Pitchfork

If there's one thing we can't get enough of over here at Pitchfork World Headquarters, it's the infectious indie-pop Sweden keeps exporting en masse. And now, thanks to the Concretes' Licking Fingers imprint, we'll have all the Swedish pop we need (for the next hour or so, anyhow) in one convenient package.

On May 28 (a Wednesday, yes), Licking Fingers will release Thank You for the Music, a 21-track salute to some premiere homegrown talent. Like the ABBA tune for which we'll assume it's named, the comp packs in the hooks, courtesy of such upstanding folks as Jens Lekman, Peter Bjorn and John's Peter Morén, El Perro Del Mar, Shout Out Louds, Lykke Li, Frida Hyvönen, Loney, Dear, the Radio Dept., First Floor Power, and the Concretes themselves. Repping for the dancier side of Swede pop are Studio and Kleerup-- the latter featuring Concretes member Lisa Milberg-- while Wildbirds & Peacedrums and Nicolai Dunger serve up some slightly more out-there sounds.

Many of these tracks will be familiar to the Swede pop cognoscenti, but as a jump-off point, a gift for friends, or just the perfect mixtape for a summertime stroll, Thank You ought to work wonders. The compilation will be available on CD in Sweden and digitally worldwide direct from Licking Fingers.

What's more, the label will fete Thank You with a record release extravaganza May 28 at Stockholm's Pet Sounds Bar. Is Swede pop the new scene that celebrates itself? Either way, we ain't complainin'.

Thank You for the Music:

01 Anna Järvinen: "Svensktalande Bättre Folk"
02 Jens Lekman: "The Opposite of Hallelujah"
03 Lykke Li: "Everybody But Me"
04 Those Dancing Days: "Dischoe"
05 Friska Viljor: "Old Man"
06 Shout Out Louds: "South America"
07 The Concretes: "The Sentence"
08 First Floor Power: "The Jacket"
09 Pacific!: "Runway to Elsewhere"
10 Kleerup: "Music for Girl [ft. Lisa Milberg]"
11 The Radio Dept.: "Freddy and the Trojan Horse"
12 Studio: "No Comply"
13 Peter Morén: "Social Competence"
14 Loney, Dear: "Your Time Is to Come"
15 Wildbirds & Peacedrums: "Liar Lion"
16 El Perro Del Mar: "Glory to the World"
17 The Tiny: "Too Heavy a Burden"
18 Frida Hyvönen: "See How I Came Into Town"
19 Speedmarket Avenue: "Sirens"
20 Idiot Kid: "Wide Awake"
21 Nicolai Dunger: "Gods Waitingroom"