The Bard of Stockholm
I felt a bit guilty after that last post. While it’s true I think Norway is the future of Europop, Sweden still has much to offer pop music fans, even if an ABBA reunion will never see the light of the day-despite the $1 billion offers.
Much of Sweden’s continued domination in the Europop hegemony is due to Alexander Bard. Bard is the mastermind behind three of the greatest Swedish pop groups of the past two decades, each combining simple, thunderous dance music hooks with baroque, camp-as-tits visuals to stunning, overwhelming effect.
It’s difficult to find a more intriguing pop music svengali than Bard. How many others have worked as male prostitutes in Amsterdam, are economists who have penned books titled “Netocracy: The New Power Elite & Life After Capitalism” and politically advocate against drug laws and for sexual liberation? Kind of makes Phil Spector look a bit lazy, what with just shooting the odd wife now and again.
Rather than reviewing Bard’s work chronologically, let’s proceed from least to most camp. For the past three years, Bard’s focus has been helming outre synthpop outfit, BWO (Bodies Without Organs).
Fronted by vocalist and twink-icon Martin Rolinski and supported ably and haughtily by keyboardist Marina Schiptjenko, BWO has dominated the Scandinavian and Eastern European charts, racking up a baker’s dozen of hits in no time flat.
While the quality of BWO’s musical and video output has been scatter-shot, the group’s latest circus-themed clip for “Give Me the Night”–off their new LP Fabricator–is the perfect distillation of the Bard aesthetic: nonsensical, animalistic, outrageously costumed, highly sexualized and catchy as all hell.
Prior to forming BWO, Bard wrote songs for, but was not a member, of Sweden’s most popular group since four kids named Benny, Bjorn, Agnetha and Frida made the scene. Yes, Alcazar!
More disco oriented than BWO, the currently on hiatus Alacazar specialized in big, gay dancefloor beats and mashing up 80s American pop hits to form new, ultimately better songs i.e. Genesis “Land of Confusion” + Diana Ross’ “Upside Down” = Alcazar’s “This Is the World We Live In.” Still their finest single to date is the Bard-penned “Crying at the Discotheque”–the video for which takes camp absurdism to new, dizzying, booty bumping heights. Watch for the mustachioed Bard’s cameo in the clip. He’s like Hitchcock!
Of course Bard got his start a decade earlier in the aptly named Army of Lovers-an all conquering pop trio of ambisexual ne’er do wells who turned out swoony, trashy dancefloor anthems as rich, baroque and unnecessary as a delicately baked artisinal Mille Feuille.
Their biggest and most enduring hit is “Crucify,” from their debut LP Massive Luxury Overdose. It is a song about the inevitable martyrdom that must follow hedonism; a song so over the top it tests even my well-developed and oft-tested camp gag reflex. Listen and watch, if you dare. If you’re truly ready. Like the song reminds you and as Joan of Arc implored on the cross you’ll cry, you’ll pray… “Mon Dieu!”
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