The first taste of anything new from Blackstrap in a loooong time. Sounds very baggy, ie not appealing to me at all.
I have long lamented in these electronic pages the lack of good old fashioned powerful rock music. I have missed the anti-star rock shredding of Mudhoney, Dinosaur Jr., The Breeders, early Nirvana, even the first Smashing Pumpkins album, Gish. During the mid-90's when rock went to hell in a hand basket courtesy of idiots like [...]

Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, Blackstrap made their US radio debut in our Lounge with a set of songs from their second full-length Steal My Horses and Run . The five-piece were visiting the States for only the second time, with this performance coming in the midst of their first string of extended dates beyond the CMJ Music Marathon in New York. Blackstrap plays an amped up blend of hooky, melodic shoegazing that has earned comparisons to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Primal Scream, and Serena-Maneesh. Our engineer Brian Niesz deserves major props for perfectly capturing the [...]

Finish up your CMJ at The Bell House tonight ( October 25 ) with: 8pm / $10 or CMJ Badge BLACKSTRAP (from Sweden) / HELLO SAFERIDE / THE SEABELLIES (from Australia) 12am / $5 or CMJ Badge PONYTAIL / AWESOME COLOR Tickets are available at or at the door, first come first served. More Blackstrap and Seabellies US tour dates after the jump. [...]
Saturday night! Hello Saferide @ The Bell House in Brooklyn, NY with Blackstrap and The Seabellies ! Doors @ 8pm, $10 cover. Be there! Speaking of HS in the US, anyone got any pics from either the House of Sweden show on Monday or last night's performance at Bowery Electric to share?
Hello Saferide has confirmed a couple shows in NYC! 10/22 - Bowery Electric, NYC w/ Juvelen , Firefox AK (FREE!) 10/25 - The Bellhouse, Brooklyn w/ Blackstrap , The Seabellies Hear a couple tracks from the new album "More modern short stories..." at myspace: http://www.myspace.com/saferid e

by Bill Pearis DOWNLOAD: Blackstrap - Repulsion (MP3) The biggest event of the week, at least in some circles, is Echo & the Bunnymen 's show at Radio City Music Hall on Wednesday (10/1) where they will be playing their classic 1984 album, Ocean Rain , in full with a 16 piece orchestra. The idea of hearing "The Killing Moon," "Silver" and the gorgeous title track in their proper string-swept glory is [...]
Swedish shoegazers Blackstrap will finally be coming to the US for a few dates in October: 10/16 - Mercury Lounge, New York, NY w/ Little Ones 10/17 - DC9/Liberation Party, Washington DC 10/19 - Garfield Artworks, Pittsburgh, PA 10/21 - Grog Shop, Cleveland, OH w/ Asobi Seksu 10/22 - Empty Bottle, Chicago, IL w/ Asobi Seksu 10/23 - Frankies, Toledo, OH 10/24 - WOXY Session, Cincinnati, OH 10/25 - Bell House/CMJ, Brooklyn, NY [...]

"Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, Blackstrap is one of Europe's most exciting new bands. They play blissful rock and roll drenched in the warm rays of fuzzed out guitars. Their Tee Pee Records debut "Steal My Horses and Run" conjures up a lush atmosphere that is equal parts hypnotic rock, dream pop, and shoegaze. These sonic landscapes stretch over twelve tracks, drawing upon the inspirations of genre pioneers Spiritualized, Primal Scream, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. Formed in 2001 by primary songwriters Jonatan Westh and Maria Lindén, Blackstrap delivered their debut album "Ghost Children" in 2003. The [...]
Have you seen the prices of airline tickets these days? Yikes. Since the odds of my getting to Sweden anytime soon are slim, this is probably the closest I'm going to get: mod-ish, lightly fuzzed indie rock from Blackstrap, formed...

Initially released in Europe in October 2006, Blackstrap 's second full length, Steal My Horses and Run , is finally seeing it's official release in the U.S. via New York's Tee Pee Records . At first pass it would be easy to write off Steal My Horses and Run as just another retread of the JAMC and My Bloody Valentine catalogs, that is if it weren't so well executed and/or if you weren't able to make to the last quarter of the album where the band really opens things up with some more [...]

This post has been in draft for weeks, because I couldn't decide which song I liked best. I'm sure that you would expect this sort of thing to happen frequently, but it really doesn't. Blackstrap 's Steal My Horses and Run ( Buy ) was released on May 20 and it is much more the exception, than the rule. If you like your music a little shoegaze, a little psychedelic and a lot fuzzy, you'll enjoy this. This is an album that is best digested whole. mp3 : Winning Speech

The Graboid is back once again this week, and thankfully, on it's regularly scheduled day of the week. Lots of great albums this week including new releases from The Wedding Present , Mates of State , French Kicks , and Islands . I checked out a few tracks from Scarlett Johansson's much publicized album of Tom Waits covers, and damn...this is not good at all. Not that i've been hearing a lot of good press in regards to it in the first place, but I still wanted to see [...]

Another Tuesday means another week of new releases. If you're heading out to your local record store here are a few SDM recommends. If we've left anything off the list please let us know. New Releases, Album Art, MP3's and Streams After the Jump...
There are two new releases that we can strongly recommend tomorrow. Both are from Tee Pee Records and neither are the label's usual fare. Fans of garage rock, Motörhead , and Zeke will dig Annihilation Time 's Tales of the Ancient Age . It's a rawker. And on the other end of the spectrum is Stockholm, Sweden's Blackstrap , who play an endearing atmospheric shoegazey rock fit for fans of My Bloody Valentine and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club . Download: Blackstrap - [...]

It only takes a cursory listen to verify Blackstrap's membership in The My Black Rebel Bloody Jesus and Mary Motorcycle Chain Valentine Club. At times you'll have them pegged as My Bloody Valentine, other times the Jesus and Mary Chain, or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. From the detached cool of their vocals, to the their affinity for the swirling sonics favored by the shoegazing sect, these Swedes proudly rock the noise of their idols on their latest release, Steal My Horses and Run. There's a temptation to dismiss this band as nothing more than a cover band capable [...]
Blackstrap is a band from Stockholm, Sweden that plays atmospherically fuzzed out rock music that sounds a lot like My Bloody Black Rebel Primal Scream Spiritualized Mary Chain Division. (Okay I sorta borrowed that description, but it is a pretty damn good one.) So, yeah, you know what Blackstrap's influences are right off the bat and while I like Serena Maneesh more, they are from Oslo not Stockholm so its like comparing apples to oranges, right? Steal My Horses And Run is due out here in the US of A on May 20th courtesy [...]
The influence of shoegaze on new indie-rock continues with Blackstrap out of Stockholm, Sweden. They offer up alternating male and female vocals. The male vocals definitely sounding like Jesus and Mary Chain and the female vocals reminiscent of the Raveonnettes. They pull the whole shoegaze sound off nicely adding a good pop-sensibility to it. There are a lot of other songs that remind me a little bit of West Indian Girl, but despite all the influences they've got their own sound going. It's fuzzy, warm, heavy and [...]

Tee Pee Records tend to sign mostly hard rock and metal bands, which is really not my thing. Sweden's Blackstrap show a softer side to their rooster though, their music being described as as "blissful rock and roll drenched in the warm rays of fuzzed out guitars" in the press release, which also draws comparisons to bands like Spiritualized, Primal Scream, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. The band formed in 2001 and released their first album, "Ghost Children" two years later which they are now about to follow up with "Steal My [...]
![TLOBF's Monthly Mix Tape: February Edition [Download]](http://cdn.elbo.ws/posts/932821_lg.jpg)
February... one of the shortest months and yet, in 2008 at least, it's been one of the most interesting. We've had a right ol' mix of sounds grace the TLOBF stereo recently and we've picked the very best to share with you. From new material from one of our favourite new acts, Frightened Rabbit , through the perfectly formed Americana of The Acorn to the spaced out wonder of Fuck Buttons . If there's anything we've missed, let us know! End Of Radio: TLOBF February 2008 Playlist 1. Frightened [...]