While using the file swapping services such as Kazaa is decreasing, more and more legitimate online music stores are launched. One of the first was Apple Computer’s iTunes Music Store which sells songs in AAC format 99¢ per piece. Apple reported in September selling over 10 million songs through their store in just four months - even though it’s only available for customers using Mac OS X software and located in the USA. However, Apple has said they are creating a Windows version of the iTunes software and the rumor has it that it would be released as soon as next week. Apple is also working hard to get the store opened in Europe, but contract negotiations with record companies have delayed the opening.

  Apple’s biggest rival in music store business is BuyMusic.com. Their store is available for only Windows users and the songs are sold in Windows Media Player 9 format, also 99¢ per song. Both iTunes and BuyMusic.com are going to get new competition as Roxio launches their store, Napster, on October 29th. Roxio bought the rights to the name after the free file swapping service was closed.

  For Roxette fans these online music stores don’t have much to offer. BuyMusic.com doesn’t have any Roxette songs in their 315,000 song catalog and iTunes didn’t have any until recently, when they added several, but not all, songs from the “Look Sharp!” and “Tourism” albums.

STOCKHOLM - “Mazarin” falls back to #3 and “Här kommer alla känslorna” falls to #11 from #7, while “På promenad…” climbs to #25 from last week’s #28.

STOCKHOLM - Per Gessle is one of the artists that will perform at ZTV’s and TV3’s music awards gala “Swedish Hit Music Awards” on November 9th at Hovet in Stockholm. More artists will be confirmed shortly. Currently the only confirmed, besides Per, are Black Eyed Peas, Atomic Kitten and The Rasmus.

  The artists nominated in the 11 categories are chosen by ZTV’s music staff, and by the viewers’ choice, who will take the three-kilo award “Guldälgen” (“Golden moose”). Per Gessle is nominated in the “best Swedish song” category with “Här kommer alla känslorna”.

  The gala will be broadcast live on ZTV between 17:30 and 22:00 CET and partially on TV3 between 18:00 and 20:00 CET.

• ST’s article
• ZTV (In Swedish)

STOCKHOLM - Per Gessle’s successful album “Mazarin” climbs to #2 from #3 on the Swedish album charts today, Friday. The top spot is held by Bo Kaspers Orkester, while previous champion Iron Maiden falls to #5.

  The older single “Här kommer alla känslorna (på en och samma gång)” falls one position, to #7, while the latest single “På promenad genom stan” falls to #28 from #20.

OSLO (UPDATED) - Per’s successful concert and TV appearances in Norway seem to have paid off. “Mazarin” re-entered the charts last week and climbs from #23 to #6 this week. The album has spent five weeks on the Norwegian charts. This is the highest position a solo album by Per Gessle has reached in Norway so far. Previously, Marie Fredriksson’s greatest hits album, “Äntligen,” also reached #6 in the year 2000.

  In Sweden, “Mazarin” is still at #3. The first single, “Här kommer alla känslorna,” has climbed back to #6 from #7. At the same time, the second single, “På promenad genom stan,” has entered the chart at #20. But that’s not all: there’s also a cover version of the old Gyllene Tider hit “När vi två blir en” by Miio on the Swedish chart at #5.

  Editor’s note: The reason for moving “Mazarin” from #5 to #6 is that the sales of Sting’s new album was miscalculated due to the SACD version being counted by itself. When counted as one Sting overtook Per. TEV

  Bengt Meidell Hjertholm contributed to this article.

• Official Norwegian Topp 40 in VG

HELSINKI - Here’s something very funny and very exclusive for the readers of The Daily Roxette. You know these “jingles” they play on the radio? “This is Per Gessle from Roxette, and you’re listening to Radio Blah Blah.” is a jingle. Besides being annoying, they are often quite hilarious.

  Well, we wanted a jingle of our own, so when we met Per before his concert in Helsinki, we asked him to record one for us. Here you go:


Per’s jingle for The Daily Roxette (MP3, 6 secs, 117 KB)

HELSINKI - The rock club Tavastia in Helsinki, Finland wasn’t completely packed with people, but that made the atmosphere even more enjoyable and intimate for those fortunate enough to be there. About 400 tickets were sold in advance and since the club has the capacity of 700, The Daily Roxette estimates there were around 500 people listening to this last concert of Per’s “Mazarin” summer tour.

  The set list was exactly the same as in Oslo on Tuesday, concentrating on the more rocking songs. Especially “(Hon vill ha) Puls” rocked like it never has before. Rather surprisingly, the audience really warmed up when “Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång” started. It seemed like everyone knew the lyrics and sang along. A similar reaction was only produced with “Sommartider,” which ended the concert.

  Per first looked a bit tired on stage, but was nevertheless in a good mood. Because of the nature of a club concert, the audience was able to shout their comments and requests to him. Unfortunately, the song list had already been decided and Per and his band didn’t play any songs suggested by the audience.

  An excellent gig by excellent musicians, anyway.

  The “Mazarin” album hasn’t been a major success in Finland, having failed to reach the Top 40 chart. However, the songs have been very popular among the Swedish-speaking minority, and it looked like most of the audience were either members of that minority or Roxette fans - or both.

HELSINKI - The Daily Roxette meets a neatly dressed Per Gessle in Hotel Simonkenttä, Helsinki, Finland. He’s wearing jeans, a pink striped shirt and a new, cool necklace. “Thanks, Jonas [Åkerlund] found it in L.A., he finds the best stuff all the time!” Per says proudly. It’s “Sommar-Mazarin” time for Finland and Per is doing a whole stretch of interviews. Although today the weather is far from summer in Helsinki, with eight centigrades and rain. Per is looking a bit exhausted this being his tenth interview for the day. He’s also been on the road almost constantly since Tuesday, he lets TDR know. Tuesday he was in Oslo giving a concert at Rockefeller. The concert was a blast and they all had fun. “There was a huge party afterwards, I’m told,” Per says. He didn’t join, as he felt he wanted to visit his family quickly. Per flew in very early this morning to Helsinki instead.

  Why Helsinki? Per says that it felt empty when the tour ended - uncomplete. There were no more places to play in Sweden. “So we thought about Oslo, Helsinki and Copenhagen. Copenhagen didn’t work out, but the other two did.” He also mentions that it’s good for the press coverage and good for the local record company branches. “It doesn’t matter to me if it’s a big place or not. The important thing for me is to play. It will be a little bit like the release party gig [in Halmstad], only longer, and better,” Per adds, smiling.

  Per calls this the “shortest world tour ever”. It started in Oslo on Tuesday and now ends in Helsinki. Read more…

HELSINKI - This just in! Per Gessle will be in Hyppönen Enbuske Experience tonight at 21:00 on Nelonen. He will be interviewed by comedienne Krisse Salminen. The TV show is live, but the interview was recorded earlier today. According to our sources, the interview was “very funny.” Because all the Finns are going to Per’s concert at that time, they have to wait until Sunday, when the show is re-run.

  Per has also been interviewed by MTV3. His insert will be broadcast during Huomenta Suomi morning show tomorrow. According to the schedule on their website, it will be on at 8:12.

KALMAR/STOCKHOLM - As previously reported, SVT1 will broadcast the awaited documentary about Per “Per Gessle - Ta en kaka till!” tonight at 20.00 CET.


 Hans Engholm and Anders Karlsson have recorded the documentary and explained to Peter Åhlé, from Oskarhamns Tidningen, about the experience.


 It all started with the release party held in Halmstad on June 10th. Engholm didn’t really think “Mazarin” would become such a hit. “We were asked by EMI and Per’s manager Marie Dimberg to record the release party for the album at Hotell Tylösand,” explains Engholm to Barometern. It was not clear, at that point, what it would be used for.


When the single “Här kommer alla känslorna (på en och samma gång)” started to be played on the radio and Engholm and Karlsson got to hear the whole album, they understood that it would become something big. “We contacted SVT and asked them if they were interested [in the material], they said ’sounds exciting’, and now it’s on its way. The 30-minute long “Ta en kaka till!” will be on TV tonight.”


 The documentary features an interview with Per at his home, live footage from Slottskogsvallen in Gothenburg (with 22,000 in the audience), rehearsals, and a bus trip through Halmstad. “Our point in the documentary was to describe Per Gessle 2003. There’s no going-backs, no Gyllene Tider or Roxette. The film goes just around ’Mazarin’,” says Engholm.


 The film speaks about Per’s love for Halmstad, for the Swedish language and how much fun he has with music. “Why he does this instead of “sitting in a castle in France counting money,” says Engholm. “Mazarin” was recorded during the winter in Christoffer Lundquist’s studio in Skåne. Then Per worked hard with the camera and the result can also be seen in tonight’s program.


 In addition, their company, Produktionsbolaget, will make the DVD for Mazarin. Both Engholm and Karlsson agree with saying that it is very nice to work with Per, “he is nice, simple, engaged and professional.”

• Article in Barometern.se (in Swedish)