Top 5 album list of 2009

This time of year I scan the music magazines and read their year-lists. Everyone is eager to make a list in the spirit of High Fidelity, to summarize yet another great musical year :) So here comes my top 5 list of Swedish albums that stood out from the crowd. At least for me.

Without any specific order:
* El Perro Del Mar - Love is Not Pop
* Anna Järvinen - Man var Bland Molnen
* Brothers of End - The End
* Fever Ray - Fever Ray
* Melissa Horn - Säg Ingenting till Mig

Other artist that has released albums that has been on my mind more or less during the year, has been: Hello Saferide, Asha Ali, Kent, [ingenting], Taken by Trees, A Camp, Maia Hirasawa and Markus Krunegård.

For the year 2010 I'm eagerly awaiting the albums of First Aid Kit, Hajen and The Radio Dept. Im also hoping for world peace and the spread of Spotify to the rest of the world, so more people can access great music :)

Music in Swedish

Often I get the question Who is the best artist that sings in Swedish? The "Swedofiles" out there is very interested in listening to music sung in Swedish. I don't know why, since the lyrics must get lost in translation... [maybe it sounds exotic, like when I listen to French music]?

Well, if you are one of these people who enjoy an afternoon with some Swedish singing, you should look up the following artists.

Why do you like to listen to music sung in Swedish?

--> Anna Järvinen [video with Annika Norlin]


--> Håkan Hellström [official video for För En Lång Lång Tid]


--> Markus Krunegård [the song Jag Är En Vampyr]


--> Lars Winnerbäck [the song Elegi]


--> Säkert [the song Vi Kommer Att Dö Samtidigt]


--> Vapnet [the song Plötsligt Händer Det Inte]

[Love] Anna Järvinen

If I you should listen to one artist that sings in Swedish this year it should be Anna Järvinen. She released her first solo album Jag Fick Feeling in 2007, but I fell in love with Anna years ago when she was one of the singers in Stockholm based pop group Granada.

Anna was born in Finland but moved to Sweden as a child [Finland have big areas with Swedish speaking natives, a heritage from the day when Sweden incorporated most of Scandinavia]. She has always been a creative person and went to art school and still paints regularly between recordings. Both of her albums have been realsed by Häpna and have been great success storeys for the small label. When creativity is a natural force it can be this great!

Earlier this year she released her second album Man Var Bland Molnen, a step up from the first one, even if you didn't think it was possible. Her delicate voice signals both softness and strong will when she delivers wonderful Swedish lyrics. Enjoy some of her music from the new album, recorded by PSL here. Im sure we can expect more wonderful music from Anna in the future :)

Anna is doing live shows in Sweden and Finland this spring/summer. Check out her Myspace for more information about when and where!

Anna Järvinen - Götgatan


Anna Järvinen - Kom Hem


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Find out more about Anna on Myspace
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Christian Kjellvander Video Bonanza!

I found a lot of great videos from Christian Kjellvander on Youtube, so here they come. A great video bonanza! Dont miss the video made in a car with only Christian and a guitar or the cover performed together with Anna Järvinen!

Homeward Rolling Soldier


Roaring 40's [feat Nina Persson]


Poppies and Peonies


When The Mourning Comes


Not Forever [Popsicle cover duet with Anna Järvinen]

Granada

I want to mention the group Granada, even though i don't have a lot of information about them. I wish i had, but its hard to find. It doesn't help that they have the same name as the Spanish city/province and the fact that there exists a well known Brazilian group with the same name. It doesn't seem like they are active at the moment because one of the front figures Anna Järvinen recently released her solo album "Jag fick Feeling".

Its great music nonetheless :) Soft, melancholic indie pop with Anna Järvinens special voice accompanied with Magnus Vikströms makes a great combo. Music that will make you cry on one of those days. Three albums and a great deal of great songs like Amazing it Seems, Helene and Starting Over makes me hope that they one day will find their way back into the spotlight again.

Check out this live video of Granada on Swedish television!



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You can find more a little more information about them on this blog
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Anna Järvinen & Annika Norlin - För varje hjärtslag

Another one of my Youtube favorites is Anna Järvinen (Granada) & Annika Norlin (Hello Safride & Säkert!) performing a cover of Robyns "For Every Heartbeat" on Swedish television, in Swedish! More about these ladies will surely come in the future.

Lovely, dont you think?

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Read more about Anna Järvinen, Annika Norlin & Robyn
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