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Peter Bjorn and John
Peter Bjorn and John performing in 2007
Peter Bjorn and John performing in 2007
Background information
Also known asP,B & J
OriginStockholm, Sweden
Genres
Years active1999–present
Labels
  • INGRID
  • Warner Sweden
  • Kobalt Label Services
  • Wichita Recordings
Associated acts
  • Astropol
  • Shout Out Louds
  • The Concretes
  • Lykke Li
  • Taken by Trees
  • Victoria Bergsman
  • INGRID
  • LIV
  • Miike Snow
Websitewww.peterbjornandjohn.com
Members
  • Peter Morén
  • Björn Yttling
  • John Eriksson

Peter Bjorn and John are a Swedish indie pop/rock band formed in Stockholm in 1999 and named after the first names of the band's members: Peter Morén (vocals, guitar and harmonica), Björn Yttling (bass guitar, keyboards and vocals) and John Eriksson, known in his solo work as Hortlax Cobra (drums, percussion and vocals). Yttling also worked as producer for the band's first four albums.

They are best known for the 2006 single "Young Folks", which featured Victoria Bergsman, formerly of the Concretes, and was a top 20 hit in the UK Singles Chart, as well as being featured in the football video game FIFA 08, the baseball video game MLB 2K13, the singing game Lips, as the school project in the film Bandslam, as part of the soundtrack of hit sitcom How I Met Your Mother, as the opening track in the pilot episode of Gossip Girl and the theme tune to British Television adverts for Homebase store and Air New Zealand "Safety Safari" surfing video. It was also named NME's second-best track of 2006, beaten by "Over and Over" by Hot Chip.[2] In Australia it was voted number 16 in the annual Triple J Hottest 100 for 2006. In recent years, Lars Skoglund of the band Laakso has filled in for Eriksson on drums and played bongos during some live shows since the latter developed tinnitus, and a shoulder injury on the tour for 2011's Gimme Some.[3]

History[]

Formation: 1997–2000[]

Morén and Yttling began playing music with each other while in school. They shared an interest in bands such as The Stone Roses and Ride,Template:CN and would draw inspiration from acts they heard on the radio while growing up, including Depeche Mode, Fleetwood Mac and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD).[4] They are also influenced by, but not interested in replicating, classic '60s baroque pop, power pop and new wave.[5] Their first band Piggy In The Middle released the album Images & Distorted Facts in 1997[6] before disbanding after Morén and Yttling moved to Stockholm, whereupon they met Eriksson in 1999. Their first gig as Peter Bjorn and John was an unsuccessful one aboard a boat in Stockholm; their expectations were not high from the start, as they "just wanted to make good music for [their] own amusement".[7]

First years: 2001–2005[]

After releasing the Forbidden Chords EP and a pair of singles ("Failing and Passing" and "I Don't Know What I Want Us to Do"), the band released its self-titled first album in 2002 on the tiny Beat That! label. After more shows, more EPs (People They Know and 100m of Hurdles), and another single ("See Through"), the group jumped to the Planekonomi label in 2004 and released the Beats, Traps and Backgrounds EP. It was soon followed by the 2004 album Falling Out, which was picked up for American release by Hidden Adenda in late 2005.[8]

Mainstream success: 2006–2011[]

The band's third album, Writer's Block (2006), followed a year later and became a minor international hit. The video to their song "Young Folks" was animated and directed by Ted Malmros from Shout Out Louds.[9]

After completing various tours in support of Writer's Block, the band focused on other projects before coming together to record and release a largely instrumental album, Seaside Rock, in the autumn of 2008. Living Thing, the band's darker, more experimental fourth full-length album, was released several months later in early 2009. Peter Bjorn and John played Lollapalooza 2009 in Chicago.[10] In 2011, Peter Bjorn and John returned to their melodic pop roots with the decidedly more accessible Gimme Some. The band also opened up for Depeche Mode during their Tour of the Universe.[8] Gimme Some's second single "Second Chance" is heard prominently in advertising for the American light beer Bud Light and as the theme song for the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls.

Recent years: 2012–present[]

The three band members are also founding members of the Swedish artist collective and record label INGRID. The band soon revealed that work had commenced on their seventh album, but were hit by creative setbacks.[11] In April 2015, Peter Bjorn and John released their first new music in four years with one-off single "High Up (Take Me to the Top)" on INGRID Volym 2, a Record Store Day exclusive double-LP of which there are only 500 copies.[12] In July of the same year, the band debuted two new songs on NPR,[13] before officially announcing forthcoming LP Breakin' Point much later on 11 March 2016, along with promotional single "What You Talking About."[14] Rolling Stone said of the single: "The band also unveiled the album's first single "What You Talking About?," an infectious slice of synth-heavy indie pop." The album was released on June 10, 2016.[15] The album's first lead single (bearing the same name as the album), "Breakin' Point" was released on 24 March 2016, following being premiered by Zane Lowe on Apple's Beats 1 Radio as the World Record.

In August 2018, the band announced the upcoming release of their eighth album, Darker Days, which was released on October 19, 2018.[16]

On February 22, 2019, the band released a follow up EP to Darker Days entitled EPBJ and featuring three new songs that were recorded during the same time as Darker Days, and, as the press release says, "showcase a softer and more introspective side of the band."[17] The band also released audio of a live studio session recorded at INGRID Studios in Stockholm, consisting of three tracks.

On October 18, 2019, the band announced their ninth studio album Endless Dream and released the single "Rusty Nail". The album was released on March 13, 2020.[18]

Collaborations and solo work[]

Peter, Bjorn and John also collaborated with Canadian-born actor and hip-hop star Drake on his 2009 mixtape, So Far Gone, on the song "Let's Call It Off." Many rappers like Wale, GZA and 88 Keys collaborated on Re-Living Thing, a remix of Living Thing, released on 8 September 2009 by Mick Boogie.

Morén has released four solo albums and one as a duo. On 8 April 2008 he released a solo album in English, The Last Tycoon on the Wichita Recordings and Quarterstick Records labels.[19][20][21] In 2010, he released a solo album in Swedish, I Spåren Av Tåren. In 2012 he released the more political Pyramiden, influenced by modern indie, new wave, and the formation of the artistic collective INGRID, of which he is a founding member. He released his fourth solo album 40 in 2017 and in 2019 released a collaborative album with Swedish pop songwriter David Shutrick called En Åldrande Befolkning[22] which was released first as an EP, then later expanded to an album and released in a second edition as an LP later that year.[23]

Björn Yttling has previously worked on jazz music and as a member of INGRID has collaborated in bands such as 'Smile' as well as pursuing his solo work as 'Yttling Jazz'. John Eriksson, having previously released three EPs under the name, has continued as a member of Ingrid to work under the name Hortlax Cobra releasing experimental electronic music. His first album, 'Night Shift', was released on the collective's record label in 2012. His second album '1984' was released in 2012.[24] In 2017 he released his third album "Lightworks" on INGRID.[25] He is also a member of the Ingrid project Starlight Serenaders.

The group collaborated with producer Claptone, providing vocals on the track "Puppet Theatre". The song is the first single from the album Charmer, released in October 2015.[26]

Discography[]

Albums[]

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions, sales figures and certifications
Title Album details Peak chart positions
SWE
[27]
BEL
(FL)

[28]
IRL
[29]
UK
[30]
US
Indie

[31]
US
[31]
Peter Bjorn and John
  • Label: Beat That!
  • Released: 20 November 2002[32]
  • Formats: LP,[32] CD, download[33]
Falling Out
  • Label: Planekonomi, Hidden Agenda
  • Released: 4 October 2004
  • Formats: CD, download[34]
Writer's Block
  • Label: Wichita, Startime
  • Released: 14 August 2006
  • Formats: LP, CD, download[35]
90 26 68 14 155
Seaside Rock
  • Label: Almost Gold, Startime
  • Released: 23 September 2008
  • Formats: LP, CD, download[36]
Living Thing
  • Label: Wichita, Startime
  • Released: 30 March 2009
  • Formats: LP, CD, download[37]
162 7 92
Gimme Some
  • Label: Cooking Vinyl, Startime
  • Released: 28 March 2011
  • Formats: LP, CD, download[38]
49 20 109
Breakin' Point
  • Label: Ingrid, Warner Sweden and Kobalt Label Services
  • Released: 10 June 2016
  • Formats: LP, CD, download
Darker Days
  • Label: Ingrid
  • Released: 19 October 2018
  • Formats: LP, CD, download
Endless Dream
  • Label: Ingrid
  • Released: 13 March 2020
  • Formats: LP, download
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

EPs[]

Year EP Peak chart positions
SWE[27]
2001 Forbidden Chords
2003 100 m of Hurdles
2003 (I Just Wanna) See Through/Say Something Else (with Spearmint)
2004 Beats Traps and Backgrounds 45
2006 Young Folks The Remixes
2009 It Don't Move Me
2016 Dominos
2019 EPBJ
INGRID Live Session
2020 Endless Play

Singles[]

Year Song Peak chart positions Album
AUS
[39]
BEL
(FL)

[28]
BEL
(WA)

[40]
CAN
[41]
FIN
[42]
GER
[43]
IRE
[29]
JPN
[44]
NED
[45]
UK
[30]
US
[46]
US Alt
[46]
US Dance
[46]
2002 "Failing and Passing" Peter Bjorn and John
2002 "I Don't Know What I Want Us To Do"
2003 "People They Know"
2005 "Teen Love" Falling Out
"Tailormade"
2006 "Young Folks" 42 52 57 27 9 31 24 75 13 110[A] 22 19 Writer's Block
"Let's Call It Off" 130
2007 "Objects of My Affection"
2009 "Nothing to Worry About" 32 139 Living Thing
"Lay It Down"
"It Don't Move Me" [B] 10
2011 "Breaker Breaker"[47] Gimme Some
"Second Chance"
"Dig a Little Deeper" /
"What I Could Do If I Wanted To"[48]
"May Seem Macabre"
2016 "What You Talking About" [C] Breakin' Point
"Breakin' Point" [D]
2018 "One For The Team" x Darker Days
"Gut Feeling" x
"Every Other Night" x
"Wrapped Around The Axle" x
2019 "Rusty Nail" x Endless Dream
"—" denotes a release that did not chart.

Other charting songs[]

Year Song US
Rock

[46]
Album
2011 "Eyes" 48 Gimme Some
"—" denotes singles that did not chart, have not charted yet, or were not released.

Notes[]

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Other contributions[]

  • Acoustic 07 (2007, V2 Records)

References[]

  1. Tim Sendra. "Peter Bjorn and John". AllMusic. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  2. "NME 2006 Poll". NME.com (2006). Retrieved 20 January 2007.
  3. "Interview with Peter Bjorn and John: Hidden dogmas behind their records". indiespect.ch. 16 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  4. "Peter Bjorn And John - Clash Q&A". Clash. 18 March 2009. Archived from the original on 22 March 2009. Retrieved 24 May 2021.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. Sendra, Tim. "Peter, Bjorn and John: Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  6. "[SOUND AFFECTS] Piggy In The Middle: Fusionmusiker på popjakt – BLASKOTEKET" (in Swedish). Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  7. "PBS". Pbsfm.org.au. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  8. 8.0 8.1 "AOL - News, Sports, Weather, Entertainment, Local & Lifestyle". AOL.com. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  9. "Peter Björn and John official website". Peterbjornandjohn.com. 2007-02-08. Last accessed April 21, 2007.
  10. "Lollapalooza interview". Roxwel.com. August 2009. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  11. Studarus, Laura. "In the Studio: Peter Bjorn and John on Their Next Album [[:Template:Pipe]] Under the Radar - Music Magazine". Undertheradarmag.com. Retrieved 2018-09-13. URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  12. "Hear Peter Bjorn and John's First Single in Four Years "High Up (Take Me To The Top)" — TRANSVERSO". Transversomedia.com. 2015-04-25. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  13. "Peter Bjorn and John Debut Two New Songs, Hint at New Album on NPR's World Cafe — TRANSVERSO". Transversomedia.com. 2015-07-27. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  14. ""What You Talking About?" Peter Bjorn and John Finally Return With New Single, Album Announcement — TRANSVERSO". Transversomedia.com. 2016-03-10. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  15. "Peter, Bjorn and John Profile – The Trio Reclaimed Their Sound on 'Breakin' Point'". Esquire.com. 2016-06-08. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  16. Sam Sodomsky (2018-08-08). "Peter Bjorn and John Announce New Album and Tour". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  17. Ana Yglesias (2019-01-15). "Peter Bjorn And John Announce Round Two North American Tour, New EP". Grammy.com. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
  18. Peter Bjorn and John (2019-10-18). "Peter Bjorn and John on Twitter: We celebrate our 20-year anniversary in 2020 with the release of our ninth full-length studio album – Endless Dream – due out March 13th via INGRID. The first single "Rusty Nail" is out now! #rustynail #endlessdream". Twitter.com. Retrieved 2020-03-14.
  19. Marc Hawthorne (April 7, 2008). "Social Competence by Peter Moren". Avclub.com. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  20. "The Last Tycoon - Peter Morén - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  21. "Pitchfork: Peter Moren's "The Last Tycoon" Tracklist Revealed". Pitchforkmedia.com. Archived from the original on 14 January 2009. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  22. Bat For Lashes - The Boys of Summer (Live at EartH, London; Aloha, Son Little-; Hotspot, Pet Shop Boys-. "Peter Morén och David Shutrick - En åldrande befolkning". NÖJESGUIDEN (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  23. [1][dead link]
  24. Camp, Zoe (2012-12-14). "Hortlax Cobra – 1984 [[:Template:Pipe]] Album Reviews". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2018-09-13. URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  25. Zimmerman, Lee (8 May 2017). "Hortlax Cobra: Lightworks :: Music :: Reviews :: Hortlax Cobra :: Paste". Pastemagazine.com. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  26. "Claptone Announces Debut Album 'Charmer,' Premieres First Track 'Puppet Theatre' (Exclusive)". Billboard.com. 2015-07-28. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  27. 27.0 27.1 "Discography Peter Bjorn and John". Swedishcharts.com. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
  28. 28.0 28.1 28.2 "Discografie Peter Bjorn and John". Ultratop.be. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
  29. 29.0 29.1 "Irish Charts". Irishcharts.com.
  30. 30.0 30.1 Peak chart positions for albums and singles in the United Kingdom:
  31. 31.0 31.1 For Writer's Block: "Writer's Block - Peter Bjorn and John : Awards : AllMusic". Retrieved March 23, 2013. For Living Thing: "Living Thing - Peter Bjorn and John : Awards : AllMusic". Retrieved March 23, 2013.
  32. 32.0 32.1 "Peter Bjorn and John - MERRY CHRISTMAS!! 10 YEARS SINCE FIRST ALBUM!! ETC!!Peter Bjorn and John". peterbjornandjohn.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  33. "Peter Bjorn and John - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  34. "Falling Out - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  35. "Writer's Block - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  36. "Seaside Rock - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  37. "Living Thing - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  38. "Gimme Some - Peter Bjorn and John - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  39. "Australian Charts". Australiancharts.com.
  40. 40.0 40.1 "Discografie Peter Bjorn and John Wallonie". Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  41. "Billboard Canada". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-06-06.
  42. Steffen Hung. "Discography Peter Bjorn And John". Finnishcharts.com. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  43. "German Charts". Germancharts.de.
  44. "Peter Bjorn and John Album & Song Chart History". Japan Hot 100 for Peter Bjorn and John. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  45. "Megacharts". Dutchcharts.nl.
  46. 46.0 46.1 46.2 46.3 46.4 46.5 "Billboard Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-06-06.
  47. Brian Hodge. "Peter Bjorn and John – "Breaker Breaker"". potholesinmyblog.com. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  48. "Archived copy". Recordstoreday.com. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2018.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

Template:Peter Bjorn and John

External links[]

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