Introduction

Writer Danny Robins on how music inspired his series.

There’s a musical soundtrack woven through each episode of The Cold Swedish Winter, and the song choices were a key part of my writing process, each one helping to tell the story, set the episode’s mood and adding to the comedy. I’ve tried to use only music from Swedish bands, though I’ve allowed a few non-Swedes to sneak in, as long as they sing about Sweden.

Music is incredibly important to the Swedes’ cultural life, national identity and even their economy. Incredibly, for a county of just over nine million people (less than the population of London), Sweden is the world’s third largest exporter of music, lagging behind only the US and the UK. Of course a large part of that is thanks to the pop behemoth that is Abba, but look around the music industry these days and you will see Swedes everywhere. Modern day ‘American’ song writing is highly influenced by a cabal of Swedes, including the legendary Max Martin who has single-handedly written an astonishing 17 US Number Ones for the likes of Britney Spears, Katy Perry and Pink. Swedish DJs have arguably dominated the electronic dance music scene in recent years with acts such as Swedish House Mafia, Avicii and Eric Prydz and, should your tastes run that way, Sweden is also one of the go to places for heavy metal. Swedes are particularly prolific in the indie music genre from where most of The Cold Swedish Winter’s music choices are drawn. There’s undeniably a distinctive Swedish indie sound; bittersweet pop run through with a strain of melancholy – the inevitable characteristic of a people who live so much of their lives during the long cold dark winter.

Everyday non-pop star Swedes are a musical bunch too. Sweden has the highest number of choirs per-capita in the world. One in six Swedes are part of one. Music lessons have been free or heavily subsidised in schools for decades with all pupils encouraged to learn an instrument. These are both factors that help to explain Sweden’s musical success, along with the lasting influence of Abba. Before Abba, Swedish bands generally sang in Swedish for the small domestic market, but Agnetha, Anni-Frid, Benny and Björn’s success with ‘Waterloo’ at Eurovision and the multi-million selling career it spawned, inspired many of their compatriots to follow in their footsteps and aim for the global market.

There is some Abba in the series. It felt like it would be rude to ignore them, but in the main I’ve focused on artists from the current generation of Swedish music. I’ve used songs from indie acts such as Lykke Li, The Knife and First Aid Kit who have had a fair degree of success in the UK and US, but also by many less well known acts. This is an incredibly productive and exciting time for Swedish music and I hope that this programme plays some small part in helping it reach a wider audience. I’ve done playlists for every episode so that you can listen to the songs used and discover more about the bands.