i like the sweet life and the silence/

but it's the storm I believe in

Not a bad two weeks at the shopfloor. Due to the onset of chinese new year, and probable slowing down of the local distribution channels for the next few days, the higher ups decided to push for as many shipments to be brought forward. The result?

A natural bottleneck of the back room processing side that is starting to fray everyone's nerves. The good thing is that out of the many new releases, there are a couple of gems that finally make for fresh airplay choices.

You cant go wrong with more Swedish pop though, so just a week or so back the Cardigans finally released a ' best of' that came into store. I have not fully explored their old stuff yet, so this is a godsend though I have a faint feeling that they are the kind of band whose strength lies in an overall strong catalogue instead of a few chart burning singles. Eh ' Lovefool' not withstanding.

There is nothing like basking in the tune of the Cardigans' ' Rise & Shine' as one opens the shopfloor in the morning. My whistling has improved ( I think. Hope) over the past few weeks, and even as the usual few morning millers go about the aisles I still cant resist whistling a quick Cardigans chorus as it comes on the airplay.

There was a song in the collection that struck me over while I was behind the counter. It wasnt the usual ones like ' erase/rewind' ( I love you but it's best to forget it), for what's it worth ( I love you even though I dont really have a reason to anymore) or even 'connection ' ( a classic of classic break up song), oh arent the Swedes good at being sweet, but a song that was hidden halfway through entitled ' You're The Storm'.

You know how there are some songs that can just pass you by, but plain amazing when played * loud*? Well this is one of those songs. Don't believe me? Try it. Put the song on the right on, and turn the volume way up. Wait till the bit where Nina Persson blasts into the chorus..

and there you go. The lyrics are not particularly jaw dropping as songs on such a traditionally touchy topic go, but Nina has a way with words that go very well with her voice. I mean if you look at the lyrics of ' lovefool' and 'you're the storm' they can be too sweetly cringey if you want to look at it that way . Somehow she gets it right pat down and never goes aboard, resulting in an overall tune that you just cant say no to. I think this might be a Swedish secret racial trait.

If you watched ' across the universe' and remember the last part where the guy picks up the microphone on the roof and starts singing ' all you need is love', well if there ever was an occasion for me to do the same thing, which in all likelihood wont happen since im not that sort, I guess it would be this song, strong and full, blasting across the air in all its glory, not some pansy ' all you need is love'.

The Cardigans - You're The Storm

I read in the liner notes that it was awhile before Nina Persson stopped cringing at playbacks of her recorded voice. Im glad she did not give up then, for hers is a very unique voice that deserves to be appreciated very much so. Are there more people like that out there? Possibly possessing something that really is very attractive just that do not know it, and thus subsequently fade?

try this live set of the same song on a KCRW recording too.

The Cardigans - You're The Storm (Live)