Scan Magazine
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Culture
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Columns
Scandinavian sounds to sweat it out to
By Karl Batterbee
When all else fails to get your temperatures rising throughout February, it’s time to get your body moving. Here are some beats to help you with that! Norwegian twins Marcus & Martinus have kick-started the year by already looking ahead to the summer. Their new single Wonder is a chill-house, poolside-vibe escape to the sun. And it’s got a chorus so hummable, you might still have it in your head by the time the summer rolls around. 30 years ago, one of the biggest selling singles of 1994 across Scandinavia was the Eurodance bop Dr Feelgood, by Swedish duo Cool James and Black Teacher. Sweden’s Klara Hammarström has resurrected it for a new adaptation today, in collaboration with Polish producer TRIBBS. No prescription needed for Dr Feelgood’s mood-enhancing qualities! Songwriter to the stars Ina Wroldsen is taking part in the latest series of Norway’s Hver Gang Vi Møtes, a show in which a group of artists get together to record new ver-
sions of each other’s songs. On Ina’s biggest success from this season, she’s taken on the Eurovision 1983 hit Främling by her castmate Carola. Ina teases out a darker side to the schlager classic, in her English-language interpretation Stranger. Norwegian producer Alan Walker has just casually dropped what could be an early contender for one of the most enduring songs of the year. Dancing In Love is string-laden, ‘70s-flavoured dance euphoria, featuring the vocals of British newcomer MEEK. Stylistically, this could be Gen Z’s very own I Will Survive. One of the biggest albums of 2024 in Sweden was Pink Velvet Theatre by Benjamin Ingrosso, which was produced by the Swedish duo Varga & Lagola. Now, the pair have crossed the Øresund Bridge to work with Danish artist Drew Sycamore. The first
fruit of their collaboration is a shimmering slice of dreamy, disco-pop decadence – her latest single Lonely Heat. www.scandipop.co.uk
Monthly Illustration
On dried fruit in Cakes Christmas pudding, Christmas cake, Wedding cake. Sometimes, there is alcohol involved and the pudding is set alight to delighted screams from around the table. Most of the time, nothing is set ablaze, and the puddings and cakes are enjoyed with a good old-fashioned cup of tea. But these baked goods are all pretty much the same, right? I am not deluded? Dried fruit features in all celebratory cakes here in Britain as well as the fruit scone and fruit loaf for your elevenses. Not to mention the mince pies sold in every shop from October and devoured greedily at every opportunity for months leading up to Christmas. Britain is a stodgy country. All the traybakes, the sandwiches and afternoon teas. It is all lovely and comforting and very vintage. I just wish there were some rules around the dried fruit. Perhaps it doesn’t have to be in absolutely everything? And 92
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Issue 175
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February 2025
By Gabi Froden
sick of sultanas, raisins, cherries and apricots baked into cake. The sharp sweetness, the chewy weirdness. Give me a good old princess cake for my celebrations. Fresh cream and light sponge. Pretty rose on the top. I will chomp on tray bakes and have second helpings of all the iced buns, but if I never see a raisin baked into a cake again, I will be ok with that.
perhaps the Brits could admit that all the celebration cakes are one and the same instead of being extra excited when the Christmas pudding comes out after having just had a slice of Christmas cake. You are eating the same thing twice. Thrice if someone is getting married around New Year... I am sure it stems from a laudable tradition of preservation, but sweet lord, I am so
Gabi Froden is a Swedish illustrator and writer, living in Glasgow with her husband and two children. Her children’s and YA books are published in Sweden by Bonnier Carlsen and Natur&Kultur. www.gabifroden.com