it's so hard to say goodbye

so I've neglected this blog forever, and it's with sad sad emoticon that I redirect you to my new and improved personal website, where I'll post the meaningful things I write and artistic projects I'm working on. It has a blog feature and I'll be updating work there constantly. Thanks for those who followed this blog and youstayherewithme as well. cheers. :)

www.kikajonsson.com

July and August: Nightmares on Wax, Braids, Einar Stray and Listener

A couple of interviews, reviews and what-have-yous up and about. My August highlight was meeting producer/legend/generally happy guy George Evelyn aka NIGHTMARES ON WAX. Interview will be up soon, had to go to Tegel to find him. Just so you know, his new album, Feeling Good, is amazing, you all can enjoy in when it's released September 17th on Warp Records.
 I'm finally on Instagram as kikahasfun, also follow me on Twitter @kikatroika

appropriately framed: me and Nightmares on Wax

Most recently I did an email interview with spoken word rock band LISTENER, seeing them tonight. Sadly it did not happen in person but we can't have everything.

 Prior to that my album review and interview with Canadian electronic trio-formerly-a-quartet BRAIDS went up.
 And way, way back, I finally finished my interview with Norwegian musician EINAR STRAY. 

Coming up expect an interview with ANNA CALVI, and some dispatches from Berlin Music Week. Which, reminds me, I saw two bands on a boat and three glasses of (free) wine. Thank you major labels for a trip down the Spree! Kent Brockman once said "If you wonder why they name hurricanes after women, then you haven't seen the ladies at the clearance rack" which should be changed to "journalists," name hurricanes after journalists, because you haven't seen THEM at an open bar. 

Just for kicks here's some kitty clocks courtesy of the Tegel Airport gift shop. Diamond eyes baby.

Kika Jonsson is seeing other blogs, part 2

I've been featured as #tastemaker of the week by frestyl, a Berlin-based music blog. Join the mailing list to find out what show I recommend to see this week. (Hint: it's a record-release party.) Like I would say no to sharing my opinion. I particularly proud of this interview because I mention Rod Stewart before all those indie bands.

Roskilde Festival 2013

Oh, Roskilde. This is a bit belated, but I wanted to compile all the writing I did over those magical five days in early July. Wednesday and Thursday were mellow, more seeing the non-musical aspects of the festival like Dream City and the camps.  Thursday evening kicked off with Suicidal Tendencies, of all things and Friday things started with Henry Rollins and ended with Rihanna, two musicians I never thought I would put in one sentence. Saturday I did the art tour and got to meet Ron English, which was an unexpected surprise. The mock ads he designed for the grandstand wall were hilarious.

Sunday was my favorite day, with a surprisingly fun set from Kid Koala. He played a song he wrote for the kids TV show Yo Gabba Gabba and got the audience to dance a long. I also conducted a few interviews. Read the one with Henry Rollins (don't be impressed, it was over email, tried to meet him in person but no luck.)  I talked to Jonathan Schultz of Schultz and Forever, who I have interviewed before, but this time we talked about his top ten influential songs. He introduced me to this William Basinski track that blew my mind, dlp 1.1 I also saw the girls from Baby in Vain and got an insider Danish view on Roskilde, that one still needs to publish.

music, festivals, and what I packed: the Roskilde packing list

About to go to sleep, but here ist he list of what I have packed for Roskilde, complete honesty, as always. I've had this mountainsmith backpack since I was fourteen years old. It's been around Europe, through Turkey, Peru, the Sierra Nevadas, and Western Canada, but it's her first time to Denmark. Can't wait for that Orange Feeling. 

-->Roskilde Pack List

1. aspirin
2. paracetamol
3. toothpaste
4. toothbrush
5. 1 bottle bug repellent
6. 1 tube mosquito bite treatement
7. 1 bottle sunblock
8. 1 all weather blanket
9. 6 pairs underwear
10. 5 pairs socks
11. 2 bras (one I will wear on the bus)
12. flashlight and AA batteries
13. 1 pair boots
14. 1 pair Vans slip ons
15. 1 pair flip flops aka thongs aka sandals
16. 1 small recorder and extra AAA batteries
17. 3 pencils and pencil sharpener with eraser
18. 1 journal
19. 1 notebook
20. 1 hairbrush
21. 5 bandaids aka plasters
22. 1 razor
23. long sleeve shirt
24. 1 black tank top
25. 2 black t shirts (grimes and stiff little fingers)
26. 1 Nothing But Hope and Passion T shirt, impractical because it’s white
27. 1 pair black shorts
28. 1 black raincoat
29. 1 tent
30. 2 sleeping pads (hey, it’s 5 nights)
31. 1 pillow
32. 1 pair jeans
33. 1 microfiber towel
34. 1 ipad with a keyboard
35. 1 ipod with headphones
36. 1 small bottle shampoo and conditioner
37. 5 bobby pins
38. 4 ponytail holders
39. 1 bee sting kit
40. 1 bottle antihistamines (Benadryl)
41. 1 copy Storm of Swords (book 4 in Game of Thrones series)
42. 3 recent New Yorkers, including the summer fiction issue
43. 1 refillable water bottle
44. 1 spork (fork one side, spoon another)
45. 1 plastic knife
46. 1 Digital SLR camera (Lumix)
47. 1 small digital camera (Samsung)
48. 5 different charging cables
49. 1 package fineliner multicolor pens
50. 2 kg bag apples
51. 1 loaf of white bread
52. 1 jar peanut butter
53. 1 jar raspberry jelly
54. 1 package balistos
55. 1 bag plain M&Ms
56. 1 bag peanut M&Ms
57. 1 package honey waffles
58. 1 package Prinzenrolle cookies

    

    was running an email through Google Translate, here's our site in Spanish

    
    

now, let's review Austra - Olympia and Listener - Time is a Machine

Now, I have stopped writing reviews because I'm so full of myself. No, seriously! I haven't done that many since I have been busy with interviews. Also, happy to share I was promoted to Content Editor at NBHAP, that means I get to check everyone's English and help the writers keep to a style. As always, grateful for the opportunity to be a know-it-all.
The two reviews I wrote in the last few months are bands that are close to my heart. Listener I only recently discovered, and Wooden Heart (2010) has been on repeat for awhile. It's intense, but good intense. June saw the band releasing Time is a Machine, which keeps to the confessional, heart-wrenching style that makes it's almost painful to listen to. My favorite line is "and people everywhere are crying on cliff edges and carving their ex-lovers names into tree trunks in anticipation."

Next is Austra with Olympia, which I will say is actually better than Feel it Break (2011) on account of all the collaboration. " Katie’s icy soprano over stylized synth-pop." See earlier posts for my interview with her.
Next up: a weekend at Danish music festival Roskilde...pretty much realizing a life-long dream here.

non traditional interviews and please follow this chick on Twitter @kikajonsson

No rest for the wicked! Summer looks very promising, as I will be realizing a mostly-life long dream of attending Roskilde Festival in Denmark. This combines all that I love: music, journalism, and Danish people. Read my interview with spokesperson Christina Bilde, some interesting bits on festival history. 

I also finally finished the interview with Out in the North founders, who I had the pleasure to meet in Arhus at the SPOT festival when we both could not get into the Broken Twin show! This project take Scandinavian/Nordic musicians out into natural settings to play acoustic versions of songs, it's thoroughly original. Read about the ideas and inspirations and occasional mishaps behind this project.

 Coming up soon: I was able to interview Canadian former-quartet-now-trio Braids on Thursday. Will get that up as soon as possible, they were incredibly nice, well-spoken and gregarious. They played as one of three bands for the Introducing in June, part of the Intro series. They played songs off their new album (out in August) Flourish//Perish, which is different then debut album Native Speaker.
Rock Ton Paintball avec Braids (Épisode 8) from Scène 1425 on Vimeo.

May was busy, dude.

Well, after recovering from SPOT Festival, it's be show-and-interview tastic...
First, I went to Night + Day Festival, curated and headlined by the xx, I did threaten to leave at least 3 times due to rain but glad I stuck it out. Mykki Blanco killed it. Jessie Ware is overrated. The Chromatics are good and get props for covering Neil Young. I can't really remember the rest. Why is there rain? Why?

THE VERY NEXT DAY, we went to Leipzig and kicked it with Goths. It's a big festival/costume show/weirdo fest. Read the article I co-wrote with a Amanda Gray and check out Julian Barrats awesome pictures. Mindblowing, and I decided I would be the punky Goth, if push came to shove.

Then, I discovered this awesome band courtesy of the Polyvinyl Records, of San Francisco. Saturday Looks Good to Me: lovely indie pop from Michigan, listen and believe.

My Danish favorites Waldo and Marsha put out their full length album Zoo, read my review and check out the video for "Savannah."

Lastly, my interview with Katie Stelmanis of Austra published, she definitely plays her cards close to her chest that one, but I was able to get her to open up a bit.

Please, if you haven't done so yet, check me out on twitter @kikajonsson, all my articles get put on there.

SPOT Festival 2013

Rob and I had the pleasure of boarding this bus and heading to Aarhus, Denmark for SPOT Festival 2013. 

Well, it’s been over a month since I returned from the SPOT festival. It was a rad and awesome experience.  I interviewed eight bands/musicians and saw fifteen different acts. The first interview has published, my talk with precocious Broken Twin.  The festival organized a private bus up to Århus, there were three: one from Koln, one that started in Berlin and stopped in Hamburg, and one from Antwerp. The ride provided a great chance to meet other people in various facets of the music industry: labels, management companies, and other writers. I liked being back in the city of Århus, it has a special vibe, just so many students and young people. I found my notes from my first time there. I still note this whole huge generation that is dying to rebel, but when you have a government that coddles you so much you really have so little to rebel against. Rebelling against banality. That’s another essay waiting to be written. I also interviewed festival darling Schultz and Forever. I really enjoyed talking to Danish rock band Baby in Vain.

Anyway, way below you’ll seem my version of a spoof on Harper’s Index, if you don’t know what that magazine is then you are missing the best of the academically disconnected liberal discourse in the USA. So you probably don’t know what it is.

The thing is, festivals like this are the first filters of the many bands and musicians go through before crossing over into mainstream recognition. Like any big gathering, there’s a lot of crap and a lot of overrated stuff. However, there were a few hidden gems. My favorites were the hip-hop group Point Blank(I know, Danish hip-hop, who knew?).  It’s like the mid-90s all over again. I picked up their album and it’s dirty sexy rhymes, I dare you to listen to it and not want to make out with any pretty young thing around. It also helps that the main lyricist (NAPKIN COLE) is foxy as well as talented. The next was SYND OG SKAM, this eight-piece punk noise outfit that was worth it for the sound and the fascinating-like-a-train-wreck live performance. 

it's actually "da Mayor"

Just want to brag that the delegates had a special breakfast with the mayor of Århus, Jacob Bundsgaard, the Friday morning, it was free coffee and food and a nice speech and one the main organizers of Roskilde introduced him. The mayor is a young guy and well spoken, he made a joke about the rarity of so many music industry professionals being up that early, and that thing was at 11. Ha.

SPOT Festival 2013 Index

Number of total hours spent on bus to and from Århus: 19

Number of bands seen: 15

Number of musicians interviewed: 8

Number of times a musician told me his most compulsive habits were smoking weed and masturbation: 1

Approximate number of kilometers walked between the main venues: 15

Percentage of those bands that I think will be around in a year: 85%

Percentage of those bands that I think will be around in ten years: 10%

Amount of times I employed the double negative “This isn’t anything I haven’t seen before:” 10+

Ratio of meals consumed sitting down at a table versus running to catch a show: 2:7

Cost, in Danish crowns, of the cab ride I took one kilometer: 89

Ratio of just good bands versus unique and truly awesome bands: 13:1

Complete number of intense, heartfelt discussions: 4

Number of strangers I shared a room with, at a hostel: 5

Number of times I saw someone hit in the face with a door: 2

Amount of times I yelled “She’s not the next Grimes!”: 1

Total number of shots given to me when it was discovered I’m from California: 1

Age, in years, of the guy I did a shot with at the “This” venue in the Scandinavian Congress Center: 19

Number of beers liberated, by me, from a label party versus total cases of beers liberated, by friends, a backstage party: 2:5

Frequency with which I mentioned a previous trip Århus, per hour: 1:1

Water bottles lost: 1

Number of times we discussed Minor Threat and Suicidal Tendencies, respectively: 1:14

Percentage of more eloquent and informative posts you can read after this: at least 2.

I gave my watch and my necklace and intend to get both those things back at Roskilde. Love you always, Denmark.