"Erotic Lounge (Vol. 1)" (2003)

"Erotic Lounge (Vol. 1)", 2cd compilation
release date: Apr. 8, 2003
format: digital
[album rate: 2 / 5]

Album excerpts: Disc 1) 1. Tosca "Honey (Spatone 1 Dub)" - Disc 2) 4. The Maxwell Implosion "The Upper Left Hand"

A 2 cd compilation album of primarily electronic, lounge, and trip hop. Disc 1 is labelled "Soft & Lazy", and Disc 2 "Quick & Dirty". It's not really any good. Erotic Lounge is a rather vast category of music of varied quality and I've heard many poor attempts of the genre. There's simply way too much new age in it for my taste.

Bo Kaspers Orkester "Hittills" (1999)

Hittills (compilation)
release date: 1999
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: Bo Kaspers Orkester et al
label: Columbia / Sony - nationality: Sweden

First best of compilation album by Bo Kaspers Orkester. This was actually the first album I heard with the band, and I played it a lot for a time, thinking of it as pretty fine. I was surprised about the high quality of songs from an artist I hadn't even heard of. Except from the first track "Svårt att säga nej" (feat. Lisa Ekdahl), all tracks are compiled from the bands first four albums and what really makes it such a fine album is how the single tracks go so well hand in hand together. What that also shows is the little progress the band has been through in those first 5 years. Anyway, this album is definitely a very good place to start if you don't know the band.

Bo Kaspers Orkester "I centrum" (1998)

I centrum
release date: Sep. 28, 1998
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5]
producer: Bo Kaspers Orkester
label: Sony / Columbia - nationality: Sweden

Track highlights: 1. "Allt ljus på mig" - 2. "En jävel vid mitt öra" - 3. "Undantag" - 5. "Vissa har det" - 7. "Fyrarättersmål"

4th studio album by Bo Kaspers Orkester is yet another smooth and jazzy album, much on par with its predecessor Amerika (1996). The style is almost identical, only here the band introduces bossa nova inspired tracks. It's hard really to put a finger on exactly what it is, and despite a couple of rather fine tracks (#1 and #3), I just find it only slightly above average. This is the first album without former guitarist Lars Halapi, and now keyboardist Mats Asplén also plays guitar.
The album was well-received in Sweden where it was the band's first album to top the albums chart list, a position it copied in Norway.

Bo Kaspers Orkester ""Amerika" (1996)

Amerika
release date: Sep. 20, 1996
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5]
producer: Bo Kaspers Orkester, Kaj Erixon
label: Sony / Columbia - nationality: Sweden

Track highlights: 1. "Vi kommer aldrig att dö" (4 / 5) - 3. "Ett & noll"

3rd studio album by Bo Kaspers Orkester introduces a slight change of style to music with more lounge and / or easy listening and sophisti-pop thanks to a more noticeable incorporation of horn sections, violins, and backing vocals, but it's also a warmer and more spacial production compared to the band's first two albums. At first I found it a boring and mediocre release but I have come to see it as a better release, though not really great. This was the last album to feature founding guitarist Lars Halapi. It was the band's so far most successful studio album in Sweden reaching number #3 on the national albums chart list.

Bo Kaspers Orkester "På hotell" (1994)

På hotell
release date: Sep. 26, 1994
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5]
producer: Bo Kaspers Orkester, Fabian Torsson, Johan Vävare
label: Sony / Columbia - nationality: Sweden

Track highlights: 1. "Ingenting alls" - 4. "Puss" - 5. "Hon är så söt" (live) - 10. "Vi tar in på hotell"

2nd studio album by Bo Kaspers Orkester is very much the same as the band's debut from '93, which means a combination of jazz pop, lounge, and sophisti-pop. Perhaps this is slightly more uneven with both tracks pointing to a more pop-founded sound but also to more traditional jazz. The band members' list remains the same. Still, Bo Kasper only writes most of the lyrics and sings, whereas he on later albums contributes on keyboards as well.

The Style Council "Confessions of a Pop Group" (1988)

Confessions of a Pop Group
release date: Jun. 20, 1988
format: digital
[album rate: 2 / 5] [2,12]
producer: Paul Weller, Mick Talbot
label: Polydor Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "It's a Very Deep Sea" - 2. "The Story of Someone's Shoe" - 7. "Why I Went Missing" - 8. "How She Threw It All Away" - 10. "Confessions 1, 2 & 3"

4th full-length studio album by The Style Council. After releasing Our Favourite Shop in '85 the band released a third album The Cost of Loving in '87, which may be seen as the band's low point. I honestly didn't think they would continue much longer after that, but this is an improvement. Technically, it's superior to anything they have released but it doesn't bring about anything new and sometimes it sounds more like an anachronism. With 'do-bi-doo' backing vocals, greasy slick harmonies that make one think of The Carpenters, and a strange but often use of marimbas... What is this, Mr. Weller? The New Manhattan Transfers? The 'soul' and originality has nearly disappeared completely and what remains is pastiche pop, or lounge when it's least daring. This is below mediocre, and the album became the last studio release before the band split up in 1989. A final album had been recorded prior to the disbandment; however, it wasn't released until 1998. Paul Weller and Dee C. Lee married in 1987.
[ allmusic.com 1 / 5 stars! ]

Veronica Maggio "Vatten & bröd" (2006)

Vatten & bröd [debut]
release date: Sep. 6, 2006
format: digital (10 x File, MP3)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,06]
producer: Stefan Gräslund
label: Stockholm Records / Universal

Track highlights: 2. "Ingenting kvar" - 3. "Dumpa mig" - 4. "Vi har, vi har" - 8. "Nöjd" - 9. "Gå nu"

Studio album debut by Swedish artist Veronica Maggio released on Stockholm Records / Universal and produced by Stefan Gräslund, who not only has written and composed all songs but also is credited 'instruments'.
The album is held in a certain jazz pop style, which bonds to early music by The Cardigans and Bo Kaspers Orkester, I think. Maggio's voice sounds much like Nina Persson of The Cardigans on this, and there's a certain laid back feel of lounge all over.
It's generally Okay, though I don't find it very personal nor that original. The song "Dumpa mig" was her first solo single release and it made it to number #14 on the Swedish singles chart.

Zap Mama "ReCreation" (2009)

ReCreation
release date: May 26, 2009
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5]

Studio album by Zap Mama is a another style fusion album by this interesting singer. The music here is a capella, neo-pop soul, r&b, world, lounge, vocal jazz, synthpop... the variety is there! I think it's too messy, too mixed up and without direction. It's not better than her 2007 release but even more varied. I think she could be more direct in her style.