The Radio Dept.

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The Radio Dept.
The Radio Dept. in concert in Lima, Peru (October 2006)
The Radio Dept. in concert in Lima, Peru (October 2006)
Background information
Origin Lund, Sweden
Genre(s) Indie Pop
Shoegazer
Twee Pop
Years active 1995 – present
Label(s) Shelflife
Labrador
Website @Labrador.se
Members
Johan Duncanson
Martin Larsson
Daniel Tjader
Former members
Elin Almered (1995 - ????)
Lisa Carlberg (2001 - 2005)
Per Blomgren (2001 - 2003)
Kim Sjölander
Max Weiland
Le Bombe
Rugar

The Radio Dept. is an indie pop band from Lund, Sweden.

Contents

[edit] History

The band was conceived in 1995 by schoolmates Elin Almered and Johan Duncanson, who named the group after a gas-station-turned-radio-repair-shop called "Radioavdelningen" (The Radio Department in Swedish). However, Almered and Duncanson soon stopped playing music together, putting the band on hiatus. The group was reborn three years later, in 1998, when Duncanson starting making music with Martin Larsson. In 2001, Larsson's then girlfriend Lisa Carlberg joined the group on bass, followed by Per Blomgren on drums and Daniel Tjader on keyboards.[1][2]

Later in 2001, the band sent recordings to music magazine Sonic, receiving a positive review and being featured on the free CD sampler that came with the magazine. Labrador Records heard them on the disc and signed them to their label. Per Blomgren left the group prior to the release of their album Lesser Matters and Lisa Carlberg departed after the release of This Past Week EP. According to their website, the band decided to use digital drum tracks and stated that for their second album they were "taking a new direction ... which wouldn't require a member that played bass guitar."[3]

The group enjoyed more widespread recognition after three tracks ("Pulling Our Weight" from the Pulling Our Weight EP, "I Don't Like It Like This" from the This Past Week EP, and "Keen on Boys" from Lesser Matters) were included on the soundtrack for Sofia Coppola's film Marie Antoinette.

Early 2006 saw the release of their second album Pet Grief. The distorted buzz that adorned most of their debut was now replaced by synthesizer. The album didn't reach the rest of Europe, including the UK until later in 2006. Unfortunately, with little touring support there was no real buzz behind Pet Grief. Reviews were mixed. NME rated Pet Grief with a 7 out of 10, but other magazines were not quite so kind. However, Pet Grief did find popularity amongst a growing fan base throughout the world, thanks to the Internet. The album is available in the US through Darla and through their US distribution deal with Labrador.

By the end of 2006, a brand new track "We Made the Team" was released as the 100th release on the Labrador. It was also the final track on the Labrador's labels Compilation of 100 tracks released at the beginning of 2007. Although all UK tour dates but one in London were recently canceled, the band is said to be working on a new album.[4]

[edit] Sound

The Radio Dept. are related to such genres as Indie Pop, Shoegazer and Twee Pop, with reviews comparing them to Pet Shop Boys, My Bloody Valentine and the Cocteau Twins.[5]

On their website, they cite influences such as Charles Aznavour, Saint Etienne (band), Broadcast, Frank Sinatra, Joy Division, Pet Shop Boys, Chet Baker, Fennesz, Nick Drake, Kevin Rowland, Prefab Sprout, Paddy McAloon, Junior Boys, Orange Juice, Kraftwerk, Neu!, Jonathan Richman, The Avalanches and The Pale Fountains.[3]


[edit] Accolades

Their album Lesser Matters was ranked No. 9 on NME's list of the 50 Best Albums of 2004.[6] The album received an 84/100 (Universal acclaim) on Metacritic from a total of five reviews.[7]

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

[edit] EPs and singles

  • Against the Tide 7", Slottet 2002
  • Annie Laurie EP, Slottet 2002
  • Liebling 7", Slottet 2002
  • Where Damage Isn't Already Done, CDEP, Labrador 2002 (LAB033)
  • Pulling Our Weight, CDEP, Labrador 2003 (LAB058)
  • Why Don't You Talk About It?, CDEP, XL 2004 (REKD41CD)
  • This Past Week, CDEP, Labrador 2005 (LAB068)
  • The Worst Taste in Music, CDEP, Labrador 2006
  • We Made the Team, MP3/Single, Labrador 2006 (DLAB0002)
  • Freddie and the Trojan Horse, CDEP, Labrador 2008 (LAB111)

[edit] Featured on

[edit] References

  1. ^ XL: The Radio Dept.. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  2. ^ Labrador: The Radio Dept.. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  3. ^ a b The Radio Dept. Biography. Retrieved on 2007-02-09.
  4. ^ The Radio Dept. at Prince Albert (Brighton) on 24 Jan 2007 – Last.fm
  5. ^ The Black and White. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  6. ^ Metacritic: Best Albums of 2004. Retrieved on 2006-08-16.
  7. ^ Metacritic entry. Retrieved on 2006-10-27.

[edit] Links

v • d • e
The Radio Dept.
Johan Duncanson – Martin Larsson – Daniel Tjader
Studio albums
EPs
Against the Tide – Annie Laurie – Pulling Our Weight – Where Damage Isn't Already Done – This Past Week – Freddie and the Trojan Horse
Singles
Why Won't You Talk About It? – Ewan – The Worst Taste in Music – We Made the Team (digital single)
Featured on