Tim: Swedish band here, with a song called “Bad Luck”; if you’re anything like me, you’ll spend the spend fifteen seconds being a tad intrigued, and then you’ll be “oh, YES”.
Tom: Actually, I’ll spend the first 15 seconds singing “Forever Young”, but yes, after that you’re about right.
Tim: So it’s all about a guy who has considerably bad luck; if you’re wondering why there’s a ‘hamster’ in the lyrics, it’s because he had a girlfriend but then she burnt his house down, and took his hamster on the way out. As is normal.
Tom: You can’t have a song with “hamster” and “mankini” in the lyrics and claim it’s serious. You just can’t. Not even in Sweden.
Tim: Yes, I’m not entirely sure how seriously it’s meant to be taken. Nonetheless, the story continues: towards the end, though, it gets nicer – middle eight’s about, with his whole life ahead of him, and then he takes a trip off to Thailand.
Tom: I get the feeling that the singer has some very specific issues still to work out with an ex. And that middle eight seems… unfinished, somehow.
Tim: I kind of know what you mean – personally, I’d quite like a key change there, in the form of Taylor’s Swift’s Love Story: it’s not just for fun but actually to reflect the narrative of the lyrics. Still, I guess it wasn’t to be, and the song is perfectly enjoyable without it, so I’ll take it nonetheless. Good stuff.