Liechtenstein is back! Since 2007, this Gothenburg band has mixed vocal harmonies with post punk and warmed indiepop hearts in all corners of the world with six singles and the debut album ”Survival Strategies In A Modern World”. Five years after the first release ”Stalking Skills”, it’s finally time for Liechtenstein’s second album ”Fast Forward” – eleven pop songs that raise the band to a whole new level. This album is a pop gem filled with catchy post punk, jangly guitars, trumpets, piano and vocal harmonies, all arranged and produced with a sensitive touch. The production is crispier than before, emphasizing the vocals and putting focus on the lyrics. Because pop songs that make you want to dance has always only been one part of Liechtenstein, while the political side to the band, the commenting upon and depicting the time we live in, has been what really distinguishes Liechtenstein.

With songs like ”Heads On Golden Plates”, ”No Idealists Left” and ”Fast Forward”, Liechtenstein has created a strong (and dark) description of today’s Sweden. At the same time, it’s a record that picks up the musical heritage from the British 80’s pop scene, a time when bands like The Housemartins and McCarthy made the kids dance with their fists in the air. And who knows, it might happen again?

Comes with a download code.

A1. Ambitions (mp3)
A2. Heads On Golden Plates
A3. Passion For Water
A4. No Idealists Left
A5. Fast Forward

B1. Meantime (watch video)
B2. The Farival Twins
B3. Memories
B4. An Old Beginning
B5. Strange Ideas (watch video)
B6. A Monumental Plan

Liechtenstein website

In November 2010 twenty years have passed since the debut album ”Eleven Pop Songs”  by Happydeadmen was released by Norrköping based indiepop label Ceilidh Productions. Since then lots of things have happened, not least when it comes to the Swedish music scene. The deed and greatness of this jangle pop quartet may not be that obvious today, in a time when everyone is a mouse click away from the “thing of the day”. But to, like Happydeadmen, in 1990 release a record with eleven tracks that pick the cherries from the British indiepop cake, and to deliver shimmering guitar pop in the veins of The Bodines, The Sea Urchins, The Smiths and Razorcuts – that’s indeed creating Swedish pop history.

The explosion of the Swedish indiepop scene during the following years is a well-known story, whilst the memory of a preceding band such as Happydeadmen has faded slightly. This is the reason why we decided to re-release this album;  the inexplicable gap in music history needed to be filled, but most importantly, songs like ”The Age Of Chivalry”, ”Silent Sigh City”, ”Life Inside A Frame” and eight equally splendid tracks on this record are as vital today as they were twenty years ago.

Songwriter duo Hedin/Karlsson formed their sensitive melodies seemingly unaffected by the current Swedish music tendencies, and the quartet took the night train from Stockholm to Southern Sweden and the studio Svenska Popfabriken in Klippan. To record an album in four days only, and to stay overnight and sleep on the studio floor was not a common thing in a time when most bands simply sent their demos to the major labels only to wait in vain for a reply. But as early as 1989 things were beginning to happen for Happydeadmen; the self-released seven inch single ”Silent Sigh City” and the flexi single ”Heaven No!” were released, and Happydeadmen were – as he first Swedish band ever – on the cover of the music magazine Sound Affects. So, when Ceilidh released “Eleven Pop Songs” (on vinyl only) the Stockholm quartet were already a familiar name among the initiated, and the world was waiting for them…

There are still a few chapters to write about Happydeadmen, they went on producing more fantastic pop gems but we’ve chosen to focus on the 20th anniversary debut album. And you will not find any bonus tracks on our CD reissue, since those have a tendency to create a whole new album, a “version 2.0" of a work. We have, however, put together a booklet with liner notes from Ola Hermanson, who ran the label Ceilidh and who is still going strong with his Sonic Surf City. One of the many who were influenced by “Eleven Pop Songs” when it was released was a teenager in Åhus named Johan Angergård. Twenty years later he has, among other things, created the bands Acid House Kings, Club 8, and The Legends, as well as the labels Summersound and Labrador. His liner notes are about  paisley shirts, Rickenbacker guitars and Happydeadmen.

1. The Age Of Chivalry (mp3)
2. Emilia
3. We Swim
4. Silent Sigh City
5. Never Love
6. In Memory Of Broken Hearts
7. Heaven No!
8. Spectacular Way
9. Life Inside A Frame (listen)
10. 9-piece-mirror
11. Is This All?

Happydeadmen website

Produced by The Andersen Tapes
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Atelier de Sabots

January 2011

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The indiepop year 2010 has barely come to an end up when it’s time to kickstart 2011 with the much longed-for debut album by The Andersen Tapes! The woman behind the project, Amanda Aldervall, was part of the Swedish indiepop scene during the early ‘00s, when she started the band Free Loan Investments together with Roger Gunnarsson (Nixon, The Garlands, Cloetta Paris). After releasing a few singles and a mini album, and playing a few live shows in the UK and the US, the band split up. During this period Amanda also released two singles as The Busy Band – a duo consisting of her and Samuel Petersson (The State Of Samuel, Goblin Universe). Then five years followed... and it was a big surprise when vital American indiepop label Cloudberry released the debut single by The Andersen Tapes, “Smartypants”, in 2008.

We were thrilled to learn that Amanda had been recording songs during this whole period and the result, ”As I Write ’Today’ Ten Times”, is ten amazing pop gems that sum up the years 2005-2010. Those familiar with the earlier projects of Amanda are also familiar with her ability to write catchy pop songs. The Andersen Tapes is no exception, but these songs display a greater variation in expression and instrumentation. From the infectious “Clap Clap Clap” and “Cross Country” to the dreamy vocal harmonies of “Riksgränsen” and the guitar symphony “The Problem Is The Solution” we are taken along on a pop journey where handclaps, keyboards and melodica brighten the guitar pop of The Andersen Tapes.

”As I Write ’Today’ Ten Times” is both serious and playful, vivid and dreamy, without for a moment giving an ambivalent impression. On the contrary, this is a work that grows for every time you listen to it, a work that promises future great achievements. We dare forecast a new exciting indiepop year 2011, and this debut album, and the fact that The Andersen Tapes will play the eminent London popfest in February, constitute the first signs.

1. Smartypants
2. Visual Explanations (mp3)
3. Cross Country (listen)
4. All You Need To Know
5. The Problem Is The Solution (listen)
6. And They Were Saxons
7. Clap Clap Clap
8. Turn To Speak
9. Riksgränsen
10. You're So Lonely When You're Old

The Andersen Tapes website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Elin Engström

July 2010


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A whole year has passed since their last record release (the debut album “Survival Strategies In A Modern World”), but now Liechtenstein are back! During this year the girls have, among other things, visited the US East Coast for a tour, travelled around in Europe (including a show in Vaduz, Liechtenstein!), and a new bass player - Ulrika Mild from synthpop band Compute - has joined the band.

The new single “Passion For Water”, the fifth one from Liechtenstein, displays a somewhat new sound. The patented vocal harmonies are of course still present, as well as the feel for making fantastic pop melodies, but the sound is clearer, and the melodies more summery and groovy.

The jangly title track is probably the most dancy Liechtenstein song so far, and it brings to mind an imaginary eighties British beach party, where Mighty Mighty, The Siddeleys, The Desert Wolves and The Man From Delmonte have been mixed into a cooling pop cocktail.

With the trumpet raising “Passion For Water” to new heights, and the careful arrangements and beautiful vocal harmonies reminiscent of Dolly Mixture on “Spending Time With You”, this is a Liechtenstein partly searching for new directions. However, the earlier post punk influences are not forgotten but represented by the finishing, short and punk-oriented “On The Tram”.

The single contains a download code for the mp3 files of the songs, as well as a music video for the song “On The Tram”.

A1. Passion For Water (mp3)

B1. Spending Time With You
B2. On The Tram (watch video)

Liechtenstein website

Produced by Mathias Nilsson
Mastered by Mats Ingemansson
Sleeve by Joakim Bengtsson

June 2010


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Twig was one of the many bands who showed up during the early 00s in Stockholm – a very creative era for the Swedish indiepop music scene – put out a few CDR releases, and then fell silent for a few years… That is why, when American indiepop label Cloudberry released their double A-side ”Ciao Ciao Bomb / Wentworth” as the first vinyl single on the label, we were both surprised and excited, as we had presumed that they had quit playing together.

This was of no importance however, as one of the best Swedish bands around had suddenly re-emerged – no doubt influenced by British 80s pop and inumerable hours spent at libraries in the Swedish capital. Singer Henrik Linden’s Edwyn Collins-like voice combined with Mathias Nilsson’s chiming, jangly guitars (just the way they sounded during the heydays of Felt) completely blew our minds! Later followed a brilliant debut album, “Life After Ridge”, on Peruvian label Plastilina, celebrated gigs… and yet another long wait for new releases from this magnificent three-piece.

So, it is with great pride We present a new double A-side single with the band. On ”Hourglass / Scattered Dreams” we meet the very same Twig that we know from their earlier releases, only with a more refined sound. Ville Hopponen from Finnish pop elegants Cats On Fire makes a guest appearance behind the drums which, on “Hourglass”, adds new dynamics and energy to the rhythm section on this Twig hit, where they succeed in sounding both explosive and moderate at the same time.

On the flip side we find ”Scattered Dreams”, a more melancohlic tune, where Kalle Berglund sets the mood by joining the band on saxophone.

All neatly wrapped up in the characteristic fable sleeve design by Joakim Bengtsson this ressembles nothing else today. The parts may be familiar, but the whole, with Henrik Lindens sharp lyrics, turns into something of their own. Something we dare say is unique today.

Included is a code that allows you to download the songs in mp3 format.

A. Hourglass (listen)

AA. Scattered Dreams

Twig website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ron Harrity
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

the 10" is a co-release with Slumberland

May 2009


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Liechtenstein is about to become the band that every indie kid’s younger sister wishes she had started. Making a splash on the international indie pop scene with two attentiongrabbing singles, 2007’s “Stalking Skills” and last year’s “Apathy”, the Swedish trio of Renée, Naemi, and Elin will make waves with their unique take on the girl-group post-punk sound of early ’80s groups like The Au Pairs and Kleenex. Fraction Discs is thrilled to team up with the excellent US label, Slumberland, to bring their subversive pop to a larger audience in the form of their new mini-LP, “Survival Strategies In A Modern World”.

With the nine-song “Survival Strategies In A Modern World”, Liechtenstein not only delivers the spooky harmonies and loping basslines that earned their singles such critical attention, but they also stretch out into realms only hinted at before. The band not only gives Love Is All a run for their money in the Swedish post-punk revival department, but they can also fit right in alongside Slumberland labelmates The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart (not to mention “lost” bands of the C-86 era like Swiss buzzsaw-pop girl-group Chin Chin) in delivering manic pop thrills. Clocking in alongside the post-punk flavour of lead track “All At Once” and “White Dress”, for example, comes the bubblegum sugar rush of “Roses In The Park.” Liechtenstein also has more than angular post-punk tricks up their sleeve; they channel the naïve-yet-proper Oxford charm of Talulah Gosh or The Carousel on songs like “Postcard” and “The End”.

Mixing its ’80s influences with a very fresh and contemporary enthusiasm, “Survival Strategies In A Modern World” packs so much excitement into less than 23 minutes that you will discover a new favorite song with every spin. At least, that is, until your sister sneaks into your room, snatches it (along with your Vivian Girls records and rare Mo-Dettes singles), and takes her own shot at indie stardom. Better buy two..

The 10" vinyl edition comes with a download code for the entire album as mp3 files. Coloured vinyl!

1. All At Once (listen)
2. Postcard
3. Sophistication
4. By Staying Here (We Will Slowly Disappear)
5. Wallpaper Stripes
6. Roses In The Park (mp3)
7. Reflections
8. White Dress
9. The End

Liechtenstein website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

September 2008

After last year’s debut success with “Stalking Skills” - and a frequent gigging around in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany and United Kingdom - Liechtenstein is finally back with a new 7” single! The title track “Apathy”, which offers a contemplation of an alternative reality, is built upon plenty of beautifully arranged vocal harmonies and proves once again that between a sweet sounding pop song and a protest emerges a sparkling assembly. On the flipside you’ll find the dymanic and stirring “Security By Design” where Liechtenstein this time has brightened the sound with a slightly Mexican sounding trumpet, almost like it was cut out from a Californian masterpiece anno 1968. Included is a code that allows you to download the songs in mp3 format.

A. Apathy (listen)

B. Security By Design (watch video)

Liechtenstein website

Recorded by J. Velasco and Monsy Mayor
Mixed by J. Velasco and Moscow Olympics
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

December 2007

The term “dreampop” gets a new and wider meaning when the Philippine quintet Moscow Olympics release their debut single on Fraction Discs. Pop as a dream come true, two tracks that raise their gaze off their shoes, stare into the skies and fill the unexpected yet somehow eagerly awaited gap in your record collection - the one between Blueboy’s “Unisex” and The Wake’s “Here Comes Everybody”.

Included is a code that allows you to download the songs in mp3 format.

A. Still (listen)

B. Talk Like This

Moscow Olympics website

Produced by Tillmanns
Mastered by Andreas Tilliander
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

August 2007


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After two 7” singles it’s finally time for the Göteborg duo Tillmanns­ first album, and “A Careless Lifestyle“ is a much longed-for debut CD. Because many of us have missed the sound of winding, ethereal guitars and sweeping, synthetic layers over minimalistic beats. The sound is well-known from a golden era when labels such as Sarah Records­ and Factory spread little grains of gold like The Wake, New Order, The Durutti Column, Stockholm Monsters and The Field Mice.

But, there’s another thread that through the North Sea connects the Northern Britain with our West Coast: the eternal lashing of rain at bus stops, on windscreens and window-ledges. And the light after the rain: the shimmering, but with a darker undertone. The art of balancing those contrasts - maybe this is what seizes us and sends us into a soft hypnosis, that actually can make us long for the autumn to burst into splendid colours: yellow, orange, red....

1. Heavy Rotation (mp3)
2. Background
3. Hypnosis
4. Cold Hands (listen)
5. Instrumental
6. Opening
7. New Place
8. Here's A Hit With Them In Mind
9. Twist
10. Time

Tillmanns website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

March 2007

We are very proud to present the third release on Fraction Discs: “Stalking Skills“, a 7” single by Liechtenstein­. This all girl quartet from Göteborg­, Sweden were featured on last year’s “C-06” compilation tape released­ by indiepop blog Mira El Péndulo, and now (at last!) this longed-for debut single is here.

For fans of: Dolly Mixture, Talulah Gosh, Girls At Our Best, Television Personalities­, Mo-Dettes, The Slits, Shop Assistants...

A1. Stalking Skills (mp3)

B1. Cravings
B2. Fallen Heroes

Liechtenstein website

Produced by Cats On Fire
Mixed by Henry Ojala
Mastered by Henry Ojala & Einar Ekström
Sleeve by Johann Höglund

June 2006

When we first saw the Finnish quartet Cats On Fire enter the stage on a beautiful summer's day in Malmö two years ago, we realized in the blink of an eye that their music does not conform. A classic guitar pop ensemble, they carry on a tradition born in the english 80’s indie scene, where beautifully chiseled chords and jangling guitars join lyrics that do not fear to tackle the important issues of our time. Vocalist and songwriter Mattias Björkas’ lyrics don’t attempt to flee seriousness, at the same time they bring a refreshing sense of dark humour. Along with tunes that have the ability to stick in one's mind Cats On Fire represent that intelligent kind of pop music we believe many, many people have been anxiously awaiting.

1. Draw In The Reins
2. Higher Grounds (mp3)
3. The Smell Of An Artist
4. The Cold Hands Of Great Men
5. Never Land Here

Cats On Fire website

Produced by Tillmanns
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

January 2006

The duo Tillmanns consists of Anders Tillman and Björn Fridholm, who make their debut with “Run EP”, four tracks with metallic guitar sounds winding through layers of icy, minimalistic synthesizers and pulsating drum machines. Life-affirming pop melodies where melancholia is right underneath the surface. Tillmanns sound like no others today, an electric dream in bleached colours accompaning rainy and windy pavements somewhere in Göteborg where echoes of The Field Mice, The Wake, My Bloody Valentine and Stockholm Monsters can be heard.

A1. Run (mp3)
A2. My London Love

B1. Twist (Spaced-Out)
B2. Background

Tillmanns website