The Hives aren't fans of Eurovision: "It's like the worst song with the most expensive production"

16 May 2025, 21:16 | Updated: 16 May 2025, 21:18

The Hives are not fans of Eurovision

By Jenny Mensah

The Swedish indie rockers told Radio X's Dan O'Connell why they aren't fans of the historic music competition.

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The Hives aren't fans of The Eurovision Song Contest and think its music is the "worst"

The Swedish rockers visited Radio X HQ to talk about everything from their three-decade long career to their upcoming seventh studio album, The Hives Forever Forever the Hives-out on 29th August 2025.

Asked what they thought of Eurovision, which their country is known for excelling in, frontman Pelle Almqvist replied: "I'm not. I think it's this time of year where we're supposed to pretend that that's real music. It's like... my favourite thing is great music with production values. Great music that somebody spent a lot of time and effort on but no money and Eurovision is the opposite of that. It's like the worst song with the most expensive production."

The Hives Pelle Almqvist performs in 2024. Picture: Associated Press/Alamy, Imago / Alamy

Reflecting on how big it is in their home country, guitarist Nicholaus Arson added: "It's pretty huge in Sweden, they sell out whole arenas for days on end. Days. They sell out even the rehearsals."

"I guess the weird thing is we thought every country cared that much about it," admitted Pelle.

He joked: "And England would just throw out out... It's like you get a letter each year (asking) 'D'you want to be in Eurovision. Sure.' And you send some guy in the office or something."

"It's obvious to me that most countries don't spend that much effort on it. I know Greece had like one singer sing 10 songs on TV and they just picked one."

"It's weird though that so much great music comes from Sweden that none of it ends up there".

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Despite their feelings on Eurovision legends, The Hives are fans of another Swedish institution, ABBA, having recorded in several of their studios over the years.

Speaking of ABBA singer and songwriter Benny Andersson in particular, Pelle said: "Benny is awesome. He just showed up at the studio and asked us: 'Hey guys, do you have any hits?'"

Watch them talking about the legend here:

The Hives talk recording with Benny from Abba

In the interview, The Hives also credited The Rolling Stones for inspiring them to make more than three albums.

When reminded about the band's previous stance about quitting after three albums, Pelle recalled: "I think, for me we toured with The Rolling Stones and they seemed to be having so much fun, we thought why would we deny ourselves this in the future?"

The Hives say The Rolling Stones inspired them to stay together

The Hate to Say I Told You So rocker added: "Also the whole reason for only making three albums and then splitting was that we didn't think any band had made three good albums in a row... And then we started liking the fourth one of some bands."

"After touring with the Stones we looked into it and they had released more than three records," offered guitarist Nicholaus Arson," to which Pele joked: "Turns out it was a lot of records."

The Hives Forever Forever the Hives is set for release on 29th August and follows the band's Barely Legal (1997), Veni Vidi Vicious (2000),Tyrannosaurus Hives (2004), The Black and White Album (2007, Lex Hives (2012) and The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons (2023).

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From the record so far is the single Enough Is Enough, which comes alongside its boxing-themed official video:

The Hives - Enough Is Enough (Official Music Video)

The Hives are still delivering electrifying performances with their The Hives Forever Forever The Hives world tour underway.

The dates will see the rockers return to the UK with dates at the likes of Cardiff Utilita Arena, Glasgow OVO Hydro, Manchester Aviva Studios and London's Alexandra Palace.

See their full tour dates at thehives.com and find out how to buy tickets.