Based in Malmö, Sweden, where they are widely regarded as the country’s ‘top alternative rock band’, the Cardigans were formed in the small town of Jönköping in 1992 by Peter Svensson (b. 18 October 1974, Jönköping, Sweden; guitar), Magnus Sveningsson (b. Johan Magnus Sveningsson, 4 April 1972, Falköping, Sweden; bass), and Mattias Alfheim. The latter soon left, and the new line-up was completed by Bengt Lagerberg (b. 5 July 1973, Stockholm, Sweden; drums), Lars Olof Johansson (b. 23 February 1973, Huskvarna, Sweden; keyboards), and Nina Persson (b. 6 September 1974, Örebro, Sweden; vocals). Teaming up with producer Tore Johansson they signed to the Trampolene label. Their delicate, intricate melodies saw critics link their 1994 debut album, Emmerdale, with the introspective, acoustic tradition of early 80s UK bands including the Young Marble Giants and Everything But The Girl. Certainly it was difficult to detect the presence of any clues to Svensson and Sveningsson’s previous work in various heavy metal bands. However, 1995’s major label debut Life, promoted on a UK support tour with Blur, did include a cover version of ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath’.
Further strong press, encouraged by radio play on BBC Radio 1 and daytime British television, prompted healthy sales in Sweden, the UK and Japan, where the Cardigans enjoy immense popularity. On First Band On The Moon they abandoned pure pop simplicity and chose to experiment with shades of progressive rock and harder guitar. The strongest material, however, was the straightforward pop of memorable tracks such as ‘Been It’ and ‘Never Recover’. The band enjoyed a huge transatlantic summer hit in 1997 with the re-released ‘Lovefool’, featured on the soundtrack to William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. ‘My Favourite Game’ was another highly addictive hit single, debuting at UK number 14 in October 1998 and providing a taster for the experimental electronic pop of Gran Turismo. ‘Erase/Rewind’ returned the band to the UK Top 10 in March 1999.
Persson took the opportunity of a break in band activities to record a country-tinged album with A Camp, before returning to the Cardigans to work on 2003’s excellent Long Gone Before Daylight. Persson’s beautiful voice sounded both confident and effortless, with the album’s less frantic material perfectly suiting her vocal style. The Cardigans are shrugging off their pop mantle with great ease.
