HALMSTAD (UPDATED) - Per Gessle threw a release party for friends, select media and competition winners Tuesday night to promote his new album “Mazarin”. About 600 people attended the club gig at Leif’s Lounge, the night club located in the lower level of Hotel Tylösand in Halmstad.

  Per and his band performed 10 songs at the mini concert. Joining Per onstage were Jonas Isacsson (celebrating his 23rd birthday, according to Per), Anders Herrlin (of Gyllene Tider), Jens Jansson (of Brainpool), Christoffer Lundquist and Helena Josefsson (soon to be married).

  The concert opened with Gyllene Tider’s “Kung av sand”, continued with the new song “Vilket håll du än går”, the album opener. After that “Om du bara vill”, “Gungar”, “Tycker om när du tar på mej”, “Födelsedag” (dedicated to Jonas), and “Här kommer alla känslorna”… all from the new album. After leaving the stage, the band returned almost immediately and played “På promenad genom stan” (alas without Marie), John Holm’s “Den öde stranden” (that Per claims he always has to play whenever he does something in Swedish), and finally the old Gyllene Tider rocker “Vill ha ett svar!” from “Swing & Sweet” (“Covers are fun,” says Per). “Billy” was, according to our information, mysteriously cut from the playlist.

  The concert was very well performed, with a surprisingly tight band. Commenting on this to The Daily Roxette afterwards, Per said “Really? We’ve only rehearsed for three days, and just forty minutes yesterday, so that’s great to hear!”

  Per was very pleased with the show, and has yet to decide if there will be a tour or not… but time is running out. “We will have to reach a decision this week,” he told TDR. The big problems are that Per’s key players, as he calls them, are partly booked with other artists. Jens will do a Japanse tour for instance. This is what they are trying to solve at the moment. “It’s all about logistics,” Per states. If a tour will come true, Per is aiming at venues like Sofiero in Helsingborg and Skansen in Stockholm.

  All in all, a nice evening with lots of happy fans. Prominent guests spotted by TDR included MP Persson, Micke Syd, Göran Fritzson, Peter Jöback, Frida Lyngstad and Björn Ulvaeus to mention a few.

  Editor’s Note: A strange but unfortunate rumor promising that the first 50 fans who got to Leif’s would get in for free seemed to have circulated, according to those managing the event. Apparently, this resulted in a bus full of 50-80 German fans arriving. “Naturally we let them in”, Per said.

• Article in Aftonbladet
• Article in Expressen
• Article in Hallandsposten
• Article in Göteborgs Posten (In Swedish)