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>http://noisey.vice.com/blog/ace-of-bases-secret-nazi-past > > >ACE OF BASE'S SECRET NAZI PAST >SECRET PASTS >By Benjamin Shapiro > > > 2202 > > >The internet has left us with unprecedented skepticism toward >innocence. In the age of Eliot Spitzer and Anthony Weiner, it >seems literally impossible for any public figure to exist >without at least one skeleton clawing its way out of the >closet. We even expect simple pleasures, like reggae-inflected >Swedish pop group Ace of Base, to have a few secrets kicking >around. > >Well, they've got one. > >Ulf Ekberg, a founding member of Ace of Base, started his >career as a neo-Nazi skinhead. > >Not only that, he created a platform for his ideals through >his Nazi punk band, Commit Suiside, which sang songs with >"explicit racist lyrics." How explicit you might ask? Here's a >little example: > >"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!" > >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!" > >In addition to performing with Commit Suiside, Ekberg was also >a member of the Sweden Democrats, a political party that has >publicly "rejected" any ties to neo-Nazism. This is >interesting, considering the fact that the group was founded >by Nazis, and active members still maintain connections with >contemporary hate groups. For example, Anders Klarström, the >former head of the Sweden Democrats. Funny enough, Klarström >was also a member of Commit Suiside with Ekberg. Around the >time that the band disbanded in 1986, Klarström was convicted >of illegal firearms possession, as well as sending death >threats to a Jewish theater director and entertainer named >Hagge Geigert, who was publicly outspoken against racism and >neo-Nazism. At the time, Klarström referred to Geigert as a >"Jew pig," and threatened to burn him. > > >Ekberg's response has been fairly noncommittal. In a 1997 >documentary, he is quoted saying "I told everyone I really >regret what I did. I've closed that book." > >In 1998, a small Swedish record label called Flashback Records >released Uffe Was a Nazi!, a limited-edition collection of >Ekberg's output with Commit Suiside. The cover is a photograph >of Ekberg giving the Nazi salute. Although only 1,000 CDs were >produced, it was an extremely damaging attack on Ekberg's Nazi >past and has become a major collector's item. Uffe Was a Nazi! >includes five songs, like "Rör inte vårt land," which >translates to "Don't Touch Our Country," and "Vit makt, >svartskalleslakt!" which translates to "White Power, Black >Skull Slaughter." It also, amazingly, finds the band >rethinking the white-power, skinhead-punk act Skrewdriver's >"Smash the IRA," translating the lyrics to German and renaming >it "Smash the VPK." The VPK, or "Left Party," is a socialist >and feminist party in Sweden: > > > >Here's how Ekberg found his way into Ace of Base. In August of >1990, a Gothenburg musician named Jonas Berggren was hours >from playing a show with his band, who'd been performing for >several years as either CAD, Tech-Noir, or Kalinin Prospect. >At the last minute, their bass player decided to ditch the >show to go watch the Rolling Stones on the other side of town, >so Berggren asked his friend Ekberg to fill in. A few weeks >later they dubbed their new lineup Ace of Base, and the rest >is history: "All That She Wants" blows up, Happy Nation/The >Sign sells 23 million copies, and the group becomes one of the >decade's most beloved pop acts. > >It's unclear whether or not Berggren, or the rest of Ace of >Base, knew about Ekberg's previous dalliances with neo-Nazism >when they asked him to join. For some reason it's not really >spoken about today, so when you tell your friends about this >stuff, you can expect some jaws hitting the floor. Ekberg's >response has been fairly noncommittal. In a 1997 documentary, >he is quoted saying "I told everyone I really regret what I >did. I've closed that book. I don't want to even talk about >it, that time does not exist in me any more. I closed it and I >threw the book away in 1987. I took the experience from it, I >learned from it. But that life is not me. It's somebody >else." > >Today, according to his website, Ekberg is "a visionary leader >and an eminent businessman." Ekberg is still in Ace of Base, >but he's also working for a strategic-marketing company called >Result, which has teamed with partners like BMW, Fiat, IBM, >and LinkedIn. In 2002, Ekberg founded another >entertainment-marketing company called Legion Network (now >defunct), and worked with Canon, Motorola, and Nokia. From >2002 to 2005, he was an advisor to Nokia on their global music >and fashion strategy. > >But things get even more cryptic. Ekberg is also an active >member of the German Marshall Fund's Asia Program think tank. >Keep in mind, the GMF was formed in the spirit of (and named >after) the Marshall Plan, the post-WWII, US-led >economic-incentive program geared toward preventing the spread >of Soviet communism and opening up recovering nations to >democracy. > >What does all this mean? It's simply incredible that this >stuff hasn't gotten out, especially since it's hidden directly >in plain sight. While researching this article, I spoke with >many other journalists who had never heard this story. In >fact, I've never heard anyone make reference to this secret >history ever in my life. Not to get all Conspiracy Theory >about it, but I just can't imagine a full recovery from this >sort of hatred. What's also frightening is that Ekberg has now >carved himself a position of extreme authority and influence. >For many years, he was directly responsible for the ways in >which brands and consumers connect, and is currently involved >in a grant program specific to geopolitical ideology. > >Did Ekberg use Ace of Base's success as an opportunity to wipe >the slate clean and erase his neo-Nazi past? I'm not sure, and >part of me doubts it, but at press time, I can safely say I'll >never be able to enjoy "The Sign," "Don't Turn Around," or >"All That She Wants" in the same way, ever again.
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