The Cardigans

[Verse 1]
Ease your trouble
We'll pay them double
Not to look at you for a while
And you rely on
What you get high on
And you last just as long as it serves you

[Chorus]
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Yes, we will carry you

[Verse 2]
Cause you're deserted
What's good, you hurt it
And it kills you, it keeps you alive
So give it up
In a world of puppets
It's a shame what they do to us all

[Chorus]
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Yes, we will carry you

[Bridge]
Can we do anything for you now?

[Chorus]
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Explode or implode
Explode or implode
We will take care of it
Yes, we will carry you

One of the most pleasing pop groups of the ‘90s, the Cardigans specialized in sugary confections that would grow annoying very quickly if they weren’t backed by solid musicianship and clever arrangements. The band’s 1995 breakout album, Life, reflected the Cardigans at their most saccharine – the sunny disposition of vocalist Nina Persson being the major argument in favor – and critics inserted the group into the space age pop revivalist camp. the Cardigans later proved that they were more difficult to pigeonhole, however.

Even the band’s origins showed that their later appearance was quite misleading; two heavy metal fanatics formed the group in October 1992 in Jonkoping, Sweden. Guitarist Peter Svensson met bassist Magnus Sveningsson in a hardcore group, though he had previously trained in music theory and jazz arranging. The two later grew tired of metal and decided to form a pop band with vocalist Nina Persson – an art-school friend who had never sung professionally – plus keyboard player Lars-Olof Johansson and drummer Bengt Lagerberg.

All five Cardigans moved into a small apartment in 1993 and began recording a demo tape that entered the hands of producer Tore Johansson later that year. He liked what he heard and invited the group to record at his Malmö studio. Signed to the dance-oriented Stockholm label, the Cardigans released Emmerdale in May 1994. The single “Rise & Shine” became a hit on Swedish radio soon after the release of the LP, and a readers poll in Sweden’s Slitz magazine voted Emmerdale the best album of 1994.

more tracks from the album

Erase/Rewind - Single 2

From the albums

Erase/Rewind - Single 2 (1998)
Erase/Rewind - Single (1998)

The Cardigans popular songs

Explode (Remix)The Cardigans

The Cardigans

Erase/Rewind - Single 2