Kent's Sweden, or what a rock band can tell us about a nation

Abstract

The Swedish rock band Kent is not only the most popular band in Sweden, but also perceived as quintessentially Swedish. Using the notion of "everyday national ism" I argue that Kent both represent and actively shape contemporary Swedish national identity co-constitutively with their audience. Three themes are particularly important to understand this Swedishness. Firstly, the band was formed in the city of Eskilstuna but relocated to Stockholm, which illustrates a Swedish journey through class and space. Secondly, Kent interrogates a series of national myths in their songs. They do so using spatial and environmental metaphors that can be conceptualized as different landscapes - inner, urban, and winter landscapes - representing Sweden. Thirdly, Kent also construct a "public landscape" that reflects on changes in Swedish society, including neoliberal and anti-immigrant tendencies.