Last week, Imaginary Liz mentioned a radio show in Olympia that is dedicated to playing nothing but Scandanavian music. It is, I think, a wonderful idea for a radio show. I could probably subsist on Scandavian pop music (Annie, Royksopp, Shout Out Louds, Hives, etc…) for at least a year if I had to.
It was perfect timing because this upcoming week should officially be declared Sweden Week here in Seattle. Even with pop superstar Robyn deciding she'd rather spend time with Baba Wawa and Whoopi, we are still getting plenty of love from the Swedes.
On Thursday, three lovely lovelies are stopping by the Triple Door: Anna Ternheim, Lykke Li, and El Perro Del Mar – and I couldn't be more excited. All are excellent songwriters in their own right. I haven't had any time to absorb El Perro Del Mar's new album From the Valley to the Stars, but my friend Chris Estey really enjoyed it.
On this bill, Lykke Li is who I am most excited to see. I picked up her new EP Little Bit this weekend after having found most of the songs earlier in the year courtesy of the Hype Machine. I've been hooked on her song "Dance, Dance, Dance" since I first heard of her through Stereogum. It's a simple, perfect, breathy dance pop song that gets stuck in your head very easily. She splits the difference between Annie and Lily Allen and the result is very catchy. Here's a video to the song:
According to the Triple Door's website, the schedule for the show is such:
Anna Ternheim
El Perro Del Mar with Lykke Li
Lykke Li to close with El Perro Del Mar
If the show sells out (and I suspect it will), you can still see El Perro Del Mar and Anna Ternheim at Sonic Boom in Ballard at 7pm on Thursday. How they are going to work out the logistics of a Triple Door show that begins at 7:30 and the instore which begins at 7, but somehow it'll all work out.
I also just found out about another great Swedish band (who are sadly not playing in Seattle this week) called The Bridal Shop from my blog crushes, the squaregirls. Squaregirl Marion wrote of their song "In Violation":
It really is everything that a good indiepop dance track should be from the echo-y, atmospheric sound that kicks into a blast of drum machine and synths at the beginning, to the distant Morrisey-esque vocals, to the dramatic center where everything becomes almost still, to the part where it all kicks back in at full blast to level off neatly albeit abruptly at the end. Kind of like the soundtrack to a film that doesn't exist about dance clubs that don't exist where you perpetually expect to see someone grab their secret crush and kiss them in a highly dramatic fashion as a vivid technicolor light show explodes behind them. Yes, the track is that good.
I agree with the description and that it is a great song. It kind of reminds me of a cross between Depeche Mode and Annie's "Heartbeat". It's streaming on their MySpace page right now. I'm searching for a digital version of that song and won't go to bed until I can find one.
Another song I've been loving for most of the past year or so is "Clever Girls Like Clever Boys More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls" by Pelle Carlberg. It's a catchy, twee song and one of my favorites of last year. And you can still download it free from P4k.