You may or may not be aware, but a very well-billed indie extravaganza is playing in our very own backyard tonight at Slim's. Strangely enough, two of the billed artists are represented by Polyvinyl Records (one of our favorites - they also represent Of Montreal, Headlights, Asobi Seksu, Architecture in Helsinki, Owen and Japandroids among others), and two of them are from Sweden. We're not exactly sure what's in the water over there, but we're definitely not complaning about all the impressive talent that's popping up from Sweden (see Lykke Li). Nonetheless, opener and multi-Grammy winning Swedish sweetheart Anna Ternheim will be sure to sway you over with her sultry indie rhythms and wispy moods that take you to deep, far away emotional lands. The artistic direction that her new album, Leaving On A Monday, (produced by Björn Yttling, of Peter, Bjorn and John fame) has taken will sweep you off your feet and absolutely blow you away.
Second billed, Asobi Seksu (colloquial Japanese for "casual [or literally, playful] sex"), our only stateside band in this lineup, have amazing songwriting skills, with clever and witty cynicisms hidden between gorgeously produced melodies that stick in your brain for days. We've haven't seen them in the flesh yet, but their live show is supposed to be absolutely astounding.
Headlining is the stunningly incredible Swedish indie solo of the singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Emil Svanängen, who plays under the pseudonym of Loney Dear. Having been a blog favorite for years and garnering the attention of the high-famed Sub Pop label early in his career, Loney Dear transfered over to Polyvinyl in January where he's soared to even greater heights. Although he often tours with supporting musicians, Loney Dear makes even the most sullen of songs sound like an orchestrated musical masterpiece. His ordered chaos has us swooning, and we're looking forward to seeing what he has to bring to the table tonight.
See you there!
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