Kate Boy is a multi-national project based in Stockholm.
It's perhaps a sign of the impact Scandinavian music has had that such disparate individuals had ended up in Sweden. Singer Kate Akhurst hails from Australia, but her approach slots neatly into the ambitious, artful, engrossing, contagious synth pop that has flooded out of the Nordic nations over the past two decades.
With the year drawing to a close, Clash invited Kate Boy to pick out some absolutely Scandinavian bangers to go with the party season.
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Teddybears – 'Tigerman'
15 years ago this Swedish used-to-be punk band dropped this album where they merged different genres in a way that makes it still feel fresh today! We had to include at least one of the tracks from this album, and it was a hard choice but Tigerman made it to the top. It's minimalistic simplicity yet straight forward groove is the instant vibe setter for any Swedish NYE party. Triggerman is still our number one!
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Little Dragon – 'Klapp Klapp'
One of our favourite tracks in the recent years, Little Dragon will forever be Sweden's best live act! (At least in our eyes). This track has a raw energy from the very beginning, but it takes some unique twists and turns. Released in 2014 it still delivers one of the punchiest bass lines out there to date.
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iamamiwhoami – 'Good Worker'
We had the honour to play in Barcelona with this amazing artist. Halfway into the first verse goosebumps were on crawling on every person in the room. A pop song that embodies everything we love in music: Big chorus – a drive to the beat that doesn't allow our bodies to stand still – combined in a sound that sounds like it comes from another dimension.
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Niki & The Dove – 'The Drummer'
This is the perfect NYE party track. An instant, slamming beat that evolves and swells with Malin's melodies into a full blooming chorus. The tribal elements in this song combined with the electronic aspects make this such a beautiful balance of human and machine.
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Elliphant – 'In The Jungle'
Massive dance floor track that could turn the usual Stockholm apartment NYE party into a club. Elliphant's first song released ever and we can't help to think the world deserves to take a big look at this one again!
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Christian Falk, Robyn, Ola Salo – 'Dream On'
A collaboration between some of Sweden's most important pop artists. Christian Falk mashes old school house together with synth pop and invents a new genre here. Robyn and Ola Salo´s vocals deliver one of the most liberating anthems to this day. The lyrics of this song are so incredible too, all encompassing and holding a beautiful depth… Dream On.
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Bob Hund – 'Tinnitus i Hjärtat'
One of the best bands ever to sing in the Swedish language. Chorus translated roughly as: "From solar system to alarm system – 15 seconds of everything". This song is the song about everything, from the micro to the macro. Makes you feel like the smallest thing on the planet but with more importance than we could ever imagine. Something that NYE can capture, knowing that we are all around the world people are celebrating life and each other.
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Kate Boy's debut album 'ONE' is out now.
