Sweden’s number one purveyors of sweet pop melodies are back! It’s been nearly six years since Acid House Kings graced us with a new album, but perfection takes time. And that is exactly what these delightful human beings have delivered with their fifth studio album, Music Sounds Better with You, which dropped March 22. In 2005 the Kings released Sing Along with the Acid House Kings. With the mantra “untrendy is the new trend,” the album was considered by many to be the Kings’ crown jewel, the quintessential representation of upbeat, bookish sensitivity coupled with an unparalleled understanding of what it means to craft catchy pop tunes.
Until now. The Kings’ Johan Angergard explains, “We’ve allowed ourselves to be extremely self-critical. Songs good enough for any of our other albums have been discarded repeatedly.” The final result, Music Sounds Better with You, is a confluence of sugar sweet sunbeams and lilting melodies dancing on warm summer breezes. It just feels right. And the new single from the Kings’ Labrador records, “Would You Say Stop?” says it all. More than a love song, this is an unflagging tribute to love sweet love. The video premiered on Pitchfork last week. And quite honestly, if the cheerful, quirky sight of the unflappably optimistic Julia Lannerheim alternately dressed up in a penguin costume and singing, “If someone ever breaks my heart I still hope it’s you,” while dancing barefoot, doesn’t make you smile, we might have to check your pulse to see if you’re alive. Take a peek, below. The MuseBox promises, smiling is good for the soul.
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Side note. We’ve been saying it for years: there’s something in the water in Sweden. How else can you account for one tiny nation consistently producing such scintillating pop music? Luckily for us, Acid House Kings’ Angergard—who’s presumably been lapping at the well for years—has decided to share some of his favorite Swedes with Mog Music Network (MMN) where he’s been asked to curate a playlist of some of his fellow countrymen. Check it out