The Cardigans

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Amazon

For most folks, The Cardigans is the very definition of Swedish pop. That’s regrettable given the criminal neglect on these shores of Sweden’s finest exports—The Merrymakers, Eggstone, and This Perfect Day. Still, you can’t deny the irresistible appeal of Nina Persson’s cooing, the jazzy chords, breezy melodies, and ironically dark undertone to some of the most cheery, bubblegummy-sounding music of the last 5 years. As evidenced by their first album Emmerdale, issued here for the first time along with a 4 track bonus disc, The Cardigans were perfecting this gold formula well before “Lovefool” broke them out of Euro pop obscurity here in the States. “Sick & Tired” could well be “Lovefool Part 1,” while “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” is a tribute to seemingly incongruous love for heavy metal that a majority of these bandmates share.