Given that Amy Winehouse's "Rehab" has become resolutely unfunny over the past month (even before she canceled), the title of "band with that one hit song that everyone loves" at ACL has fallen squarely on the shoulders of Sweden's Peter, Bjorn, and John. The group have been plugging away at their charming blend of pop, rock, and indie since 1999, and are anything but an overnight sensation. Their breakthrough hit "Young Folks" is actually taken from third album Writer's Block, a record that shows surprising consistency, catchiness, and range. The record is chock-a-block with potential singles, so we won't be surprised if another American hit results in the near future. For most of the year, Peter, Bjorn, and John have traveled the world to promote the album. This included an Austin debut at SXSW 2007 where they played eight shows in 72 hours. The guys will return on September 14th for a mid-afternoon set at Zilker Park during day one of the ACL Festival. We caught up with P,B, and J vocalist/guitarist Peter Morén to ask about Kanye West, memorable moments, and A-Ha.

The band were last here in Austin for SXSW, where you may have set a record for "number of rock shows played by one band in the same place in four days." How did you find the experience, and would you do it again?

I would do it again. The thing is, we asked for it. Before SXSW, we had toured Australia and Japan for a long time and had plans to go home. Then everyone said that we had to go to Austin for South By. So we made a deal: put in all the promo and gigs you can in three days to really make it worthwhile and we'll come. It was fun. You become kind of hyper and get into the pace of doing three gigs a day. It also works because everything is close to each other. It wouldn't have worked if it were more spread out and you had to travel a lot. I was really exhausted after the last show, though!

Is it ever upsetting to be so closely identified with one song when you have three full albums of work to showcase? Does having a hit like "Young Folks" ever cause problems with pacing your concerts for newer fans?

It can be hard. Naturally we more or less care for all of our material and sincerely hope people will discover it. At festivals sometimes, people might leave after "Young Folks" which is understandable (a lot of bands are playing), but it's a shame as well. We usually end with "Objects Of My Affection" and "Up Against The Wall," which I think are much stronger as live songs then the hit, which is more of studio song. "Young Folks" is really too soft to end with, so it has to be a bit earlier in the set. On the other hand, if we didn't have that song, people might not even know we existed and they would never come to shows or buy the record, right?

As residents of Sweden, is the thought of 100-degree temperatures during your next Austin show a little scary?

Yes. But we played in a lot of hot places this last year, so I think we can handle it by now.

Do you have a favorite moment from all the touring that's resulting from Writer's Block's success? We assume you've met lots of bands and seen some new and interesting locales this year.

We met some bands that we really like and got to know a bit. Of course there's Fujiya & Miyagi and Au Revoir Simone which we toured with, but also during festival season you meet a lot of great people like CSS. In Australia, we got to know the Swedish band Love Is All from Gothenburg. I love them. And it's always nice to see Camera Obscura. Tracy-Anne sings "Young Folks" really amazing when she gets the chance. Japan was weird and is always a great experience, both the food and the people. And Australia was amazing. But this summer, the best time was at festival in Istanbul. It was situated down by a beach, so we took a swim before the gig and then played as the sun set. Then we stayed an extra day to see some of the sites. Benicassim in Spain was also great. We stayed for a week in Barcelona with our girlfriends and had a great vacation. Barcelona is probably my favourite city. And then the festival itself was also really good! Great audience.

Was the recent guest appearance with Kanye West as amusing for you as it appears on YouTube?

It was really fun. I had no expectations, but it truly was. Maybe not his or our biggest musical highlight ever, but definitively fun!

Have the large number of concerts this year improved your live show in some way? Do you ever feel like you've gotten the formula down, or do you continue to experiment?

We have become a much better live band this year, of course. It would have been strange if we hadn't. But we still try new things and songs now and then. We've got some surprises ready for the September tour.

Your Wikipedia entry lists The Stone Roses and Ride as two possible influences on the group. Who else inspires you to write music?

Anything that's good. Or maybe subconsciously, even bad stuff. The older you get, the wider range of music you are able to get into. This last year I've been down with Afrofunk from the seventies, Brazilian tropicalia, older British and American folk, and a lot of 80's new wave and synth stuff. Most recently I listened to OMD, Human League, A-Ha, New Order, Nick Lowe and Young Marble Giants. An odd mixture, but I guess it all influences you in different ways. We try to listen to new stuff as well though on occasion. Cass McCombs has a great record coming up. He opened for us in LA recently, check him out!

Finally, do most of your songs come from real life or your imagination? Tunes like "Let's Call It Off" sound like a direct personal experience.

Most of them are definitively based on personal stuff, some of which are more direct (like "Call It Off", "Paris 2004", and "Objects Of My Affection.") Others are less so, like "The Chills" and "Young Folks". In the latter case you kind of know what you want to write about and then reach to the back of your mind to find a similar experience in your own past - to get an authentic feeling. We've always worked like that. We basically only can write about ourselves! I promise, though, we will try to develop!

Peter, Bjorn, and John will perform at the Austin City Limits Festival on Friday, September 14th at 3:30pm.

[Peter, Bjorn, and John MySpace]
[Peter, Bjorn, and John Official Site]
[Buy ACL Friday tickets]

Image of Peter, Bjorn, and John at SXSW 2007 via Daniel Morrison on Flickr.