Imperiet

Last updated
Imperiet
Origin Stockholm, Sweden
Genres Post-punk, new wave, alternative rock
Years active1981–1988
Labels Mistlur Records
Past members Christian Falk
Joakim Thåström
Per Hägglund
Gunnar Ljungstedt
Stry Terrarie
Fred Asp

Imperiet was a Swedish post-punk band that was founded in 1981 in Stockholm as Rymdimperiet. [1] [2] In the spring of 1983, the band changed its name to Imperiet, [1] and was then active until December 1988. [3]

Contents

History

Imperiet started as Rymdimperiet, a side project to the Swedish punk band Ebba Grön , and included three of its members. When Ebba Grön broke up in 1983, Rymdimperiet re-emerged as Imperiet; with Joakim Thåström (lead vocals, guitar), Anders "Stry" Sjöholm (vocals, guitar) and Gunnar "Gurra" Ljungstedt (drums), all three originally from Ebba Grön. They were joined by Christian Falk (bass) and Per Hägglund (sax, keyboards). Stry left in 1984 and Gurra the following year. Gurra was replaced by Fred Asp on the drums. In 1987 Per Hägglund left and Imperiet disbanded in 1988.

Imperiet's sound was inspired by punk, rock and synthpop. Their lyrics were left-wing and anti-imperialist; songs like "C. C. Cowboys", "Alltid rött, alltid rätt" (Always Red, Always Right), and "Var e vargen?" (Where’s the Wolf?) were inspired by Russian Communist poet Mayakovsky.

Mainly successful in Sweden and Scandinavia, Imperiet also toured overseas, playing in the United States, Cuba, Central America and South America. In 1988, Imperiet released their only English language album, called Imperiet . It featured translated versions of their old songs. The album had an intensive promotional European tour, but was only popular in Sweden. This put an end to plans for an international career.

Their original name Rymdimperiet (meaning The Space Empire), was taken from the Star Wars movie The Empire Strikes Back (1980), the Swedish title being Rymdimperiet slår tillbaka.

Personnel

Members

Line-ups

1983–19841984–19851985–19871987–1988
  • Joakim Thåström - lead vocals, lead guitar
  • Stry Terrarie - lead vocals, organ, guitar
  • Christian Falk - bass, backing vocals
  • Per Hägglund - synthesizer, saxophone
  • Gunnar Ljungstedt - drums
  • Joakim Thåström - lead vocals, lead guitar
  • Christian Falk - bass, backing vocals
  • Per Hägglund - synthesizer, saxophone
  • Gunnar Ljungstedt - drums
  • Joakim Thåström - lead vocals, lead guitar
  • Christian Falk - bass, backing vocals
  • Per Hägglund - synthesizer, saxophone
  • Fred Asp - drums
  • Joakim Thåström - lead vocals, lead guitar
  • Christian Falk - bass, backing vocals
  • Fred Asp - drums
Imperiet

Discography

Albums

Singles

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joakim Thåström</span> Musical artist

Sven Joakim Eriksson Thåström, better known as Thåström, is a Swedish singer and songwriter, mostly known for the bands Ebba Grön and Imperiet. He has moved between a number of genres, from punk to rock, industrial and autobiographical singer-songwriter music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinderella (band)</span> American rock band

Cinderella was an American rock band formed in the suburbs of Philadelphia in 1983. The band emerged in the mid-1980s with a series of multi-platinum studio albums and hit singles whose music videos received heavy MTV rotation and popularity. Cinderella initially had a glam metal sound throughout the late 1980s before shifting into a more blues rock-based sound during the early to mid 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebba Grön</span> Swedish punk band

Ebba Grön was a Swedish punk band formed in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1977. Ebba Grön consisted of Joakim Thåström, Gunnar Ljungstedt (drums) and Lennart Eriksson. Thåström, Ljungstedt and Eriksson were also known as Pimme, Gurra and Fjodor. After the release of their second album in 1981, they were joined by a fourth member, Anders Sjöholm, also known as Stry Terrarie, on keyboard. The group was disbanded on 21 February 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti Cimex</span> Swedish punk band

Anti Cimex were a Swedish crust punk band, based in Skövde, Gothenburg, Linköping, and Malmö, at different times, that formed in 1981. They were one of the first bands to define Scandinavian hardcore punk. Their second 7-inch is considered to be a subgenre-defining D-beat record. Scene historian Peter Jandreus describes the group as the most famous Swedish punk band of the 1977–1987 era.

Anders Sjöholm, with the stage name Stry Terrarie, Stry Kanarie or simply Stry, is a Swedish musician from Skåne. He has been a member of many bands, usually as the lead singer.

Blå Tåget is a Swedish progg-band that used to go under the name Gunder Hägg, the name of a legendary Swedish runner, but after name conflicts occurred they changed name to Blå Tåget in 1972.

Gang Green are an American punk rock band originally from Braintree, Massachusetts. Chris Doherty (guitar), Bill Manley (bass) and Mike Dean (drums) started the band in 1980 and broke up in 1983. Doherty reformed Gang Green the following year, and the band experienced numerous lineup changes until its dissolution for the second time in 1992. Doherty has been the band's only constant member and has kept Gang Green active from 2005 onwards. The band was influential in the formation of the East Coast hardcore punk scene, and went on to become one of the forerunners of crossover thrash and speed metal in the late 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dag Vag</span>

Dag Vag is a Swedish band formed in 1978. The lead singer was Per Odeltorp (1948–2012), popularly known as Stig Vig. Their early punk sound became, after a while, increasingly more reggae-like. The band referred to it as "transcontinental rock-reggae". Their popularity peaked in the 1980s, but they are still active.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eldkvarn (band)</span> Swedish rock band

Eldkvarn is a Swedish rock band formed in Norrköping in 1971. The group, whose best-known line-up comprises Plura Jonsson, Carla Jonsson and Tony Thorén, as well as other artists, are regarded as one of the best rock bands in Sweden, with a following in other Nordic countries as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">23 Till</span> Swedish punk rock band

23Till was a Swedish punk rock band consisting of Janne Abrahamsson, Micke Pihlblad and Pär Andersson (drums). Formed in Norrköping in the middle of Sweden around 1985, they became one of the acts on the Swedish music underground scene in the 90s. Their last record was released 1995, and except a short reunion 1999 and 2000, 23Till is no longer active. The members have continued with other music projects.

Kriminella Gitarrer was a Swedish punk band, active between 1977 and 1979. The first line up was Stry Terrarie, vocals, Mats P, guitar, Affe, bass and Sticky Bomb, drums. The second line up, without Stry, had Mats P on both vocals and guitar.

Incest Brothers was a Swedish punk rock band formed in August 1977 in the Stockholm suburb of Jakobsberg in Järfälla. Their music is political punk, and was influenced by British punk. The band was discussed in the 2013 movie We Are the Best!.

Gunnar (Gurra) Ljungstedt, was the drummer in the Swedish punk rock band Ebba Grön and later in Imperiet. He was approx. 5 years older than the other members of the band, and a friend of Thåström’s big brother.

The Headlines is a punk rock band from Malmö, Sweden. They were formed in 2005. Their music is heavily influenced by such bands as The Clash, Rancid and Ramones. Stry Terrarie has produced their first two albums along with the Wake Up EP. Since 2007 they have released six full-length albums, one EP, and four singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Långaryd family</span>

The Långaryd family is one of the largest documented families in the world, according to Guinness World Records. It was noted twice in the Guinness World Records, both for most known relatives (1988) and the largest family reunion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bristles</span> Punk band

The Bristles is a raw punk band formed in 1982 in Landskrona, Sweden. The name comes from GBH 12-inch Leather, Bristles, Studs and Acne.

Fiendens musik was a rock band founded in Lund in 1977 by Mats Zetterberg and Mats Bäcker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Satan Takes A Holiday (band)</span>

Satan Takes A Holiday is a Stockholm-based band, created in 2006 by Fred Burman, Johannes Lindsjöö and Svante Nordström.

Leif Bloms was a dansband in Växjö in Sweden. scoring chart successes at the Swedish album chart during the mid-late 1970s. On 31 December 1995 the band was disbanded after singing and playing together for almost 40 years. Starting with the 1981 album Håll dig kvar, the band's singer was Mona Gustafsson, who wrote the band's 1992 song "Dej ska jag älska all min tid" which won the 1992 Hänt song contest in Älvsjö. After the band was disbanded, Mona Gustafsson, Patrik Ahlm and René Saulesco founded another dansband, Mona G:s orkester.

<i>Skebokvarnsv. 209</i> 2005 studio album by Thåström

Skebokvarnsv. 209 is the fourth solo album of Swedish rock musician Joakim Thåström. It was released on November 16, 2005, by Sonet and Universal.

References

  1. 1 2 "Imperiet – levande i Hultsfred – intervju med Stry Terrarie" (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  2. Holmgren, Tobias (2017-09-27). "Thåströms många ansikten" (in Swedish). Göteborgs-Posten. Retrieved 2019-01-21.
  3. Lovén, Lars (2016-09-15). "Imperiet Biography". Allmusic. Archived from the original on 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2024-01-24.