Sunday 1 February 2009

Three of a Kind #75

It's one of my favourite places on the 'net, yet I barely understand a word of it. Swedish-language music and popular culture website PSL is such a boon for me because it's full-to-bursting with specially-filmed live performances of individual songs in all kinds of unlikely places by a multitude of top solo artists and bands.

This month alone PSL-shot promos have appeared on the site by M. Ward, The Ladybug Transistor, The Weakerthans, Hanna Hirsch, Skansros, David Sandström Overdrive, and Tobias Fröberg. (Spike and me once met Tobias Fröberg in the bar after a gig where he'd been supporting Kathryn Williams. He really is a lovely bloke, and smiled benignly as I excitedly gabbled on about my love of Swedish music in general and rattled off a list of my favourite bands. Great sense of humour, too, as anyone who's heard his onstage banter will testify.)

New vids appear sporadically on PSL so you never quite know when you're going to find something fresh on the site; but this unpredictability just makes it all the more enjoyable. If you've never been there you really could do a lot worse than to check it out sometime, as I guarantee you'll find something you like. Here are a few of my favourites:

I featured this song on the blog a while back, but Frida Hyvönen's Dirty Dancing definitely bears another listen (or thousand) as it is, frankly, wonderful. This one looks like it's been filmed in some tea rooms in Harrogate, but the location's actually Stockholm. Nice dungarees too!



Whippersnapper Swedish sister act First Aid Kit really are terribly good, you know - even if, worryingly, one of them appears to be wearing a Spice Girls t-shirt in this clip.



Remember the videos for Massive Attack's Unfinished Sympathy and The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony? Of course you do. Well, this one, starring Sarah Nyberg Pergament AKA Action Biker, is a sort of polite Swedish equivalent!



Get thee to PSL for much, much more of the same

5 comments:

HowMarvellous said...

kippers - those look really good, no pianos in the tea-rooms round here.

I'll have to have a look in the morning when my blimmin' isp stops throttling - siily b's.

Ta for the pointer.

Kippers said...

Pleasure, HM.

More pianos for tea rooms, that's what this country needs!

HowMarvellous said...

sweet christmas! I had to download the vids, plusnet running soo slowly - maybe it's all the kiddies at home due to snow?

Ah well, worth the hassle.

Perhaps The Tea-Rooms Sessions to rival black cab & those balcony based guys?. Anything for a gimmick eh

Anonymous said...

I'm loving the Action Biker video and the noisy streets behind her. Also, that Frank and Walters video made me smile for many days; None more than Holiday Rap a few posts back, though : p

Signed,
Rough morning

Kippers said...

Glad you enjoyed the vids! Goodness me those girls in the F&W one looked absolutely frozen, though, didn't they?

Oh, and I wish Miker G & Sven would sort themselves out and release the follow-up to Holiday Rap a bit sharpish. I've been waiting to review it for *ages* ;)