A Free Man

A Free Man is been in Sweden for nearly a week now. During my time here, I’ve been astounded by the amount of great music coming out of this country. There are the ones we all know about - The Hives, Peter, Bjorn & John, Jose Gonzalez and their ilk. But through my interviews I’ve discovered loads of less well known bands. Some of these made a bit of noise at SxSW and have been roiling around in the Blogosphere, others seem to be local secrets. Here are ten that I’ve heard praised this week by those on the inside.

Jens Lekman, like your humble narrator, had the good sense this winter to flee northern Europe for the Antipodes. His 2007 release “Night Falls Over Kortedela” (Secretly Canadian) was one of the best of 2007, Swedish or not.

MP3: Jens Lekman - “Black Cab”

Stockholm’s Shout Out Louds released their second long player “Our Ill Wills” last year. They have an EP “Impossible” due on Tuesday.

MP3: Shout Out Louds - “My Friend and the Ink”

Also from the capitol, Mapei shows that Sweden can do urban as well. Check out the Bloody B remix of “Belly”.

MP3: Mapei - “Belly (Bloody B Remix)”

Back to the dreamy pop that the Swedes do best with The Bridal Shop. The band will send you an autographed copy of their debut EP “From Seas” on CD-R upon request.

MP3: The Bridal Shop - “From Seas”

Representing for the West Coast is Gothenburg’s Sambassadeur. Their debut “Migration” came out last fall on Labrador.

MP3: Sambassadeur - “Kate”

Also from the city that is A Free Man’s very temporary home comes The Tough Alliance. They’re a bit yobby, or whatver the Swedish version of yobby is, but there’s no denying that their music is great. The Tough Alliance’s second LP “A New Chance” came out last year.

MP3: The Tough Alliance - “Miami”

Rough Trade chose Studio’s “West Coast” as one of their best albums of 2007. The Gothenburg duo have a number of 7″ and 12″ singles available on Information.

MP3: Studio - “Out There”

Speaking of highly touted debuts, I don’t remember a first effort getting better reviews than The Field’s “From Here We Go Sublime“. Very electronic, but some of the best music in the genre.

MP3: The Field - “A Paw In My Face”

The Embassy is one of those bands that are frustratingly difficult to get information about - great marketing ploy.  Their music makes up for it, however, but I can’t direct you to a buy link.

MP3: The Embassy - “Some Indulgence”

And finally, there’s Tafra. I featured Niklas Tafra’s music last week, but I keep hearing praise for him from the locals. So, here’s another one from the Swedish-born, London-based solo artist.  His recent LP, “Why Even Bother” is available from Series Two.

MP3: Tafra - “I’m Sorry Brakne-Hoby”

A Free Man will be in the land of moose and meatballs for another week. So, check back for interviews with a couple of more Swedish acts including one that has become my current favorite band.

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