Peter Bjorn And John Did It Their Way

Peter Bjorn And John's latest long-player has quickly proven itself to be a love it or hate it affair.

Living Thing has only been on store shelves for a month, but the trio — Peter Moren (vocals, guitar), Bjorn Yttling (bass, keyboards, vocals) and John Eriksson (drums, vocals) — are already seeing a distinct trend developing in reviews: critics are either praising the band for avoiding a cookie cutter replica of their hit Writer's Block, or they're lamenting that the Swedes' newfound sparse, electronic pop is boring to the point of unlistenable.

Things could be worse. At least people are talking about it.

"You can't really think too much about what other people think because then you wouldn't be able to do anything," says Moren. "To me, if you listen to all of our records, there are always similarities, and you always hear that it's us in the melodies and lyrics and vocals.

"Living Thing is more about us wanting to change around the arrangements and the production to keep it fresh and different...

"It's a natural step in our progression and I think the instrumental record we made last year [Seaside Rock] was important — to let loose and to have fun in the studio and do whatever we felt like. There were a lot of reggae vibes and funk vibes in those tracks that might have led into Living Thing."

Causal fans will no doubt be disappointed because this new Peter Bjorn And John disc is void of any song that immediately stands out as a possibility to become the next "Young Folks," the Writer's Block's single heard 'round the world.

Again, says Moren, notions like that don't occur to Peter Bjorn And John when they're recording. He also suggests that the songs on Living Thing aren't really as out of left field as everyone seems to think.

"There were a lot of ideas on Writer's Block that have evolved on this record. For instance, 'Young Folks' is basically spare. It's just bass and drums. So we evolved that idea on this record and made it even more spare. It's kind of a minimalist thing that started with Writer's Block. To me, they're pretty similar.

"Living Thing is a pop record to my ears... a big pop hook stadium record."

Here's where you can catch Peter Bjorn And John:

April 24 Newport, KY @ Southgate House
April 25 Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre
April 26 Ottawa, ON @ Capital Music Hall
April 27 Montreal, QC @ Le National
April 28 Boston, MA @ The Paradise Rock Club And Lounge
April 29 New York, NY @ Webster Hall
April 30 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg
May 1 Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
May 2 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
July 9 Pampas, Sweden @ Hultsfredsfestivalen
July 28 Washington, DC @ Nissan Pavilion w/Depeche Mode
July 31 Boston, MA @ Comcast Center For The Performing Arts w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 1 Atlantic City, NJ @ Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 3 New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 10 Seattle, WA @ Key Arena w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 12 Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheater w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 14 San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 16-17 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 20 Santa Barbara, CA @ Santa Barbara County Bowl w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 22 Las Vegas, NV @ Pearl Concert Theatre w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 23 Phoenix, AZ @ U.S. Airways Center w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 25 Salt Lake City, UT @ The E Center w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 27 Denver, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheater w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 29 Dallas, TX @ Superpages.com Center w/Depeche Mode
Aug. 30 Spring, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion w/Depeche Mode
Sept. 1 Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheatre w/Depeche Mode
Sept. 4 Tampa, FL @ Ford Amphitheatre w/Depeche Mode
Sept. 5 Fort Lauderdale, FL @ BankAtlantic Center w/Depeche Mode