Looking for a deal...

Well, first of all sorry for being such a slacker (thanks, Dave ;-)).

The world is not fair. When people like Jason Bibier and Håkan Hellström can get a record deal, and we seem to be all out of luck. I'm talking about the new Overdrive album. We have 18 tracks recorded, mixed and ready. This feels, by far, like the best album we've ever made with the best production, the strongest tracks and our best musical and vocal performances. Still, it seems noone's interested... I mean, I've sent out around 25 promo packages. I've received two lousy deal proposals and three "thanks, but no thanks". Well, maybe it is actually better to take matters into our own hands, set up some good distribution and release it ourselves? We've already more or less decided to make a CD and a vinyl version, with different tracks (just to confuse people :-)). We've put up some medleys from the new album on our MySpace and Facebook and the response has been great. Seems at least we have some fans out there. Too bad the labels aren't among them... Well, since I'm also the only one in the band engaging in trying to get us a deal (and in most things for that matter...), my patience is starting to run low. Right now I feel more like, fuck it, I'm moving on! We'll see... a miracle may happen...

On the other hand the Guts train has now seriously started moving! We've got a shitload of great songs already written, and this feels really really exiting! The plan is now for me to get my butt up to Stockholm for a weekend of rehearsals and recording! Drummer/singer Peter Hermansson is one of the most prolific persons I've come across in years! And I thought I had a lot of extra hours on my day!

On the third hand, I will now also start arranging and recording guitars for the new Constancia album! The material I've received from Mikael sounds great!

Well, if one train has stopped moving, the best thing is to try and get on another one. Who knows, it may be an express!

Here's some new great stuff I've picked up lately:

BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION - s/t - The album Chickenpox... sorry -foot, should've made!

RAZR13 - s/t - Dug Pinnick doin' the King's X dance with some other boys, sounding great!

PRETTY MAIDS - Pandemonium - Their best in years!

SHARKATTACK - s/t - New great CDBaby discovery! Cool rockers!

THE NAUGHTONES - s/t - see above!

Skagarack, Pretty Maids and a working computer!

So, the show at Amager Bio with the re-united Skagarack and Pretty Maids yesterday... was AWESOME!!!
Skagarack may not have looked like the hottest band on the planet, but man, they sounded awesome!!! They looked a little bit nervous in the beginning, but after a couple of songs they looked really comfortable. The sound was killer, Torben sang his ass off and they were all incredibly great musicians! Much heavier than on CD, too! Looking forward to hearing a new release (just hope they have improved a bit in the lyrics department...). They definitely need to do Firefest next year!!





Pretty Maids did an outstanding show! They also played a couple of songs I've never hard them do live before! Ronnie ALWAYS sings his ass off and always performs all the way without any cracks, Ken played great and their drummer is a machine!! A great night indeed!





On another note, finally, my computer is working! My colleague Johan managed to save most of my files and get the damn thing going again. A hard, but effective way, to get a heads-up about back-up...





Last week I picked up my new True Temperament Low Tune Strat (see pic). It's tuned to B (0.014-0.070). Body of swamp ash made by Eugen Guitars in Norway. Rio Grande pick-ups.

New interesting stuff:


EAGLESTRIKE - s/t - Freak Kitchen bass-player gone solo - great melodic hard rock


IMPULSIA - Expressions - Great new AOR w Marel Jacob (RIP) etc


URBANDUX - Eleven Eleven - Starting to sounds really good now!

2008 summary

In the last quaking moments of 2008 I'm sitting here, contemplating what I have achieved this year, and where the hell it went!

So, what did happen? Released an album by Balls, a short but interesting journey which made me think about personal chemistry and how it can sometimes fool us. On the other hand I decided to give the accumulated Balls-energy to Overdrive and we soft of ended the year with a gig at Compagniet in Karlshamn which went really great, and made me gain hope in the band again. This time we did some quite unexpected covers: "Red Hot & Heavy" by Pretty Maids and "A Merry Jingle" by The Greedies. Yes, of course, 2008 started with a new Overdrive album, which have received raving reviews, which feels great!

It's also taken most of the year (in small portions) to demo and record the Constancia album. Now that's it's finally in the final stage I think it's been worth it as it's becoming a really great album!

I've started workin on a new book, got the Ebay-bug and started selling stuff to be able to buy stuff (writing encyclopedias is an expensive hobby). I've so far found around 2500 Swedish bands I need to include and write about. Fun, but a lot of work.

We decided to sell our house just before Christmas, so the ad is out and the ball has started rolling. It will be interesting to see where it takes us!

Two weeks in New York was a great experience as always, and seeing Dave, Amy and Jeb was great, not forgetting Robin Trower at BB King's and rehearsing old Sir Lord Baltimore songs with John Garner! Firefest in Nottingham, Arrow Rock in Nijmegen and of course Sweden Rock Festival and the Sweden Rock Kick-Off with Blackfoot, Hammerfall and Bullet. Some nice trips to Denmark to see Pretty Maids and Three Doors Down, the of course Ted Nugent, Kansas and ACT in Malmö.

So, my top 10 among this year's releases goes like this (it actually changed in the last minute):

1. Grand Magus – “Iron Will”
2. Volbeat – “Guitar Gangsters And Cadillac Blood”

3. Black Stone Cherry – “Folklore & Superstition”
4. Opeth – “Watershed”
5. Blindstone – “Freedom’s Calling”
6. 3 Doors Down – “3 Doors Down”
7. Truth – “Machine”
8. Big Jim Slade – “This Is Delicious”
9. H.E.A.T – “H.E.A.T”

10. Nickelback - "Dark Horse"

However my Top 10 - overall - right now, looks like this:

1. Diamond REO - "Dirty Diamonds"

2. Robin Trower - "Bridge Of Sighs"

3. Santers - "Shot Down In Flames"

4. Black Pearl - s/t

5. James Gang - "Bang"

6. Foghat - "Fool For The City"

7. Grand Magus - "Iron Will"

8. Budgie - "The BBC Sessions"