Millencolin
The Swedish band with the hard-to-spell name that plays skate/ska-punk/softcore/something (now, that's why I try to keep away from genre definitions!). Not only Swedish, they're even from good old Örebro (it's said famous landmarks from around here are on the cover of Pennybridge Pioneers, so keep your eyes open!)! Their music is fast and their songs are short, on the two albums I've checked, all songs are under three minutes. That means that it's very easy to listen through a whole record, and that's never a bad thing, but that would be the case even if the songs were longer. The songs stick quite easily, and the sound is of that soft kind without sharp edges, meaning your ears won't start to ache after two songs. There is also a total lack of really slow songs, but that's nothing you miss , it's not that kind of music (can't really imagine what a Millencolin ballad ought to sound like ...).
So, the average Millencolin song is pretty fast and full of energy. It's also a bit blue mood-wise. Lyrics are about confusion and disillusion, but they never go all pitch-black or anything, don't worry. There are really funny songs too, like Monkey Boogie (which sounds like some kind of game show theme). The videos tend to be pretty funny too, as well as the covers, take a look for yourself if you get the chance.
