Published on Feb 17, 1999
When it comes to Swedish pop music, you probably immediately
think of ABBA, perhaps Ace of Base or the Cardigans. Those are all
sweet sounding bands, to be sure, but they only scratch the
surface. This Perfect Day is a male pop-rock band that, in a really
perfect day, would be getting a lot more attention. Their latest
album, titled
C-60, is a place where Beatlesque pop, glam, punk, and new
wave rock coexist peacefully.
The first strains of synthesizers start the opening song, “Could
Have Been Friends”, and then the guitars kick in, and with the
hooky chorus, you’ll think it’s 1983 again. The next song, “Down On
My Knees”, is more rhythmic and includes a horn part. I could see
this being a hit, as it wouldn’t sound out of place on an INXS
album. But the tacky lyrics to “Dolphins” bring down
C-60 a bit, and the next song “Fishtank”, though a little
better, still has some of the bad taste of the previous song.
However, just when I was about to give up on them, This Perfect
Day seemed to catch its second wind and come up with the best songs
on the album. The punky “Young And Stupid” not only rocks but
offers an incisive lyric about aging. It is not every day that I
hear an incisive punk rock song. The slower “Hello” is awesome with
its moody guitar playing, and lyrics that include the following
great chorus: “Hello, don’t you understand?/We’re boring as
hell/But we can’t even tell anymore.”
Other standout tracks include “Break My Arm”, a catchy pop song
with a strange lyric: “Break my arm/shoot me dead/cut off my
head/can’t do me any harm/just make me feel alive.” The rocker, “In
Two Weeks You Will Be Forgotten”, is a nice sendup on the music
business. I wonder if it is intentional that the melody is similar
to that old Twisted Sister song “We’re Not Going To Take It”.
Intentional or not, that similarity only helps to make the point
the band is trying to make here.
“Dreamers In A Dream” is an appealing pop song that continues to
show off This Perfect Day’s cynicism. I find it interesting that
even their sunniest sounding songs are depressing. Here the singer
proclaims that we are just dreamers and we have no future at all.
But C-60 ends with the ballad “Bryant Lake Bowler” which is a love
song of cautious optimism. It is nice to hear them end the album
with a ray of hope.
This Perfect Day definitely shows another side to Swedish pop.
They show a lot more depth than the Swedish bands we have heard in
the States. Their sound is quite accessible, if not exactly what
pop radio is looking for these days. Even though they come off a
bit retro at times, they add enough different influences to create
a sound that is all their own. This Perfect Day will definitely
make your day.