Fredag 19.juni 2026
It’s with moderate anticipation that the Swedish pop veterans The Cardigans took the Amfi stage at OverOslo on Friday afternoon. More than three decades after their breakthrough, the band remains a beloved name across Scandinavia. Despite being regular visitors of the Norwegian capital, the crowd seemed eager to relive their youth through a 1990s soundtrack.
They opened their set with Rise and Shine, the band’s first ever single. A rather slow choice that didn’t play in favour of Nina Persson’s voice. A little problem that faded away after the 2nd song. The first half of the short set struggled to generate much momentum. The band delivered great songs such as Carnival, You’re the Storm or For What it’s Worth, but the first visible excitement came understandably with Lovefool, an interesting interpretation with a bluesy first 90 seconds followed by the well-known pop version. Then came the rest of the big singles with Erase/Rewind, Hanging Around, I Need Some Fine Wine and You, You Need to Be Nicer, and My Favorite Game. All the essential songs we would expect from a short festival set.
Like many, I became a fan of The Cardigans when I heard First Band on the Moon, and/or after watching Baz Luhrmann’s legendary Romeo + Juliet. That love grew bigger with Grand Turismo and was then reconfirmed with the release of Long Gone Before Daylight. The challenge for Nina Persson and friends is not the musicianship; they still sound great live. But unfortunately, we must put them in the ‘legacy act’ category since the band hasn’t release new material since the excellent Super Extra Gravity in 2005. Unfortunately, yesterday, that ‘legacy’ was almost drifting towards boredom, at least up until Lovefool. They tried to make things slightly more interesting by incorporating covers in their set like Burning Down the House by Talking Heads or even a snippet or Sweet Leaf by Black Sabbath.
I believe The Cardigans delivered enough to satisfy longtime fans, but the show lacked the excitement needed to elevate them beyond a pleasant trip down memory lane. The hits still shine brightly; the journey to them, however, was less compelling. 4/6
Text: Olivier Fillion Boutin
Photography: Anne-Marie Forker
