Browsing Tag

Swedish Pop

Linn Willner stood at the vanguard of emotionally intelligent pop with ‘Dancing on Roses’

Posted on 26 September 2023

For her latest single, Dancing on Roses, the indie pop enchantress, Linn Willner, melodically pulled on the parallels between blossoming naturalism and the early days of relationships, where we can’t see the thorns for the petals.

The orchestral strings in the indie chamber pop score carved a cinematically immersive atmosphere that evokes notions of romanticism while spurring the listener to remove their rose-tinted glasses and view the full kaleidoscope of betrayal-laden complexity when exploring love and human connection. Life will always find a way to strip away your naivety; it is better to pull back the layers with piano pop expositions on the highs and lows of relationships, which portray vulnerability as a strength.

The 22-year-old Swedish singer-songwriter became an icon of our enlightened times with Dancing on Roses. Beyond her beguilingly evocative vocal lines and command over minor piano keys, she’s at the vanguard of emotionally intelligent pop.

Dancing on Roses will debut on the 26th of September; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Electro-chanson meets 00s Britpop in Laptop Singers’ single, Le Love featuring Judy St. Clarke

Posted on 11 October 2022

Here to perpetuate the myth that there’s something in Sweden’s waters that breeds pop legends is Gothenburg’s brother duo, Laptop Singers, with their latest single, Le Love, featuring the Nashville singer Judy St. Clarke.

Before Le Love swings you back to Paris in the 60s, it makes a brief pitstop in charted by Garbage and The Cardigans 90s Britpop territory, leaving ample room for modernity to reflect in the lyricism that makes no bones about getting to grips with the tantamount of the tribulation.

The era-mashing yet juxtaposingly timeless single comes with more than just a pinch of electro-pop panache. The endlessly inviting demure soul from Judy St. Clarke against the electrically reverberating keys, high-energy guitars, and absurdity-embracing lyrics makes the chaos of 2022 worth enduring.

Here’s what Laptop Singers had to say about their sticky-sweet escapist release:

“This song is inspired by listening to lots of French music, both old classics from the 60´s, like Francoise Hardy, and new French indie pop like Bon Entendeur and L’Impératrice. It´s an uptempo, guitar-based song about youthful energy, love, and confusion right in the middle of 2022!”

Le Love is now available to stream on Spotify.

Follow Laptop Singers on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Laptop Singers appeal to the loveless in their smooth electro-pop hit, Are You Ready for Love? Featuring Roger Arvidson

Posted on 30 June 2022

The Swedish electro-pop duo, Laptop Singers, got even more lavish with the soul in their latest single, Are You Ready for Love?, Featuring Roger Arvidson.

It easily parallels Elton John’s song with the same title for the soul it spills, but it is so much more than your average “everyone be happy summer single”. The gentle protest against cheap thrills shows compassion for the endemic of the defiantly loveless.

The sultry, smoothed electro-pop ballad taps into the modern issue of rejecting lasting affection for meaningless gratification with a classic touch while the self-produced single indoctrinates the lush electronic textures brought about by this era.

The brother duo, consisting of Lars and Per Andersson, have had 30 years of Swedish pop practice. By the time they got round to penning Are You Ready for Love and bringing it to life as a courtesy of Roger Arvidson’s timelessly soulful pop vocals, they knew exactly how to hit the ground swooning.

Are You Ready for Love? is now available to stream on Spotify.

Check out Laptop Singers via their official website, Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Noah and the Sound embodies the epitome of inertia in his indie-pop electro hit, Stuck

Posted on 27 March 2022

Swedish singer-songwriter Noah and the Sound has released his post-punk-tinged indie-pop earworm, Stuck. In a time when momentum is hard to find but not as hard as the grip of inertia, it has all the makings of an electro-indie pop playlist staple.

With an arty approach to cinematic production, Stuck finds the perfect balance between intimacy and intensity. Especially with the contrast between the vulnerability in the hushed and honeyed indie dream-pop vocals and the deep percussive throbs that ensure the momentum ironically remains perpetual. There’s also no aurally evading the sense of romanticism that resounds around the bitter-sweet candour.

Stuck is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The British-Swedish pop duo Small Changes illuminated the airwaves with their latest single, The Sun

Posted on 1 February 2022

Few female pop duos can rival the soulfully powerful British-Swedish duo, Small Changes, especially on the basis of their latest single, The Sun, which creates parables between the warmth of the spiciest planet in our solar system and the cosy affection in human connection.

Their life-affirming and perception brightening single was a charity release to raise money for MIND. Yet, it is safe to say that Lina Nilsson and Elisabeth O’Connor did their part for the advocacy of mental health through writing the single alone. Notably, with their meaningful lyricism, immense vocal talent and spiritually awakening instrumentals, they are one to watch. They’re already receiving plaudits from up high from BBC Introducing and gracing notable venues, such as The O2 Academy Islington, Notting Hill Arts Club and Under the Bridge.

You can check out The Sun for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jasi Bella calls time on the perpetuation of damaging ‘crazy ex’ archetypes in her latest dance-pop track.

Posted on 18 June 2021

Swedish pop artist Jasi Bella’s latest single, Your Ex, is a straight-up attack on the perpetuation of the ‘crazy ex’ stereotyping. Not only is it a warning that women can see through the wool being pulled over our eyes when you tell us why your last relationship was a disaster. It is also an emboldening track that inspires solidarity between women that suffer the same narrators that twist the story to play the victim of the ‘insanity’ they inspired.

With rates of domestic violence skyrocketing as a result of the lockdowns, we’re more conscious of the dangers of toxic relationships than ever; conversations, such as what you will hear in Your Ex, are vital to have. The vibrant pop track deserves to go viral.

Your Ex released on June 4th; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Smisch prescribes sticky-sweet Latin-inspired high-vibes with their latest single ‘Sugar for My Love’

Posted on 18 January 2021

Independent Pop artist, Smisch released their most unashamedly amorous single to date with ‘Sugar for My Love’ on January 1st.  If it has been a while since you last experienced the intensity of visceral emotion, this Latin-inspired high-vibe modernistic ballad will gladly remind you.

The Sweden-residing artist made their solo debut in 2017, he’s been bringing a uniquely powerful voice to the radio waves ever since. By drawing influence from the likes of Jason Derulo and Shawn Mendes, Smisch offers the same ardently evocative appeal, but that’s not to say that Smisch’s voice doesn’t cut through Pop mediocrity, it discernibly does.

Sugar for My Love is available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

HONA drop stunning debut single ‘Drop In The Ocean’.

Posted on 5 October 2020

Sparse and stratospheric, ‘Drop In The Ocean’ is a moody slice of Electronic Dance Music, the debut single from Swedish pairing Valentina Ahlmark and Mathilda Ulfes; the tension is evident from the opening chords, the pain of separation and longing palpable and unmistakable and tangible throughout the three minutes ten seconds of the song.

The space in the track adds to its power, perfectly offsetting the strength of the vocal, the ambience and reverb carrying the beats and the swell of the programmed chords to perfection; ‘Drop In The Ocean’ is a stunning debut from a duo that are clearly ones to watch.

‘Drop In The Ocean’ is on Spotify; check out HONA on Facebook.

Review by Alex Holmes

Songs for Sabotage give Peter Murphy a run for his money with their cover of Cuts You Up

Posted on 13 September 2020
Songs for Sabotage

LA Alt-Rock artist Songs for Sabotage cooked up the dreamiest feat of Rock you’ll hear in 2020 with their cover of Peter Murphy’s “Cuts You Up”. Which is just one of the soul-swellingly sweet tracks you’ll find on their debut album “Coast to Coast”

With the infusion of Swedish Pop, 80s Alternative and 00s Electro in their lush Rock ensemble, once you hit play on Cuts You Up your entire consciousness is consumed by the escapism-aiding deftly orchestrated hit. Cuts You Up is the kind of track you need a recovery period after hearing as your rhythmic pulses become your own again and you adjust to being present in the real world. There really is no higher accolade than that. And that doesn’t even come close to capturing the sunset-strip-magic offered by the track.

Night of Joy releases on all major streaming platforms Friday, September 25th and SFS will be performing their album live in full via Instagram livestream on Saturday, September 26th.

You can pre-save the track on Spotify via this link.

Keep up to date with news on the release via Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast