Playground Music Scandinavia is a leading independent record company and distributor operating since 1999 all over the Nordic region (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden). Playground Music has vast experience and a great track record in successfully establishing artists and labels in the territory. Playground artists directly signed or represented include: Jenny Wilson, The Rasmus, Jeanette Lindström, Ace of Base & The Concretes among many others. Playground represents several international independent labels such as Beggars Banquet, 4AD, Domino, Matador, XL Recordings... 
Playground Music Publishing AB is the publishing arm of Playground Music Scandinavia AB. We sign and develope Scandinavian artist with international potential who write their own material. We publish their works for the world. We have a joint-venture agreement with Universal Music Publishing Sweden who handle the administration worldwide. We seek synchronisation deals for our music and tracks. All request are welcome! We seek active hard working writers, artists and bands from Scandinavia to publish preferably those who are seeking to have albums or tracks released. 
* Catalogue *
Playground Music Catalogue
In this page are some great records we have released. These titles are available for synchronization, compilation or re-issue licensing.
Bright Lightning – Taking A Vacation From Me
“The music brings evokes color in scenery, as illustrated in lyrics that discuss life in a s small town, the exclusive search for love and finding oneself. The candid sincerity contained on the album plays like a man’s diary while he travels around the world and leaves pieces of himself wherever he goes.” – Fazer Magazine, Canada
An American in exile in Sweden for over 26 years, records his second album Taking A Vacation From Me on the island of Suomelinna in Helsinki Harbour in the summer of 2007. Bright Lightning plays with some of Finland’s best musicians and has many guest from bands like: Poets Of The Fall, Private Line, Hanoi Rocks, Bloodpit and many others.
Pull A Star Trip – E-vasion Inn
PULL A STAR TRIP has clearly come along way. And by long – we’re talking about actual miles and kilometers. In their 3 years of existence the band has played two US and various European tours including shows from the East Coast to the Midwest, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, Croatia, Holland, Belgium, Italy etc. Without doubt the peak of the band history was their performance at the legendary CBGB’s in New York City in January 2006, entering their name in the small list of German bands that have ever played there.
PAST have now recorded their first full-band long-play album “e-vasion Inn” portraying their entire live set energy in 2009 and the first single and video is “Countenance vs. Fingerprints” featuring cellos, violins and various long time friends on guest vocals & instruments, among them the emo/hardcore idols Jeff Caudill from Gameface, Jörg Ahrens & Max Schreiber from Days in Grief. The record is produced by Sebastian Blaschke, guitarist from Days in Grief.
Leila K – Manic Panic
Her parents decided to send her to a school in Morocco, but she did not fit into the system so after one year she returned to Sweden. She was discovered by the musical duo Rob’n'Raz when singing in a music contest. They liked her music and offered her a recording contract in 1988. Together with Rob’n'Raz she had her first hit in 1989 with the song “Got To Get” (#8 UK,[1] #3 Germany).
Leila K – Carousel
During the first years of her career she had many chart-topping hits and her music was played all over Europe. She broke up with Rob’n'Raz and went on her own to Ibiza, where she was treated like a superstar and managed to set up concerts on her own. Her solo career started in 1991 with the single
“Time” which she followed up with many other popular singles, such as her biggest hit “Open Sesame” (#23 UK, #5 Germany) and a cover version of Plastic Bertrand’s “Ça Plane Pour Moi” (#69 UK, #13 Germany).
In 1993 she was the best selling female artist in Europe[citation needed]. In 1995 Leila K was back on the music scene with the hit single “Electric”. She kept releasing new music until 1997, but since then she has not released anything new.
In 2005, the Swedish cartoonist Martin Kellerman conducted an interview with her for his own comic book magazine, Rocky. On June 15 2007, Swedish media reported[3] that she turned up as a surprise guest at a release party for the gay blog Bögjävlar, performing the songs “Ça Plane Pour Moi”, and her old hit, “Electric”. 2009 the rock documentary Fuck You, Fuck You Very Much was released May 2009 in Sweden.
The original thought behind the band Strip Music was a stripped down minimalist trio formed by Henric de la Cour and Christian Berg while their former band (Yvonne) took a break, which turned out to be permanent. However, more band members joined in during the creative process and the band’s sound grew from minimalism to the big dramatic soundscape which has now become the signature of what Strip Music is all about. Few Swedish bands have been, or are, so uncompromising about their musical vision. The concept was simple – three chords, big walls of synthesized strings and a hard driving bass drum. A bombastic synth-rock backdrop topped with gorgeous melodies and lyrics overflowing with frustration, desperation and love.
In the fall of 2003, Stockholm based Strip Music performed their first live show and one year later they released their debut self-titled album, containing 10 songs in less than 45 magical minutes. Strip Music received praise in the crème of Swedish press including Sonic Magazine, Dagens Nyheter and Zero Music Magazine. The album provided an opportunity for Strip Music to travel internationally and perform live in England, The Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Ukraine and Finland.
Pelle Olofsson, September 2006
Strip Music is:
Henric de la Cour – vocals
Christian Berg – synthesizer
Fredrik Balck – drums
Valdemar Asp – bass
Jens Hellqvist – synthesizer
Strip Music – Hollywood & Wolfman
Two years later it is time for their follow-up album, with the ambiguous title Hollywood & Wolfman. The big dramatic sound is still intact but this time Strip Music have become even more personal in their musical expression.
Many of the songs are lacking traditional song structures but rely on the distinctive atmosphere and mood created. Strip Music’s biggest asset is still to achieve music sounding like a thunder storm while at the same time being soft like a gentle breeze. It is like their music lives within its own little universe. ”Our music is not connected to any passing music trend or style”, declares Henric. “It is built upon timeless themes.”
Hollywood & Wolfman is the sound of something so unusual as a band that paves its own way. Strip Music is a group who dares to listen to nothing else other than their private inner voices. Strip Music follows their very own convictions. In a music climate that is more and more streamlined and slick, Strip Music stand out in their very own way, due to the fact that they are true to themselves. They are willing to point out that the world they live in is not perfect and yet still beautiful and even if it will not get any better than this – it is still ok. Perhaps the most important thing is for one to learn and live with it.
Hollywood & Wolfman facts:
Produced by Heikki Kiviaho. Recorded by Simon Nordberg and Heikki Kiviaho at Nord Studios, Bromma and Iran Studios, Stockholm. Extra synths recorded by Johan Skugge at Studio Namba wan jesas man, Stockholm. Mixed by Simon Nordberg at Nord Studios. Tracks 1, 5, 7 and 8 mixed by Andreas Tilliander at Repeatle. “Headlights” produced by Peter Kvint, recorded at Kingside by Otto Wellton and Andreas Osslund and at Jailhouse by Peter Kvint. Mixed at Jailhouse by Peter Kvint. All lyrics written by Henric de la Cour. Music written by Henric de la Cour and Christian Berg except the single ”Sugar and Lime” by Henric de la Cour and David Lindh.
Pennebaker – Ghost Of A Love
The Stockholm band Pennebaker, with Björn Öqvist, Daniel Bengtson and Niklas Gabrielsson, are back with their third studio album: Ghost of a love. During the past year, Pennebaker’s singles “Runaway Heart”, ”Bending the Rules Again” and ”Shadow of a Doubt” have spun consistently on rotation on radio throughout Sweden. Prior to the album’s arrival to the record shops, Pennebaker’s fourth single will be released which is the title track of the album – “Ghost of a love”.
When BBC’s tastemaker DJ Sean Rowley picked up on the single ”Runaway Heart” on his program, the temperature rose greatly on the radio producers in their homeland. P3 National Swedish Youth radio added it directly and the band got a creative kick, which resulted in a slew of hit singles that were in turn quickly added again to National Radio playlist and provided the base for their new album.
”This is a record that is about love in all its forms,” said Pennebaker’s vocalist Björn Öqvist. ”Music is a way to define one-self when words are not enough. It is that spirit that this album has been created in, and thanks to Pennebaker, life has become so much more fun.”
The Band write most of the material themselves. Nevertheless, on this album they have received a little help from well-known Nashville veteran songwriter/guitarist Dennis Morgan especially on the lyrical side. Dennis also contributes by playing guitar on a couple of tracks.
Under a period of time, Pennebaker has also been creatively injected through the cooperation made with some of Stockholm’s finest musicians; Jonas Pettersson (Juvelen), Fredrik Mattsson (Little Red Snapper) and Anders Ljung (SpaceAgeBabyJane), who has contributed with song ideas, lyrics and general encouragement.
The recording took place in the newly built Corner Soul Studios in Stockholm. ”To build our own studio is a childhood dream which has now been fulfilled. And we were able to take good time through the creative and recording process, which is a pure luxury we have not experience earlier,” bassist Daniel Bengtson explains.
Pennebaker’s first album, “A New Skyline” was well received in Sweden and Japan. The second album was also released in Japan and with the new album the sights are set on the rest of the world. With a new record company and booking agency behind themselves, the band they are equipped to move on into a very bright future.
FACTS:
Björn Öqvist – vocals, piano
Daniel Bengtson – bass, guitar
Niklas Gabrielsson – drums
KEYWORDS:
Sunshine pop, Piano based Power-pop. Timeless, bittersweet melodies, Ben Folds Five. Early Elton John and Steely Dan. Walter Becker, Donald Fagen. Todd Rundgren. The Jam. Burt Bacharach/Elvis Costello. Supergrass, Paul McCartney, Prefab Spout, Supertramp, Gilbert O´Sullivan, Tears For Fears.
THE BAND NAME?
No, the group’s name is not taken from the cult director of the same name. ”I read a biography about Marlon Brando”, Björn said. ”It happens to be that Pennebaker was Brando’s mothers’ maiden name. I made a mental note of this as I thought it would make a great name for a band. Thereafter I tried to get all of the band’s I produced to take the name upon them and since no one jumped at the chance we took it ourselves.”
DISCOGRAPHY:
Things Are Looking Up (album, Japan only, 2008)
Yours To Keep (single, Playground Music, April 2008)
Ghost of a Love (album, Playground Music 23 January 2008)
Ghost of a Love (single, Playground Music December 2007)
Shadow of a Doubt (single, Playground Music 2007)
Bending the Rules Again (single, Playground Music 2007)
Runaway Heart (single, Playground Music 2007)
Pennebaker (album 2006, not released in Sweden, only Japan via Philter)
A New Skyline (album, MVG Records 2005)
CDOASS – Extra Fingers
A voice of reason in a world gone mad, Howlin’ Pelle is a man that should always be taken more seriously than most. Yes, CDOASS come from The Hives’ hometown, Fagersta, but Pelle’s endorsement is more than just nepotism. This is a band that blend the best bits of disco, punk and indie in a way that’s never less that elastic-taut and irresistibly funky. When CDOASS played with The Hives at London’s cavernous Brixton Academy last year, they were initially met with confusion from the garage rock kids. It wasn’t very long before that confusion gave way to massed and spontaneous dancing, however. CDOASS are simply too much fun to ignore.
Despite the fact that they’re all in their early ‘20s, all five band members are already serious band veterans. The children of a decaying steel town whose boom years were in the early ‘70s – just like Pere Ubu’s Cleveland – there was little else for them to do as teenage school friends apart from form bands and put on shows.
To this end, the former punk kids have teamed up with renowned Swedish house producer Christian Falk to work on their debut album, Extra Fingers. It’s an inspired choice: Falk has made the grooves solid enough, without sacrificing any of the band’s individual personality and waywardness, while their imminent UK tour will be unmissable. Merging the best elements of disco, new wave and postpunk into something of their own this is a band set to electrify dance floors the world over.
“CDOASS is the new Swedish Rock sensation!” Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist, The Hives
Anders Pietsch – Lead Vocals/Guitars
Peter Nilsson – Bass/Backing Vocals
Andreas Jonsson – Synthesizers/Sampler
Daniel Hagman – Sampler/Percussion
Christian Orcano – Drums/Backing Vocals
2001 For A Few Dollars More 7″. 4 songs. Speakerphone Recordings.
2001 Tokyo 7″. 3 songs. Out Now! Records.
2002 Trilogy pt 1 7″. 3 songs. No Label.
2003 Airplanes/The Box 7″. 2 songs. No Label.
2003 Autovision 7″.2 songs. Dolores singles club.
2003 Autovision CDS. 3 songs. Dolores Records.
2004 Speak To Me 7″. 2 songs. Johnny Bråttom Records.
2004 Speak To Me CDs. 2 songs. Playground Music.
2005 Extra Fingers, debut album, Playground Music, out in April!
2005 Chemicals/Speak To Me, single, Blow Up.
2005 A Fair Resort, single, Playground Music.
Le Fox – People Get Happy
The Le Fox journey began in Uppsala, Sweden nearly four years ago. The lovely and talented Sara Edwardsson met the equally lovely and talented Eric Turner (a transplanted American), who was fronting an interesting but obscure young band.Sara was inducted as a backing singer, but soon was promoted to creative collaborator. After the first songwriting sessions, drummer/keyboardist Michael Eriksson was drafted and the solid musical base that became Le Fox was in place.Ben Malén, MD of Per Gessle’s Jimmy Fun/Tom Bone Music, provided the publishing deal along with early organisational support and guidance.
Ben brought in producer/musicians Michael Blair (Tom Waits, Lou Reed, Victoria Williams), and Martin Karlegard, aka MardyK (Lisa L, Reptile Smile) to serve as project developers.The team created a musical soup combining classic 60′s pop production with the latest technology (Motown-meets-New-Wave-in-Protools). Michael presented tracks to John Cloud and Lars Tengroth at Playground Music. With interest piqued, exhuberant live showcases closed the deal.Now, with the addition of guitarist Andreas Wennberg, Le Fox is ready and proud to release their first single, “Hello Space”. This track was produced by Eric, Martin, and Michael, and mixed by Adam Kviman (of “Save Tonight” fame).
Twoface – Sounds Of Rude World
Twoface are convincingly credible stuff for anyone who fancies the unique combination of pop and rock. Twoface has got a natural approach to the target-group, but still with an edge…!
”Fire in Your Eyes (ay, ay)” was a true hit in Denmark – Top 15 airplay and Top 20 single charts. Stayed in the top-100 for over 3 month. National Radio made the single powerplay, and the rest of the radios were soon to follow. The five band-members were about to live out their dream – of being in the studio working on an album! Also a Top 10 hit in Greece (released through Sony) and No 1 hit in Poland (released through Magic/Universal Records).
When one of their former bands, Passion Orange, was dissolved, the band members took different small jobs, considering what to do next. One of their employers, an older gentleman, Sten Ole, wanted them to live out their dream! He gave the band money to build a recording-studio. ”We got 200.000 DKK (27.000 dollars!) in cash” the guitarist Benjamin smiles, ”but in return Sten Ole demanded that we made a monthly financial report. I believe he was the one that made us think professionally.”
The new studio was located right next to the internationally acclaimed producer, Chief 1, member of the legendary hip hop-group Rockers By Choice and producer of a large number of top hits. One day he accidentally walked through the wrong door and has stayed in TWOFACE´s studio ever since.
Working with ”the Chief” has now become the nerve in the band. Even though TWOFACE are a bunch of rock musicians with a capital R, the mix of old school-rock and modern machines creates a unique sound that fascinates.
Just listen to Henrik Søgaards fantastic voice, which amazingly enough has gotten even more facets and can probably be characterized as one of Denmarks best male vocals. One moment he is singing sensitively and identifiably and the next trilling wildly and energetically. It is also Henrik who writes all the songs and after the hit “Fire In Your Eyes” the band went to the studio and recorded nine new numbers – what today is the album “Sound Of A Rude World”.
The second single from the album became the grandiose song “Revelations Day” and yet again DR was convinced and for the second time in a row they made Twoface powerplay of the week on National P3.
The album varies from pleasant pop/rock over frivolous ballads to dance-friendly music that can attract even the laziest to the dance floor. Take for instance “You”, “Beautiful To Me”, and in particular “Image of The World” where Henrik’s voice gets space and the result is spectalular and one almost gets the creeps. Or the hits “Revelations Day”, “Ay Ay (Fire In Your Eyes)”, and “Slip and Slide” where even the most boring party can get a kick in the right direction. There is something for every taste – and the record is as a whole a great experience.
TWOFACE:
Leadsinger/guitar: Henrik Søgaard
Guitar: Benjamin Hammerum
Bass: Jesper Kristensen
Guitar: Anders Donde
Drums: Frederik Bokkenheuser:
CREDITS
1 REVELATIONS DAY
2 YOU
3 AY AY (FIRE IN YOUR EYES)
4 IN THE AIR
5 BEAUTIFUL TO ME
6 THE GRIP
7 SLIP AND SLIDE
8 WE BELONG
9 IMAGE OF THE WORLD
10 THE PLAN
PRODUCED BY CHIEF 1
EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY TWOFACE & JACOB DEICHMANN
Recorded at Mox Studio, Ark studio, Sweet Silence, Chiefment and Bernie´s Barbershop.
Recording engineers: Henrik Vindeby, Kristian Dalsgaard, Flemming Rasmussen, Troels Alsby, Chief 1 & Twoface
Track 1, 2, 3, 4, 7 & 8 mixed by Peter Mark at Marks Recording.
Track 5, 6, 9 & 10 mixed by Lars Nissen at Medley Studio.
Mastered by René Schardt at Galaxy Studios.
The April Tears – Consume Desire
Today´s pop scene is dominated by young debutantes whose repertoir consists of approximately two singles. We´re talking about a certain brand of pop music that is dark, suggestive and intelligent, with equal parts attention to detail and hit sensibility. It is the kind of music that appeared during the Eighties, evolving in the hands of bands like Depeche Mode. These acts didn´t aim to please everybody and they looked to other things that Sixties pop for inspiration. Swedish five-piece April Tears are also rooted in this tradition of static grooves and dark melodies.
They released their first album, Strange Paradise, in 1995, on an independent label. In 1996, today´s line-up was complete. Sessions followed in Bristol, England, but the band weren´t pleased with the results. Instead, they started sending demos to Ben Marlene at music publishing company Jimmy Fun Music, unaware of the fact that the very same man had heard some of their stuff and was trying to find a way to get in touch with them as well. Once having established contact, sessions followed in Denmark together with Michael Ilbert, one of Sweden´s most renowned rock producers. However, problems with licensing, recording deals and other things out of the band´s control meant that these sessions stayed unreleased.
In spring 1999 songwriter/guitarist Andreas Jismark, undeterred, presented a handful of new, strong songs which immediately were recognized as the his best to date. Soon after, April Tears were signed to Telstar Records Scandinavia, who could see that April Tears were the perfect band for a long-term commitment.
Musically, his songwriting springs from the darker regions of 80´s synth, covering all bases from three-chord pop to machine-like experiments of white gospel.
Someone who understood what April Tears are about and proved to have the ability to translate their sonic visions was Christoffer Lundquist, singer/bassist/songwriter in the Swedish band Brainpool, but also one of the most sought-after producers in the country at the moment. With him the band immediately created a bond, confirming their suspicion that the chemistry required to make great music had been lacking in the collaborations with their previous producers.
Jimmy Monell (keyboard programming) is one of Sweden´s best programmers.
Torbjorn Soderman (drums) comes from Gotland, a small Swedish island.
Sara Gunnarson (lead singer) Often described as the most charismatic member of the band, she is the ultimate front person.
Three singles from the forthcoming album has been released so far, ”Model, Actress,.Whatever” (voted “single of the year 2000 by Swedish Alternative Music Awards), “Seventeen” and the new “Hardcoming”.
The album “Consume Desire” was released January 21, 2002.
The Teenage Idols – The Teenage Idols
Since their live debut, an autumn night around the turn of the millennium, they’ve erupted on stages in USA, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Denmark, Finland, Norway and native Sweden. Their acclaimed debut “The Teenage Idols” (2002) was recorded on historical grounds in their combined rehearsal/studio in Solna, Stockholm. In an abandoned warehouse in the midst of the old Film City – Ingmar Bergman’s old stomping ground – producer Jiri Adamik-Novak captured the intensity of their stage performance in a 30-minute reverb–drenched orgy.
The Teenage Idols – Something Wicked…
Trois accords direct et un gros beat. The Teenage Idols are not here to save the world. But they’re on a mission. I’ll be damned if they haven’t decided to bypass your brain and go straight for the essential – your heart! Full throttle. What’t there tool? Rock’n’roll. Raw, simple, wild, sexy, loud, distorted and full of energy. As they put it themselves: “Rock’n’roll as it always has been and hopefully – if the gods don’t fail us,always will be”
In a raging NOW, the Teenage Idols suck up and filter all the music they love, from Phil Spector to Grandmaster Flash, from fifties and sixties rock’n’roll to soul, punk and free jazz. On stage they present the result like few others can. Their classic line-up of guitar, drums, bass and vocals is as perfect now as it always has been. A more high powered, manic and explosive live band is not only hard to find, but is even hard to imagine. Describing them as entertaining is a huge understatement. They’re not spreading their gospel through subtle means and finely tuned dynamics, but rather through amplified feelings cranked to the max.
“Something Wicked” now follows their debut. Still true to their basic beliefs, it is a record that simply put is “more”. Darker and heavier than it’s predecessor, it digs even deeper.
/Adolfo Diaz Lampinen, January 2005
The Teenage Idols (in order of appearance):
Tomas – drums
Halvard – singer
Marcus – guitar
Caroline – bass
The Teenage Idols’ releases:
“Teenage Idols From Outer Space”/”Personal Ad”
7″ single (Törncrantz Rock’n'Roll) 2001
“Northern City EP” – four-track CD and 10″
(Playground Music/Törncrantz Rock’n'Roll) 2002
“The Teenage Idols”
ten-track CD album (Playground Music) 2002
“Erase Me”
two-track CD single (Playground Music) 2005
“Something Wicked”
eleven-track CD album (Playground Music) 2005
Psychowards – War Is Cool On Tv
War Is Cool On Tv is an observation of two incidents in my life one from Catholic school with a guy name Terry who loved watching war movies and pretending he was killing Germans with a machine gun and how excited he was doing this. Two was todays culture of killing and watching war live on CNN or BBC or the crap channel Fox how they make it look as if they are on a mission from God. All humanity is ignored but the fireworks continue to everyones thrill except for those in the battle area of course. This intro was used as a signature on Danish Radio show many years ago. Psychowards were born with a blaze in the living room of Cloud with two his buddies Joakim Jähnke and Johan Ohlin who he met shortly after arriving from America. The band rehearsed and then went into the the studio to record and then mastered the album at Cutting room a week later with Björn Englemann and then immediately pressed a limited edition white label vinyl released a vinyl album entitled PATIENTS IN LIFES ASYLUM. They performed a handful of shows and built an intense following which following the sales of the 500 Vinyl albums decided to quit on top. This is the first time it has been made available since 1990 which is almost over 20 years that it has not been available. Their live show debut a V-Dala Nation (Fraternity of Uppsala University) was unique to everything else happening on the music and poetry scene at that time. Psychowards performed at Stockholm University of Art (Konstfack) and Hultsfred Festival and share the same stage as Henri Rollins and Damanda Galas at the Stockholm Poetry Festival in 1990.
Their mad combination of spoken word and sound with lyrics touching upon themes like fear on the track “under my bed” or orgasms and masterbation in tracks like “skin geyser” and “White Well Elevator”; suicide on the track “Think For Your Self”, S&M Interview on track “She Gives Me What I Need” and the track which got loads of radio and was used a program signature in radio stations in Denmark and Germany which still gets airplay in countries throughout Europe “War Is Cool On TV”. The band terminated itself purposely as they felt they wanted to do something that would not be overdone or tiresome. However with some persuasive coaxing they 10 years later put a track on a compilation made by Soundfront Records and performed an impromptu gig at Barowiak in Uppsala with two original members and 10 guest guitarist. This was their final bow. Very soon you will be able to purchase the long out of print Psychowards album via Itunes and other digital distributors worldwide as well as their singles: “Sun’s On A Distant Rise” and “War Is Cool On TV”.
PATIENT’S IN LIFES ASYLUM
JOAKIM JÄHNKE – BASS
CLOUD – VOCALS, TEXT AND MADNESS
JOHAN OHLIN – GUITAR
Natasja – Better Than Dem
On June 24th 2007, one of the brightest shining stars on the danish music scene was put out. Natasja Saad, also known as Little T was only 32 when she died in a car accident outside of Spanish Town in Jamaica during a promotional trip. Her tragic death came just as her music was getting increased attention in Denmark and abroad, and during a time when her international success was flourishing. It was boosted by her success collaborating with Enur on the club track ‘Calabria 2007’ a hit in several countries that would eventually sell over half a million copies in North America. She was also booked to perform live in several countries. Natasja Saad leaves a deep loss and a series of finished songs in English (patois) and her native Danish. The latter were released last year on the album ‘I Danmark Er Jeg Født’, which has sold double platin in Denmark, thus cementing her position as one of her generations most talented vocalists and songwriters.
Natasja’s second studio album in English ‘Shooting Star’, includes songs she recorded before her untimely death. This album was originally planned as an “international upgrade” of her debut album titled ‘Release’. However, the final album is primarily new tracks, mostly produced by Pharfar, but international Reggae producers such as Bulby, Hamilton & Forbes (Dangerzone) and Mad Professor have also contributed to the sound of ”Shooting Star”. Guest features include Karen Mukupa, a childhood friend, who was also in the car that tragic night in June last year.
The album is an uncompromising love letter to the reggae music to which Natasja dedicated the better part of her life, initially in the girl group “No Name Requested” with Mukupa, and later as a solo artist. Since the age of 13 Natasja was a regular at the Copenhagen reggae scene where she performed both solo and with artists such as Bikstok Røgsystem, Universal Soundsystem, Djosos Krost and many others. To maintain a current connection with the mecca of reggae, she travelled frequently to Jamaica, a place she considered a third home, after Denmark and Sudan. It was a huge achievement for Natasja to win the talent competition ”Big Break” in 2006. Being the first non-Jamaican to ever win the title, she performed the track ”45 Questions” and won against the other 699 contestants. The people of Jamaica were charmed by the talented singer with the authentic patois-accent, and Natasja became a hot commodity in Jamaica, recording with a long list of the biggest names in dancehall. On ”Shooting Star” she collaborates with dancehall superstars such as Beenie Man and Lexxus as well as the stars of tomorrow including Little Hero and Chappa Jan.
The album also offers a version of the catchy club hit ‘Calabria 2008’, a track where Natasja’s flirty vocals are challenged by insisting horns and uptempo dancehall rhythms. The song she laid over Enur production has invaded jam-packed dance floors all over the world and hit the prestigious number 1 slot on the US Billboard Hot Dance Airplay chart allowed ‘Calabria 2007’ to make Natasja an international name more than fifteen years after she started her musical career in ”No Name Requested”.
On the single ‘Better Than Dem’ Natasja is guested by Beenie Man in a song about good sex, and following the laws of Natasja’s lyrical universe, there is no reading between the lines here. The text is delivered direct and uncensored, exactly like she meant it to be. The reggae ballad ‘Mr. X’ has Natasja seducing you with a velvet voice, and with ‘Silence Before The Storm’ she grasps the very air in your lungs with her impressive knack for speed and delivery of rhymes. But she doesn’t miss the opportunity to ask questions, as with ‘45 Questions’, where she probes for faults within capitalism, prejudice and greed of the western world. With her burning commitment and texts riddled with social criticism, Natasja has become a voice for minorities and people who fall out of the grid. She was active in the fight against the gentrification of creative hotspots such as ”Ungdomshuset” and “Christiania” in Copenhagen. In Christiania by the known venue Den Grå Hal you can now find Natasja’s Street, named in her honor.
With Natasja’s death we lost a fantastic voice and passionate soul, who used her music to spread joy and happiness as well as inform the public about poverty, injustice in the third world. In the spirit of Natasja, 5% of Playground Music, Musicall Management and Natasja’s estate’s net income from her album ‘Shooting Star’ will be donated to music related projects in Jamaica. Natasja’s charity foundation was initiated in her honor in 2007. ‘Shooting Star’ is a beautiful eulogy to one of Denmark’s greatest voices. Even though she is gone, the Danish queen of dancehall lives on through the music she dedicated most of her life to. The album has been finalized in accordance to the ideas and wishes Natasja expressed before she died, in regards to sound, presentation and visual artwork. .
Ayesha – The Lobby
Ayesha name means: one who lives. That is what Ayesha does through here music. Ayesha’s story begins at a Swedish Mission Hospital in a small village in Botswana. Her Father from India who is working for SIDA and together with her siblings and her Botswana Mother raised Ayesha in Sweden, Botswana, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and India. She went often to Swedish and Scandinavian foreign schools and when it was time for Ayesha to start high school they settled down in Stockholm permanently. Ayesha has always paved her own way. With producer DataFork she started her first company K-Werks and they put out Ayesha’s first album: “Jade Fever”. The hits “Ghetto Princess”, “Fire” and “Squaffie” from the album gave her the National Swedish Radio P3 Guld nominations for Best Female Artist and Best Hip Hop Album.
After her debut album came the ep with “The Rose” the video was a visual description of slavery and the track was on the Soundtrack of the Swedish Documentary Film “165 Hässelby” where Ayesha has the main roll in the film. At the same time Ayesha starts a new record company Aqueen Enterprisez through being a young entrepreneur she becomes a sought after TV personality appearing on talk shows, social programs and entertainment shows whereby she was ranked No 6 in 2005 as one of the year’s entrepreneurs. That same year she was to perform a song that she co-wrote for the Swedish Division of the European song contest. In 2006, she was voted “Woman and role-model of the year” in Hennes Magazine and Dammernas Magazine.
Ayeshas album ”The Lobby” is influence by Asian, Latin and African music mixed with Ayesha’s cool blend of Hip hop and pop. It is a good example of the message she is trying to convey – that one should follow their dreams… The Lobby is, precisely like Ayesha herself, multi-faceted which is where she presents her many sides of herself and the ideas she believes.
On the album one hear beat from a row of cool producers such as: Patrik Berger, E ”Ishi” Moughal, SUMO, Martin Bentancourt, Rez from Stockbeatz, Andreas Angel, Dj Krusty and DataFork who Ayesha has earlier worked with. There is also one track which is produced by the upcoming talented producer Jeff Roman who produced the track Ragga shoot on the TV program Just dance.
Åsgard – On The Verge
“We used to be good friends but then I moved to another coach and we lost contact. But a few years later we met once again (none of us ever knew that we had been into heavy metal music). So we decided to give it a try and luckily it came out exceptionally well.” Evgeny said.
Soon, they started searching for a vocalist. Evgeny’s father mentioned that at his work (he is a judge) there was a guy who could sing brilliantly and who somehow knew Evgeny from boxing training that both had been practicing for long period. Nevertheless, Evgeny did not actually remember him. So a meeting was booked and when Evgeny saw this fellow he recognized him immediately.
“It was actually funny – neither of us knew that we liked heavy metal music or had even played in a band before.” Evgeny said.
There was a problem of finding a title of the band. It was finally decided to take their name from Scandinavian mythology because Alexander and Evgeny were fond of Nordic music and culture. Moreover, it had a direct correlation to Russian culture (“Asgard” in Russian).
With the time Alexander “Rokk” brought his friends Igor “Ingwar” (drums) and Denis “Ragnar” (bass). The band was officially formed in Krasnodar, Russia in 2004. Shortly after, the band added a new member to backing vocals. Her name was Irina Zaparozhtseva who is married to the bass player.
Musical Background
Initially, Asgård didn’t even think about emerging deep in music. They just started to play for fun and it turned out to be cool – everyone enjoyed it. So, eventually, they emerged from the rehearsing facilities and went on stage – played a few gigs.
From a general point of view, everyone in the band liked music when they were kids, except Evgeny. He hated heavy sound, but at some point there was a turning point when his musical priorities changed dramatically. Alexander “Rokk” first started as a guitar player and used to play rhythm and solo guitar in various bands. Once, a singer left the band he played in at that time, so he took up a new guy on guitar and Alexander took up singing for a change, since then his voice is his main instrument. The same sort of thing happened with Evgeny. He actually like the keyboard sounds a lot. However, he couldn’t afford to buy one so he bought a guitar instead which subsequently became his main instrument. Nevertheless, he picked up on some basic keyboard techniques and still enjoys playing it. Alexander Pigarev’s main instrument was trombone. He started playing the instrument while studying at the local University of Culture. Besides the trombone, he also played fortepiano and some other instruments. He has played in so many bands and orchestras, that probably he doesn’t know the real quantity himself. He even used to play keyboards at ice hockey matches.
On The Verge – the album
“It’s like we have lived through another’s life!” Evgeny said. Asgård were fortunate to peak the interest and work with the famous Swedish sound producers Mikael “Nord” Andersson/Martin Hansen who produced the Finnish band: The Rasmus album “Dead Letters” which has sold over a million and a half records worldwide as well as the actor Peter Stormare album among many others…).
