These Beatles clips from a 1965 NME show are straight off the mixing desk, so the voices are way up front. Man, those vocals are so loud you can hardly hear Ringo! But let's back it up just a year, to Holland in 1964, and catch one of the rare performances without Ringo. Aside from his brief stint as a Beatle, session drummer Jimmy Nicol also played with zany Swedish instrumental surf rock band The Spotnicks. So, there you have it: Jimmy Nicol, a lucky fella who got to play with two of the greatest bands in the world! [NOTE: see hoverovers for link descriptions]
posted on Jul 27, 2008 - View this thread

I was a Teenage Wares Freak? San Diego Republican Party chairman Tony Krvaric may have been Strider, co-founder of Fairlight. via Slashdot
posted on May 6, 2008 - View this thread

Guitarist and singer José González's myspace page mentions [lots of youtube ahead] Low and Elliot Smith. And no review of the Swede whose parents left Argentina in the 1970s is complete without a reference to Nick Drake. But what about the influence of styles from the hemisphere his parents left behind?
posted on Mar 22, 2008 - View this thread

This Is 'Snus'. Snus is a form of smokeless tobacco with a very long history in Sweden. Snus is gaining a bit of popularity in America; both Camel and Marlboro are launching their own brand. It is touted as a more discreet way to use tobacco in the wake of increasing bans on smoking, especially bacause it does not require spitting. A few Swedish compaines, such as Northerner and BuySnus.com ship it worldwide affordably. The Anti-Tobacco crowd is already manning the trenches and claiming that Snus is as dangerous as any other tobacco. However, the science that has been done to date appears to reach a very different conclusion.
posted on Mar 16, 2008 - View this thread

proggensaffischer.se - alternative, political and swedish poster art. The main gallery can be found here. [The site is in swedish, some of the posters are NSFW.]
posted on Feb 11, 2008 - View this thread

Carta Marina - From 1518 to 1519, Olaus Magnus made a journey across Sweden. On his journey, he encountered fish the size of elephants, sea serpents, demons and a tribe of pygmies.
posted on Dec 3, 2007 - View this thread

Either yesterday was April 1 in Sweden, or northern officials have just given the go ahead to build a 6.5 million dollar, handicapped accessible moose. There's even a walkthrough video.
posted on Nov 27, 2007 - View this thread

We used to call it speaking in tongues, now it's music. Introducing the fantastic Lindha Kallerdahl! A Swedish export, she's performed with Sonic Youth and won the "Jazz in Sweden" prize. Here's her site and here are a few samples on Myspace. I like "The Meaning of the..."
posted on Oct 30, 2007 - View this thread

The Velvet Underground you never got to hear. Born from the same experimental influences and art-pop sensibilities as VU, but based in 60s counter-cultural Sweden, and rife with name changes galore, Pärson Sound aka International Harvester aka Harvester aka Träd, Gräs och Stenar (Trees, Grass and Stones) brought the heavy, heavy drone sound as far back as 1967 and are still active today.
posted on Sep 19, 2007 - View this thread

Who are you? I am Death. You have come for me? I have been for a long time at your side. I know.
Ingmar Bergman, 1918-2007.
posted on Jul 30, 2007 - View this thread

Apoteket Orkestern.
posted on Jun 23, 2007 - View this thread

Her name is Anna. Anna she is called. She can ban you. Ban you so hard. (YouTube)
posted on Jun 18, 2007 - View this thread

Magazine fetish? Like flipping thru mags when you're bored? Tidningar lets you look thru a bunch of Swedish mags, page by page, ads and all. Neat if you're into design. (The link on the left under each mag is full screen--on the right is regular.)
posted on May 18, 2007 - View this thread

In 1980 artist Lars Vilks began construction of two sculptures in Skåne, Sweden. The works—once they were found—were considered houses by the local authorities and therefore condemned because they were built on a nature reserve. After many lost appeals, Vilks protested by declaring the area as the micronation of Ladonia with the motto of suum cuique. And while there is no possibility of receiving work or actually living in Ladonia, you too can become a citizen of Ladonia. For a nominal fee you can even become nobility, and choose your own title!
posted on Apr 6, 2007 - View this thread

Kulning: "Kulning is an archaic style of singing/cattle call, traditionally employed outdoors in the grazing pastures of Scandinavia from the Middle Ages to this day. It consists of shepherdess's tunes, calls and tones of enticement, mainly used to keep contact with, and to call the cattle, but also to communicate with other people over long distances". Examples: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. (related MeFi post)
posted on Feb 14, 2007 - View this thread

Kiruna: The Town that Moved
posted on Jan 31, 2007 - View this thread

Sweden sends ambassadors to Second Life, becoming "the first country to establish diplomatic representation in the virtual reality world..."
posted on Jan 30, 2007 - View this thread

I know you're all lining up to buy Sealand, but The Pirate Bay wants to beat you to the punch.
posted on Jan 12, 2007 - View this thread

Swedish cops kept record of beautiful women. Swedish border control agents at the ferry terminal on Kapellskär kept a binder, according to reports in the Swedish media, of "exceptionally beautiful women" that passed through the checkpoint.
posted on Dec 6, 2006 - View this thread

TIBET is an artist who works entirely underground (literally) in Stockholm, Sweden. All of his work is done only in the most hidden of places, and very few people will ever get to see it. Each statue is made of concrete and are 11" tall and weigh about 5 pounds each. They are glued, welded or drilled into the solid rock and will stay there for a very, very long time. via
posted on Oct 29, 2006 - View this thread

SWEDEN.SE:Music gives you a selection of the best Swedish pop and rock music right now.
posted on Oct 25, 2006 - View this thread

At 1400 CET today, (in Swedish) the Swedish Riksdag is expected to elect Fredrik Reinfeldt (again, in Swedish) as Swedish Prime Minister, replacing Göran Persson, the Social Democrat who has been in power for 12 years. Reinfeldt is head of the Alliance of four "borgerliga" (literally, non-socialist) parties who won a majority of seats in the riksdag on the September 17th election. The alliance promises "a better government than the ruling left-wing cartel."
posted on Oct 5, 2006 - View this thread

as often nostalgic and sad as they are summery and blissful, indiepop songs have long been the refuge of popkids the world around who embrace DIY but reject the rebellion of punk and pretentiousness of indie-rock. Over the years the regional focus has shifted from the twee bands in the united kingdom in the 80s to australia in the early nineties, to the northwestern united states, and to strangely.. sweden. Maybe its the combination of warm scarfs and good social services, but for whatever reason sweden's young generation has embraced the genre and, armed with casios and knit sweaters, have set about reminding the rest of us how truly wonderful and affecting it can be
posted on Sep 3, 2006 - View this thread

Sherri Finkbine --as reported by BBC News, on this day in 1962 (video clip too)--her travails and travels, the law, publicity, and what happened afterwards. (more here from American Prospect in 05: ...A Gallup Poll taken that year showed that the majority of Americans supported Finkbine, and her case was a turning point ...)
posted on Aug 26, 2006 - View this thread

Free Lecture On The Wonders Of Social Democracy And The Evils Of Alcohol With Every Bottle Of Booze: Outside sunny Islam, are there are worse places to get a drink than Sweden?
posted on Jul 12, 2006 - View this thread

The Ingmar Bergman site is now available in English. I find the 'Universe' section (examining repeated themes) is particularly interesting.
posted on May 22, 2006 - View this thread

Today is International Waffle Day. All around the globe, people are lining up at their favourite waffle establishments, waiting for that wonderful grid-laden batter construct we all love. Catholics refer to March 25th as the "Feast of the Annunciation", but we all know that's really code for "Feast of Countless Tasty Waffles".
posted on Mar 25, 2006 - View this thread

Hurdy Gurdy. Swedish techno band that uses only sounds sampled from the hurdy gurdy. [via NPR] [a little more inside]
posted on Mar 9, 2006 - View this thread

Sweden to break oil addiction? (BBC article): Released in a in a public statement the Swedish Minister for Sustainable Development (!), Mona Sahlin, sets forth the goal of a Sweden free from the dependence of oil by 2020. As this Altnews article says, this is essentially just a reaffirmation of a stated goal. Still 2020, is not far off.
posted on Feb 8, 2006 - View this thread

Last winter, Sweden was blasted by the first storm in recorded history to ever deliver hurricane force winds, devastating the country's forests. Logging crews came from all over the world. This massive collection of wood is now stored at a former air strip. via Inhabitat
posted on Jan 31, 2006 - View this thread

St. Lucia Day is celebrated today, primarily in Sweden . Celebrate at home! Bake some Lussekatter and put a wreath on your head!
posted on Dec 13, 2005 - View this thread

Friday fun (HST)... Pure sweet insanity...somebody has been playing too many video games...Semi-pro probably totally illegal hi jinks on Swedens highways and byways...andrenaline rush just watching this...and oh yeah its official... Google owns the world...(warning embedded 14 minute video....) and ..umm...you can buy tires here... tires.com ...you can catch glimpses of the bikes speedo that I assume are in KPH...
posted on Nov 21, 2005 - View this thread

Swedish Concert Posters. Welcome to one of Sweden's largest private collections that today contains about 900+ different posters to promote concerts in Sweden! [via swedesres.se]
posted on Oct 2, 2005 - View this thread

Let Them Sing It For You. Alternatively, you can Låt dam sjunga det åt dig. Also, a tree with birds in it, and Sound Carpets. Potentially lots more sound fun at the Swedish Radio page, although the exact quantity of fun you'll have depends on your ability to speak Swedish.
posted on Aug 18, 2005 - View this thread

Stureplan - Stockholm's Social Diary goes a long way to moderate the image of egalitarian Scandinavia. This site, highlighting quasi-royalty and celebrities (and those who wish they were) in exclusive private parties, seems like a Nordic version of New York's upper east side than a open-to-all-social-democratic-paradise. What gives? (Via)
posted on Aug 6, 2005 - View this thread

Some preserved animals. The Museum Adolphi Friderici has a catalogue in progress of the King Adolf Fredrik and Queen Lovisa collections. The collections apparently formed the basis for Carl Linnaeus's knowledge of animals.
posted on Aug 1, 2005 - View this thread

MeroMero Radio If you are interested in Japanese culture and especially that jolly Japanese pop music, then you might enjoy this podcast radio program made in Sweden. Nine one-hour-sessions has been made so far and each one focuses on a special artist or theme, and includes (at times) interviews with the artists themselves. The show's in English. The podcasts (ep. 7-9) in MP3 are available here. The radio programs (ep. 1-7) are also available here for RealAudio Streaming.
posted on May 25, 2005 - View this thread

Winter Lit. He has written 40 books that have been published in more than 35 countries and sold more than 25 million copies worldwide. Why isn't Swedish writer Henning Mankell better known in the United States? (via Stefan Geens)
posted on Mar 4, 2005 - View this thread

Bin Laden in Sweden Check out his HIP posse
posted on Nov 28, 2004 - View this thread

She was destined to lead us.
One year ago today, Sweden got it's own 9/11 trauma. Foreign Minister Anna Lindh died by the hand of a madman.
posted on Sep 11, 2004 - View this thread

The Ice Hotel, a working 5,000 square metre hotel made entirely of 30,000 tons of snow and 4,000 tons of ice.
posted on Jul 10, 2004 - View this thread

Food From Sweden.
posted on Apr 19, 2004 - View this thread

Swedish band postcards via a machine that generates excitement
posted on Sep 24, 2003 - View this thread

A memorial service was held today for Anna Lindh, the Swedish foreign minister that was murdered last week. The swedish police have arrested a suspect. The man, a neo-nazi, was filmed on video, moments before the murder.

The service was broadcast live on television in Denmark Finland, Norway and Sweden.

An odd twist in the story is that the man had met crown princess Madeleine in a bar and that they hang out in the same social circles in Stockholm (last link in swedish).
posted on Sep 19, 2003 - View this thread

Scandinavia in shock Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh has been repeatedly stabbed in an attack in a Stockholm department store.
posted on Sep 10, 2003 - View this thread

Man Shoots Six at His Surprise Party He intended to play a joke on them with his shotgun and ended up nearly killing six of them because he tripped (with his finger on the trigger of his Mossberg pump, sorry, had a Coolio moment there). I would have thought the Swedes would have already disarmed their populance by now but apparently not.
posted on Aug 19, 2003 - View this thread

Sweden has a referendum coming up on whether to join the EMU (European Economic and Monetary Union). Blah blah blah politics blah blah, but perhaps most importantly, Gayest. Pro-EU propaganda. Ever.
posted on Aug 16, 2003 - View this thread

Worst place to be a mother: Niger according to State of the Worlds Mothers. Sweden (PDF) the best.
posted on May 10, 2003 - View this thread

Furniture Of Mass Construction. “We found the warehouse in question contained no weapons of mass destruction, just a load of cheap flat-pack pine furniture from Sweden. Who would have thought that the instructions to build a coffee table would be that complicated.”
posted on Mar 14, 2003 - View this thread

Opera Borks MSN Opera 7.0.1 geefes MSN zee Svedeesh Cheff treetment. Bork Bork Bork! (No offense is intended towards any Swedes who may be reading this.)
posted on Feb 14, 2003 - View this thread