Three Right Now: Ane Brun, The Tallest Man on Earth and Tingsek

On Friday last week I participated in a business pitching event in Seattle where I was asked: “Who are three Swedish musicians you are listening to right now.” I was flustered, and didn’t want to admit on video that I am going through yet another Bad Swedish 80s Phase, so I answered: Ane Brun, The Tallest Man on Earth and Tingsek.

Ane Brun is actually Norwegian, but she’s been living in Stockholm, Sweden since 2000. My favorite song right now is “Song No. 6” (which is actually the second track) from her 2006 release A Temporary Dive. Her voice has a quality I can’t quite describe but find mesmerizing and heartbreakingly beautiful. Something about it conjures jazz vocals from the 1920s for me, but I could be making that up.

She also does vocals on another favorite song of mine by Swedish electrojazz band Koop, called “Koop Island Blues.” Go listen to it on Koop’s MySpace page. When I hear it I go on vacation for 4 minutes and 35 seconds.

I remember where I was the first time I ever heard The Tallest Man on Earth. Hubs and I were carpooling to work, headed down 10th on the North end of Capitol Hill, close to the Boston intersection. We were listening to John in the Morning on KEXP and he played “Walk The Line.” It is still my favorite TTMOE song, from the 2005 EP. He has a new album out this year called Shallow Grave.

I found Tingsek through a favorite hiphop artist, Timbuktu. They do a live version of Timbuktu’s “Strö lite socker på mig” that blows my mind. Tingsek is Magnus Tingsek: bluesy rock from Southern Sweden, yet to be promoted in the US. I’m not always a fan of videos, but I like the relationship between the visuals and song in this, my first and also still favorite song, “World of Its Own.”