Dream On

What a fantastic ANTHEM!
"Dream On", sung by great, Swedish pop-star Robyn and The Ark member Ola Salo first appeared in 2006 on Christian Falk´s solo album "People Say". This is the original video for the single that was only released in Sweden:



Thugs and badmen
punks and lifers
locked up interns
pigs and snitches

Rest your weary heads, all is well

You won't be strip-searched, torn up tonight
you won't be cut up, bleeding tonight
you won't be strung out, cold, shaking to your bones
wishing you were anywhere else but right here
So dream on

Thieves and muggers
tricks and hustlers
cheats and traitors
scum and low-lives

Rest your weary heads, all is well

You won't be sad or broken tonight
you won't be squealed on, ripped off tonight
you won't be back-stabbed, double crossed, face down
teeth knocked out, lying in a gutter somewhere
So dream on

So dream on

Freaks and junkies
fakes and phonies
drunks and cowards
manic preachers

Rest your weary heads, all is well

You won't be pushed or messed with tonight
you won't be lied to, ruffed up tonight
You won't be insane, paranoid, obsessed
aimlessly wandering through the dark night
So dream on

So dream on

You won't be insane, paranoid, obsessed
aimlessly wandering through the dark night

So dream on

Late last year, the single got remixed and re-released, dropping Ola´s vocals while focussing on Robyn. I think the new video is a bit crap. But still: ANTHEM!

Camp as a Cardigan

Nina Persson, singer of The Cardigans and A Camp always tried pretty hard to rid herself of the cutie-image she had gained with her early, retro-sixties pop and the global success of "Love Fool".

I always liked the singles of the Cardigans much more than their albums, and I think that "Erase/Rewind" and "You´re the storm" are along the best things they have ever done.
Nina´s side/solo project A Camp (with her husband, US musician Nathan Larson), was a bit more brittle and less pop than her other band, although the pop-tastic single "I can buy you" promised otherwise.

Now, after 8 years, A Camp is going to release their second album "Colonia" which is kicked off with the single "Stronger than Jesus".
On first listen it´s very close to "I can buy you", but after some repeat plays you just can´t stop admiring Nina´s ability to kick out yet another subversive country-pop-ballad so effortlessly. Instant classic!

In the video she looks like Agnetha Fälstkog from Abba and Sissy Spacek in "Carrie", mixed up in a blender with cheap video-filters:



Also enjoy The Cardigans with the glorious "You´re the storm" and it´s perfect video:

Join Our Club 8

Club 8 (not "S Club 8") are producing Swedish-popmusic that sounds like you would imagine Swedish-popmusic, even if you have never heard Swedish-popmusic before. Summery meadows, long summernights, blond boys and girls strumming guitars and whispering songs. In short: Something short of a soft-porn soundtrack.

Jesus walk with me (Jimahl mix)

The duo of Karolina Komstedt and Johan Angergård have begun working together in 1995. Their very sporadic output consists of six albums and a few singles. Angergård is also the owner of Labrador Records and member of two another ridiculously good pop bands: The Legends and The Acid House Kings.

My favourite album is "Spring came, rain fell" from 2002. That´s the records were all their ideas are falling into place and the end result is a wonderfully, flowing record with brilliant production and great melodies.

Spring came, Rain fell

From the opener "We´re simple minds", with it´s underlying Thomas Dolby sample, to the wonderful title track, you get the feeling that Karolina is singing just for you, whispering in your ear. Club 8 are a bit like a more personal and intimate version of St. Etienne. Titles such as "The girl with the northern soul collection" and "The beauty of the way we are living" are clearly a nod to the London trio.

Their latest effort is an EP release from the 2007 album "The Boy who couldn´t stop dreaming". Once again they compiled a bunch of very relaxed campfire songs and unashamed catchy pop-hooks.

Take me Home

Labrador have re-released all their albums with bonus tracks, which can be ordered here

Anniemalistic

Exactly three years ago I flew to Brighton to see Annie opening for St. Etienne. What a double whammy this should have been! Sadly Annie could not do the show because her equipment was delayed (Must have been British Airways!).
Her debut album "Annimal" was the best pop-record of this year and the simplicity of "Chewing Gum" still makes me all giddy.

She took her time to come up with a follow up and fellow Scandinavian Robyn is currently enjoying the international success that everybody predicted for Annie a few years ago-

Lots of "accidental" pre-release blunders made me aware of "Don´t stop" and it´s first single "Girlfriend" (or "Your girlfriend hates me", or the final "I know UR girlfriend hates me"). Leaked and pulled videos, contradicting information which single will be released, backing vocals by Girls Aloud which were then erased and so on. All this stuff record companies think is necessary to "really make the product".

So this is the Richard X produced first single and you´ll instantly see and hear that Annie sits a bit between the chairs with this one.

Musically its very close to "Chewing Gum". It´s a catchy, throw-away POP-song which should do well on the radio.
Visually Annie seems to go for a clean-cut, healthy, no-bullshit-look.
There is not much of a surprise here and I am missing a bit of the special "zing" that made Annie stand above the rest. After all Annie knows that ANNIE is not about the voice. It´s the whole package!
But hey, I am just a spoilt consumer! My attempts to do "clever-pop" died multiple, unspectacular deaths.