Sweden

Dynamic, musical antitheses and cinematic. Three words that could describe Adna’s second album but that’s not the whole reality. I can listen to this record a thousand times and I always find new things.

“Run, Lucifer” bears a complexity, both musical and in lyrics, that is striking. Songs like “Lonesome” and “Silhouette” are majestic, and the beautiful piano runs like a vigorous river through the whole album.

Simply stunning. (Fabian Forslund)

♪♫ Listen: “Lonesome”

Adna on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Soundcloud, www.

beehype introduced “Kelly” in 2015 and if you liked that, you’re in for a treat. It would be easy to say that it’s only because of Amanda Bergman’s reassuring voice but that’s not the whole truth.

Well, yes, Amanda Bergman got the best voice in this genre in Sweden, and together with a band consisting of Pontus Winnberg (Miike Snow), Petter Winnberg (Little Majorette), Nils Thörnqvist (Little Majorette) and Gustav Ejstes (Dungen) Amason forms the best indie/folk band in Sweden.

The album “Sky City” contains songs in both Swedish and English, but I guess you don’t have to understand Swedish to see the dimensions in songs like “Älgen”, “Duvan” or “Elefanten”. (Fabian Forslund)

♪♫ Listen: “Duvan”

Amason on Soundcloud, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, www.

The minimalist techno heroes Boeoes Kaelstigen released with “Overcomes Love, Time & Space” their second and best album.

Remaining from their previous record are great instrumental songs that will remind us how Leo Nathorst-Bös and Tor Källstigen began their jurney. But now, many of their songs turned into dream-like pop songs with vocals and chart potential. In this way, they kept the fans from the past, and also gained a bunch of new ones.

For instance, “Be The Light” performed by Name The Pet is a shining example of how the duo developed, while “Damm” shows how they still remains with one foot where they began. (Johan Alexed)

♪♫ Listen: “Any Higher” (feat. Asha Ali) + album stream

Boeoes Kaelstigen on Soundcloud, Facebook, Twitter.

I guess there’s been just a few Swedish artists that were so hyped long before they released their own album as Duvchi prior the release of “With The World”.

His beautiful and special voice could be heard through different collaborations in the past years, as the ones with LO-FI-FNK, Adam Tensta and Lorentz & Zacharias. The singles he released that lead us to the full-length where a dream-like path of great singles like the ones of “Turtleduvs”, “Whole Life Tour” and “When The Winter”.

With the album itself, Jens Duvsjö created one of the most beautiful winter albums we have ever seen. (Johan Alexed)

♪♫ Listen: “When the Winter”

Duvchi on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, www.

The Nordic melancholy is seldom as beautiful as the one Elin Bell invites us to on her self-titled debut album.

With impressive pop songs, she captures the darkness she carries within herself in her songs about loss, love and life when it’s not that fairytale it should be. Her beautiful voice as she performs the songs “Grey Is All”, “Over And Out” and “The Tide”, will remain in your consciousness long after the music stops.

It is a masterful piece of pop music that everyone should discover, and definitely an impressive debut. (Johan Alexed)

♪♫ Listen: “All the Love”

Elin Bell on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, www.

I must say that I wasn’t sure about the neo-disco influences that characterize Jonathan Johansson’s fourth album, but the result is irresistible.

With lyrics that begin in southern Europe and then make their way up to Sweden and the southern parts around the city of Malmö, Johansson gets you through his younger years. At the same time, he’s singing about the contemporary society with everything from the refugees struggle over the Mediterranean to vacations in the sun.

So combine great lyrics, southern accent and a sound that unites tuneful and dreamy pop with neo-disco and then you have one of the best albums this year. (Fabian Forslund)

♪♫ Listen: “Ny / Snö”

Jonathan Johansson on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, www.

It’s been 10 years since Kristian Matsson’s first release and it’s easy to take him for granted, it’s easy to have high demands on every release and it’s especially easy to neglect the fact that The Tallest Man on Earth always is on top of his game.

In Sweden we are spoiled when it comes to the genre americana/singer-songwriter/folk and in 2015 we got great music from artists like Daniel Nordgren and bands like Easy October. But no one does it better than The Tallest Man on Earth. With his fourth album he marks the standard. (Fabian Forslund)

♪♫ Listen: “Darkness of the Dream”

The Tallest Man on Earth on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, www.

After a few years of silence Tove Styrke is back with a vengeance. Her album “Kiddo” is a showcase of an artist who evolved impressively in recent years, mainly thanks to strong producer collaborations, who helped her put together a collection of songs filled with attitude, hits and nostalgic sound.

It began with the singles “Even if I’m loud it does not mean I’m talking to you” and “Ego” that kind of set the bar for how good the “new” Tove Styrke could be. Then she just confirmed her greatness with the single “Number One”.

Kiddo is perhaps one of the strongest comeback albums we’ve seen in years. (Johan Alexed)

♪♫ Listen: “Borderline”

Tove Styrke on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, www.

Ulrik Munther is a Swedish artist who is best known as a teen idol and for Melodifestivalen (The Eurovision Song Contest tryouts here in Sweden).

On the album “Allt Jag Ville Säga” (“Everything I Wanted To Say”), he was helped by the Swedish comedian and writer Jonas Gardell writing lyrics in Swedish about growing up, love and that insecureness only a teenager can have. The result is naked, honest and very strong.

It’s like Munther is a completely different person than the one who just a few years ago stood on the Melodifestivalen stage and sang the Coldplay-esque “Tell The World I’m Here”. Now, he’s a grown up, and has become the artist he should be. (Johan Alexed)

♪♫ Listen: “Jag vet inte hur man gör”

Ulrik Munther on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, www.

In Sweden we call it “luggpop”. It’s when you play dark pop wearing the same haircut as Jim Carry in the movie “Dumb & Dumber”.

In the city of Gothenburg this genre will never die and thanks to bands like Makthaverskan and Westkust the quality never gets below five out of five. I love Westkust, I love their shoegazing and I love their love for “luggpop”.

The first song “Swirl” is shocking and runs you over like a train and then the rest of the album continues to run you down. (Fabian Forslund)

https://www.facebook.com/Westkust/

♪♫ Listen: “Swirl”

Westkust on Bandcamp, Facebook, Twitter.