This month's Norse Code features an interview with Ephemera's Christine Sandtorv and reviews of Midair Condo, the Tidy Ups, The Knife, and Ampop. Come on in and survey all things Scandi.

I apologize profusely, dear readers. This column has been dormant for 7 months, and that certainly wasn't planned. It's not that there wasn't plenty of music deserving of coverage. No, it's actually the OPPOSITE problem that occurred-there was too MUCH music to write about. What happened in 2006 was literally an explosion of interest in the Scandinavian music scene. Every major magazine got in on the action, and online sites such as Pitchfork and aversion.com took note of countless new artists from the region. What once was an exciting little secret for some of us suddenly became the focus of intense scrutiny in both the U.K. and here in the states. So I guess I'm trying to say I got a little overwhelmed. With piles of CDs to write about and not near enough time, I became disorganized and a little freaked. But after reorienting myself and getting refocused, I am back at Scandi Central to do my sacred duty. And that's to continue shedding light on the diverse, exciting, brilliant music being made in the cool realm of northern Europe. So please accept my apology for the delay, and let's just dive right into some recent Scandi action, ‘kay?

Among the biggest success stories in 2006 has been The Knife, a Swedish brother-sister act who create an utterly mesmerizing blend of rhythmic synth-pop and eerie, creatively distorted vocals. Their third album (but first U.S. release), Silent Shout, is well-named; it might render you speechless with its compelling mixture of the familiar and the weird, but artistically, it does indeed shout out loud. The cover and the sleeve are black or dark blue, giving an aura of unsettling darkness to the presentation, and you'll strain to read the lyrics. You won't generally hear them that well, either, since Olof Dreijer and Karin Dreijer Andersson (she does most of the singing) employ pitch shifting and other vocal-altering devices to create an often bizarre and not-quite-human sound. The peppy synth-pop of the title track lures you in, then the weird vocals blindside you and let you know this is not your father's new wave music. Or your mother's, your older brother's, etc. Maybe your weird cousin's. On songs like "The Captain," which features a long, moody instrumental intro, and the ominously titled "We Share Our Mothers' Health," the music throbs with energetic life, but the vocals are more like The Residents than any typical Swedish pop outfit. Something wicked this way comes, is the general vibe here, and yet you want it to, because you're curious to follow this amazing music wherever it plans to take you. One of the most memorable songs is "No No No," a vaguely oriental-sounding composition with a minimal ascending keyboard melody that sets up a high-pitched, spooky female voice that seems to wail from another dimension. More appealing for the novice will be the following two tracks, "Marble House" and "Like a Pen," which are relatively normal sounding compared to the sonic atmosphere elsewhere. The former, however, does boast a grabby percussion element that sounds like some little creature scurrying in the darkness; the latter takes a similar sound and makes it more like tap dancing. On both, there are appealing vocals and a rhythm you can sink your teeth into-those two tracks also exceed five minutes in length. Dreijer takes the male lead on "From Off to On," a lovely bit of contemporary electronica-but it's distortion city here; hard to say if it's his sister joining in for those strange, tight harmonies, or more pitch-shifting experiments. "We cannot wait much longer," says our spooked musical host. "We want happiness...we want control of our bodies." By any measure, this is original modern pop music, and it helps explain why The Knife were suddenly so in demand that they were able to launch their first U.S. tour this year. Creepy, unsettling, emotionally stirring and beautifully recorded, Silent Shout is easily one of the most distinctive recordings to emerge from Sweden this year. OR: 9. OM: 3.5. CSC

Knife is on tour in the U.S.:
11.01.06 New York, NY - Webster Hall
11.03.06 San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine
11.04.06 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theater 

(In case you've forgotten what those codes mean, "OR" is the overall rating; "OM" is the "Otherness Measure," or degree of cultural distinctiveness on a scale of 1 to 5, and "CSC" means "Certified Scandinavian Classic").

Okay, I know you're sick of hearing groups compared to Radiohead. And frankly, I'm sick of groups that sound a little like Radiohead but aren't nearly as good. But comparisons are inevitable in this reviewing racket, and that's not always a bad thing. Take Iceland's Ampop. They do sound just a little like Radiohead, and other epic Brit-pop groups like Coldplay and Muse. But they're damn good, and they are different enough to deserve recognition for their own thing. Which is essentially, melodic, soaring, classic pop/rock delivered via the sweet, gently melancholy vocals of singer Birgir Hilmarsson ("Biggi," who also plays guitar) and shot through with Icelandic cool. You can't fake authentic emotion, and there are countless moments on Ampop's new record My Delusions where the vocals are so pure, so achingly sincere, that it's like a close friend telling you about their romantic pangs or sorrows. And the music is performed with incredible clarity and finesse, so that every little detail makes its way from your ears to your heart. This trio have the goods, in spades. Kjartan F. Olafsson (billed as "Kjartan") plays the keyboards and co-wrote everything here with Biggi; Jon Geir is the drummer. All three musicians play it like they mean it, every step of the way; there's something fresh and lovely here that is almost aromatic in its purity. There's "Eternal Bliss," which features a rapid waltz tempo, lulling background harmonies (a band trademark) and an uncommonly restrained lead vocal for this kind of epic pop. A subtle touch of distortion adds to the potent impact. The title track is a bit of a Beatle-ish charmer that only the deaf could resist. "How long does it take to land this plane?/This flight is making me afraid..." sings Biggi, before adding "I might be wrong but I feel/I've much to prove." Ampop seem to be aware of one secret of great pop music-the art of aesthetic vagueness. It creates a deeper impact on songs like this that works on a nearly subliminal level. An even better example is "Precious," which has no obvious inspiration in Tolkien, but is lyrically so vague that you can interpret it any way you want. "I can't stand it/I can't be without it/It's the only thing I want/It's the only thing I need," our Icelandic friend implores with great vulnerability. How cool that he never tells us what IT is, so we can use our imagination! And cooler still that the song is beautiful. Other great tracks include the gorgeous ballad "Clown" and the melancholy weeper "Youth," in which clean acoustic guitar picking and deeply atmospheric electric tones combine with the emotive vocal to render a sense of palpable sorrow about the loss of innocence and the angst of getting older. Stylistically, this is Bends-era Radiohead, and it's about as good as any tune on that record, in fact. "Distance" is another song that should appeal to Radiohead fans, although the beautiful humming in the background is somewhat unique to this group and is about as nice a stylistic touch as I've heard lately. And Biggi's warm and lovely voice shines with just minimal piano, although anytime a thicker groove kicks in, his voice ramps up in power also, without losing its intimate quality. The album ends with one of its best songs, "3 Hours of Daylight," which should be a shoo-in for some creative mix CD about the ups and downs of life in Iceland or Scandinavia proper. "Three hours of daylight/Makes you want to stay inside/New morning doesn't welcome you/The darkness surrounds you," sings Biggi with utter conviction, letting the emotion slowly simmer/shimmer. The gorgeous harmonies knock you out, and the soaring, repeated chorus of "We will be fine/Cause soon it will shine..." is simply breathtaking. This is the kind of song where you think, why is Band X on top of the charts for similar material, but the superior grace and tastefulness of Ampop is mostly confined in this country to their MySpace circle? Powerful, immaculately produced and emotionally stirring, My Delusions is one of the best albums to come out of Iceland this year. Ampop are well worth your time if you like melodic, melancholy indie pop, so go on over to their MySpace site and learn more. www.myspace.com/ampopband  OR: 8. OM: 2.5.