Helsingborg, SE · new-wave · indie-rock

The Sounds

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Swedish new-wave revivalists fronted by Maja Ivarsson, who has never once given less than everything — 'Living in America' still a rocket.

The Sounds formed in Helsingborg, Sweden, in 1999, part of a wave of Scandinavian bands reworking late-1970s new wave for a garage-rock era. Schoolmates Félix Rodríguez, Maja Ivarsson, Johan Bengtsson and Fredrik Blond started the band, with keyboardist Jesper Anderberg added after the group met him by chance at the Hultsfred Festival. The name was settled on during a trip to London, and Ivarsson, who had previously played guitar in other local bands, took over on vocals.

Their music sits on synthesiser hooks and terse guitar lines, with Ivarsson's flat, hard-edged delivery out front, a debt to Blondie and The Cars that the band has never much disguised; critics have also pointed to affinities with the Epoxies and Missing Persons in the same synth-driven attack.

The debut album, Living in America, was recorded in Stockholm with producers Adel Dahdal and Jimmy Monell and released in 2002. It reached number four on the Swedish charts, earned several best-newcomer awards, and pushed the band toward an audience in the United States. The Sounds toured hard behind it, playing more than 500 shows including two runs at the Warped Tour and dates alongside Foo Fighters, The Strokes and Panic! at the Disco.

Dying to Say This to You, recorded in Oakland with producer Jeff Saltzman, followed in 2006, and the band kept working steadily afterward: Crossing the Rubicon, Something to Die For, Weekend, an EP called The Tales That We Tell, and 2020's Things We Do for Love. Ivarsson remains a physical, combative performer, and the group's live reputation rests largely on her.

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new-waveindie-rock