Sahara Hotnights - Biography
BY Marcus Kagler
Lumped in with a slew of Swedish garage rock groups near the end of the 20th century, Sahara Hotnights were essentially the female counterpart to The Hives. In fact, the similarities between the two bands are uncanny. Both hail from Sweden, both ape The Stooges (although the Hotnights equally borrow from Blondie), both had been around for years before achieving fame, and both are in-your-face unabashed garage rock titans. Sahara Hotnights formed out of self professed teenage boredom during the mid-90’s in the small town of Robertsfors, Sweden. Maria Andersson (vocals/guitars), sisters Jennie (guitars) and Johanna Asplund (bass), and Josephine Forsman (drums) had all grown up together as friends with similar musical influences so forming a band was the logical next step. Allegedly, the group got their name from that of a racehorse Forsman bet on while vacationing in Australia. Gravitating toward a heavy classic 70’s punk sound with melodic pop hooks as heard from the likes of The Ramones and Blondie, the band self released their debut EP, Suits Anyone Fine in 1997. Soon after the Hotnights signed with Speech Records, and slowly gained notoriety throughout Sweden with the the singles Nothing Yet (1998 Speech), Face Wet (1998 Speech), and Oh Darling (1999 Speech).
By the time they released their debut full length, C’mon Let’s Pretend (1999 BMG) the band had honed their punk-meets-pop hooks aesthetic into something raw and lethally catchy. The album was an instant success in Sweden and garnered the Hotnights two nominations for the Swedish equivalent of the Grammy’s, ironically called The Grammi’s. The following year The Hives put the Swedish garage rock movement on the international map with their smash hit album, Veni Vidi Vicious (2000 Epitaph), inadvertently giving the Hotnights some much needed exposure in the North America. Named after guitarist Jennie Asplund, Jennie Bomb (2001 RCA) injected bawdy glam rock into their rough and tumble sound. Riding a popular wave generated by similar garage based artists like The White Stripes, The Vines, and of course The Hives, Jennie Bomb was a critical and commercial success in Europe and America due to the rock radio friendly singles “On Top Of Your World” and “With Or Without Control”. While on a mammoth North American tour the band stopped by Amoeba Hollywood on March 23, 2003 for a raucous in-store performance.
By the 2004, however, the Swedish garage rock revival had begun to give way to the post punk arena rock of the The Killers and Franz Ferdinand. Sahara Hotnights reacted in kind by sacrificing some their raw edge for a more party friendly New Wave sound reminiscent of The Runaways or Beauty And The Beat era Go-Go’s on their third full length Kiss and Tell (2004 RCA). After an international tour, including a stop at the 2004 Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California, the band took a three year hiatus. Sahara Hotnights shed the last remnants of their garage rock aesthetic on their fourth full length, What If Living Was A Loving Thing (2007 Universal), opting to delve almost completely into power pop. First single, “Cheek to Cheek”, became an instant hit in Sweden but unfortunately the album quickly sunk off the charts internationally. Sahara Hotnights have since formed their own label, Stand By Your Band, and continue to be a popular live draw throughout Scandinavia and Europe.