Pelle Almqvist
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Howlin' Pelle Almqvist (born May 29, 1978 in Fagersta, Västmanlands län, Sweden) is the lead singer of Swedish garage rock band The Hives. Like the rest of the band, Almqvist hails from Fagersta, a small town in central Sweden with about 12,000 residents.
Almqvist and his brother Nicholaus formed the band in 1993, and, according to a biography about the band, attracted the attention of promoter/manager/songwriter Randy Fitzsimmons (largely believed to be a fictional character), who propelled the band to fame.
Almqvist is known for being particularly animated during live shows, and his antics on stage have earned the band the title of "The best live band in the world" from Spin Magazine, which also puts Almqvist in their list of the "50 Greatest Frontmen Of All Time." Some of his onstage antics include regularly mixing with the crowd, climbing amps/ ladders/ stairs, and saying very ridiculous, nonsensical and seemingly arrogant things between songs. For example, during the 2005 Big Day Out festival in Sydney, Pelle told the audience "Bad music is the devil and I will be your exorcising priest, helpin' you out! How does that feel Sydney?". At the end of one show, he told the audience, "Thank you for flying Hives Airlines. We hope you had a great flight and decide to return again soon!"
Almqvist's vocals have been described as a mix between Mick Jagger and Iggy Pop.
As of 2005, Almqvist is the boyfriend of Maria Andersson (lead vocalist of the rock band Sahara Hotnights).
In January 2007, Pelle led the P3 Guld Awards. [1]
