Kent (band)

Kent was a Swedish alternative rock band formed in Eskilstuna in 1990.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> With members Joakim Berg, Martin Sköld, Sami Sirviö and Markus Mustonen, the band had numerous radio hits throughout Sweden and Scandinavia and consecutive number-one studio albums on the Sweden top list (Sverigetopplistan) beginning with the release of Verkligen (1996) and led by the single "Kräm (så nära får ingen gå)".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> With origins rooted in distorted rock, they found mainstream success through their alternative rock albums of the mid-1990s, 2000s and 2010s, the latter decades during which they adopted elements of synthpop.

With eleven number-one albums,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> five number-one singles,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 22 Swedish Grammy Awards,<ref>Grammisvinnare genom åren, Grammis.se</ref> and over three million record sales, Kent is considered the most popular rock/pop group within Sweden and throughout Scandinavia. Vapen & ammunition (2002) topped the Swedish charts for eight weeks.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref> Kent is often compared to bands like U2 and Coldplay.<ref>Nordens U2 Dagbladet</ref><ref>Kent går Coldplay Fædrelandsvennen</ref>

As Kent's songs are primarily performed in Swedish, they are unfamiliar to most English-speaking audiences.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Kent briefly attempted an international career with English versions of the albums Isola (1997) and Hagnesta Hill (1999) and an accompanying American tour for the former, but stopped after finding less success than they had in Scandinavia. Joakim Berg, the lead singer and lyricist, says "there are two kinds of lyrics I write. One kind is based in places and the other is based in feelings. You move between those two whether you want to or not."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The band announced on 16 March 2016 that they would release their final album, titled Då som nu för alltid, after 26 years of performing.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The album was released on 20 May 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band's announcement noted that the dissolution of the band is voluntary and is despite their continued success. In September, Kent began a months-long farewell tour that covered Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark. The last concert was held at Tele2 Arena in Stockholm on 17 December 2016.<ref>Så bra var Kents sista spelning någonsin, Expressen.se</ref>

Kent reunited in March 2025 to play six concerts at Stockholm's 3Arena.

History

Formation and first years (1990–1994)

The band Jones & Giftet (Jones & The Poison) was formed in 1990 with members Joakim "Jocke" Berg, Martin Sköld, Markus Mustonen, Sami Sirviö and Thomas Bergqvist (synthesizers). Berg and Sirviö started the band when Berg went to London and bought two guitars, one for each of them. Sköld, Bergqvist and Mustonen joined soon after. Their first gig was in Lindesberg in Västmanland, and the second at Knegoffs in Eskilstuna. In 1991, Jones & Giftet won the contest Cult 91 at the Skylight in Eskilstuna.<ref>Historien om Kent Sveriges Radio</ref>

In 1992 Martin Roos played with Jones & Giftet for the first time, at Cult 92. Soon thereafter he replaced Thomas Bergqvist. On 30 September 1992 Jones & Giftet changed their name to Havsänglar (Angelshark, lit. Sea angels). Gigs at the "Spaghetti Companiet", Hannas Krog and the Pet Sounds Bar followed.

In 1993, Martin Roos moved to Stockholm, and soon the rest of the band did the same. Jocke Berg's brother Adam Berg came up with Kent as the band's new name.<ref>Fansen som följt Kent i 20 städer – på 83 dagar, Expressen.se</ref> Kent played in Stockholm at Tanto and Hyndans Hörna, and in Uppsala at Kalmar Nation.

In March 1994 Kent recorded a 10-track demo under very simple conditions in an 8-track studio at Nytorpsskolan near Blåsut in Stockholm. They gave the demo to Peter Ejheden at Pet Sounds who was working as a booker for a club (Pet Sounds Bar). In the same chain of events where he got the tape, Ejheden quit Pet Sounds and started working at BMG. In April Per Lindholm, A&R at RCA/BMG, heard the band for the first time and was immediately interested. On 26 June Kent's first record contract was signed. They went to Silence Studios in Koppom, Värmland, to record their first album.

Kent and Verkligen (1995–1996)

File:Kent band logo.png

The band's logo, first used in 1996

In March 1995, Kent released their first album, Kent. The band's style at that time emphasized distortion, which is in contrast with their later albums. Their first single was "När det blåser på månen".

One year later, in March 1996, Kent released Verkligen (Really). Guitarist Martin Roos had left the band for his career at Kent's record company BMG; he later became the band's manager.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The pre-release single "Kräm (så nära får ingen gå)" immediately became a radio hit and gained Kent some serious fame in Sweden. Two more singles were issued, "Gravitation" and "Halka". Musically, the album was slower with less distortion and more emotion. After Verkligen was released, and before the band went on a long tour that summer, guitarist Harri Mänty joined as a permanent member.

Isola (1997–1998)

Template:Details In November 1997, Kent released Isola. They had toured heavily with Verkligen, which had gained them some reputation. The pre-release single from Isola, "Om du var här" (If You Were Here), became a radio hit. Musically the album was quite different from Verkligen, going further in the direction of slower, more thoughtful songs with more emotion. The last song on the album, the 7 minute, 47 second-long "747", with a characteristic keyboard riff and a long instrumental outro, became the band's closer for every show for the next six years. It was also released as a single, cut down to four minutes and with an added short chorus.

In 1998, Kent released an English version of Isola, featuring an extra song only available on the English version, "Velvet". They did two US tours to promote the album. The first was in support of fellow Swedes The Cardigans,<ref>Pressmeddelande Cardigans, Kent.nu</ref> and the second was a double bill with American band Papa Vegas. On the second leg of the tour they closed their shows with what they described as their "only cover song", a version of Depeche Mode's classic single "Stripped". Singles were released in various territories for three of the album's songs, "If You Were Here", "Things She Said" and "747". The English version of Isola sold poorly.

Hagnesta Hill and B-sidor 95-00 (1999–2000)

Template:Details In December 1999, Kent released Hagnesta Hill, named after Hagnestahill, a part of Eskilstuna where the band had had their first studio. The first single from the album, "Musik non stop", a disco-rock song, became a huge radio hit. The album was, for the most part, faster and less ballad-focused than Isola, and also mildly experimental with drum-machines and electronics. Two more singles were released, the industrial-esque "En himmelsk drog" (A Heavenly Drug) and the power-poppy "Kevlarsjäl" (Kevlar Soul).

In April 2000, an English version of Hagnesta Hill was released, in which two songs from the Swedish version were replaced with two new English tracks ("Just Like Money" and "Quiet Heart"). The album was also released in a limited digipack with one of the excluded songs, "A Timekill to Die For", included as a hidden bonus track. The album was accompanied by the release of the single "Music Non Stop"; the other omitted song, "Insects", was included as its b-side. A planned US release of the album was shelved, resulting in the circulation of "cut-out" promo copies. With no official album to promote, a US tour never materialized. In connection with the release of the English version of Hagnesta Hill, Kent went on a European tour, finishing at the Roskilde Festival.

Since their debut, Kent had recorded a large number of b-sides. Since most of them had long gone out of print, it was very hard to get them legally, so in 2000, Kent released the two-CD collection B-sidor 95–00 (B-Sides 95–00). It featured 21 b-sides and two new songs. A documentary was also shot the same year, Så nära får ingen gå – ett år med Kent ("No One Can Get This Close – a year with Kent"), produced by Per Sinding-Larsen and Mathias Engstrand.<ref>SVT gör film om Kent, Aftonbladet.se</ref>

Vapen & ammunition and the White Concert (2002–2003)

File:Kent-på-Stockholm-Stadion-nationaldagen-2003.jpg

Kent performing at Stockholms stadion on 6 June 2003

After a seven-month timeout, Kent started another full-length album during the summer of 2001. Later that year they reported that they had tried to make an album consisting almost entirely of singles. The first of those, "Dom andra" (The Others), released on 18 March 2002, became a huge hit on Swedish radio. When the album Vapen & ammunition (Weapon(s) & Ammunition) came out, the next two singles "Kärleken väntar" (Love Awaits) and "FF" (from the double A-side FF / VinterNoll2), plus the album track "Pärlor" (Pearls) became huge radio hits, resulting in album sales over 600,000, more than twice as many as any other Kent album to date. The band received seven Swedish Grammy Awards in 2003.

Kent had not toured for several months when it was announced that they would only do one performance in Sweden in 2003, on 6 June, the Swedish national day, in Stockholm Stadium which holds 30,000. As the band told the crowd to dress in white, it was nicknamed "The White Concert".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band also played at the less known Parkfestivalen in Moss, Norway on 14 June 2003.<ref>Parkfestivalen 2003 - MIC Norsk musikkinformasjon Template:Webarchive Musikkinformasjonssenteret</ref>

Du & jag döden and The hjärta & smärta EP (2005–2006)

Template:Details After taking a one-year timeout, Kent returned to the studio to record their sixth album in 2004. Studio reports said it would be "a very dark album".<ref>"Det blir en sjukt deppig platta"</ref> The first single released, "Max 500", was well received by both fans and critics. When the album Du & jag döden (You & me death) was released, it was very well received and was considered by most fans to be one of their best albums. Two more singles were released, "Palace & Main" and "Den döda vinkeln" (The Dead Angle) – the last one stirring up some controversy among Kent fans because Kent did not release any b-sides along with it (but still the single has a shorter version of the song). The last track on the album, "Mannen i den vita hatten (16 år senare)" (The Man in the White Hat (16 Years Later)) was very well received and is seen by many fans as Kent's best effort. It also became the first song ever to replace "747" as the finale of a Kent concert.

File:Kent-Hultsfredsfestivalen-2006.jpg

Kent performing at the Hultsfred Festival in June 2006

During 2005 they embarked on "Turné 19" (Tour 19), doing 12 gigs in Sweden, one in Norway and one in Finland. The concerts took place in huge tents with a capacity of up to 18,000.<ref>Kent och döden på tältturné, Aftonbladet.se</ref> This was the only tour that followed the release of Du & jag döden. After "Turné 19", Kent played once more at the Roskilde Festival.

There were rumours about Kent releasing an EP, as they had been spotted in studio and guitarist Sami had said, "We might release an EP, but if we do it will only be digitally released." Just one month before the November 2005 release, The hjärta & smärta EP (The Heart & Pain EP) was confirmed, as a CD as well as a digital release. It was well received and contained five tracks, "Dom som försvann" (Those Who Disappeared) becoming the radio song and having a video recorded. The EP made No. 1 in Sweden and remained on the charts for 33 weeks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

During 2006, the band played only once in Sweden on the Hultsfred Festival and on two festivals in Norway, Rockfest Haugesund and Norwegian Wood Festival.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> They've also released the single "Nålens öga" for Swedish Save the children.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Tillbaka till samtiden and Box 1991–2008 (2007–2008)

File:Kent-2008-halmstad1.jpg

Kent performing in Halmstad in February 2008

During December 2006 – 2007 the band announced—on two different occasions—that they had started recording their seventh Swedish studio album, and that guitarist Harri Mänty had decided to leave the band.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Listen On 18 July 2007, the band announced the title and release date of their new album, Tillbaka till samtiden (Swedish for "Back to the Present"). Its official release was on 17 October 2007 but many stores began selling it five days in advance due to an internet leak of the album. The first single of the album was released on 17 September 2007 with the title "Ingenting" (Swedish for "Nothing"). The band played four songs at a private gig in Denmark where their new album premiered. The sound of the album has been described as more electro based rock. Due to the speed in which the tour's concerts were sold out, the band added seven extra concerts to their Scandinavian tour. As well, lead singer Joakim Berg has remarked that Tillbaka till samtiden contains some of his favourite material he has recorded. They were also presented with Album of the Year and Group of the Year at the 2008 Swedish Grammy Awards. They went on to win a Rockbjörnen (Swedish for "The rock bear") award for Swedish Album of the Year and a P3 Guld award for Swedish Group of the Year. Kent released the compilation Box 1991–2008, featuring all their previous studio albums and previously unreleased material, in all Nordic countries on 29 October 2008.

In October 2008, their 2002 song "VinterNoll2" was included in Guitar Hero World Tour, becoming the first and to date only Swedish-language song to be included in a Guitar Hero game.<ref>Kent med i nya ”Guitar hero”, Aftonbladet.se</ref>

On 23 December 2008, Kent released a new song, "På drift?". "Kent wishes you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year by offering a brand new song for free," the band writes on their website (kent.nu).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Röd and En plats i solen (2009–2010)

On 4 October 2009, Kent announced their eighth studio album Röd and the first single "Töntarna" was released on 5 October as digital download. Röd was released on 5 November 2009 and has an even greater touch of synthesizers than previous albums. On the release day of Röd, Kent played in front of a hundred specially invited guests (mostly journalists) at The Bowery Hotel in New York.<ref>New York faller för Kent, Aftonbladet.se, Retrieved 20 April 2023.</ref> The setlist consisted of 6 tracks from the new album, and the whole thing was shown live on Aftonbladet's website.

On 2 November 2009, Kent auctioned off 100 limited physical copies of the song "2000" for charity. The song was also released as digital download. "2000" was used as the theme song for the Swedish TV-series Hemlösa, covering the homeless problem in Stockholm.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Kent's Röd tour started in Stockholm on 25 February 2010, with four shows in Globe Arena Annexet during that week.<ref>Exploderar till slut, Aftonbladet.se</ref> They did 18 shows in total around the Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland) for this tour. In May 2010, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, in collaboration with Sony Music Sweden AB, released SingStar Kent on both the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 games consoles, as part of the SingStar music video games.<ref>Nu satsar Kent på tv-spel, Aftonbladet.se</ref><ref>Vinn biljetter till releasefesten för SingStar Kent, Kent.nu</ref>

File:Kent-sthlm2010.jpg

Kent performing in July 2010

On 14 June 2010, Kent announced their ninth studio album, En plats i solen (Swedish for "A Place in the Sun") due for release on 30 June, only seven months after the release of their previous studio album, Röd. Berg has said about the recording of En plats i solen: "We had a kind of idea that we were going to record an album very quickly this time, we had already some demos ready. We wanted to go into the studio, record and mix the album and then distribute it directly." Unlike the two previous albums, which were produced with Danish producer Joshua, En plats i solen is produced with Swedish producer Stefan Boman who worked with the band on Du & jag döden (2005). The band also released the first single from the forthcoming album, featuring the two A-sides "Gamla Ullevi" and "Skisser för sommaren".

Kent embarked on a summer tour in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark, starting at the Peace & Love Festival in Sweden and finishing on 8 August at the Skanderborg Festival in Denmark.<ref>Kent klara för sex festivaler 2010, Expressen.se</ref>

Jag är inte rädd för mörkret and Tigerdrottningen (2012–2015)

File:Kent-after-the-press-conference-at-Berns-in-Stockholm-in-2012.jpg

Kent after the press conference at Berns in Stockholm on 24 April 2012 (from left to right): Sirviö, Berg, Mustonen, and Sköld

On 22 June 2011, Kent signed a recording contract with Universal Music in Sweden, after sixteen years with BMG and later Sony Music.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band's manager, Martin Roos, said in a press release: "After sixteen years with BMG/Sony Music it feels great with a new beginning, and Universal Music gave us the best offer." In April 2012, Kent released their tenth studio album, Jag är inte rädd för mörkret (Swedish for "I Am Not Afraid of the Dark"). It was recorded in France. The album included the songs "999" and "Jag ser dig" which was well received by both fans and critics. Jag är inte rädd för mörkret is piano-based.

During the summer, Kent toured Scandinavia, first with a short spring tour at the end of May (24 May–2 June) and then at festivals and own concerts in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark during June, July and August. During this summer tour they started their concerts with an old unreleased song named "Ögon" from the early 1990s, with a new version of the song.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The song was included in the 2008 compilation Box 1991–2008, but only as a demo from the early 1990s.

In December 2012, Kent announced on their Twitter account that they were to release a track on New Year's Day called "Ingen kunde röra oss".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 29 November 2013, Kent went to Los Angeles and recorded their eleventh studio album, Berg said in an interview: "We wanted to do this kind of Fleetwood Mac thing and go to LA and dream under the sun. Now the dollar is so low, in addition – all the big studios are empty, no one uses them anymore."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first single "La Belle Epoque" was released on 12 March 2014 and the album Tigerdrottningen was released on 30 April. The album features a lot of female backing vocals and duets. During the month of May Kent went on a small club tour in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. In the summer of 2014 Kent held their own festival called Kentfest in Gothenburg and Stockholm. They also played at festivals in Denmark and Norway.

In 2015, Kent played at three festivals in Scandinavia, Joakim Berg announced at the Bråvalla festival that they were going to record a new album that fall.<ref>Kent spelar in ny skiva till hösten, Expressen.se, Retrieved 20 April 2023.</ref> That year, Kent celebrated the 20th anniversary of their debut album, Kent, by releasing the band's first 10 albums on vinyl.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Då som nu för alltid and the final tour (2016)

In February 2016, Kent was elected to Swedish Music Hall of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In March the band announced that Då som nu för alltid (Swedish for "Then as Now Forever") would be their last album, and that they would make a final tour in the Nordic countries, with the last concert in Stockholm in December 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> "Egoist" was announced as the album's first single, and it was released on 14 March. However, on 17 April 2016 Kent announced the track listing which omitted "Egoist". Instead, "Vi är inte längre där" was released as the album's first single on 3 May. The album Då som nu för alltid was released on 20 May 2016. On 24 August, it was announced the compilation album Best of would be released on 16 September 2016, containing 20 previously released tracks and four new studio recordings.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For Då som nu för alltid the band won two Swedish Grammy Awards, Album of the Year and Rock of the Year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

From the spring of 2015 until the band's very last concert, Per Sinding-Larsen followed Kent's last time together to record a documentary called Vi är inte längre där (Sista åren med Kent), which was shown on SVT in two parts on the 26 and 27 December 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The documentary revealed, among other things, that Harri Mänty was fired from the band due to excessive partying and not that he left off his own accord as has been previously stated.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Post-Kent activities (2017–present)

After 2016, Joakim Berg has written and produced songs with a number of different artists, such as Veronica Maggio, Ghost, Smith & Thell and Lars Winnerbäck.<ref>Jocke Berg medverkar på nya Ghost-albumet</ref><ref>Lars Winnerbäck gör platta med Kent-profilerna Joakim Berg och Martin Sköld</ref><ref>Veronica Maggio är klyschig och klockren, Aftonbladet.se</ref> In May 2022, Berg released a solo album, Jag fortsätter glömma.<ref>Joakim Berg gör stark och uppriktig solodebut, Aftonbladet.se</ref> He has also worked with his former bandmate Martin Sköld after the dissolution of the band.

In April 2024, Berg said on a podcast that the band had discussed the possibility for a live reunion.<ref>Skrällen: Kent kan göra comeback, Aftonbladet.se</ref> On 18 October 2024, Kent announced three concerts in Stockholm's 3Arena in March 2025. Due to the tickets quickly selling out, three additional concerts were announced, which also all sold out.<ref>Kent återförenas – ger tre konserter 2025, Aftonbladet.se</ref> The six concerts took place on 21-23 March and 25-27 March 2025. A total of 239,953 people attended the concerts, giving Kent the audience record for a single artist in 3Arena.<ref>Kent tog avsked – satte rekord, GP.se</ref> Berg emphasised onstage that Kent would not reunite again following these concerts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Musical style

Kent have been grouped with various genres, including alternative rock, indie rock, pop rock, synth-pop, pop, and arena rock.

Kent has been referred to as Sweden's biggest rock band,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but has always put pop melodies in focus. Kent's biggest change in musical style came with the band's seventh studio album Tillbaka till samtiden, which marked a clear shift from alternative rock to synthpop/rock.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Band members

Members

• Joakim Berg – lead vocals, guitars (1990–2016, 2025)
• Martin Sköld – bass, keyboards (1990–2016, 2025)
• Sami Sirviö – guitars (1990–2016, 2025)
• Markus Mustonen – drums, backing vocals (1990–2016, 2025)
• Harri Mänty – guitars (1996–2006)
• Martin Roos – guitars (1992–1995)
• Thomas Bergquist – keyboards (1990–1992)

Touring musicians

• Andreas Bovin – keyboards, piano, guitars (1996–2016, 2025)
• Max Brandt – guitars (2007–2016, 2025)
• Ida Redig – backing vocals (2014–2015)
• Miriam Bryant – backing vocals (2014–2015)
• Naomi Pilgrim – backing vocals (2014–2015)
• Carolina Wallin Pérez – backing vocals (2015–2016, 2025)
• Daniela Rathana – backing vocals (2016)
• Malin Brudell – backing vocals (2016, 2025)
• Maria Jane Smith – backing vocals (2025)

Discography

Studio albums

• Kent (1995)
• Verkligen (1996)
• Isola (1997)
• Hagnesta Hill (1999)
• Vapen & ammunition (2002)
• Du & jag döden (2005)
• Tillbaka till samtiden (2007)
• Röd (2009)
• En plats i solen (2010)
• Jag är inte rädd för mörkret (2012)
• Tigerdrottningen (2014)
• Då som nu för alltid (2016)

Awards and nominations

Kent have won 22 Grammis awards (the Swedish equivalent of the Grammy Awards) and 11 Rockbjörn awards.

See also

• Music of Sweden

External links

• Template:Official website
• Template:Allmusic
• Template:Discogs artist