It’s often later in life that we realize how ignorant we were about the true meanings of our favorite childhood movies or songs. Remember the first time you discovered the penis on the Little Mermaid VHS cover? These epiphanies are never easy. But seriously, how were we supposed to know that when our favorite 90’s feel-good Swedish pop group Ace of Base sang about “The Sign,” they were probably referring to a swastika?
To be fair, not all the members of Ace of Base were neo-nazi racist skinheads; just one. Noisey reports that that Ulf Ekberg, the group’s Ken Doll-esque singer/keyboardist, began his career with Neo-Nazi punk band Commit Suiside. Here’s a sample of some of their lyrics:
“Män i vita kåporna på vägen tågar. Vi njuter när vi huvudena av niggrerna sågar/ Svartskalle, vi hatar dig! Ut, ut, ut, ut! Nordens folk, vakna nu! Skjut, skjut, skjut, skjut!”English translation:
“Men in white hoods march down the road, we enjoy ourselves when we’re sawing off niggers’ heads/ Immigrant, we hate you! Out, out, out, out! Nordic people, wake up now! Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot!”
…Yyyyeah.
Eckberg was also a member of the Nazi-founded Sweden Democrat Party. His buddies include ex- Commit Suiside bandmate Anders Klarsrom, who’s been known to openly promote Nazism, illegally possess firearms, and send death threats to progressives like Hagge Geigert, a human rights activist/ theater director who Klarsrom called a “Jewish Pig”.
Sorry, but there’s more. Eckberg has (disturbingly) made a name for himself in today’s business world, working as a marketing strategist with companies like BMW, IBM, LinkedIn, and Canon. While he has stated that his Nazi days are over, boy are we glad we last-minute-bailed on that road trip to see AOB play Edmonton, Canada in 2011. Yes, they are still a band.
