The Cardigans

Released: March 24, 2003

Songwriter: Peter Svensson Nina Persson

Producer: The Cardigans Per Sunding

[Verse 1]
Man, I've had a few
But they wouldn't quite blow me like you
You gave me your name and signed
With a halo around my eye

[Pre-Chorus 1]
And it hit me like never before
That love is a powerful force
Yes, it struck me that love is a sport
So I pushed you a little bit more

[Verse 2]
Love, you're news to me
You're a little bit more than I thought you'd be
A mole in my well-fed lawn
You're a nightmare beating the dawn

[Pre-Chorus 1]
And it hit me like never before
That love is a powerful force
Yes, it struck me that love is a sport
So I pushed you a little bit more

[Chorus]
Blue, blue, black and blue
Red blood sticks like glue
True love is cruel love
Red blood's a power fuel
Sweet love, tasty blood
My heart over floods

Oh you hit me
Yeah, you hit me really hard
Man, you hit me
Yeah you hit me right in the heart

[Verse 3]
Lord, I've had my deal
But I never quite knew how it feels
When love makes you wake up sore
With fists that are ready for more

[Pre-Chorus 2]
And it hit me that love is a game
Like in war no one can be blamed
Yes, it struck me that love is a sport
So I pushed you a little bit more

[Chorus]
Blue, blue, black and blue
Red blood sticks like glue
True love is cruel love
Red blood's a power fuel
Sweet love, tasty blood
My heart over floods

Man, you hit me
Yeah you hit me really hard
Baby, you hit me
Yeah you punched me right in the heart
And then you kissed me
And then you hit me
And then you kissed me
And then you hit me

[Outro]
Oh, you haunt me with your violent heartbeat at night
Oh, you strike me with your silence baby, tonight
Why you haunt me with your violence baby, come hit me
You haunt me with your violent heartbeat

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.

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