I've had it with shame, I've had it with sorrow

There are, oh, a few dozen songs already released this year that I feel I need to cover at some point to give even a half-accurate impression of where I'm at with music in 2011. I've never been particularly timely with my coverage, but you may see a few more egregious examples pop up in the future (and it's only going to get worse--I'm still thinking about discussing not just my favorite singles from 2010 but also my favorites from 2009...because there's nothing more thrilling than reading some random person on the Internet's personal reactions to two year old songs you're tired of hearing discussed).

Breaking Up With God by theark

Case File #1 is the Ark's "Breaking Up With God." The bad news: it's one of the last songs we'll ever hear from the Swedish rock group--they're calling it quits after they finish promoting their greatest hits. The good news: it's their best single since State of the Ark's one-two punch of "One Of Us Is Gonna Die Young" and "Clamour For Glamour."

"Breaking Up With God" also pulls off the tricky feat of sounding thoroughly in keeping with the group's previous work while also filling a musical niche none of the Ark's previous singles did. It has the energy of the aforementioned State of the Ark singles, but it achieves the emotional release of earlier songs like "It Takes A Fool To Remain Sane" and "Calleth You Cometh I."

Unlike those songs, though, "Breaking Up With God" goes about creating that release through the closest the group has come to a party song. The cleverness and opaqueness of the Ark's lyrics means I've never really thought of them as band whose songs work in the "lost in the music" way associated with the best dance songs, though their work performs the traditional "rock outsider" role of creating a communal feeling that transforms even your bedroom into a packed gig full of people reveling to anthems.

While it has a high tempo and kicky beat, "Breaking Up With God" is clearly no dance song. It can be danced to, though, as lead singer Ola Salo proved in his characteristically flamboyant way at last week's Melodifestival semifinal (I hope this isn't the last we'll see of Ola as a recording artist, by the way--hard as it is to imagine him without the rest of the band, the world would miss the effortless charisma he gives off even when he seems half-bored). No, "Breaking Up With God" is definitely pop-rock, albeit with a sound that pays less clear homage to the '70s than some of the Ark's earlier work. That's "Breaking Up With God"'s second trick: while bearing guitar work and occasional vocal harmonies that wouldn't sound out of place in the '70s, more than anything it sounds timeless.

The best trick of all, though, is that previously mentioned sense of uplifting, lost-in-the-music release, the kind you never would have expected to find in a song that deals seriously with concerns about religion. How the Ark pull off comparing the Sword of Damocles to a cross and then singing "I heard the call, but I won't follow 'cause now I'm breaking up with God...and the Devil too" without seeming preachy or pretentious but instead like the best party band you've ever heard is something I'll never understand. "Breaking Up With God" is well-written in all areas--music, melody, and lyrics--and grand in smart ways, too, without dwelling on the grandness. In short, it's the epitome of everything I've ever loved about the Ark.

I have a history of overhyping songs released in the first quarter of the year and then considerably dialing back my opinion by December. Still, if there's been a better expression of synth-free pop-rock joy in the past five years, I can't think of it.

The Ark's greatest hits, Arkeology, can be purchased here (physical) and on iTunes internationally here. Alternatively, it's available at this digital music store that has no country restrictions.

(Photo credit to Sven Lindwall of Expressen.)

Not gonna be anything but loud

Melodifestivalen may have finished introducing new songs for the year, but there's still one thing we fans have to look forward to (besides Andra Chansen and the final): Melodifestival-related albums.

I'm not just talking about this year's Melodifestival album (and its exciting demos). We also have a number of artists who competed in this year's contest who are releasing albums. All except the last of the albums listed below is out already or will be released in the next few weeks. International customers should be able to buy any of the CDs listed below from Bengans or Megastore.

Melody Club have already released Human Harbour. You can listen to previews here.

Previews of In The Club, the new album from Danny, can be listened to here. It's only eight tracks, with one repeated from Set Your Body Free and including his earlier unnecessary cover of "In Your Eyes", but otherwise they almost all sound pretty great. Thanks to Swedish Stereo and Scandipop for the tip!

Making up for Danny's dearth of songs is Anniela's Electric, which, at fifteen tracks, includes the English version of her entry "Elektrisk" (and, somewhat bafflingly, a cover of September's "Sin Of My Own") and is out March 14. The quality ratio probably won't be quite as high, but I imagine will get some fun tracks out of it. Preview clips are here.

Swingfly is repackaging his debut album with his Melodifestival entry and a new song with Pauline. It's out March 4 and is titled Awesomeness: An Introduction To Swingfly. Yes, really. That's going straight in this year's "Best Brilliantly Ridiculous Pop Words" contenders.

Linda Bengtzing gives us one new track, "Män i uniform," on her greatest hits album. Preview it here.

Sanna Nielsen has a new album out. Unfortunately, the previews have left me underwhelmed, especially considering the nice surprise of her Celine Dion-like last album, but maybe the songs sound better in full. Thanks to Schlagerfiasko for the preview link and to Scandipop who earlier debuted clips.

Anders Fernette's years-in-the-making album Run comes out March 11. His record label uploaded a few new songs from it to SoundCloud and they pretty much sound like I expected they would--if he's never been to your taste before, they won't win you over, but they work for me (in, admittedly, a not incredibly long term way).

We don't have any new preview for Le Kid's album, but we do have a title--and, predictably for this group, it's amazing: Oh, Alright! Yes, still one of my most anticipated albums of the past few years, even if "Oh My God" did underwhelm me.

I can't believe you're doing this to me

Melodifestivalen has been eating this blog alive for the last few weeks. If you have no interest in that Swedish contest, though, don't worry; with all the songs introduced and only two weeks remaining, you won't have much more to slog through.

If you are an international pop fan who ignores Melodifestivalen, the one entry most likely to catch your eye is Love Generation's "Dance Alone," courtesy of it being written by popular producer RedOne. The four girls of Love Generation did a great job today, coming across as having a shot at being the current best girl group offering in the world.

Still, if you only make time for one Melodifestival entry a year--heck, if you usually don't make time for any of them--there's one track I ask you to give a chance: Loreen's "My Heart Is Refusing Me." It's mid-tempo electronic pop, certainly more commercial than indie, but it has a dark undercurrent to it that, when combined with Loreen's revelation of a voice, I find haunting.



Something about that song plus that voice gets under my skin in a way I can't wholly understand. All I know is that when she gets to that chorus (especially in the post-middle eight repetition), I begin to feel like shreds of my heart are being torn away.

Loreen will be competing in the top half of the bracket in next weekend's second chance round. Unfortunately, she's slotted against some strong competitors, including the aforementioned Love Generation. Can we just send them both through? And maybe add in Jenny Silver, too?

Don't need you tonight

Tonight's Melodifestival results were surprising, to say the least.

(Photo credit to Aftonbladet.)

E det fel på mej by poppostergirl

My jaw dropped (for the second time, but we'll get to that in a minute) at the news that Linda Bengtzing had won her semifinal and would be advancing straight to the final. It's welcome news for someone who loves Linda as much as I do and for anyone won over by her energetic, explosive schlager. Still, considering "E det fel på mig" is, at first few listens, not as good as her previous three entries and her staging was a little messy--not only did it seem to have taken several steps backwards into the past after the flirty, modern performance of "Hur svårt kan det va?", even the traditional old-fashioned schlager elements weren't executed as well as they could have been for the first two-thirds of the song (though Linda was a star, as always)--I was shocked that she'd been the night's top vote-getter. Shocked but, even if feeling that it was a teeny bit undeserved, pleased.

The Hunter by poppostergirl

Poor Melody Club ended up in seventh. I had inklings of trouble when I realized Kristofer's vocals weren't transferring too well to the Melodifestival context (he has a quirky voice which doesn't necessarily sound traditionally "strong" even when he's on form), but I never truly considered they'd be outside of the top five. I hope they get a radio hit out of "The Hunter"--it's the best they've sounded in years (and features a great guitar solo--seriously, how we can we have a drought of good guitar solos for so long and then have multiple so close together?)--and hope their upcoming album is of equal quality.

Nicke Borg drove the knife in even further by going straight to the final instead of Love Generation. A slick performance with pretty good vocals (a few of the girls were less good than the other two, but none were awful) and a good song had me hoping the girls would give the Melodifestival final a boost of modernity and international appeal, but even outside of the "how do we want to present Sweden to the rest of the world" dilemma, the whole package was deserving of advancing further than it did. Love Generation still have a chance to make it to the final. Unfortunately, they were sent to the top half of the second chance bracket, which means they'll be facing off against my other favorite AC contenders, Loreen and Jenny Silver.

Still, as we Melodifestival fans drown our sorrows, there's one thing to comfort us (well, one thing besides lovely Linda's fantastic direkt-till-Globen achievement): this year's songs are all finally on sale. You can buy the deluxe box set celebrating the past ten years here.

Finally

Twitter, the place I would usually go to with my quick, fairly uninformed opinions, seems to be down. I need somewhere to vent my first, unconsidered thoughts about the full versions of the fourth Melodifestival semifinal tracks, though, so here we go.

I'm hugely pleased with Melody Club's song; they may have just swept straight into my personal first place of this final (with--shhh--a chance at ending up my favorite song of Melodifestivalen 2011). That surprises me a little--I haven't truly loved their recent singles, so I expected a "like but not adore" case with "The Hunter"--but I'm thrilled about that surprise. Finally, we've got a pop-rock entry that really delivers.

I'm still a little concerned that Linda Bengtzing's "E det fel på mig" isn't quite up to her usual (incredibly high) standards, but I'm hoping in proper quality it will shine more. It's still energetic schlager which I know I'll enjoy, though. I'll definitely get swept up in the moment.

Love Generation's "Dance Alone" is a nice modern pop entry. I like it and will probably play it a lot over the course of the year, but it's difficult for me to say more because I keep getting drawn back to "The Hunter" every time I think I should listen to "Dance Alone" again.

Anders Fernette's "Run" is basically what I hoped it would be: pleasant pop-rock, light on the rock, with a nice melody to it (better than his past couple of singles, too). It still has no chance here, but hey, at least we're finally getting that album.

Linda Pritchard's "Alive" is the sort of ballad which probably, well, comes alive in its live performance. I do love the dramatic middle eight. "Something came alive" isn't my favorite key line for a song, though.

Nicke Borg's voice is unfortunately not my favorite kind of rock voice; in the hands of a performer with a less raspy, nasal voice, I could see myself enjoying "Leaving Home."

Julia Alvgard's "Better Or Worse" is better than its likely result in the contest will indicate. It's pleasant mid-tempo R&B-pop which I'm not enthusiastic about but which is fine.

Lasse Stefanz...well, it makes me feel like someone horribly uneducated making grand pronouncements about things they really know nothing about to say it, but I'd enjoy this song more with another singer. I know, I know, Lasse Stefanz are a much-loved dansband so there's clearly appeal in Olle's voice to many people who know much more about this style of music than I do, but I wish someone else was singing it. Not some glam female diva--just a different dansband.

Performances taken out of the equation, my personal preferences would probably be Melody Club and Linda Bengtzing direct to Globen and Love Generation and Anders Fernette to the second chance round (with Love Generation to the second half of the bracket and making it to the final while Anders goes into the top half, with Loreen making it to the final). Clearly that's not going to happen, but I'll be hoping for Melody Club, Love Generation, and Linda to advance (and whichever one of them failed to make it directly to the final going in the bottom half of the second chance bracket). I'm very nervous, though...

You can't take this feeling away

Straight from the "destined to be adored by a small group of people on the Internet and no more" files: the solo career of Britt Love, formerly one-half of Mini Viva.

Can't Stop Loving You (Clip) by litendark

The British duo may have been dropped and disbanded, but Britt provides an indirect way of getting way of getting your Xenomania-Mini Viva fix. She's been working with production unit Youth Kills. Included in that trio is Tim Talbot, who at one point was playing keyboards for an in-development Xenomania act.

Tim also used to be part of Lite N Dark, the duo which originally put out "Can't Stop Loving You." Britt's version is a a big step up, though, all swooshing, hands-in-the-air dance beats and vocals several steps above your average random dance song session vocalist.

The good news--well, the good news besides the fact that Britt seems poised to continue making great music--is that she's probably no longer carrying top ten expectations. With more independent backing, she's free to worry less about just making music for that "small group" and more about keeping all of her music as exciting as "Can't Stop Loving You."

There's nowhere yet to buy Britt Love's music, but you can purchase Mini Viva's excellent run of singles here (physical) or just "Left My Heart In Tokyo" here (digital).

Like a star, like a hero

Via Schlagerprofilerna, the BEST news you will read all day is on page 19 of this PDF. Some of the demos to be included on this year's Melodifestival ten-year celebration CD set are:

• Jessica Andersson's "Jag ljuger så bra"
• Timoteij's English version of "Kom," "Run"
• Linda Bengtzing's "Headlines"
• Backup singer Agnetha Körsvik's "Hero"
• Fredrik Kempe and Shirley Clamp's "Du och jag mot världen"
• Sonja Aldén's "Night Of Passion" and "Invincible"
• Brandsta City Släckers' "En gång för alla"
• Sarah Dawn Finer's "Not A Sinner Nor A Saint"

If you haven't already preordered this set, you can do so here. It comes out March 4 and includes this year's Melodifestival entries, a book of reminiscences from Christer Björkman, four CDs with classic entries from the past ten years, and the aforementioned disc of Melodifestival demos.

We may only be in the second month of the year, but musical acts are going to have to work pretty hard if they want to beat this release for the title of most exciting CD of the year.

Bet you're missin' my voice on those records you own

One of the most charming pop songs to come from a British singer recently was Keisha Buchanan's "Under Control," a leak from the former Sugababes singer's recording sessions with songwriter Alex James (of Alexandra Burke's "Bad Boys" and the Backstreet Boys' "Masquerade") and David Gamson (the former Scritti Politti member). Despite production that initially sounds more demo-y than you might hope, its poppy, upbeat core is instantly appealing--appealing enough that, before you know it, you've played "Under Control" several times and can't understand how you ever found it fuzzy or underproduced. It's situated somewhere near the Sugababes' "Push The Button" and Groove Armada and Mutya's "Song 4 Mutya," though with fewer dance influences. There's an effortless, summery vibe to the song that seemed to indicate Keisha had, confidently and with understatement, found a musical sweet spot without any of the struggle that so often characterizes early solo careers.

Gimmie Pressure by poppostergirl

"Gimmie Pressure," written with Alex Cantrall (JoJo's "Leave (Get Out)"), isn't as innocently poppy or warm as "Under Control." It feels more aggressive and boastful, as well as a little more urban--it even switches over to a skittery grime beat for its fadeout. All that said, it's not hard or edgy in the way much pop-R&B is nowadays; there are no slicing synths or icy minimalist dance beats. The lyrics may seek to announce Keisha's queen bee status, but the song itself doesn't make enough of a statement to work as a smart solo debut single. Still, when taken with "Under Control," it does nothing to dissuade interest in the return of one of the UK's most distinctive voices.

Keisha Buchanan currently has no solo releases to purchase, but you can buy her earlier work with the Sugababes here (physical) or here (digital).

Take me away

Swedish Stereo, Scandipop, and the Schlager Boys have already featured songs from this coming weekend's Dansk Melodi Grand Prix--Denmark's national final for Eurovision--but I have to throw in my two cents. Granted, there really is about two cents worth of comments here, but still: it sounds like it's shaping up to be a great set of songs.

I'm particularly impressed by just how poppy the songs are. Over the past few years, the Dansk MGP has been slowly but surely solidifying itself as one of the best national finals out there. This year continues that trend. Granted, we could be in for a bunch of great choruses and disappointing verses since all we've heard are clips, but I'm optimistic.

There are four songs I'd like to single out, in rough order of descending love:



Kat and Justin Hopkins, "Black and Blue": pumping pop production that reminds me of Bassflow behind an instantly catchy uptempo but downbeat chorus.



Le Freak, "25 Hours a Day": delightfully cheesy throwback schlager from Thomas G:son.



Lee Hutton, "Hollywood Girl": former member of the much-lamented pop group Industry singing an uptempo teen pop-style song with cheesy rave synths behind it.



Jenny Berggren, "Let Your Heart Be Mine": former Ace of Base member on a stompy electronic pop song.

Edit: Anne Noa's "Sleepless" is also quite lovely.

The Danish Melodi Grand Prix will be airing this Saturday. There should have a web stream for any international fans interested in watching it, but unfortunately, since it starts at 2:30 PM EST, it will conflict with Melodifestivalen.