The Cardigans is a Swedish band formed in the town of Jönköping in 1992. The band's musical style has varied greatly from album to album and encompasses their early indie leanings passing through '60s-inspired pop and more band-based rock.
Their debut album Emmerdale (1994) gave them a solid base in their home country and enjoyed some success abroad, especially in Japan. But it wasn't until their breakthrough second album Life (1995) that international audiences and critics responded. The band is perhaps best known outside of Sweden for their international hit singles "Erase/Rewind" and "My Favourite Game" from the album Gran Turismo (1998) and "Lovefool" from the album First Band on the Moon (1996). Its inclusion in the soundtrack of William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet by director Baz Luhrmann secured their popularity. The Cardigans have sold 5 million albums worldwide.
1992-1995
Peter Svensson and Magnus Sveningsson, both heavy metal musicians, formed the group on October 31 1992 in Jönköping, Sweden, with drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer Nina Persson. Living together in a small apartment, The Cardigans recorded a demo tape which record producer Tore Johansson heard, leading to an invitation to record at a studio in Malmö. In 1994 they released their debut album Emmerdale in Sweden and Japan (it was re-released internationally in 1997). The album includes the Swedish radio hit "Rise & Shine" and was later voted the best of 1994 in a poll in Slitz magazine.
The rest of 1994 was spent touring Europe and recording Life, which was released worldwide in 1995. Life became an international success, selling more than a million copies and achieving platinum status in Japan. In 1996 Life was released under the label Minty Fresh in the U.S., but this release was essentially a compilation of tracks from Emmerdale and Life. Life was perhaps a satirical riposte to the first album, and saw the band move in a more avant-garde direction in terms of arrangements and artwork.
1996-2002
After their success with Life, The Cardigans signed to Mercury Records, under which they released First Band on the Moon worldwide in 1996. With this album, the band had developed into a more complex, darker animal, the songs included themes of heartbreak, infidelity and despair. "Lovefool" was a hit across the globe, especially in the United States and again in Japan, where the album reached platinum in only three weeks. However, it was unrepresentative of the album as a whole and, although it helped it achieve gold sales status in America, many critics branded them saccharine soft-pop on the basis of "Lovefool". The song was shown on MTV in the late 90s as a music video with clips from the 1996 hit film Romeo + Juliet starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.
In 1997, the band played themselves on the graduation episode of Beverly Hills 90210.
1998's Gran Turismo was darker and more moody, and was followed by a long hiatus during which the band members pursued solo side projects. The same year they also released a compilation of rare B-sides called The Other Side of the Moon as a Japan-only release which makes this album somewhat rare outside Japan. The video of the song "My Favourite Game" was censored by MTV for showing reckless driving. Despite this, it went on to become their second hit song around the globe. "My Favourite Game" was also featured on the soundtrack of the Playstation video game Gran Turismo 2 for the opening sequence of races. That year also saw their song "Deuce" appearing on The X-Files: The Album.
2003-present
The Cardigans returned in 2003 with Long Gone Before Daylight, a quieter, more ambient collection of songs mainly written by Nina Persson and Peter Svensson. Long Gone Before Daylight became one of the best selling albums in Sweden of 2003 with sales over 120,000 (2x Platinum).
On 28 April 2005 the band's iTunes Originals album was released through iTunes.
On 19 October 2005 the band released their sixth album Super Extra Gravity to generally favorable reviews. Super Extra Gravity went straight to the #1 spot on the Swedish album chart and has so far been certified Gold (sales over 40,000).
The band is having another break from recording and touring. A Best of compilation album was released in January 2008.
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