The energetic, Swede pop perfection of The Tough Alliance immediately entangled me when I first heard “Neo Violence”. It’s spring loaded, synth heavy, techno-tropic and gets you giddily dancing. I adore their wry humor at the end. I finally dove into their last two releases and got turned on to more TTA. The songs are bright, emphatic, and uplifting, buoyant with constant explosions of sounds. I’m surprised they haven’t yet hit the scene harder in the U.S.
Check out the rad video for “Simple Games” from the New Waves EP (2006). It’s got girls jumping rope in the breathtaking, sun-dappled outdoors and projections of breaking waves (a recurring visual motif of theirs).
Childhood friends Henning Fürst and Eric Berglund formed The Tough Alliance in 2003. The Göthenburg, Sweden duo have polished their glammy blend of pop and electronica through a series of EP and album releases, first on the locally based Service label (home to Jens Lekman and Studio) and then on their own label, Sincerely Yours, beginning in 2006. Each critically acclaimed creation helped to establish them as a central force within the Swedish indie music scene. TTA began attracting greater international attention in 2007 due to outstanding reviews for A New Chance (2007) and American distribution.
Adding some color to their story, The Tough Alliance amusingly have an infamous reputation for their live appearances and receive frequent attention in the Swedish media for lip-synching to their backing tracks while ambiguously wielding baseball bats. The resulting accusations of glorifying violence and hooliganism haven’t gone unnoticed. TTA directly confronts all detractors in the lyrics of “Neo Violence”, which ascended to number 13 on the Swedish album charts in 2007.
No U.S. dates at the moment, but keep your eyes out for The Tough Alliance.
Neo Violence
No no need for a baseball bat
Don’t need no knife for a sharp attack
No excuses, no looking back
We think too much about the things we lack
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
I hardly noticed your short romance
Your careless manners and your anxious glance
Kissed and telled, got paid in advance
You’re far behind now love you missed your chance
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
Truly sorry thought you’d get the wink, it’s in our nature to be out of sync
Truly sorry thought you’d get the wink, it’s in our nature to be out of sync
This neo violence
Pure self-defiance
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
This neo violence
Can’t stand the silence
This neo violence
The Tough Alliance
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