The Swede Style
March 12, 2007 9:24 AM Subscribe
Peter Bjorn and John are one of the most talked-about acts appearing at SXSW later this week. They are a Swedish band best known for their breakout single "Young Folks" (video | mp3 | live on Conan | acoustic), which was on numerous best of 2006 lists. Their album and new singles have been generally acclaimed. The band does, however, have its detractors.
Meh. Pitchforkhype.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:33 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:33 AM on March 12, 2007
Since you brought up SXSW, check out Amy Winehouse. sad story? true story?
posted by phaedon at 9:33 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by phaedon at 9:33 AM on March 12, 2007
Tempest is to teapot as idiot is to blog, apparently.
posted by doctor_negative at 9:38 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by doctor_negative at 9:38 AM on March 12, 2007
I really like the album. And I don't even read Pitchfork! That being said, the song "Young Folks", while immediately catchy and engaging, gets old pretty quickly. It's the only song I regularly skip past when playing the CD.
posted by Atom Eyes at 9:40 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by Atom Eyes at 9:40 AM on March 12, 2007
Is there anything in this post that is going to engender any discussion other than your favorite band sucks or your favorite band is awesome? Cuz otherwise, I'm staying away. Which probably doesn't mean anything to anyone but let the battle commence!
posted by spicynuts at 9:53 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by spicynuts at 9:53 AM on March 12, 2007
And just so that I can claim I'm not a total dick, here are some other purveyors of the current Swedish invasion:
I'm From Barcelona
Kristoffer Ragnstam
Tobias Froberg
Lonely, Dear...performing tonight at Union Hall (Union b/w 5/th and 6th, Brooklyn)
posted by spicynuts at 9:58 AM on March 12, 2007
I'm From Barcelona
Kristoffer Ragnstam
Tobias Froberg
Lonely, Dear...performing tonight at Union Hall (Union b/w 5/th and 6th, Brooklyn)
posted by spicynuts at 9:58 AM on March 12, 2007
I don't know about your favorite band, but I can definitely weigh in as being of the opinion that really bad singing from the bottom of an oil drum is not too awesome a start.
posted by DU at 10:01 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by DU at 10:01 AM on March 12, 2007
I've got SXSW fatigue. Is there anyway I can set up a filter to stop me from seeing everything that happens at SWSX 13 times in my rss reader?
posted by srboisvert at 10:07 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by srboisvert at 10:07 AM on March 12, 2007
I'll see you tonight then maybe, spicynuts. I'll be there for Tunng.
posted by yeti at 10:08 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by yeti at 10:08 AM on March 12, 2007
Sorry, yeti, can't make it unfortunately. Have fun.
posted by spicynuts at 10:15 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by spicynuts at 10:15 AM on March 12, 2007
The idea is that trying to make PBJ into a breakout band is essentially silencing those of us who hate the band.
So, so, lame. Those who can play SXSW. Those who can't make lame blogs and organize hipster protest rallies. Don't forget your placards and turned up collars!
The thing to keep in mind is that there are something like 800 bands performing at SXSW, and a lot of them are amazing. There's no reason why another band can't be "the" band.
Why not put that energy into championing one, then?
Losers.
Of course, this could easily be some sort of reverse-psychology, buzz-generating kinda thing.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:59 AM on March 12, 2007
So, so, lame. Those who can play SXSW. Those who can't make lame blogs and organize hipster protest rallies. Don't forget your placards and turned up collars!
The thing to keep in mind is that there are something like 800 bands performing at SXSW, and a lot of them are amazing. There's no reason why another band can't be "the" band.
Why not put that energy into championing one, then?
Losers.
Of course, this could easily be some sort of reverse-psychology, buzz-generating kinda thing.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:59 AM on March 12, 2007
They don't give a very good explanation about why the band must be stopped.
"As I acknowledged in the previous post, "Young Folks" was catchy and harmless, but this band is not a significant band. Peter Bjorn and John must be stopped."
That made me laugh out loud. I'm assuming it's viral satire from the band's own manager, but who knows?
posted by mrgrimm at 11:02 AM on March 12, 2007
"As I acknowledged in the previous post, "Young Folks" was catchy and harmless, but this band is not a significant band. Peter Bjorn and John must be stopped."
That made me laugh out loud. I'm assuming it's viral satire from the band's own manager, but who knows?
posted by mrgrimm at 11:02 AM on March 12, 2007
A couple of my faves from Sweden:
Jens Lekman (truly wonderful pop songs)
El Perro Del Mar (Whom my wife and I missed last Saturday because we had other things going on, which were great, but I'm kinda bummed about it.)
Although, I'm not sure if these two are part of the "invasion" or the forerunners by a couple of years. I heard the "Young Folks" single and thought it was catchy, but forgot about it soon enough. I hope they do well.
posted by sleepy pete at 11:24 AM on March 12, 2007
Jens Lekman (truly wonderful pop songs)
El Perro Del Mar (Whom my wife and I missed last Saturday because we had other things going on, which were great, but I'm kinda bummed about it.)
Although, I'm not sure if these two are part of the "invasion" or the forerunners by a couple of years. I heard the "Young Folks" single and thought it was catchy, but forgot about it soon enough. I hope they do well.
posted by sleepy pete at 11:24 AM on March 12, 2007
Is it too much to ask to not hype SXSW bands on Metafilter and see where they are in a year or two?
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:58 AM on March 12, 2007
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:58 AM on March 12, 2007
Hmm. I have the album. It's okay - "Young Folks" is good and maybe 2 other tracks are worthwhile, but it's really not that great. The vocals often sound off-key and the instrumentation is nothing new.
I'm more excited about Deerhunter. (my blog)
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:21 PM on March 12, 2007
I'm more excited about Deerhunter. (my blog)
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:21 PM on March 12, 2007
While we're on the subject - Suburban Kids with Biblical Names are worth it for the name alone.
They're also from Sweden just in case you thought I was spouting random band names.
posted by muthecow at 12:49 PM on March 12, 2007
They're also from Sweden just in case you thought I was spouting random band names.
posted by muthecow at 12:49 PM on March 12, 2007
Labrador Records is a Swedish label with some pretty awesome bands - my favorite being The Radio Dept.
The Swedish invasion seems to me to be old news, but then again, I was living in Iceland for a while - which was both much hipper than the u-SOFA and closer to Sweden.
posted by grapefruitmoon at 1:17 PM on March 12, 2007
The Swedish invasion seems to me to be old news, but then again, I was living in Iceland for a while - which was both much hipper than the u-SOFA and closer to Sweden.
posted by grapefruitmoon at 1:17 PM on March 12, 2007
I call viral.
I'm 99.999999999% sure that the girl singing on their hit is the lead singer of The Concretes, if you want to hear more of her. Also Swedish.
posted by nathancaswell at 1:46 PM on March 12, 2007
I'm 99.999999999% sure that the girl singing on their hit is the lead singer of The Concretes, if you want to hear more of her. Also Swedish.
posted by nathancaswell at 1:46 PM on March 12, 2007
This does feel like a pretty half-assed viral attempt. Remove PBJ and you get this:
This band I like is a band lots of other people like too. They're going to play at this big festival! They live in a country and are best known for their first single. So many people liked that song that the band got on lots of best-of-last-year lists. Lots of people like their music, but some people don't. THE END!
Come on. At least the 300 post had something resembling an angle.
Why not put that energy into championing [a band playing at SXSW], then? Losers.
Do you really want to go down this road? Tomorrow on Metafilter: every band that's playing a 9:00pm slot on Friday at SXSW.
posted by chrominance at 3:37 PM on March 12, 2007
This band I like is a band lots of other people like too. They're going to play at this big festival! They live in a country and are best known for their first single. So many people liked that song that the band got on lots of best-of-last-year lists. Lots of people like their music, but some people don't. THE END!
Come on. At least the 300 post had something resembling an angle.
Why not put that energy into championing [a band playing at SXSW], then? Losers.
Do you really want to go down this road? Tomorrow on Metafilter: every band that's playing a 9:00pm slot on Friday at SXSW.
posted by chrominance at 3:37 PM on March 12, 2007
Well, no, Victoria Bergsman used to be the lead singer of The Concretes. She quit last year to focus on Taken By Trees.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 3:56 PM on March 12, 2007
posted by soundofsuburbia at 3:56 PM on March 12, 2007
Anyhoo, nitpicking aside, this hype caught me completely off guard. I mean, Peter Bjorn & John have always been a staple on the swedish music scene; good but never great (IMHO). A couple of years ago it sure looked like they were heading for bigger things, but nothing happened. Then - BOOM! - they're on Conan. I never saw it coming. It's all good though, "Young Folks" is a catchy little tune and I wish them all the best. I'm just... flabbergasted.
So, in the spirit of some things written above, I suppose Speedmarket Avenue are up next. Check them out today, before Pitchfork catches on! :)
By the way, the Bjorn of Peter Bjorn & John - Björn Yttling - has released a jazz album which is pretty good. At yttling.se you can listen to some snippets.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:18 PM on March 12, 2007
So, in the spirit of some things written above, I suppose Speedmarket Avenue are up next. Check them out today, before Pitchfork catches on! :)
By the way, the Bjorn of Peter Bjorn & John - Björn Yttling - has released a jazz album which is pretty good. At yttling.se you can listen to some snippets.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:18 PM on March 12, 2007
Nobody's mentioned Shout Out Louds - myspace - homepage
I love their songs "Very Loud" and "Please Please Please."
posted by Frank Grimes at 5:23 PM on March 12, 2007
I love their songs "Very Loud" and "Please Please Please."
posted by Frank Grimes at 5:23 PM on March 12, 2007
Chrominance: That was directed towards the Stoppeterbjornandjohn blog people, assuming they are sincere in their loathing, rather than just really lazy marketers.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:38 PM on March 12, 2007
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:38 PM on March 12, 2007
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posted by delmoi at 9:28 AM on March 12, 2007