Editorial Reviews
Long Gone Before Daylight
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Amazon.com
As the '70s hit says, growing up is hard to do--especially amidst the glaring spotlight and treacherous, shifting tides of contemporary pop music. But while many artists survive by succumbing to a willfully arrested development, Sweden's Cardigans have bravely retooled themselves here, returning after a half-decade's absence with a sophisticated new pop ethos that acknowledges the passing years with bold maturity. Building on the stripped-down troubadour conceits singer/lyricist Nina Persson experimented with on A Camp--her side project during the Cardigans' long hiatus--guitarist Peter Svensson has reinforced the singer's insightful melodrama with grand musical architectures that stand in stark contrast to the effervescent, hook-savvy ambrosia that brought them fame. "Communication" wastes no time introducing their expansive new ambitions: against a grand, orchestral backdrop, Persson's lilting, haunted vocals evoke a fanciful marriage of the Pretenders and Procol Harum. Longtime producer/collaborator Tore Johansson is only marginally involved here, and his focused, less-is-more production sense has given way to instincts that occasionally flirt with the overblown. Still, Persson's instincts are ever-intriguing (she even recasts Phil Spector's "He Hit Me" into the acoustic, singer-songwriter romance/violence metaphor-fest "And Then You Kissed Me"), while Svensson's retro, chunky riffing on "A Good Horse" and elsewhere display a well-studied love for rock roots. The cynical may see it as a "Rock of the '90s" staple shrewdly marketing itself to an aging, NPR-leaning audience, but there's a genuine forcefulness of purpose here that's hard to deny. Its American release delayed a year by familiar label travails, this comprehensive new edition features the buoyant bonus track "For the Boys" as well as a bonus DVD containing videos for "You're the Storm," "For What It's Worth," and "Live and Learn"; live renditions of "Explode," "For What..," and "My Favorite Game"; and a video interview with the band. --Jerry McCulley
Amazon.com
Long Gone Before Daylight marks a shift in theme for the Cardigans. Their last album, 1998's Gran Turismo, was a masterpiece. With Peter Svensson's quirky, driving, ultra-modern pop backing Nina Persson's icy dissections of doomed relationships, it was a Love Album informed more by Bret Easton Ellis than any high romance. So catchy, so cool, and so incredibly bleak--exceptional, intelligent pop in the tradition of Soft Cell and ABC. Long Gone Before Daylight, then, comes as something of a shock... read more