For artists from a small country like Sweden, international fame is vital. French indie festival Les Femmes s’en Mêlent celebrates female artists — and in 2009, the lineup includes six Swedish bands. Watch their videos and find out what Frida Hyvönen and the others have to say about music, fame and inspiration.
Read our interviews with the bands below!
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Photo: another.records
www.myspace.com/
ninakinert |
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Nina Kinert
> What inspires you?
“Everything! Dreams mostly. And those little moments that feel bigger than life itself. That tends to happen when you’re in love. Or drunk.”
> How would you describe your music?
“As fairy-tale inspired pop. A pitch-black sky with twinkling stars.”
> What does international recognition mean to you?
“That depends on what you mean by recognition. Recognized or respected? Anyway, I like the moments when I feel that the whole world is my workplace and that I can go wherever I want.” |
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Wildbirds & Peacedrums
> What inspires you?
“Right now: long spring walks, San Francisco and Vigo (a port city in Spain), huge cathedrals, Obama, cats, kind people, Anaïs Nin, Fugazi, demonstrations.”
> How would you describe your music?
“Contemporary blues, pop from the heart, energetic music with a soul and punk spirit.”
> Why do you think you’ve succeeded as artists?
“I don’t exactly know what it means to “succeed,” but I guess we have been uncompromising from the start, and have only done things we believe in, whatever the trends. Conviction and dedication pays off in the end. And we play music that is needed and means something to certain people.” |
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Andreas Werliin and Mariam Wallentin. Photo: Julia Lindemalm
www.myspace.com/
wildbirdsandpeacedrums |
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Håkan Sörle, Niclas Svensson, Helen Lindberg and Cecilia Boström, front. Photo: Matilda Kock
www.myspace.com/
thebaboonshow |
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Håkan Sörle/The Baboon Show
> What inspires you?
“Swedish and international politics, or rather lack of politics. We dislike the way society’s common property is sold out to rich private individuals who then whine about taxes being too high. Things like that inspire many of our songs. We like to mix seriousness with humor — you want the listeners to snigger their way through the lyrics and then still feel, ‘Hell, there really is something to what they’re saying.’”
> How would you describe your music?
“A mix of old 77-punk and 70s-AC/DC with female vocals that bring Udo Dirkschneider and Nina Hagen to mind.”
> What’s the best thing about music?
“That you’re affected by both sounds and visuals. You get lyrics and music at the same time and discover new things about a song each time you listen to it. We like album covers and albums as a phenomenon. We still buy albums if there’s anything we like.” |
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Lisa Pyk Wirström/Those Dancing Days
> What inspires you?
“Life, love and music.”
> What does international fame mean to you?
“A lot. We’re better known abroad than in Sweden, and it’s incredibly fun to tour around Europe, playing in new cities and countries every night. We get the chance to see so much by playing music. We often meet new, extraordinary people who have different perspectives on life to us.”
> What’s the best and worst part about life as an artist?
“We get to live our dream, making music full time. That’s a privilege. And that people like our music; that it makes a difference in people’s life. The worst part is that sometimes you’re on tour and sometimes at home — you can get the feeling you’re leading a double life. I live completely differently when we’re touring, and when we get back home it can be tough to adjust to the life I had before I left.” |
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Mimmi Evrell, Cissi Efraimsson, Linnea Jönsson, Lisa Pyk Wirström and Rebecka Rolfart, with goat. Photo: Diana Gomez
www.myspace.com/
thosedancingdays |
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Nathan Larsson, Nina Persson and Niclas Frisk. Photo: Monika Manowska
www.myspace.com/
acamptheband |
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Nathan Larson/A Camp
> What inspires you?
“Machines, animals, air pollution, gaslight, neon, history.”
> Do your lyrics have any particular theme?
“Politics, loneliness, anger, love, death, sex, weather, nautical events, private and public disasters.”
> What's the next goal for you as
a band?
“To play more music for people in more and more places.” |
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Frida Hyvönen
> What inspires you?
“Working, sounds, thoughts.”
> How would you describe your
music?
“Lyric- and voice-based piano pop chanson, for the most part.”
> What do you think of the musical climate in Sweden?
“Great; lots of really talented people.”
> Do your lyrics have any particular theme?
“They have several different ones, but it’s up to the listener to find them.” |
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Photo: Knotan
www.myspace.com/
fridahyvonen |
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Listen to more Swedish pop!
What do you think of Swedish indie music? Leave a comment below!.
Anna Sandelin
Anna Sandelin is a freelance journalist based in Uppsala. She used to play double bass in a quite decent band herself and still gets nostalgic when thinking about it. However, her slight stage fright always posed an obstacle to her career as an artist.
The author alone is responsible for the opinions expressed in this article.
Classification: A295EN
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