Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ron Harrity
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

the 10" is a co-release with Slumberland

May 2009

Liechtenstein is about to become the band that every indie kid’s younger sister wishes she had started. Making a splash on the international indie pop scene with two attentiongrabbing singles, 2007’s “Stalking Skills” and last year’s “Apathy”, the Swedish trio of Renée, Naemi, and Elin will make waves with their unique take on the girl-group post-punk sound of early ’80s groups like The Au Pairs and Kleenex. Fraction Discs is thrilled to team up with the excellent US label, Slumberland, to bring their subversive pop to a larger audience in the form of their new mini-LP, “Survival Strategies In A Modern World”.

With the nine-song “Survival Strategies In A Modern World”, Liechtenstein not only delivers the spooky harmonies and loping basslines that earned their singles such critical attention, but they also stretch out into realms only hinted at before. The band not only gives Love Is All a run for their money in the Swedish post-punk revival department, but they can also fit right in alongside Slumberland labelmates The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart (not to mention “lost” bands of the C-86 era like Swiss buzzsaw-pop girl-group Chin Chin) in delivering manic pop thrills. Clocking in alongside the post-punk flavour of lead track “All At Once” and “White Dress”, for example, comes the bubblegum sugar rush of “Roses In The Park.” Liechtenstein also has more than angular post-punk tricks up their sleeve; they channel the naïve-yet-proper Oxford charm of Talulah Gosh or The Carousel on songs like “Postcard” and “The End”.

Mixing its ’80s influences with a very fresh and contemporary enthusiasm, “Survival Strategies In A Modern World” packs so much excitement into less than 23 minutes that you will discover a new favorite song with every spin. At least, that is, until your sister sneaks into your room, snatches it (along with your Vivian Girls records and rare Mo-Dettes singles), and takes her own shot at indie stardom. Better buy two..

The 10" vinyl edition comes with a download code for the entire album as mp3 files. Coloured vinyl!

1. All At Once (listen)
2. Postcard
3. Sophistication
4. By Staying Here (We Will Slowly Disappear)
5. Wallpaper Stripes
6. Roses In The Park (mp3)
7. Reflections
8. White Dress
9. The End

Liechtenstein website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

September 2008

After last year’s debut success with “Stalking Skills” - and a frequent gigging around in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany and United Kingdom - Liechtenstein is finally back with a new 7” single! The title track “Apathy”, which offers a contemplation of an alternative reality, is built upon plenty of beautifully arranged vocal harmonies and proves once again that between a sweet sounding pop song and a protest emerges a sparkling assembly. On the flipside you’ll find the dymanic and stirring “Security By Design” where Liechtenstein this time has brightened the sound with a slightly Mexican sounding trumpet, almost like it was cut out from a Californian masterpiece anno 1968. Included is a code that allows you to download the songs in mp3 format.

A. Apathy (listen)

B. Security By Design (watch video)

Liechtenstein website

Recorded by J. Velasco and Monsy Mayor
Mixed by J. Velasco and Moscow Olympics
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

December 2007

The term “dreampop” gets a new and wider meaning when the Philippine quintet Moscow Olympics release their debut single on Fraction Discs. Pop as a dream come true, two tracks that raise their gaze off their shoes, stare into the skies and fill the unexpected yet somehow eagerly awaited gap in your record collection - the one between Blueboy’s “Unisex” and The Wake’s “Here Comes Everybody”.

Included is a code that allows you to download the songs in mp3 format.

A. Still (listen)

B. Talk Like This

Moscow Olympics website

Produced by Tillmanns
Mastered by Andreas Tilliander
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

August 2007

After two 7” singles it’s finally time for the Göteborg duo Tillmanns­ first album, and “A Careless Lifestyle“ is a much longed-for debut CD. Because many of us have missed the sound of winding, ethereal guitars and sweeping, synthetic layers over minimalistic beats. The sound is well-known from a golden era when labels such as Sarah Records­ and Factory spread little grains of gold like The Wake, New Order, The Durutti Column, Stockholm Monsters and The Field Mice.

But, there’s another thread that through the North Sea connects the Northern Britain with our West Coast: the eternal lashing of rain at bus stops, on windscreens and window-ledges. And the light after the rain: the shimmering, but with a darker undertone. The art of balancing those contrasts - maybe this is what seizes us and sends us into a soft hypnosis, that actually can make us long for the autumn to burst into splendid colours: yellow, orange, red....

1. Heavy Rotation (mp3)
2. Background
3. Hypnosis
4. Cold Hands
5. Instrumental
6. Opening
7. New Place
8. Here's A Hit With Them In Mind
9. Twist
10. Time

Tillmanns website

Produced by Liechtenstein
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Fraction Discs

March 2007

We are very proud to present the third release on Fraction Discs: “Stalking Skills“, a 7” single by Liechtenstein­. This all girl quartet from Göteborg­, Sweden were featured on last year’s “C-06” compilation tape released­ by indiepop blog Mira El Péndulo, and now (at last!) this longed-for debut single is here.

For fans of: Dolly Mixture, Talulah Gosh, Girls At Our Best, Television Personalities­, Mo-Dettes, The Slits, Shop Assistants...

A1. Stalking Skills (mp3)

B1. Cravings
B2. Fallen Heroes

Liechtenstein website

Produced by Cats On Fire
Mixed by Henry Ojala
Mastered by Henry Ojala & Einar Ekström
Sleeve by Johann Höglund

June 2006

When we first saw the Finnish quartet Cats On Fire enter the stage on a beautiful summer's day in Malmö two years ago, we realized in the blink of an eye that their music does not conform. A classic guitar pop ensemble, they carry on a tradition born in the english 80’s indie scene, where beautifully chiseled chords and jangling guitars join lyrics that do not fear to tackle the important issues of our time. Vocalist and songwriter Mattias Björkas’ lyrics don’t attempt to flee seriousness, at the same time they bring a refreshing sense of dark humour. Along with tunes that have the ability to stick in one's mind Cats On Fire represent that intelligent kind of pop music we believe many, many people have been anxiously awaiting.

1. Draw In The Reins
2. Higher Grounds (mp3)
3. The Smell Of An Artist
4. The Cold Hands Of Great Men
5. Never Land Here

Cats On Fire website

Produced by Tillmanns
Mastered by Ulrika Mild
Sleeve by Jörgen Svensson

January 2006

The duo Tillmanns consists of Anders Tillman and Björn Fridholm, who make their debut with “Run EP”, four tracks with metallic guitar sounds winding through layers of icy, minimalistic synthesizers and pulsating drum machines. Life-affirming pop melodies where melancholia is right underneath the surface. Tillmanns sound like no others today, an electric dream in bleached colours accompaning rainy and windy pavements somewhere in Göteborg where echoes of The Field Mice, The Wake, My Bloody Valentine and Stockholm Monsters can be heard.

A1. Run (mp3)
A2. My London Love

B1. Twist (Spaced-Out)
B2. Background

Tillmanns website