bands, like for example My Bloody Valentine and Jesus & Mary Chain.

Even though it’s so intense, I find good dynamics and breathing space in the music, and it’s easy to just ride along in this nice mix. The vocals are not the obvious protagonists here, they’re more like a part of the sound together with the other instruments. Well, you can listen for yourself here below, in the video for “Orange Is Green” and the track”The Day Before Science Fiction”.

That their foundation lies in live music doesn’t come as a surprise, and their release is of course followed by a number of gigs, for starters with a couple of shows in London, among them one gig at Smash n Grab at Proud Galleries.
Also, you can download four live tracks with the band if you sign up for the band’s news letter.

You can find Mono Stereo on Myspace and on Facebook.

Orange Is Green:

The Day Before Science Fiction