Laakso (band)
| Laakso | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| origin | Uppsala , Sweden |
| Genre (s) | Indie pop |
| founding | 2001, 2015 |
| resolution | 2007 |
| Founding members | |
| Markus Krunegård | |
| David Nygård | |
| Mikael "Micke" Fritz | |
| Lars Skoglund | |
| Current occupation | |
Vocals, guitar |
Markus Krunegård |
synthesizer |
David Nygård |
bass |
Mikael "Micke" Fritz |
Drums |
Lars Skoglund |
Laakso is a Swedish indie pop band that existed from 2001 to 2007 and got back together in 2015 with the old line-up.
history
When the singer and guitarist Markus Krunegård and the multi-instrumentalist David Nygård met in Uppsala in the early 2000s , they not only discovered a similar taste in music but also that both not only have Finnish roots, but also lead them back to the same place: Nygård's parents and Krunegård's mother come from from Tornionjokilaakso. They expressed this connection in that they named themselves Laakso after the Finnish word for "valley" and wrote texts in Finnish. The addition of bassist Mikael Fritz and drummer Lars Skoglund made the group switch to the international musical language of English, but the name stayed. In 2002 the band was discovered by scouts of the Adrian Recordings label during their local appearance in the opening act of David & the Citizens . A demo was handed out, whereupon the label immediately intended to release it as a regular EP and booked the Gröndal Studio in Stockholm in winter 2002/2003 . The producer of the Long Beach EP, which went on sale in February 2003, was Jari Haapalainen, who was to continue to accompany the band as a producer in the future. After writing more songs, this time in May 2003 they went to a lonely area in the south of Sweden, to the Aerosol Gray Machine Studio, to record the debut album I Miss You, I'm Pregnant . It was published in Scandinavia on November 5, 2003, in Germany, Austria and Switzerland one year later, on November 1, 2004.
Laakso then signed a contract with V2 Records and released the EP High Drama in 2005 , followed by the album My Gods , but only with the 2007 releases Västerbron & Vampires (EP) and Mother, Am I Good Loking? (Album) the expected chart success came. Simultaneously with the English-speaking Mother, Am I Good Loking? In addition, the Finnish-language album Mämmilärock was released by the Finnish company Break a Leg Entertainment, from which three singles were released. With this tailwind from the mainstream audience, Markus Krunegård ventured into a solo career. With his debut album Markusevangeliet , recorded for V2, he achieved a top ten rating in 2008. In the meantime, Skoglund played drums in the band around the artist Moneybrother and Nygård hired himself out in various projects, for example with the indie pop band Vapnet.
In 2015, Laakso reformed in the well-known line-up. After a few concerts, the band continued their recordings first in the form of the pre-release single Time of My Life and on April 22, 2016 with the album Grateful Dead , which Jari Haapalainen had produced again.
style
The music is assigned to indie pop. It shows influences from Finnish, not least of which is the homage to the songwriter Juhani "Juice" Leskinen, who died in 2006, on the album Mämmilärock . There is also a closeness to Nick Drake , whom the band honored with a title on I Miss You, I'm Pregnant . There is also a “dose of rebellion” in their songs, announced the German record company Noisedeluxe Records on the occasion of the promotion of the debut in German-speaking countries. This could still be felt when she returned in 2015, only that it seemed artificial and diffuse.
The websites gaffa.se and rockszene.de rated the band's status differently. While the Swedish Gaffa thinks that neither the band nor their solo front man , Markus Krunegård, have ever belonged to the musical elite of Sweden, they consider the rock scene responsible for the Hanover area to be one of the most respected and loved indie bands across Europe.
Discography
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Albums
- 2003: I Miss You, I'm Pregnant
- 2005: My Gods
- 2007: Mother, Am I Good Loking?
- 2007: Mämmilärock
- 2016: Grateful Dead
Singles and EPs
- 2003: Demon (single, Adrian Recordings)
- 2003: Long Beach (EP, Adrian Recordings)
- 2004: Aussie Girl (EP, Adrian Recordings)
- 2004: Laakso (single, Adrian Recordings)
- 2005: High Drama (EP, V2)
- 2005: In My Blood (single, supplemented by demo and live recordings, V2)
- 2006: Hurrin Hurjaa Elämää (Single, Break a Leg Entertainment)
- 2006: Kiss Me (Single, Nude Records)
- 2007: Italy vs. Helsinki (single, with Peter Jöback , V2)
- 2007: Minä Ja Jari (Single, Break a Leg Entertainment)
- 2007: Västerbron & Vampires (EP, V2)
- 2007: Tu Tu Tu Tulevaisuus (promo single, Break a Leg Entertainment)
- 2016: Time of My Life (Single, Adrian Recordings)
- 2016: So Happy, So Sad (Single, Adrian Recordings)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Laakso. Kiss Me. About this item. In: picadillyrecords.com. Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Laakso. In: adrianrecordings.com. Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ Laakso - Long Beach - EP. In: discogs.com. Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ a b c Noisedeluxe Records (ed.): Laakso (Sweden / Finland). A ballad in the ear, so powerful that it stays forever (= release information ). Halle / Saale 2004 (laundry slip).
- ↑ Laakso - I Miss You, I'm Pregnant. In: discogs.com. Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ a b c Jason Birchmeier: Laakso. Artist Biography by Jason Birchmeier. In: allmusic.com. Retrieved September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ a b c Emil Viksell: Laakso: Popaganda, Stockholm. In: gaffa.se. August 30, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2016 (Swedish).
- ↑ a b c editorial team rock scene: active again after a long radio silence. The indie pop band Laakso with new material. In: rockszene.de. January 27, 2016, accessed September 17, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Chart sources: SE