Music Tuesday: Lykke Li and the Effervescence of Swedish Pop

Photographs by Keith Rutowski

Occasionally we'll highlight a new and exciting artist who has come through ADVENTURE's hometown—New York City—the day after or before or of their show. Last night, Swedish pop singer Lykke Li visited Webster Hall, and tonight she plays a sold out show at the Music Hall of Willamsburg. Li is the latest of a string of pop singers from Sweden: The Concretes, Jens Lekman, and Peter Bjorn & John are her predecessors and come from a fairly tight knit musical community around Stockholm, which has gone from the bleakest to one of the hippest cities on Earth. 

The thing about Swedish pop, it's unabashed. It's dancey like bubble-gum pop from the 1960s. It's the antidote to hipsterism—it's so sincere and uncool that it's cool. These four artists are worth checking out, but Li is especially of the moment. Last night at Webster, she started a dance party with a cover of Lil' Wayne's "A Milli."   

http://www.myspace.com/lykkeli

http://www.lykkeli.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJHdT1j6hH8

Music Tuesday is Assistant Editor Ryan Bradley's weekly exploration of great global music.