I'm thoroughly convinced that Sweden is the best place in the world. It has that infamous bikini team, hockey and lots of snow. But it also has great punk rock from some of the best up-and-comers in today's punk scene.

Millencolin, along with fellow Swedes Bombshell Rocks, 59 Times the Pain and Satanic Surfers are showing us that punk doesn't have to be from NYC or SoCal to rock. This is the third release Millencolin has put out on Epitaph since the band made its U.S. debut with 1996s Life on a Plate. Pennybridge Pioneers shows a lot of growth in the band since its last studio release, 1997s For Monkeys. Millencolin has dropped the offbeat-ska-feel guitar parts from its music and has recorded a melodic, uptempo and emotionally charged album -- the same as before only without the plinky-plink guitar.

The band's lyrics have grown up, too. In other words, no more songs about the monkey boogie or having Vulcan ears -- except "Devil Me," which is very nonsensical: "I eat veggie-junk, and I love Superchunk…"

Millencolin is from Orebro, a town about 18 miles west of Stockholm. Loosely translated into English, Orebro means "pennybridge," hance the title of this album.

The band has toured in the States with the Punk-o-Rama tour and will be playing the VANS Warped Tour in summer 2000. This album was recorded in August '99 at L.A.'s Westbeach Studios with Bad Religion/Epitaph founder Bret Gurewitz behind the boards. Gurewitz even provided the guitar solo on "Highway Donkey."

There's even an acoustic ballad, "The Ballad," for those of you who don't enjoy uptempo rock and are more into the lo-fi indie stuff. LONG LIVE SWEDISH ROCK!

- Aaron Cummins