Army Of Lovers

Army of Lovers was a Swedish dance music group formed in 1987.

The name of the band alludes to a documentary Armee der Liebenden oder Revolte der Perversen about the German gay rights activist Rosa von Praunheim, the title of which in turn alludes to the Theban Band.

History

The founding members, who had all worked together in a band called Barbie, were Alexander Bard, Jean-Pierre Barda and Camilla Henemark (aka "La Camilla").

Army of Lovers had many Top-10 hits on the Eurochart, the biggest being "Crucified", which was one of the biggest selling European singles of 1991 and stayed at #1 on the Eurochart for eight consecutive weeks.

While Alexander Bard was the "brain" behind the band, Jean-Pierre Barda was the flamboyant lead vocalist on hits such as "Crucified" and "Israelism". Bard and Barda were the only two bandmembers who were present throughout all of the band's various line-ups. When La Camilla left the band in 1991, she was replaced by Michaela Dornonville de la Cour. In 1993, Dominika Peczynski joined, making the band a four-piece. In 1995, Michaela left and Camilla returned.

Although both "Obsession" and "Sexual Revolution" reached the top spot of the Eurocharts, their presence in the US and the UK was limited to club chart successes (though "Crucified" reached the UK top 40 in early 1992). They released five studio albums, made over 20 music videos, and became very successful across Eastern Europe before Bard disbanded the group to concentrate on his new group Vacuum in 1996. The band reformed briefly in 2001.

They also joined forces again in 2007 for two shows, one at G-A-Y in London and one in Moscow. Alexander, Dominika and Jean-Pierre were present but La Camilla was replaced by an inflatable doll. Jean-Pierre, when asked after the show about a possible reunion, stated that there were no plans in the foreseeable future and that their work is a "jewel in time" that won't be repeated.

During their time together, Army Of Lovers became famous for their outlandish visual appearance (many of their costumes were created by Camilla Thulin), and their high camp music videos directed by Fredrik Boklund (some of which were banned by MTV).

Members