Second day of Popaganda!

Well the second day of Popaganda started with a minute or too late arrival to find Marching Band, the Swedish band who has yet only managed to get released in the US and not actually Sweden, playing for approximately 8 people at 14:05. The number during their fine fine FINE indie pop demonstration increased to, perhaps, 20-30 people. Very undeserved, because this is a band to look out for. Make Up Artist clings onto you and will not go away that easily. For God's sake, they've got nearly one million presumed Americans that have visited their myspace.

Florence Valentin's more unrestrained and frenetic indie pop however drew a bigger audience, however. Is it that the band is very loveable, charming, down-to-earth and more straightforwardly pummeling dancey or that all indie kids and alts of Stockholm wake up at 14:15 so they just can stroll down, all fancy from their 10 hour sleep and have a listen to a band that they actually DO know from before? I'll leave the question hanging there.

Joel Alme is a newcomer that also is easy to love despite, or probably because of, a quite unexcusing and uncompromising approach to his indie pop and singing style. It's probably because he actually sounds very natural and original anyhow, I'd say. His performance captured me, despite, or probably because of, the quite unexcusing and uncompromising stage presentation.

Caesars... Sweden's most underestimated band? Perhaps actually! Because considering the resources they have in form of ever-vital hits, the Swedes should have gone nuts from the band's pop-injection. Did Caesars not rock and try hard enough to crack open those nut shells to release live euphoria or do we just not appreciate songs like Jerk It Out, Over 'Fore It Started, Candy Kane, Paper Tigers and my favourite: We Got To Leave? I'd say it's a combo of the two.

The Radio Dept. has one of the summer's finest EPs in their luggage: Freddie And The Trojan Horse, picks it out at times on stage but energy, compassion or that glistening indie pop feel seems to have been left in the bags. I still love their music, so a bad concert it is not.

Laakso, which I've never quite gotten into proved to be something I've missed out on. The kids knew all of their lyrics and I knew none. I recognized songs, they knew all. And I stood there wishing I had listened more before because on stafe Laakso is one of Sweden's better and cooler bands I think.

Bonde Do Rolê lit the fuse that exploded the second day of the festival. I made sure to be in the front because I think I was one of the few who knew what was to come... Office Boy and Solta O Frango were crazy crowdpleasers and I think that all the Portuguese that makes no sense to Swedes just spurred them even more and I believe it exceeded the band's expectations on crowd response. Bonus trivia: I caught one of the guy's socks that was thrown out. And I've still got it! :P

I HAVE SET UP AN RSVP-LINE FOR RODRIGO AND/OR PEDRO OF BONDE DO ROLÊ SO YOU CAN CALL ME IF YOU WANT YOUR SOCK BACK!
THE NUMBER IS 0127-5541 039
PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS LINE UNLESS YOU'RE A MEMBER OF BONDE DO ROLÊ.
OR JUST DROP ME A MAIL TO THELEMURBLOG@HOTMAIL.COM

After that sweaty sexy Brazilian workout I was too exhausted and speedy to pay attention to The Hidden Cameras. But from what I saw and heard I could tell that a lot of grown-up drunken alts were enjoying their somewhat goofy middle-aged pop music.

It was the perfect hour to spend hyping and preparing myself mentally and physically for Familjen - the act every younger person in there had waited for the entire day. It was just as I had hoped. All the favourite songs of everyone were played and I got to paw him a little, sending him my energies by touch and thought. And I got around to scream that Andreas Tilliander's Ljud is a great record. And Elit also.

Anyway, after that bashout, I was not so willing to attend the bob hund comeback gig. But I went into the crowd and a fucking raving beautiful chaotic party was going on so you could barely stand up as the magnificent Thomas Öberg preaches the band's vivalavida-lyrics. But I didn't stay long because I was tired and had to catch the last bus home.

And that was it! I was surprised at how many alts and indie kids there actually existed in Sweden. Popaganda was a friggin' outdoors daycare center for indie kids, damnit! So it was fun and not so fun at the same time to see so much engagement and fooling around in the music halabaloo. I'd love to go next year as well and I'll try to make it to more festivals as well. Now it's over and out from festival reporting with a wonderful tune!

Marching Band - Make Up Artist (zshare)
Marching Band - Make Up Artist (ysi)