Jag har allt jag vill ha

I don't think I've made it clear on here before how much I love Linda Bengtzing. As I've said before, if I was giving a Melodifestivalen performance, I'd want it to be like Nanne's, but if I was singing a Melodifestivalen song, I'd want it to be like Linda's--she makes amazing pop songs for which the language really is no barrier (and she's absolutely gorgeous, too). Like so many great Swedish singers, she, too, was on Fame Factory and has competed in Melodifestivalen, making it to the finals both times but never winning. The best place to start with Linda is her album, Ingenting Att Förlora; songs like "'Alla Flickor" and "Jag Ljuger Så Bra" represent the pinnacle of pop music--no joke. However, since Robpop has already posted "Alla Flickor" over at You Call That Life (go read his post--really, it's a lot more informative and funnier than this one) and I'm guessing a lot of people interested in Swedish music already have the album, I'm going to try to split the difference: one of her biggest songs and one song that's not on the album (which a lot of people probably already have and which isn't quite as good as some of the album, but whatever). Under no circumstance should you be living your life without owning "Alla Flickor" and "Jag Ljuger Så Bra," though, so go grab "Alla Flickor" from You Call That Life if you don't already have it. And buy the album, too.

Jag Ljuger Så Bra--Linda's second Melodifestivalen entry, "Jag Ljuger Så Bra" manages to be both beautiful (in large part as a result of the strings it uses) and storming danceable pop. The title means something like "I lie so well," I think. In a battle between her two Melodifestivalen singles, I'd give the edge to "Alla Flickor," which is just so incredibly exuberant that I can't help loving it; there's something about "Jag Ljuger Så Bra" that makes it seem more mature, more well-developed, or fuller, though, while still allowing to to keep that all-important sense of fun.

Natten har en hemlighet--more uptempo pop, sung just as much at full pelt as most of Linda's songs are. The chorus is catchy, but not quite as divine as that of Linda's best songs (though that's a pretty high standard to hold songs to--this song is still great), which makes sense since, as far as I know, this song was only for a Fame Factory compilation, not for separate release anywhere. Like some of her other album songs, this one brings in the guitars a little bit, but they only add to the song's power--this is definitely not guitar-pop.

To buy Linda Bengtzing's album Ingenting Att Förlora, go here (physical) or here (digital); I know some people were disappointed with it, but I absolutely love it and it's very, very much worth buying. At the absolute least, in addition to "Alla Flickor" and "Jag Ljuger Så Bra," you need to have "Han Är Min." And "Värsta Schlagern," too, but I posted that a while ago.

Next up: probably another female singer from Fame Factory.