Scandinavia is known for a few things around the world. It is known for the stunning coastal scenery—the ability to wild camp in some remote and beautiful places.
Scandinavia is one of the destinations you need to see if you’re into skiing. If you love modern art and sculpture? They have that too.
With a veritable wealth of offerings, what more can Scandinavia give us? Music.
Some of the most famous musicians of all time, incredible soundtrack classics and even some of the softest and most tuneful folk music come from Scandinavia!
Scandinavia, and especially Finland and Sweden, is well known for their passion for hard rock and heavy metal culture. It first became popular in the Scandinavian underground in the 1980s. Let’s take a look at the top ten best Scandinavian artists.
Lykke Li
Hometown of Stockholm, Sweden.
Known for her dream-like vocals and for being the voice in one of the pinnacle moments in the Twilight Saga. Her song Possibility was where most people first heard her voice – in 2009.
However, she had released her own debut EP, called Little Bit under her own label in 2007.
Her career went from strength to strength, and she has released studio albums, including one with Atlantic Records.
Lykke Li’s most popular song is I Follow Rivers, and you can check it out on iTunes, Spotify and YouTube.
Lordi
Hometown Rovaniemi, Finland
Winning the 2006 Eurovision song contest with Hard Rock Hallelujah brought this band great recognition. The Finnish Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band started in 1992 but didn’t rise to fame until 2002 with Would You Love A Monster Man?
Lordi’s most famous track is Hard Rock Hallelujah and is available to stream on YouTube and Spotify.
MØ
Hometown Funen, Denmark
Uplifting and fast-paced, or soft and relaxing. With MØ you can have it all. The electro-pop artist exploded on to the indie soundtrack for many with the track Kamikaze, and then the mainstream with Lean On with Major Lazer.
Her voice is distinct and so is her style. Her music is typically playful, with sharp edges.
MØ’s most famous track as a solo artist is When I Was Young and as a collaboration Lean On with Major Lazer.
José González
Hometown Gothenburg, Sweden
An icon for his cover of Heartbeats by The Knief.
Heartbeats was used in a dynamic and colourful advert for Sony Bravia. The Bouncy Balls Video delivered the song into the minds and hearts of many.
Veneer and In Our Nature were smash hit albums too, the latter lighting a fire under his career. His voice stands out from the crowd.
José González’s most prominent track is the cover Heartbeats, closely followed by his 2014 release Teardrop – watch the video for Teardrop on YouTube.
Anthrax
Hometown New York, US
Even though Anthrax isn’t a Scandinavian band, it’s worth mentioning due to its massive impact on the metal culture of the region.
The band was formed in the 80s by Rock Star Scott Ian and it has had great success worldwide, receiving their first Grammy nomination in 1990 for Best Metal Performance. As well as being one of the biggest heavy metal rock stars ever played in Scandinavia, Scott Ian is also known by his passion for casino slots and he even persuaded a career as a professional poker player.
With this, it is no surprise that rock and metal communities are often associated with gambling through the energy, excitement, and sense of community that they both bring to the table.
Anthrax most famous track is I am The Law and is available to stream on Spotify and YouTube.
Boy Pablo
Hometown Bergen, Norway
The internet and YouTube algorithm did its thing and made Boy Pablo go viral. Although it took a few months, it happened.
Boy Pablo, wrote, recorded, and edited his video and put it up on YouTube in 2017.
Over time it was recommended to more and more people, and as of right now it has 35 million views – incredible.
It has a very soft and slow 80’s romantic feel, and a touch of the Smith’s.
Boy Pablo’s most famous track is Everytime, but Spotify has Dance, Baby! As the number 1 track in the Boy Pablo essentials.
Röyksopp
Hometown Bergen, Norway
Experimental electro-pop. It’s bright, it’s bouncy, and have secured their space in the Scandinavian top 10 artists.
Working with Lykke Li, Robyn and more, they support the Scandi music scene and make enormous contributions.
They play with boundaries of electronica and pop, and land safely in ‘always something funky’.
Röyksopp’s top track features another top ten legend: Robyn. Although some may argue Sparks takes it for the Röyksopp take on deep house – before it was popular.
Tove Lo
Hometown Stockholm, Sweden
Habits and its various remixes shone a light on Tove Lo. Talking Body was another of the Scandi singer’s catalogue of tunes – both released in 2014.
In 2020 Tove Lo worked with Sean Paul on a track Calling On Me, and although it didn’t reach the heights of a typical Sean Paul collaboration track – it’s catchy and fun.
Her fun video to Disco Tits let us know how people should be pronouncing her name correctly and her relaxed nature – fun!
Tove Lo’s top tracks without a doubt are Habits and Talking Body, but the deep bass on Disco Tits and the synth on Mistaken are catchy and worth a listen.
Peter Bjorn and John
Hometown Stockholm, Sweden
And we don’t care about the young folk.
Talkin’ ’bout the young style
And we don’t care about the old folks.
Talkin’ ’bout the old style too
One of the catchiest songs in 2006, Young Folk blasted Peter Bjorn and John on to the radio waves around the world.
It might be said that they gave people more of a feel for what Scandinavia had to offer the music scene outside of ABBA and Bjork.
Some of their other tracks are just as addicting as Young Folk, check out Gut Feeling and Bones.
Peter Bjorn and John’s most famous track after Young Folk is Second Chance, it features on the advertising for Bud Light and is the theme song for 2 Broke Girls.
Amon Amarth
Hometown Tumba, Sweden.
Amon Amarth is a Viking Inspired Death Metal Band, made in 1992 just like Lordi.
Their lyrics are mostly based on Nordic mythology and history. It wasn’t until 2008 they broke through with the album Twilight of the Thunder God which hit No. 50 in the US billboard 200 and No. 10 on the Swedish album charts.
Amon Amarth’s most popular track is Guardians of Asdaard and is available to stream on YouTube and Spotify.
If you are ready to dive headfirst into more Scandinavian music, check out the ScandiPop playlists. Curating the best of the best, for your listening pleasure.