Talk all you like about Cool Japan — the Nordic countries have been exporting their sound for years, and it's positively freezing. From the sweetly kitsch pop sound of The Cardigans to the otherworldly soundscapes of Sigur Ros to the black metal of Bathory, the region has a habit of throwing up acts that are as extreme as its weather.
The Nordic region has long realized the export potential of its music, and nowadays it regularly sends battalions of bands to perform at industry festivals such as South by Southwest in the United States and The Great Escape in Britain, with financial support coming from government coffers.
Hokuo Music Night 2012 is a case in point. The second in a series, it's the fruit of a collaboration between Music Export Finland, Export Music Sweden, Music Export Norway, Music Export Denmark and Iceland Music Export. Together as NOMEX, and working with Japanese tour agency Creativeman, they will on May 25 present downbeat electro-pop trio Husky Rescue (Finland), hushed experimentalist Kira Kira (Iceland), quirky indie band Lars and the Hands of Light (Denmark) and groove-riding synth-pop duo Lo-Fi-Fnk (Sweden; there's no Norwegian act this year) at Tokyo's Daikanyama Unit.