Sweden

Promoe comes out of the Swedish crew Looptroop, also worth checking out. His 2001 album, Government Music, is a classic of underground hip-hop. He brings a ragga influence to polished beats and tight rhymes.

gets compared to Stephin Merritt (Magnetic Fields) and Morrisey, fair enough, he's witty, romantic, and melancholic. all the same, he makes some good friggin' music.

As menacing as it is hooky, this is some bracing stuff. It helps that Dreijer's arrangements have become more assured and refined over time-- from the rushing percussion and synth flares of "Neverland" to the hall of plexiglass mirrors wonkiness of "We Share Our Mother's Health", he frequently finds a striking balance between minimalism and dissonance.