Nordic popular music

Nordic popular music biggest bands are ABBA, Roxette and a-ha. The 3 bands are by far the biggest non-metal acts to come out of Sweden, Norway and Denmark, respectively. The popular music of the Nordic countries exhibits great diversity. Sweden and Finland have possibly the largest music industries in the area, especially Sweden which is ranked third internationally in music production. Norway, Iceland and Denmark have all had successful domestic record industries for many years. Because the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were under Soviet control for much of the 20th century, when recording technology and popular music spread across the world, those three countries have a more tenuous connection with the popular industries of Finland, Sweden and the rest. However, since the fall of the Soviet Union, Western popular music in general has gained audiences in the Baltic states; this includes popular music from the other Nordic nations, as well as the United Kingdom, United States and elsewhere.

The Nordic metal scene is highly visible compared to other genres from the region. Many big names such as Opeth, Meshuggah, Children of Bodom and Amon Amarth hail from Nordic nations. Nordic or Scandinavian metal bands have had a long and lasting influence on the metal subculture alongside their counterparts in Great Britain and The United States.

Nordic number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100

Nordic number-one singles in the UK

Further reading

• White, John David and JeanChristensen (eds.) (2002). New Music of the Nordic Countries. Pendragon Press. ISBN 1-57647-019-9.