Swedish heavy metal band Opeth have released their newest album "Watershed," featuring a cover of Marie Fredriksson's song "Den ständiga resan." Marie fans will be relieved to know that the cover version is instantly recognizable as Marie's song. Opeth have chosen to keep the original arrangement - the vocal is subdued, the melody is driven by acoustic guitar, and the song is punctuated with occasional splashes of electric guitar, just as in Marie's original. It wasn't certain that the song would make the album.

In the footsteps of Tyra Banks and her show "America's Next Top Model," we now have "She's Got the Look" which basically is the same type of show but features women over 35 competing for the title. The show is hosted by Kim Alexis and premieres in the U.S. on June 4. What's The Daily Roxette's interest in this, you ask? Well, the theme song of the show is, of course, Roxette's "The Look"!

SANTIAGO (Updated) - Vanilla Ninja, the Estonian power pop trio formed by Lenna Kuurmaa (vocals), Piret Järvis (guitar) and Katrin Siska (keyboards), a rocking girl band that is a well known act in the Central European scene, and now in Latin America, after participating successfully in the biggest summer Festival in Latin America, the Festival of Viña del Mar, this past February.

Before the girls will go on tour next June in the Baltic states, and their second visit to several countries in Latin America in July - August, they want to release a single to warm up the audience. After discussing this issue with Hector Faune, their manager/promoter for Latin America, Hector proposed to get in touch with Per Gessle from Roxette to have a possible song co-operation, as he feels Vanilla Ninja's music has lots of similarities to Roxette's uptempo and power ballad style.

When Per was approached for a co-operation he sent over two demos; "T-t-t-take it!" and "Every Day Outside My Window" but the girls felt these particular songs didn't suit them; "Per kindly sent us two songs, and we picked one to use for the next release" says Lenna, vocalist in Vanilla Ninja. The song, "Crashing Through The Doors," is composed by Per Gessle, with original lyrics from Piret Järvis and Lenna Kuurmaa. Readers of The Daily Roxette will be pleased to know this is an English version of Per Gessle's "Spegelboll" from the highly successful "Mazarin" album released in 2003.

"The girls are in the studio working hard to get a cool version out of it," Hector Faune says to The Daily Roxette.

On the question if this will be the start of a bigger co-operation with Per, Lenna replies: "Probably. I hope so. He himself was also very interested in it, but unfortunately a person who's as famous as him, his calendar is planned for a year or two."

The song will be released on May 9 to radio stations, firstly in Estonia, and a little later in the Central European Countries, as well in Latin America.

Download a sample. 

GOTHENBURG - Swedish singer Caroline Larsson, hailing from Gothenburg, has gotten not one, but two songs from Per Gessle for her new album "In the Moment" which is due for release in May. "Per likes my voice, it has something special" Caroline says and continues, "Roxette was my biggest idol when I was a kid [Caroline is 21] and I have an incredible respect for Per." The first single "Hold on My Heart (Hey, It's Alright)" is already out to radio stations in Sweden. The song is at the moment a contender for the Svensktoppen chart. Hardcore fans may recognize the title and yes, the song was released by Dutch reality TV-band K-otic a few years back.

The other song Per has given Caroline is "Rainclouds," released in France by Popstar winners What For, then named "Depuis La Nuit des Temps." "In the Moment" is produced by Peter Samuelsson, bass player and singer in Barbados. Listen to a snippet of "Hold on My Heart" by clicking on the link.

Caroline will stay in touch with Per. "We'll see what happens in the future."

Marie Fredriksson's song "Den ständiga resan" has been covered by Swedish metal band Opeth for its latest album "Watershed." However, the song doesn't seem to make it to the album, according to Opeth's site.

Kostis contributed to this article.

German country & western singer Suzie Candell, born 1986, has recorded a c&w version of Roxette's old hit "Sleeping in My Car" on her latest album "I Gotta Be Me." Suzie's album was released in March 2007. Check Suzie's homepage for a snippet. Click "Discografie," then "I Gotta Be Me."

The Daily Roxette has not reached Ms. Candell for a comment. 

Martin M contributed to this article.

STOCKHOLM - "Att vara Per Gessle" - the new authorized biography about Per Gessle (ISBN 9100112003), written by Swedish journalist (and friend of Per's) Sven Lindström, will be released October 30. The book, which is roughly LP size (12") will also be released in not one, but two different limited editions. Both will contain a CD, but the one sold via Swedish Internet bookstore AdLibris will contain nine tracks, while the "normal" issue only contains seven. The regular CD will be in 22,000 copies while the AdLibris version 8,000. The new CD is called "Doppade bara tårna - demos 1977-90" ("I Only Dipped My Toes - Demos 1977-90"):

DOPPADE BARA TÅRNA - demos 1977-90 -

1. Grape Rock: Saken slår mej som på huvudet!
recorded in the rehearsal studio, Vibäcksvägen, Harplinge 1 March 1977
lyrics: Per Gessle music: Mats MP Persson & Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: drums, guitar & bass
Per Gessle: guitar & vocals

2. Lägg din hand i min om du har lust
recorded at Hamiltons väg 8, Söndrum, Halmstad 12 June 1978
lyrics: Hjalmar Gullberg
music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Per Gessle: vocals & guitar

3. Svarta glas (Neverending Love)
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal, Halmstad 13 October 1985
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics & music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: guitar, keyboards & programming
Per Gessle: programming & vocals

4. Dansar nerför ditt stup i rekordfart (Soul Deep)
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal, Halmstad 7 May 1986
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics & music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Per Gessle: all instruments & vocals

5. It Must Have Been Love
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal, Halmstad 14 April 1987
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics & music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: keyboards & programming
Per Gessle: programming & vocals

6. The Look
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal, Halmstad 30 March 1988
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics & music: Per Gessle
publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: guitar & programming
Per Gessle: keyboards, programming & vocals

7. Listen to Your Heart
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal, Halmstad 9 May 1988
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics: Per Gessle
music: Mats MP Persson & Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: keyboards, guitar & programming
Per Gessle: programming & vocals

8. Joyrider
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal 22 May 1990
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics and music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Per Gessle: acoustic guitar & vocals

9. Joyrider
recorded at Tits & Ass, Styrdal 23 May 1990
technician: Mats MP Persson
lyrics and music: Per Gessle
Publisher: Jimmy Fun Music

Mats MP Persson: guitar & programming
Per Gessle: keyboards, programming & vocals

On the "normal" limited edition CD, songs four and nine won't be included. Hjalmar Gullberg (1898-1961) was a Swedish poet and writer.

Mikael Bolyos - A Family Affair (EMI MBM 3971032)

Mikael has (somewhat unfairly) come in for quite a bit of criticism from Roxette fans over the years, especially since he started collaborating musically with Marie, as some fans felt that he had moved Marie's music into a direction they didn't like.

The surprising thing is that many of the same fans who criticised Micke's influence on albums such as “The Change” have been very positive about his latest project “A Family Affair”. I actually have really liked the work that Marie has done with her husband, and he was indeed responsible for my favourite song from “The Change”….”Mother”.

Personally, although this album is not going to make as one of my all time favourites of Roxette related material, I like the album a lot. It is a very eclectic mix of styles and sounds incorporating old sixties pop, jazz, eighties pop, and even more modern sounds. I think that this diversity is both the key to the record's success, and its downfall. At times I think it doesn't work very well because it jumps between too many different sounds and lacks cohesion, but then I also think that this is one of the attractions of the album: because it is a very personal collection, almost a story of Micke himself and his family, hence the title “A Family Affair”. Indeed, I can almost imagine Micke, Marie and their friends jamming away in their basement to the songs, as we saw in the Marie's “A Second Chance” documentary a few years ago.

Here are my thoughts on the individual tracks .

Merry Go Round:
A mid-tempo, very Beatles-esque kind of track. A very catchy little number, and one of my favourites. My only slight criticism would be Micke's voice. It's obvious he is not a natural singer. He sings in tune, but it is quite monotone and lacks emotion. However, it doesn't really detract anything from this song, as it is the kind of number that just plods along nicely anyway.

On&On&On:
A slower, bluesier number. Another song with a great hook. Marie is on backing vocals sounding great as usual!

Me & My Guitar:
“Yeah-eah-eah-yeah-yeah”….the song starts with Marie in her best rocky voice that we've come to know and love! This is a faster track, and I don't really think Micke's voice is strong enough to pull it off, but still a nice track.

When the Lord is About to Come:
One of my favourites on the album. A very different sound, with interesting lyrics. A duet with Mats Ronander, though I can't work out who is singing what!

Read more…

Courtesy of Mikael Bolyos we are able to stream "When The Lord Is About To Come," the first single off his forthcoming album "A Family Affair".

Mikael has also revealed that Marie Fredriksson is singing on the album, which will be available through the usual online music stores such as CDON, Ginza and iTunes.

The Daily Roxette also wants to take this opportunity to congratulate Mikael on his 50th birthday!

Listen to "When The Lord Is About To Come"

Mirror

STOCKHOLM - Helena Josefsson, the girl from Per Gessle's "Mazarin," the girl from Son of a Plumber, the girl from behind The Ark, Andreas Johnson, from her own band Sandy Mouche and many others, is back. With her new debut album "Dynamo." "Dynamo" will be released February 28 on EMI Elevator Entertainment, Per Gessle's own label. Helena's first single from the album, "By Your Side," does well on the charts in Sweden. The follow-up "Never Never (My Dynamo)" was released to radio February 14. Helena will do lots of radio and TV for the release. Per Gessle himself sponsors her album and claims it will be a world hit, according to Expressen.

"'What do you want to be when you grow up?' 'Either a troll or an artist' I replied to that question in the "My friends" books one had in elementary school. Being an artist or a songwriter is probably one of few lifestyles where you can be a troll at the same time?
When you think about it, a troll and an artist have a lot in common. What I wanted, and still want, is the feeling of freedom, to be a part of nature, to have a place in a city, to find a good spot for picking mushrooms. To be OK to be like you are and still get loved at the same time!" Helena says.
"Once when I was a kid my mom got angry with me and then I made myself a sad song as comfort. Since then it has always been like that. Just that the songs have been about other things: love, revenge, to be afraid of everything, consideration, to feel inadequate, longing, then, now, later.
The music my mom played at home was a mix of Kate Bush, the '80s David Bowie, The Temptations, Enya, all the soul queens, Bruce [Springsteen] and a record that was on heavy rotation for 15 years was Jane Fonda's aerobics vinyl with everything from The Jacksons' 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' in a disco-soul version and Jane cheering on. It never gets old!
I've always sung, if I am to describe my music it sounds like my maternal grandparents were Kate Bush and Michael Jackson, and my paternal grandparents were Madonna and Nick Drake!" she continues.

The album is recorded in Christoffer Lundquist's studio the Aerosol Grey Machine using hand picked musicians like Martin Josefsson (Sandy Mouche,) Erik Hjärpe (Damn! Timbuktu) and Jens Jansson (Brainpool). "My goal with the recording was to get the contrast between glowing hot and icy cold, plastic and wood, between the most beautifully beautiful and the ugliest ugly. Like an enchanting siren of the woods with a black soggy hole in her back!" says Helena, who has written all the material herself.

Check out Helena's MySpace and also her own website.