INSIDE SPIN CONTRIBUTORS

Takay

Photographer, Coldplay (page 54)

“I was shocked at how nice they were,” the 34-year-old Takay says of Coldplay. “Will [Champion] gave me his jacket out of the blue during their fitting, only five minutes after I had met him!” The photographer, a London resident, has also shot for i-D, Velvet, and Japanese Vogue. First album: Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation

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Adam Sachs Writer, Swedish Exports (page 76) > Sachs expected Sweden to be cold and gloomy, but the New Yorker found that “in summer, it’s kind of this sunny paradise. They have a great sense of how to live life, and I think that comes through in the music.” More of his writing can be found at adamsachs.org. Favorite Swedish song: “The Comeback (Big Slippa Ratatat Remix),” by Shout Out Louds

Gustaf von Arbin Illustrator, Swedish Exports (page 76) < Stockholm native von Arbin (whose brother Carl is Shout Out Louds’ guitarist) hopes the Swedish government’s music appreciation will inspire other nations. “It’s better to spend money on music than on war,” he says. Von Arbin’s work has appeared in O magazine. Favorite Swedish musicians: Håkan Hällström and Lykke Li

Michael Joseph Gross Writer, Coldplay (page 54) < While interviewing Coldplay, Gross was shocked to find that neither Will Champion nor Guy Berryman—both recent fathers—had heard of Dr. Seuss. “I made sure they had copies of The Lorax and Dr. Seuss’s ABC before I left London,” he says. Gross, the author of Starstruck (Bloomsbury USA), has written for Vanity Fair and The New York Times. Favorite Coldplay song: “Viva La Vida”