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| The Hives aren't wanting for self-esteem, and Swedish bands prove more interesting than Chia Pets ...
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| Popular Swedish pastimes: get drunk all the time, work in a factory or pick up a guitar ...
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| How Swedish bands get their groove, and how they're now getting their plane tickets ...
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Browse Bands by Name
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 Bands Main
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Division of Laura Lee have been compared to the Hives, and they do have a bit of that garage vibe, but their sound is more morose, melding the monochromatic hopelessness of Joy Division with the rage of Fugazi and the energy of At the Drive-In. Their new Black City echoes with the desperation and frustration of youth struggling to escape mundane lifestyles and do something real.
"For a lot of people, life in Sweden isn't so good," Division bassist Jonas Gustavsson said. "Either you get drunk all the time or you go to work in a factory. I have friends who have died and friends who are deep into drugs, and it brings me down and makes me sad. Everything tragic has to be expressed in some way, and our way is through the music."
The most blatantly political band making a buzz on the Swedish scene is the (International) Noise Conspiracy, an anti-capitalist batch of leftist revolutionaries who create highly charged music influenced by the Stooges, Elvis Costello and '60s soul. As angry and indignant as their songs get, their message is fairly motivational.
"It's easy to look around the world and say it's a f---ed up place," said (I)NC singer Dennis Lyxzén, who formerly fronted Refused. "We know that already because we see it on the news every day. What we try to do with (International) Noise Conspiracy is focus on resistance and rebellion — to show there are actually people fighting back and doing amazing things."
Poppier than Soundtrack of Our Lives, more lightweight than Division of Laura Lee, Sahara Hotnights provide peppy, chorus-fueled rock for those who don't want to mope or think too much. The band's U.S. debut, Jenny Bomb, sounds like a cross between the Runaways, Blondie and the Ramones. While they seem somewhat jaded and uninterested in interviews, Sahara Hotnights have developed a reputation for delivering tight, energetic pogofests live.
"We started out listening to Nirvana and they were our main influence," drummer Josephine Forsman said. "But right now we're into a lot of Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and of course Ramones. We're pretty young, so we're just trying to make people feel the energy we have. And we love to play."
Other outfits in the Swedish invasion include Citizen Bird, an atmospheric neopsychedelic band influenced by Pink Floyd, Stereolab and Flying Saucer Attack, and Demons, a snotty punk band that sounds like a cross between New Bomb Turks and Radio Birdman.
"We're a loud, angry punk band," Demons drummer Micke Jacobsson said. "A lot of people in Stockholm have a lot of anger inside themselves because there's a lot of stuff that doesn't work well here. Usually people think that because we have socialism everyone is safe, but it's hard to get a job and it's hard to get an apartment. People develop a lot of anger and they need to get it out."
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Photo: The Soundtrack of Our Lives: Universal
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