More shorties...

One eye is weeping and one eye is laughing. Ruined by Martin has finally announced a live date. The band’s debut concert will take place on April 25 at Lades in Copenhagen. This is news that I’ve been waiting impatiently for, and then the first date collides with a trip to Tallinn with the boys. But hopefully this is just the first of many live dates to come? If RbM is still unknown territory to you, 5 tracks are free to download from this post.
+ Kaiser Star

Lovely Swedish (somewhat jazz inspired) indie pop quartet Tower of Foil are (according to the band's myspace blog) busy recording, what should end up being their first full-length album. The entire back catalogue (well almost) is free to download from the band’s webpage.
+ Everlasting

Perhaps to celebrate their record contract, which I mentioned yesterday, Ginger Ninja is giving away a free remix of the track Red Lips at BandBase.dk.
+ Red Lips (We Know You Love It Remix)

According to their webpage; the venues for the White Lies concerts in the UK are being upgraded. No upgrade necessary in Denmark (yet), as tickets are still available.

The incomparable Cloudberry Records has just released a split 3 inch CD-R featuring Kevin McGrother and My Laundry Life. This is the purest of indie pop.
+ Kevin McGrother - A Week of Wednesdays
+ My Laundry Life - Sons & Guns

Shorties...

This morning I bought tickets for the White Lies concert in Lille Vega (March 4). Seems like the hype has yet to reach Denmark, as tickets are still available.
+ Death (Crystal Castles Remix)

My Loney, Dear CD collection is now complete, as the missing 4 albums arrived yesterday.

Don’t forget to grab the new track Jetstream by Doves, which is free to download at the band’s webpage. It’s far more electronic than anything we’ve heard from the trio before, and definitely better than any track of the disappointing Some Cities. Kingdom of Rust will be out April 6 and expectations are growing.

Sony has signed Danish indie rock quartet Ginger Ninja. About bloody time if you ask me that some label finally “inked” this extraordinary band.
+ OnePlusOneIsThree

The album The Night Is Ours by Australians Youth Group will be out in the US on April 7. In case you missed it, this was Chris’ favorite album of 2008.
+ All This Will Pass

A fine start...

Perhaps some of you remember that I opted not to post any ”best of 2008” lists. As I wrote back then, it had lots to do with me not liking the “nature” of those lists, as they are so definitive. But in all honesty it was equally caused by the (in my opinion) lack of great album releases in 2008. Well a few outstanding ones aside that was. Therefore it’s really encouraging that 2009 has already given us a few fantastic releases.

Dear John by Loney, Dear arrived in my mailbox last night and it’s pretty much what I hoped for. A little darker and perhaps a bit more complicated than Loney, Noir, but those charming indie pop tunes are still very much present. Now I'm impatiently waiting for the other 4 Loney, Dear albums to arrive. I've never been good at lengthy reviews, so instead I recommend you read the fine one posted by Chromewaves today.
+ Airport Surroundings

Probably no band is more hyped these days than White Lies, but still the debut album had no problems whatsoever meeting whatever expectations I might have had. Cannot think of a better way to describe the band and its music, than this one, originally posted by Exitfare (the first blog to ever feature the trio): “Think of White Lies as the bastard love child of Editors and The Killers, only better”. White Lies will be playing at Lille Vega on March 4 and I'll do my best to secure a couple of tickets tomorrow, when tickets go on sale.

Another band worth some hype (but not really getting any) is Florida dreampoppers Purplespace. The band’s second album A Tiny Little Spark follows nicely in the footstep of the 2006 debut Broken Bells, as not much has been changed. So once again the band proves, how well shoegaze and electronica blend, and whenever those female vocals set in, it almost make you feel like reaching for the sky!
+ Goodbye

Majorian/Sleep Party People videos...

Neither Sleep Party People nor Majorian should be completely unfamiliar to you, if you’re a semi-regular reader of this blog. But in case you happen to be a newcomer, here’s an ultra short recap. SSP is an electronic solo project of Brian Batz, who’s also one of the driving forces behind Majorian. This weekend Brian mailed me the links for two new videos; one by each band/project, and kindly asked if I'd be interested in posting them...and of course I am!

The first one features Majorian playing a stripped down and really lovely version of the track Island (of their recent EP) prior to a concert. Thus explains why the video bears the additional title “Dressing Rooms Concerts”. Recorded and edited by Martin Thaulow. Shoe polish anyone?



The second one only runs for 1:45 and features the Sleep Party People track In The Morning Sun We Stand. It includes/mixes videos taped in New York and Bornholm, and was recorded and edited by mr. Batz himself.

Paper Sky...

Guess it’s time for something completely different. Not groundbreaking different (not much is these days), but from what I normally post around these parts. Got bored last night while watching 007 on telly, and instead started reading a few promo mails. Thus I got introduced to Paper Sky; an (in their own words) "Anglo/Italian experimental rock pop 4some". And you probably will agree that experimental pop groups finding inspiration in artists like PJ Harvey and Patti Smith aren’t daily news on this blog? Cannot really point out what I like about these songs, and perhaps the band just caught me at a time, where I need a breath of fresh air? Just like I recall from some of those experimental 60’s/70’s bands I've tried listening to every now and then, the songs of Paper Sky have several layers, which sort of prevents them from being instantly likeable (they miss that indie pop charm). But at the same time those are the kind of songs that just seem to get a little bit better for every listen and often ending with a highly rewarding result if you keep your patience. And since so many tracks are free to download, why not risk an ear (or maybe two) and there might even be something for you in here as well?
+ Alligators Sky
+ Chameleon
+ Dear Lover
+ Perfect Day
+ Strong Enough
+ The Last Time
+ This City

Someone Like Me...

Some of you probably agree that countless are the times where I’ve whined about the lack of quality of the music sent to me in various promo mails. And I’ve often asked myself why I even bother checking them out. But then suddenly out of the blue something pops up, which makes it all worthwhile. The most recent example is this energetic, anthemic and catchy track; Someone Like Me; by London quartet glass.ligths. It’s not like this is highly original and it does sound like something you’ve heard times and times before. I mean – it’s pretty obvious that we’re roaming around somewhere in the indie rock neighborhood of bands like Editors, Killers, Kaiser Chiefs etc., but this track has no problems holding its own. Actually it easily outdoes most of the stuff released by said artists. So I guess what I'm really trying to say is that this is a damn good one.
+ Someone Like Me

An Entakt track which didn’t make the På Bagsiden Af Europa album will soon be free to download. It’s named Orkestret Med Det Blotlagte Skelet (which roughly translates to something like; The Orchestra with the Exposed Skeleton) and is said to be somewhat Tom Waits inspired. Check back for more information.

Loney, Dear will be playing at Lille Vega on April 5. Ticket has (of course) been bought.
+ I Am John

Those of us, who actually gave it a listen, probably agree that the debut album Where The Storm Meets The Ground by The Storm was a major disappointment? But the duo seems to be in good spirits and has recently announced that they will soon start recording a follow-up. However I do suspect that everyone’s expectations will be significantly lower this time around. To be honest I’d much rather hear news on the forthcoming Mew album.
+ The Beauty Of Small Things

Last week I posted a pretty good Dave Wrangler remix of the Animal Collective track My Girls. Mr. Wrangler has now set up a small webpage where several other fine remixes are free to download.
+ The Raveonettes - Black White (White Room Remix)

One Weekly Gun is back writing songs again. The first track of 2009 is named The Song that Kills and was inspired by the situation in the Gaza strip. Obviously this is a sensitive topic, which has already led to a heated discussion.
+ The Song that Kills

Labrador gives away the new single by Suburban Kids with Biblical Names.
+ 1999

Shorties...

Haven’t written one of these posts for a while, so let’s see if I can come up with anything interesting (just don't count on it)!

Via It’s A Trap! Campsite has decided to split up. Dead or not Lines Intact remains a brilliant track.
+ Lines Intact

Everyone seems to be so high on the new Animal Collective album Merriweather Post Pavillion. The jury (a.k.a. me) is definitely out on this one, as I find it incredible tough figuring out what’s so great about it. Nice remix though of one of the album’s better tracks.
+ My Girls (Dave Wrangler Remix)

Should have mentioned in my post the other day that new Danish trio The minor Collective features Entakt guitarist Kristian on keys and bass. And since fellow Entakt band member Jonas recently published a few solo tracks under the alias La Volumes Jinns and seems to be highly involved in another project with Andreas Sorgenfrei of Didium & the Black Bonnie Picture, one cannot help speculation that it will take quite some time, before a third Entakt album will see the light of day. But with two albums released within 21 months (Jan 07 & Oct 08) it's not difficult to comprehend the band members need to start focusing on something completely different.
+ The minor Collective - Lose Control
+ La Volumes Jinns – Barcelona or anywhere but here
+ Entakt – Kunsten at slippe taget
+ Didium & the Black Bonnie Picture – Twisted Way of Blues

I need to write a few more of those “emptying the mailbox” posts, as mails are once again piling up.

This and that...

I’m honestly happy for all the bands announcing that they’ll be playing at SXSW in March. Even think it’s quite understandable that they fill up my inbox with messages telling me this. Obviously it’s easy being excited as a band, when something like this happens. But when the bands start asking if we should meet or hope that I will consider them for any showcases I might be hosting, things start getting slightly ridiculous, as the obviously haven’t read a single word I’ve been writing. Then they’d know that I’m 40, married, a father of two small children and living in Denmark. What are the chances exactly that I will be in Austin in March?

In my New Year’s post I vowed that I would continue writing about bands that you’ve probably never heard of. One of those bands could be impressive new Danish rock trio The Minor Collective, which has just published three tracks. Don't be surprised if these guys pop up in some future post.
+ Free
+ Wavelength
+ Lose Control

Like everyone else, I’ve decided to jump on the Loney, Dear bandwagon. Listened to the 2007 album Loney, Noir numerous times yesterday, which then made me order the forthcoming album Dear John. Gorgeous stuff!
+ Airport Surroundings
+ I Am John

Hate this. Promo track Like Lunatics from the Modern Skirts album All Of Us In Our Night was dreamy and beautiful, so I asked for (and immediately received) a download copy of the album to hear if the rest was equally great. Sadly the album (a few tracks aside) is rather uninteresting, and certainly not what I hoped for. But nonetheless please give Like Lunatics a good listen.
+ Like Lunatics

Ruined by Martin...

Sometimes it’s almost unbelievable how slowly things progresses. I featured Ruined by Martin in the blog for the first time back in December 2005, when the duo had just been picked as Gaffa’s demo band of the month. And I was really impressed with what I heard and the future looked so bright that I even started dreaming of an album. But for some reason things suddenly slowed down and three years have gone by with very little happening – at least when watching from the outside. The line-up has expanded and the duo is now a quartet with one of the original members leaving and three new ones joining. Roughly estimated the band has recorded (and published) 10 new songs during these three years and the band did actually shoot a video for one of them. Still this must be considered a significantly lower output than one could realistically hope and wish for back in 2005. But yesterday I received a most welcomed message from the band, and finally there seems to be a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel. The band is very much alive and the first signs of better days to come is a brand new track named Self Assured, which has been streaming at Myspace for the past couple of days. The track bears the band’s trademark electronic, dark and melancholic pop sound, and obviously I'm thrilled that the band has given me permission to share this excellent track. But arguably the best news is that the band now feels ready to leave the practice room and has begun searching for live jobs. So hopefully it’s only a matter of short time before we finally get the chance to see Ruined by Martin in concert!!
+ Self Assured
+ Untouchable
+ Burn The Sun
+ Kaiser Star
+ Defy the Odds

40...

No point in beating around the bush. I’m still trying to digest this, but yesterday was my 40th birthday. And what a day it was, waking up at 11am seriously hungover and the apartment looking as if a bomb had went off. But we had a ball Saturday evening/night and I got some really lovely presents, which easily compensated for the rough times yesterday. However the true highlight of the evening was that the incredible talented Stefan (the young man in the picture - will try to find a more appropriate picture without a beer) of Northern Portrait showed up with his guitar, and played two acoustic sets including every Northern Portrait song, a few by The Mirror Lounge as well as cover versions of several timeless classics like There She Goes, There Is A Light That Never Goes Out,The Wild Ones and my wife's favorite; One. This also gave me the great opportunity to have a lengthy chat with Stefan and get a few updates on the band, and I’m probably not revealing too much by saying that things are slowly but steadily progressing. Both regarding the debut album and concert dates. So all together it was one terrific night and I will now return to digesting...
+ Northern Portrait - Crazy
+ Northern Portrait - I Give You Two Seconds To Entertain Me
+ The Mirror Lounge - Returns
+ The Mirror Lounge - Drifting Into A Secret Area
+ The Mirror Lounge - Don't Hunt Me Down
+ The Mirror Lounge - So Suddenly

From the mailbox...

That old mailbox problem persists, so here are 4 of the better tracks recently found in the mailbox.

+ Murder Mystery – The World
This is another one of those charming indie pop tunes that's absolutely impossible to resist.

+ The Online Romance – Ladybug, Don’t Smile
Dreamy folk-pop tune with lovely harmonies.

+ Kaka – What a Frame
The trumpets probably makes it somewhat cheesy, but quite catchy nonetheless.

+ Hooray For Earth – Take Care
A pop tune created with the one purpose to fill the dancefloor. And nothing wrong with that really!

Green Concorde remix...

Just a quick one, as time is sparse today. Bjarke Niemann of Spleen United has remixed the Green Concorde track Detroit, which the band is giving away for free. Still impatiently waiting for news on the release date of the band's sophomore album. UPDATE: According to Gaffa the album will be released late March/early April.
+ Detroit (Niemann Remix)

If The Year End List Is Missing...

I know some of you out there are still waiting for my "best of 2008" lists. But tell you what. You’ll have to wait forever for those, as I’ve decided not to post any. I enjoy reading other people’s lists, but honestly hate compiling my own, as they seem so definitive and can be used to prove your ignorance at some later stage. And today’s experience was the final proof that this is the only right decision. My Swiss music friend Chris has mailed me a physical copy (in case you don’t know what I'm talking about, it’s one of those circle shaped shiny things called CD that no one seems to be buying anymore) of the debut album Rest Now, Weary Head! You Will Get Well Soon by German one-man band Get Well Soon and it's been on constant rotation today. It’s truly phenomenal and sounds like the perfect and most beautiful mix of Beirut, Radiohead, Bright Eyes, Mew and iLiKETRAiNS. And then again I'm not quite sure, if that description is accurate enough. Released in January 2008 it somehow slipped completely under my radar last year, but after today's 4 listens, I know for sure that a "best album of 2008" list wouldn’t have been the same without it. And tomorrow or some time next week another great 2008 release will probably reveal itself to me and once again confirm that today’s decision was the wisest possible!
+ If This Hat Is Missing I Have Gone Hunting

La Volumes Jinns...

La Volumes Jinns is the solo project of…? Well I suggest you solve the anagram of the name to get the answer. Or you could of course choose the easy (and cheating) path and visit the Myspace page, where the answer will reveal itself. I’ve been granted permission to share the first two tracks recorded under the alias, which many a fan of Jeff Buckley should find very appealing. In what might be an attempt to play down expectations the artist himself calls the songs “rough versions” and he might be right that the songs could use another turn in the “production mill”. But at the same time one could easily fear that the instant lo-firm charm of these two lovely acoustic tracks could be jeopardized, if this happens. So leaving them as they are is probably my favorite option of the two. However the exact plans for the songs and the project in general seem rather dim at the moment (not sure if the artist has made up his mind himself), but I’ll sure keep you posted if more pops up in the future.
+ Chania
+ Barcelona or Anywhere But Here

Here we go again...

Back again from a lovely 5 day-trip to The West Cost, but a new year has arrived since we left (in case you haven't noticed), so it’s time to look ahead. I sure am no fan of New Year’s resolutions, but I’ll risk my neck nonetheless and promise this:
- I’ll continue blogging (some of you might think of this as a thread?)
- I’ll continue posting stuff you’ve never heard of and that you’ll never hear of again
- I won’t re-design the blog (I wouldn’t know how to do it)
- I won’t move to another host (unless blogger collapses)
- I’ll continue to read less than half the emails I receive (but please continue mailing them anyway)
- At least once this year I’ll consider switching from writing in English to writing in Danish