Hemifrån is an independent A&R, promotion and marketing company, based in the heart of Sweden, specializing in, what we call, “gut music” – The kind of music that you can feel in your gut, no matter if it’s power pop, soft singer-songwriter, heavy rock, blues, gentle westcoast-pop, country, AOR, jazz, americana, electronica or just plain, simple, good ol' rock’n’roll..
Hemifrån is working with the traditional way of distribution, sales, promotion and marketing, but due to the rapidly changing situation on the music scene, we’re constantly exploring other possibilities.
Hemifrån is the best guarantee to give you as much exposure as possible, at a reasonable price.
To visit Hemifrån should be like visiting your best friend. Sit yourself down in the livingroom's most comfortable chair, take a close look at the record collection, feel the atmosphere, ask your questions, get your answers, find things you weren’t even aware of existing, get caught of the ever aspiring enthusiasm of your best friend, and get back here again, and again, and again, and again, and again..
Hemifrån will rapidly build it’s database for customers and artists, with all but one primary target: To be the best meeting place for “gut music” in all of Europe – Where artists find their customers, and where the customers find what they’re actually looking for in music!
In all of Europe there is a limited, but substantial, group of people, still very much interested in purchasing music (physical product, streaming and/or downloads). It’s pretty safe to say that this group is doing rather well, economically, got money to spend on music, got computers, are using the internet to gather information, etc, etc..
Our main target is to reach as many people as possible in this group as often as we possibly we can.
When Jack Tempchin, legendary songwriter for the Eagles, ("Already Gone", "Peaceful Easy Feeling"), Johnny Rivers ("Slow Dancing") and Glenn Frey ("Smuggler's Blues", "You Belong To The City"), first heard acclaimed Swedish act Citizen K, he was so impressed by the vocal, instrumental and arranging skills, that he offered a new unreleased song, right there on the spot. "You Only Live Once" is the opening track to "I Like It Better Here - Some Music From Home", where Citizen K and two of his musical buddies are calling themselves the Smashing Tempchins, as a humble hommage to one of their favorite songwriters. Where the two physical volumes of "I Like It Better Here - Music From Home" had more of a "westcoast/americana/country/roots-feeling", this is more of a "Eurocana" compilation...
Canadian artist Luke Jackson contributes an unreleased track from his latest album, produced by Christoffer Lundqvist (Brainpool, Roxette, Per Gessle), with an exquisite string arrangement by the late, great Robert Kirby (Nick Drake, Elton John, Richard Thompson, Elvis Costello). From Sweden we have Citizen K himself, singer-songwriter Henrik af Ugglas (who's forthcoming album legendary writer Lennart Persson called "the most awaited debut in a very, very long time..."), Mikael Persson (with a guest spot from Citizen K), up-and-coming alt-country-group Little Green, and alt-blues-artist Slowman ("he easily switches between styles, yet at the same time is a master at whatever he does"). Dean Owens and Hey Negrita from the UK, Shiner Twins from Holland and Francesco Lucarelli from Italy (who's track features the legendary Graham Nash on harmonica and vocals) are other participating artists.
For the 2nd digital compilation of "I Like It Better Here - Music From Home", several American artists in the frontline of the "no depression-fold" have relinquished new and exclusive tracks - Albert & Gage, Clarence Bucaro, Bob Cheevers, Greg Copeland, Fur Dixon & Steve Werner, Fayssoux, Ted Russell Kamp, Annie Keating, Steve Mednick, Keith Miles and Steve Noonan. Where the first volume had more of a European focus, this 2nd volume is strictly an American affair...
The songs touches a wide pallet of subjects - From "a sense of home" to "afraid to go home", from "longing for home" to "time to go home", and from "feels like coming home" to "the places the devil calls home". Just like Plato said in 'Allegory Of The Cave'; "When the two lovers are finally stripped, even of physical fire, humbling them to the realization that the love that binds them together is not merely romantic - It is elemental and inevitable. It is home."
”Peter, I'd like to suggest this as a theme for another compilation down the road: Secular hymns. Not necessarily songs hinged to specific religious disciplines (which tend to be too judgmental and divisive), but rather songs that somehow have to do with "That Thing That's A Whole Lot Bigger Than This". I'll bet times like these have generated great stuff on that topic. Suggested title: "That Thing That's A Whole Lot Bigger Than This - Hymns From Home". Greg
There's been tributes to The Byrds , the Buffalo Springfield and The Hollies. There's been several tributes to Neil Young . There's even been a tribute to Graham Nash's album "Songs For Beginners". But there has never been a tribute to the collective body of work of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Until this very one!
On October 16th, 2012, Sweden's Hemifrån and Italy's Route 61 Music released "Music Is Love . A Singer-songwriters Tribute to the Music of CSN&Y".
The album features, not only several musicians from the inner circle of CSN&Y (like Stephen Stills' former girlfriend Judy Collins and daughter Jennifer Stills, Anthony Crawford and the late Rick Rosas from Neil Young's Electric Band, Sonny Mone from Crazy Horse, David Crosby's guitarist Marcus Eaton and vocal favorites Venice), but also some cool names from the 70's (Karla Bonoff, Elliott Murphy, Willie Nile, Wendy Waldman), some interesting names from the 80's, like Sid Griffin from Long Ryders, Ian McNabb from Icicle Works, Liam O'Maonlai from Hothouse Flowers, Steve Wynn from Dream Syndicate), as well as some new-up-and-coming names from the alt country scene in the US (Clarence Bucaro, Neal Casal, Carrie Rodriguez).
The liner notes are penned by David Zimmer (author of two official books on CSN and CSNY), and CSN&Y's official photographer Henry Diltz Photography offers some unpublished photos from his vast archives.
How often haven’t you heard somebody say, ’It’s a small world’? One may refer to a case of coincidence where two friends run into each other in an unlikely place. One may also refer to the way we communicate these days. Words, pictures and music run back and forth between continents in no time at all. Distance is not an obstacle anymore. It may even function as a creative juice of sorts. The album you are about to hear is a good example of just that.
It is a compilation, but surprisingly often, the contributions sound like extracts from a discussion between people gathered around one big dining table. The subject of the evening is the current sense of chaos and transition, experienced in places where stability was supposed to last until the very end. ’Isn’t that too heavy a topic for such an occasion?’ you might say. Don’t worry. It’s actually the other way around. Even the title, ’The Golden Demon’, could easily be a suitable name of a story that one of the guests might tell after a good meal and a couple of drinks, just after twilight. It’s entertainment with a twist. So now, dear listeners, I invite you to enter a universal living room, big enough to stretch over at least two continents, small enough for the atmosphere and intimacy to stay fully intact. Be our guest. Sit yourself down and make yourself ’at home’. The show has just begun...
”Borås is a town that has risen from the ashes of a textile industry crisis, a town where the rain more or less constantly is pouring down and where a big motorway split us all apart, running right through the city. Or putting it shortly – a town that needs good music.
When I was young living in Borås – at that time, in the early 80's, nicknamed as the most ugly town in Sweden – music was all that really mattered to me. I can’t play any instrument and nobody but my wife has ever thought of me as a good singer. But I was a hell of a listener. The punk era woke me up. Clash paved the way and after that I fell in love with a music era called new wave (remember that?). Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello in particular meant a lot to me. And after that, reggae, of course, and american country and rock.
I had friends in the 80's who were – and still are – excellent musicians. You can hear a few of them on this album. I often made them listen to what I thought was good music. And nice as they were – they listened, and even sometimes, so I noticed, got inspired (which pleased me a lot!).
I often think of those years as golden years of pop and rock music in Borås. Now that I listen to this album, with the most beautiful title, ’Home Is Where The Heart Is’, I realise that we’re living in a new golden era of boråsiana music.
The artists you will hear have their musical roots in classical american and english pop, rock and country music (yes, the Nashville of Sweden is obviously Sparsör). These are also my musical roots as a listener. But more importantly – this album is all about heart. It’s all about letting your heart matters when making music, no matter what your heart is full of – joy, melancholy or the ever lasting longing after things that nothing else than music can express. In Borås we know all about that. Especially melancholy. We have to. And to sing it is to fight it. Or as Pelle Johanson puts it on this album; 'Bring down the clouds, we’re done with the rain'."
~ Stefan Eklund, editor-in-chief, Borås Tidning
Folksingers. Protestsingers. Troubadours. That’s what we used to call them before Jac Holzman’s Elektra Records put out ”The Singer Songwriter Project” in 1965. The album featured four different US singer songwriters, with a style completely their own. David Cohen (aka David Blue), Dick (Richard) Farina, Bruce Murdoch and Patrick Sky. It took a while until the phrase was commonly used, but when Jackson Browne, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and others came along, in the late 60’s, early 70’s, everybody knew what a ’singer songwriter’ was.
Now Hemifrån pays tribute to both the phrase and this classic and historic album with ”Hidden Treasures – Singer Songwriters From Home”, featuring Bob Cheevers, Greg Copeland, Keith Miles and Barry Ollman, four highly acclaimed US singer songwriters who’s been around for years, yet still are some kind of ’hidden treasures’.
Taking this full circle, on the very first song on the album, is Greg Copeland, from Los Angeles, CA, who managed to persuade Patrick Sky (one of four performers on the original ’singer songwriter project’!) to add some beautiful uilleann pipes. Other famous friends helping out on Greg’s tracks are Jackson Browne, Bob Glaub, Greg Leisz, David Lindley and Gabe Witcher.
Keith Miles, who had his tracks recorded in his hometown of Nashville, TN, by Jack Sundrud (Poco) and legendary producer Bill Halverson, are assisted by Music City’s best session musicians, such as Dennis Crouch, Russ Pahl and Tammy Rogers.
Bob Cheevers, formerly from Memphis, TN, now residing in Austin TX, has both Spooner Oldham, as well as Mike Botts and Larry Knechtel, both from Bread, backing him on his tracks.
Last, but not least, is Barry Ollman, who recorded his contributions in his hometurf of Loveland, CO, with a little help from David Amram, John Fullbright, Tim O’Brien, James Raymond (the son of David Crosby), and Garry W Tallent of E Street Band fame.
Folksingers, protestsingers, troubadours, singer songwriters. 50 years, this year, we celebrate them all with 18 exclusive songs on a brand new album out now.
By the time the frost hits the pumpkin, there typically is no shortage of new Christmas albums from the usual suspects singing, for the most part, the same old spiritual carols and secular classics. And then there's "Won't Be Home For Christmas". The compilation CD, conceived and produced by Swedish music industry veteran Peter Holmstedt, brings together compositions from 18 different singer songwriters, each of whom approach their assignment to 'write a song about Christmas' in widely different musical stylings.
To be sure, there are no Justin Beiber's here singing "Away In A Manger", no Reba McEntire’s twanging out "Joy To The World", there are, however songsmiths from around the globe, from Dublin to Austin to South Australia to Nashville, who weave together a deep playlist, which veers from dark to cheery to twisted tunes, from introspective musings to the tender wonderment of a miraculous life. And there’s even a lullaby.
Some of the songs have a retro vibe to them, harkening back to a Dean Martin mood or 50's jump blues jazz or Irish balladry. Some are straight on acoustic folk ballads. There's some soft rock. And some, as are many a good song, are hard to pigeon hole. There are pure Christmas songs and a few that give it a passing mention, while others give emotional snapshots of life stories within the seasonal time frame.
"I'm a big fan of compilation albums, and I had the idea of reaching out to singer songwriters I know and admire and asking them to write a song with a Christmas hook to contribute to the project", Holmstedt said. "I was interested to hear what interpretations they would come up with, and I was delighted at the response".
"Peter Holmstedt is a knowledgable, hard-working guy who knows the music of 2019 like Brian Epstein knew the music of 1963. My bands the Coal Porters and the Long Ryders have used him in the past for promoting the band's activities and we will again in the future. I think the world of Peter, he is easy to work with and a pleasure to know." ~ Sid Griffin
