Discover Narnia – The Magical World of Nordic Music

📷 @bleirvik

Is there anything more magical than an expansive tract of land carpeted with thick pile, powdery snow, imbued with a sense of hush and serenity?  As one soaks up its daz-white emptiness offset by a stunning azure blue sky and high noon sun of the type more associated with the Mediterranean, the purest air seeps into ones lungs, invigorating, healing, giving one an unexpected head-rush of dizzying proportions.  This is mid-Norway in early February and despite its minus three temperatures, it has a clement, almost springlike feel to its late winter weather.

As if by way of silent solidarity, the weather replicates the colourful iridescence and paradoxical cold charm, that like a pair of oversized, ice-tipped wings, so much of the music from this region drapes itself in.

Norwegian music has for many years held me in its thrall, with its effortless scaling of Himalayan vocal heights, pristine tonal clarity and sheer unadulterated enthusiasm.  Time and again, it has drawn me to its Narnia-esque snowscapes, lured by its easy charm and communal spirit, each visit proving a little more enticing, each foray drawing me a little deeper into its ‘norsk kultur’.

Enough of the Danubian hyperbolic flow!  A recent trip to Norway brought about the opportunity for several interesting interviews, some of which were, it was agreed, to be published by a rather large online publication.  However and most regrettably, despite having received written agreement prior to the event, said publication has since reneged on its commitment and those long hunched over transcripts have gone unseen.

So, by way of small reparation to those artists who were promised a space in the much broader columns of that blog which shall remain nameless, I have decided to do a three-part Norwegian special to kick off my new Discover series featuring the best of Nordic music.  The two posts will be made up of a sprinkling of those artists who are doubtless feeling very much aggrieved (you’re not on your own!) and a smattering of others to whom my ears are oft’ inclined.  Enjoy, Derv x

WHO? KATRIN FRODER

Bergen born Katrin Frøder who goes by her surname, is one of many artists signed to the Toothfairy label, who are fast becoming ‘a thing’ in their native patch.  Best known for her unmistakable signature vocal that resides up there somewhere alongside the seraphims, Frøder crafts hypnotic electronic-based music saturated in more technological quirks than would challenge the best spark.

Having taken some time out to recalibrate, the Norwegian who is currently beavering away at penning new songs, says a revitalised return to form has inspired new music even stronger and more alive than that of her self-titled debut.

With several lives dates down and appearances at top festivals under her belt, the singer opted out of the chance to play at SXSW, choosing instead to stay closer to home to continue with her songwriting.  She has most recently been releasing collaborations with fellow label mate and renowned electronic producer Carl Louis, best known this side of the North Sea for his work with ARY.

Quirky, with an idiosyncratic style and a penchant for a bit of blue hue, Frøder is an artist who stands out from the crowd while her unorthodox creative style lends itself to weaving both spiralling sonic fascinators and beat-driven crowd pleasers.  Most recent releases see her featuring on Carl Louis’ Easy and this wistful wonder, Come With Me. Expect new solo music later this year.

WHO? LUDVIG MOON

Each time I go to write a review of LM’s music, I have to return to their FB page to count up just how many of them there are in this sprawling indie horde (there are 7).  Ludvig Moon, signed to Norwegian indie label Riot Factory, are a band who I would classify as ‘still maturing’, a group within touching distance of nailing their sound.

Their debut album Kin had all the ingredients for a runaway success but alas, as seems to be the norm with much indigenous Norwegian ‘pop’ music, it didn’t really figure in their music charts scheme of things.  Highly acclaimed and critically well received, it was, is, give or take the odd hiccup, an extremely well produced compendium of thrillers and seducers.

Ludvig Moon aren’t just another indie band – they are the sum of extremely talented instrumental parts, complete with a duet of vocals that are a synchronised match made in harmony heaven.  While they may look a little top heavy on the instrumental side, and are usually found spilling over the side of any industry standard stage, when you strip back to component level the wealth of the individual threads doesn’t just validate it compounds the splendour of the overall weave.

Ludvig Moon say they’re in a happier place and it shows. What’s also evident is an abundance of freshly charged high voltage energy.

Blankets their latest from the forthcoming All Our Friends EP, due out on 26th April,  (there doesn’t appear to be a pre-order so keep your eyes peeled) is a collaboration with The Little Hands of Asphalt and Team Me, possibly the only band to be able to lay claim to having c.99% of Norway’s musician population pass through its line-up since its inception.

There’s a touch of the poppier side of alt-rockers MSP to this track which drifts nicely back to a mid-90s landscape of Britpop when boys could be girls and girls could be whoever the damn hell they wanted to be.  A video montage of ‘home “let’s get shit-faced” movies’ and archive film footage shows humour, personality and too much tongue.  New music due date, 26/4/2017.

WHO? LOVESPEAKE

Ooh, one sip of this seductive sweetness and you’ll be intoxicated for hours.  An anaesthetic for a bad day, heartbreak or general pain in the ass-iness, Novocaine is our new musical drug of choice as produced by the colourpop hit factory that is Lovespeake.

Every picture tells a story, and this track’s artwork alone, should give music fans a good indication as to the optimistic mindset and rainbow of creativity behind this Norwegian ensemble.  Headed up by Alexander ‘Pav’ Pavelich, who I had the pleasure of running into recently at an Einar Stray gig, Lovespeake and their album DNA were one of the runaway musical successes of 2016.  Their precisely conjured cocktails of sun-kissed melodies, Caribbean beats and retro-disco are the product of the most fertile of musical imaginations combined with a rush of vital dynamism.

Lovespeake cosy up to singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Max Frost, who seems to have a lyrical thing for pills of a certain persuasion #Adderall, on their latest piece of colourful wizardry, with the Texan adding a deep south raspy drawl to counter Pav’s spotless polar falsetto. Two things strike you when you first hear this track – Frost’s deliberately spacious vocal and the song’s ’70s disco groove.

This audacious combination produces something to the effect of a mash-up of a slowed down Someday by The Strokes and A Night To Remember, the 1978 smash by the most classy of all funksters Shalamar.

Like the most delicious dessert laced with bourbon, this is toxic saccharin; a moment on the lips, a myriad soporific trips.

WHO? SIGRID

Uncredited

Following the lead of Adele, Aurora and er, A-Rihanna, newcomer Sigrid goes by forename alone.

The baby sister of singer/songwriter Tellef Raabe, she was singing backing vocals to his headliner at the Norwegian Trondheim Calling festival in February 2016. What a difference a year makes!

Despite the fact that her first single Sun, which she released in 2013 at the tender age of 16, was a smash hit, it wasn’t until she signed to Island Records that the wheels began to seriously turn for this youngster.  With the full force of the Island wind-machine behind her, Don’t Kill My Vibe didn’t just land, it torpedoed its way into our musical space.

Frighteningly perfect pop, it’s like an angry feline with an itch and the odd human to scratch. “You think you’re so important to me, don’t you” she swipes at some envious no-mark, her pitch-perfect vocal sung with that confidence only the young can muster, bouncing off echoey drum-claps and negotiating the melody’s high altitudes with the sort of conviction most of her peers will never achieve.

One of the latterday signs that you have ‘arrived’ is when you acquire your own Wikipedia page … Sigrid, but in case we need to reaffirm just how good this girl is, here’s the acoustic version of her global (yes global!) hit, Kill My Vibe. Watch, listen, shiver.

WHO? JENNY HVAL

Writer, musical architect, experimenter, songsmith and latterday Norwegian icon, Jenny Hval is revered the same way in Norway as Bjork is in Iceland.

A protagonist at the fore of the current zeitgeist of female avant-gardists taking the oft maligned genre of art-pop to the masses, she is as lauded for her outspoken social commentary as she is for her creative brilliance.  If music could be an ‘installation’ in the same way art is, Hval’s work would be first in the door of the Tate Modern swiftly followed by a stint in the Astrup Fearnley.

Her last record Blood Bitch was a highly acclaimed concept album influenced by all things hematic. It was rapturously received by critics who universally heaped it critical acclaim.  Cited by every influential publication in their ‘best of’ lists for 2016, it was the overall winner of the annual Phonofile Nordic Music Prize for best Nordic album, the award being presented to Hval during the renowned By:Larm international music festival.

Most recently Hval has been in the news with her bonafide collaboration with Welsh producer Kelly Lee Owens, who famously reworked her track Kingsize back in 2015.  Recalling Owen’s “personal affinity for water” Anxi slips and slides its techno persona through the musica obscura that lies between ambient and pop. Pulsing through a myriad metamorphoses, it maintains a mood of dark foreboding as Hval intersperses the electronic narrative with bizarre spoken word vocals – a monologue which moves at a pace that is quirkily out of sync with the pull of Owen’s beat.

The song swoops up out of the darkness into a brighter soundscape at the heart of which is a steady techno pulse, until apropos of nothing, it swerves right back down again, into an otherworldly void. Art that manifests a host of unorthodox ideas, music which reaches far beyond its natural boundaries; that is probably how Hval’s work is best described.

Jenny Hval will perform in Dublin’s NCH on 6th October as part of their Perspectives series. Tickets http://www.nch.ie

Nordic music, Norwegian in particular, has evolved and grown so spectacularly over the past decade that it is now hard to remember a time when it wasn’t part of our natural musical make-up.  If you haven’t previously come across any of the five featured artists hopefully this first chapter in a new Nordic themed series will have sufficiently opened your minds to excavate further down into this magical, musical mine.  If not, please do come back, there’s plenty more coming down the tracks.

As usual, no music series worth its salt would come without a complementary playlist.  Here’s our ‘starter for five’, which we will add to week on week with each new blog-post.

DervSwerve

 

Why Norwegian Music Needs Trondheim Calling

Ludvig Moon, Live at Trondheim Calling
Photo Austin Muirhead

Of all the Norwegian music festivals held every year, Trondheim Calling is possibly the most important.  Sure, it doesn’t feature international stars in its line-up like it’s sister fest Øyafestivalen or former ‘ones to watch’ who have cracked their respective national music glass-ceilings as seen at by:Larm, but what it does, it does exceedingly well.  More importantly, what it sets out to achieve – showcase upcoming Norwegian musical talent to a wide and diverse audience – it nails, with aplomb.

While Klubb-Øya features emerging artists for a pre-festival one night only, and Off:Larm sees newbies playing venues on the the periphery of the main festival campus, Trondheim Calling gives the rising stars of Norway’s music scene its complete attention. They are the cogs on which its ever growing wheel turns, central to its very being, not accessories to the fact.

No other music festival in Norway invests as much time, energy and money in importing international delegates to help export indigenous talent.  With the assistance of industry bigwigs like Music Norway, NRK P3 and a plethora of press, bookers, agents and PR folks, as well as a horde of volunteers, the festival organising committee brings together a crack team of international industry heavies to mentor, advise, critique and encourage.

Central to the festival is a three day conference programme put together with complete interactivity in mind. It includes workshops, Q&A, presentations, interviews (this year saw mega-watt Talk Talk producer Phill Brown in conversation with Gary Bromham), as well as interactive studio, networking and pitching sessions.

Over the course of three days, a carefully selected expert delegation impart cold hard industry facts, deliver priceless advice and recount a variety of personal and business anecdotes, often with hilarious results.  A little levity is always good to soften a professional environ, which for inexperienced ‘just wanna make music’ musicians, can be more than a little daunting.  Daytime TC is a well oiled, professionally run, conference machine.

This year’s festival saw a new addition to its programme in the form of a pitch/mentoring experimental concept which the organisers hoped would better connect the conference and concert programmes.  Entitled ‘Norway Calling’ it centred around seven acts presenting and playing to an international listening panel who subsequently offered feedback on the artist’s live performance, chosen song(s) and promo-pitching techniques.  The aim was to help give “export ready” artists a bit of an edge, to add a little bit of polish to diamonds still in the rough!

The seven acts featured in the inaugural session were Ludvig Moon, Henrik the Artist, Frøder, Dreamarcher, AGY, Elsa & Emilie and Hajk.  Each act had to make a three minute presentation to all of the festival delegation – national and international – which was then followed up with a series of pre-arranged speed-networking sessions with mentors of the artist’s choice.

Frøder

The seven presentations of mixed quality, were very diverse indeed, ranging from heartfelt ad lib to Michael Moore style docu-films. What quickly became apparent were the varying levels of preparedness, assuredness and nous with which each act approached and handled their pitch.  What was also evident was the level to which the acts had had their presenting skills honed by their label/management/pr teams, or not.

This is why festivals like Trondheim Calling are so, so important to indigenous emerging artists.  In 2017, it’s no longer just about the music, the PA system or even the lyrics. These days music artists need to be semi-professional sales people on top of being highly skilled creatives.  They need to know how, when and where to sell themselves and their music.  How to grab the attention of bookers and press suffering from indie overload and electronic ennui.

Like all ‘aspiring’ brands, and ultimately branding is an integral piece of the holy grail jigsaw, bands need an USP. “This is what I’ve always wanted to do since I was a child” no longer cuts it in a world spliced open by social media apps giving endless platforms to anyone and everyone from wannabe vlogger to gottabe fashion stylist. Today’s music artists don’t just need a new, unique sound, they also need a well honed elevator pitch!!

The TC conference programme aims to take musicians out of their comfort zones, opening them up to facts and figures to which they might not normally have access.  With self-promotion, marketing and quality music writing focal points of the conference programme, the organising committee has ensured that Trondheim Calling stands apart from its festival peers.

By corralling delegates in a single festival space, TC affords Norway’s rising star musicians an unparalleled opportunity to speed-date their way around industry connoisseurs and aficionados, networking and connecting with people who in either the immediate or long terms, may be able to help them get onto the next rung of the music ladder.

Nocturnal TC is “all about the bass” and 2017’s line-up showcased the best of the latest crop of musicians who remain just under the parapet. Wall to wall music in every shape and shade performed by more than 70 artists, belts out from 10+ cross-Trondheim venues. With the bars and clubs in close quarters, it’s easy to hop from one venue to the next as one zig zags their way through jam packed, spoilt for choice nightly schedules.

Amish 82 Live at Rockheim

With all tickets sold out, gaining entry to some of the smaller venues proved impossible, as anyone who turned up to bijou Moskus to see Pom Poko found out.  However, in the main, queues moved quickly and gaining access to the majority of live performances was relatively easy.  Strong, energised performances and hyped up, super enthusiastic audiences were the order of the festival.  Yes, there were a few sound issues, but Albert Hall aside, aren’t there always!

What the artists playing TC lack in major league experience and slickly polished production they make up for in unbridled passion, raw undiluted talent and an energy of a wattage second only to that of the national grid.  Audience after audience radiated excitement, danced exuberantly and sing-screamed appreciation.  And at the end of a live set, no artist can ask for better than that.

In the world of emerging talent the unparalleled role played by Trondheim Calling is pivotal.  This mid-Winter festival fulfils its brief and more. A three day support and networking hub for musical ingenues by day, stellar sonic showcase of rising stars that more than entertains cross-cultural, cross-generational audiences by night.  It’s the perfect destination-fest for lovers of both music and travel alike.

Details of Trondheim Calling 2018 can be found here.  Norwegian Airlines and SAS fly direct to Trondheim from multiple UK locations, or via Oslo or Stockholm from Dublin.  The Clarion Hotel & Congress Trondheim is the festival’s HQ; rates and details can be found on their website.

Northern HI-Lights – The Best Nordic Songs of 2016 P2 [Long Read]

Stine Grøn

Best Nordic Songs of 2016 P1 posted yesterday and which you can catch up on here, featured randomly ranked songs from 25-11.

Here in Part 2, I’m delighted to give you a Best of 2016 Top Ten from the Nordic wonder-region.

Making up this list one fact has become strikingly apparent – there is a growing wealth of female talent leading the way in the Nordic region!  A welcome sight to see a “best of” dominated by female artists.  And no, this wasn’t deliberate, or a subconscious act of auto-feminism.  This list emerged quite spontaneously, based on tracks that I felt best reflected the immense bed of talent spread across the countries that make up this region.

Which leads me into the second standout fact; the distinct lack of entries from Sweden.  In this respect one can’t been too sure if this ‘omission’ reflects a chink in one’s own blogging armour, or a distinct lack of quality music coming from what was once the jewel in the Nordic crown.

My own opinion is that 2016 was an exceptionally strong year for Nordic music and I’d like to think that this top 10 selection reflects accurately the prodigious creativity and wide diversity of artists and their idiosyncratic sounds from across this region.

ARY by A1K3

10. ARY – The End (Nor)

Intelligent, bright, funny, unpretentious and wildly talented, Trondheim native ARY is a shining star whose iridescence lights up the often chilly world of cold electronica.  A contradiction in vocal terms – as invitingly warm as it is chilled by the high altitudes to which stretches with ease, hers is a voice that is as beguiling as it is charmingly innocent. Capable of crafting the most delicious, efficacious mood-stirrers, ARY is no Sabrina.

Driven by the need to be self-sufficient and with the smarts to back it up, ARY has started self-producing, ipso factor future releases should see her name extend beyond songwriting to production credits.  The quirky, intoxicating insouciance and dreamy textures of ‘The End’, perfectly exemplify this upcoming Norwegian’s creative talents and ingenuity.  Picked up by the producers of ‘Supervention 2’ it marked ARY’s third 2016 contribution to TV/Film scores.  Where next?  SXSW for one!

9. Pascal Pinon – Skammdegi (Ice)

Sisters Jófríður and Ásthildur Ákadóttir are Pascal Pinon.  Hailing from Reykjavík, Iceland, they’ve been making music together and with friends since their mid teens.  Indeed you might recognise the name of Jófríður from that other Icelandic star, Samaris, whose album ‘Black Lights’ was one of the Icelandic highlights of 2016.

As Pascal Pinon the sisters released ‘Sundur‘, an album of exquisite temperament, flawless interpetation and ingenious orchestration.  It was what one could describe as having a “rarefied beauty” set in an almost intangible soundscape.

‘Skammdegi’ meaning ‘midwinter’ accounts for one of two native language tracks on the album – the other being the hauntingly beautiful Ást.

A vocal menagerie, untouchable in its fragility, Skammdegi is a sublime confluence of two vocal streams book-ended by sparse, clear instrumental lines. Unaware of its lyrical content/translation, I have no knowledge of its words but I can feel its spirit and see its colours.  And isn’t part of its wonder in its otherworldly mystery?

Like practically every other Nordic artist we’ve featured, Pascal Pinon ventured as far as London but alas, failed to cross the Irish Sea.  They start back gigging February with stints in Berlin and Copenhagen – see their FB page for details.  Hopefully, 2017 will see Pascal Pinon, along with other Nordic acts, visit these shores – if only to honour the Viking invasion?

8. Blondage – Dive (Den)

One of the most moreish Nordic dance tracks of 2016, ‘Dive’ saw Blondage ramp it up more notches than Valentino had on his bedpost.  Sexy, strong, lush, addictive beats – ‘Dive’ is what Danish duo Esben Andersen and Pernille Smith-Sivertsen do best. Blondage fuse creative curiosity and imaginative ingenuity with a basic dance roux to create fluid, electrifying, experimental tracks as unorthodox as they are diverse.

2016 saw the Rangleklods chrysalis turn into the glittering Blondage butterfly whose off-kilter electronica bleeds through the fabric of music fundamentals to expose an originality and daring so often found lacking in the electro-pop scene.  Currently touring Europe, this year should see the Danes back in studio crafting more idiosyncratic sounds and adrenaline pumping beats.

7. Amish 82 feat. Kirsti Huke – My Name (Nor)

It’s been a very long time since I heard any act do ‘contemporary vintage’ (make sense of that if you will!) with such consummate finesse as Amish 82.  Their sound revolves around ’80s analogue but with its latter-day arrangement style and precision production, it is past meets present in perfect harmony.

The resultant output from their collaboration with jazz singer Kirsti Huke, is suave retro meets modern elegant to which Huke, with her smooth, opaline vocal adds a subtle touch of bygone glamour.  It’s not the norm to put the word sophisticated in the same sentence as ’80s retro, but that’s just what this song it.  A sumptuous, grown up, remoulding of everything that was great about ’80s music with a dash of debonair and sweep of sophistication.

Amish 82 play the upcoming Tronheim Calling festival to which YT is travelling.  Seeing this band of vintage vibing troubadours play live should be an experience to remember!

https://soundcloud.com/no-forevers/amish-82-my-name-feat-kirsti-huke-single-edit

6. Agnes Obel – Familiar (Den)

2016 was the year the name Agnes Obel became much more ‘familiar’ to music fans outside of her native Denmark! Unafraid to play the game her way, Obel like her contemporaries Anna von Hausswolff and Joanna Newsom, has always shaken a stick at the mainstream by following her gut and staying true to her classically inspired roots.  A deep dive into the conceptual, her 2016 album, ‘Citizen of Glass’ takes a step beyond its predecessors in terms of lyrical and instrumental ingenuity.  While it stays true to cinematic form and otherworldly, breathtaking vocal, it is a masterclass in innovative string and piano composition.

Highlight of the album was the single, ‘Familiar’, the sheer beauty of which took radio/blogs/internet by storm.  Vocal distortions gave a modern twist to vintage cut-glass vocals.  Set against a backdrop of the starkest piano and magnificent of string sequences, the mood of ‘Familiar’ rises and falls like the dance of Obel’s voice.  Pure magic.  Another missed live on my part (I made quite the habit of this in 2016), Agnel Obel is about to set her cap at the US which will be followed in late Spring by a return to Europe.

Okay so when I said this list was in no particular order, we-ell I might have told a teency white one. While 25-6 are 100% completely random, listings 5-1 are firm top fives and ranked accordingly.

Royksopp & Susanne Sundfor

5. Röyksopp feat. Susanne Sundfur – Never Ever (Nor)

Since discovering the Röyksund cover of DM’s ‘Ice Machine’ I’ve been a fan of their colourful, pure pop chemistry.  Röyksopp, masters of rainbow hued, adrenaline pumping, serotonin generating beats, put colour and warmth into the cheeks and timbre of Norway’s Ice Queen.  In return, Sundfur gives a classy gloss of Nordic ‘je ne sais quoi‘ to their urban beats.  Win/win.  This symmetry of this collaborative project remains unparalleled within the industry.  They are the Nordic royal family of musical invention.

‘Never Ever’, the surprise single released just days if not hours after Sundfur’s unexpected gift of the download of ‘Reincarnation’, is a hotbed of jackhammer percussive beats, frenergetic synths and electronic whirling dervishes galore. After a 2016 ‘gap year’ so to speak, big things are expected from Susanne Sundfur for 2017 (we know she’s been in studio so a release is imminent). Röyksopp, masters of their own destiny, will no doubt continue to collaborate and reinvent the poptastic disco wheel.  Both are on the “live performance” to do list 2017.

4. Frøkedal – The Sign (Nor)

February 2016 saw the culmination of a year’s worth of singles, EPs and touring with the release of Norwegian Anne Lise Frøkedal’s debut album, ‘Hold on Dreamer’. Glorious, challenging, honest, raw, gentle, observant, euphoric, poetic, mindful – it is life through a lens as seen by someone with a most insightful vision.  Perhaps the prettiest track on the album is ‘Cherry Trees’, a song inspired the annual cherry blossom season. A pink-hued natural Gloria, a love of which I share having two Cherry trees outside my own home.

That said, the title of standout has to go to ‘The Sign’, which, simply put, is positivity in a song.  If you could bottle positive euphoria and set it to music, ‘The Sign’ would be it. Uplifting, energised melodies skip through rambunctious drumming, their feelgood mood enhanced by Frøkedal’s animated, perfectly delightful voice.  Superficially simple, subliminally faultless.  Having pretty much toured the world Frøkedal is currently enjoying some mid-Winter downtime whilst enjoying the glow of having ‘Hold on Dreamer’ nominated for a Spelleman award!  #Applause.

3. EERA – White Water (Nor)

One of the huge successes of the Norwegian Indie scene last year was London based EERA. Her stark and deeply personal lyrics, shrouded in nature and reality, are pure poetry set against scores ranging from sparse alt-rock balladry to sensuous grunge.  Speaking of which, her single ‘White Water’ was quite possibly the most seductive indie-grunge heard this side of Nirvana.

‘White Water’ has more charge than the electrical currents coursing through the veins of its guitar lines.  Fraught, intense, gritty, dark, sensual – it’s all of that and more.  Yet, it contains the most unaffected, untouched vocal moments – distant, pure and wistful – that take the sexual edge off somewhat. Proving that this song is “all that and then some” it was snapped up by top 2FM DJ, Dan Hegarty, noted for supporting emerging artists, who played it on both his day and nighttime shows!  Big things are in store for this lady in 2017 … the bar has been set, expectations are high!  No pressure then.

2. Hanne Kolstø – Stein / Saks (Nor)

If proof were ever needed that you don’t need to understand the lingo to love the song and get the sentiment ‘Stein / Saks’ is it! The most beautifully proportioned song to come out of Norway in 2016, it combines happiness with positivity with sentiment with sunny melodies and instrumental minimalism.  Net result – the perfect upbeat pop song.  It’s a simple formula that works perfectly.

Hanne Kolstø is one of Norway’s most renowned female solo artists.  A musician who has run the gamut of live acoustic, punk, kick-ass rock-pop and tear-stained balladry.  Whatever she does, Kolstø does it with breathtaking honesty and a passion unequalled by many of her peers (with the possible exception of the afore-mentioned ALF).

Her acoustic album ‘Live at Toyenkirken’ was a spiritual masterpiece and her second, (yes second), album of 2016, ‘Fest Blikket’ is a perfectly balanced blend of Summery melodies, electronic escapades, delicious piano sequences, feisty guitars and that honest and true vocal that is HK’s signature.  The fact that it’s in Norwegian makes the journey all the more mysterious!

Abundantly talented and infinitely far-seeing, Hanne Kolstø is a musical nomad and natural poet who defies definition.  It is for that very reason, along with her indefatigable spirit and crazily good songs that I rate her as the best Nordic female artist today.

1. IRAH – Fast Travelling (Den)

Finally we’ve arrived at the top Nordic song of 2016.

Tbh IRAH were a slow burn with me. While I appreciated the purity of their music and the conviction of its lyrical direction, it just didn’t click.  Not until I re-listened to ‘Fast Travelling’ just before its release.

Like a fog lifting, the picture became clear and the jigsaw fell into place.  The interconnecting themes, the lyrical objective, the continuum of mindful meditation and peaceful intent suddenly became apparent.  It finally all made sense.

‘Fast Travelling’ is without doubt one of the most thoughtful, emotionally intelligent, spiritually uplifting, and transcendental compositions I’ve ever heard.  And at its core beats a most beautiful heart.  If I tried to put into words how this song affects me I’d fail; instead I’ll link you to my review.  An hypnosis of rolling percussion soothes, while iridescent colour-blush synths add a warming glow. But it is the enchanting, utter loveliness of Stine Grøn’s vocal that elevates this song to musical nirvana.

2016 saw IRAH go from nowhere to everywhere so much so that 2017 should see them go even further!  If I had one last wish, it would be to see this musical meditation, this spiritual transcendence live in 2017.

If you have actually managed to get to the end of this Top 25 well done, go get a drink and for your divertissement, here’s a full Spotify playlist of the featured tracks.  Hopefully you’ll enjoy it as much as I did and still do.  Happy New Year and if 2017 brings half the wealth of treasures that 2016 did, we’ll be immersed in a soundscape of musical gold!

Northern HI-Lights – The Best Nordic Songs of 2016 P1 [Long Read]

Foto Ming Unn

As I sit staring at a blank screen a thought occurs … “where the hell do I start?”

There have been so many searingly good ‘sonicisms’ out of the Nordic belt in 2016 that choosing a “best of” list comprising a dozen songs is nothing more than an “understatement” of the regions achievements.  One has neither the time, patience, nor the resources of Nordic Playlist to conjure up a ‘decameron’, yet a mere dozen songs seems like, we-ll, an insult to the many, many artists whose perfectly crafted gems shall go unheralded in this brief retrospective.

So back to ground zero and the conundrum of where and with whom to start proceedings.

So many great tunes, so many personal faves.  Surely the best tack is to include those ass-kicking, thought provoking songs that resonated, the sparklers that lit up the midnight darkness, and the emotional tendrils that reached out and touched one’s soul with their tenderness, rawness and honesty.  And let’s not forget those that, well to put it simply, just made us smile.

So without further ado, and in no particular order of merit, here’s Part 1 of a medley of some of the best Nordic tracks of 2016. Songs which for a myriad reasons, professionally and personally, impacted, ignited, resonated, uplifted, calmed, transported and generally made what was quite the difficult year, a lot more pleasant and easier to bear.

Part 1 : 25 – 11

25. Sweet Tempest – The Truth (Den)

It’s songs like ‘The Truth’ for which the word “delightful” were coined. Delightful, wistful vocals float through the most warming of melodies making this track a thoroughly joyous affair.  Hailing from Copenhagen, Sweet Tempest have all that Scandi quirkiness and unique sense of style we’ve witnessed in other well known Danes like Stine Grøn and Birgitte Hjort Sørensen. Radiating happy contentment and positively emitting ‘hygge’ (if it can be emitted) Sweet Tempest are to Bohemian charm what Hans Christian Andersen was to fairytales.  Having laid a solid foundation in 2016, expect great things from this duo in the new year.

24. Chain Wallet – Muted Colours (Nor)

This Bergen trio provided Øyafestivalen with one of its best Klubbdagen performances and courtesy of providence, I found myself, right place, right time in front of one of the best live acts of 2016.  Judging by the hyped up crowd, they thought the same!  A muddle of Prefab Sprout and 80s nostalgia interwoven through a mesh of guitars, and the result is 21C pop perfection. Chain Wallet play with an enthusiastic energy and animation that belie the wistful melancholia drifting through their songs.  A self-titled album received waves of positive vibes.  As the song goes, “things can only get better”.

23. Panda Panda – New Friends (Nor)

D Mc Cloat

The first of two entries from the boutique Riot Factory label, indie band Panda Panda are open, warm, funny, quirky, random and as dynamic as their home-video for New Friends would suggest. Young, brimful of colourful creativity and as energetic as they are ambitious, this is a band who, right break/right time, could set fire to the Norwegian indie scene. ‘New Friends’ was already popular with their loyal cohort of fans before its online release.  Innovative and catchy, unyielding to norms, it blurs lines between strident indie and dreamy pop. Will a debut full length be on the cards for 2017?  One hopes so.

22. Vök – Waiting (Ice)

‘Waiting’ is a track positively dripping with elegance and class.  Slick, immaculately tailored and slightly stand-offish like a well heeled Sloane, this track reeks of confidence.  If Carlsberg did Iceland electronica it would be Vök!  Cool, competent, understated, Vök make intelligent, mature music that’s far from the black and white affair it first seems.  This is more than just electronic music – it pushed experimental boundaries in the most controlled and stylish of ways.  Margrét Rán’s somewhat detached vocal blows an Arctic chill across a spectrum of undulating and spiralling synth patterns.  This is a band on the cusp of reaching their zenith.

21. Masasolo – Really Thought She Loved Me (Den)

Masasolo – what’s not to love, eh?  Cool, laid-back, slacker vibes meets Summer tinged psych.  There’s nothing remotely ‘rush hour’ about their mellowed out sound, which simply floats.  To be honest, it was a toss up between this and ‘How it Feels’ but the chilled out, dreamy vibe of ‘Really Thought’ won me over. Gentle, thoughtful, soothing, inviting – the type of touching vocal and relaxed sounds combo of which the world needs more!

The first of two appearances by blond strummer, Jacob ‘Jake’ Haubjerg, more of whom anon.

20. Lumikide – Golden (Nor)

Foto: Magnus Haaland

One of the many happy accidents of 2016, I came across Lumikide when researching another band Antler, with whom they share drummer Axel Skalstad.  One month later I found myself sharing air at Oya with band member Martin Tonne. Norway is like that!  One big friendly loop.  ‘Golden’ is as golden does – lustrous, iridescent indie-pop overflowing with gilt edged melodies and jazz infused percussion courtesy of the afore-mentioned Axel. Rich, bewitching vocals take already soaring sequences to dizzying heights, but not to the extent that it all becomes otherworldly and flimsy.  This is gauze swathed punchy pop, arranged with precision and underpinned by ‘crack’ instrumentation.  Lumikide are currently working on new material – can’t wait.

19. Electric Eye – Bless, Al Lover Remix (Nor)

Can anyone else hear the ‘Even Better Than The Real Thing’ Edge vibe to the guitar hook around which this track revolves?  One of THE top lives acts at Øya ’16, the varnish was all but bubbling on the woodwork such was the scorch coming from those guitars. EE are seasoned pros who know their audience and give them what they want.  Purveyors of retro psych updated to blend perfectly into a modern haze, this outfit from Bergen are one of the best acts in Norway right now.  Hot from success at Roskilde and SXSW, 2017 should see them light up even bigger and better festivals.  Unfort I couldn’t find a YT link to the Al Lover remix so behold, ‘Bless’ in all its original splendour!

18. Fufanu – Ballerina in the Rain, Nick Zinner Remix (Ice)

Einarssonx2 make up Icelandic post-rock outfit Fufanu.  Kaktus E owns vocal duties while Guðlaugur E (pronounce that I dare you) does guitars. With remixes dropping from the renowned fingertips of Damon Albarn and Nick Zinner, stints at Iceland Airwaves and a second album, ‘Sports’ in the can (due out in Feb) you could say they had a pretty good 2016. Frontman Kaktus is part Iggy Pop, part Liam Gallagher: hidden in an undergrowth of sullen, indifferent swagger fizzes sassy attitude and possibly a stick of gelignite.  ‘Ballerina’ is one of those tracks whose toxicity knows no bounds.  Its darkly hypnotic guitars, languid vocals and brooding, volcanic atmosphere pack a powerful punch! Fufanu are about to hit the UK with a bang details & would you believe my luck, are playing Oslo’s By:larm the year I can’t go!

17. Palace Winter – Soft Machine (Den)

Antipodean Carl Coleman caught the eye of Danish synth maestro Caspar Hesselager two years ago and the rest as they say is history.  Palace Winter’s debut album, ‘Waiting for the World to Turn’ which dropped in June and was greeted with a myriad of multi-star reviews, has fired these musical innovators into an out of orbit trajectory ie. the cosmic highway travelled by darlings of Lauren Laverne, Liz Kershaw and Tom Robinson! Standout single ‘Soft Machine’ is their best track to-date.  Subtle and paired back, it is a masterclass in tender elegance and restraint, in which the symmetry between Coleman’s country influences and Hesslager’s synth-led ingenuity is sheer perfection.  With By:larm, Roskilde and Green Man in the 2016 bag, 2017 should bring their sounds to an even wider audience.

PS – the afore-mentioned Masasolo muso, Jake, spellbinds (the word playing would be an insult) some electric guitar & then some with PW for their lives!

16. Highasakite – Golden Ticket (Nor)

What’s to say that hasn’t been said of a year that saw this five-piece shoot from ground zero to stratosphere without so much as breaking a sweat. Practically unheard of outside of Norway before touring with OMAM, Highasakite smelt the first blood of success and came back with album ‘Camp Echo’ plus a list of tour dates that saw them burn through the capitals of Europe, speed through a whistlestop of the US, and take a quick dive Down Under.  All of which will be neatly rounded off by a sold out arena show in their native Oslo this coming March.  Put simply, Highasakite are to Norway what Zara Larsson is to Sweden. In their own words, they’ve “got a golden ticket” ..Watch this space in 2017. This band is going global!

15. Ponette – Hunt Them Down (Nor)

‘Hunt Them Down’ is pure Nordic Noir.  An intensely dark, melodrama filled nightscape illuminated by starbursts of synth fireworks and Helene Svaland’s angelic, ice-tipped vocal, this is the onyx jewel in the Ponette EP crown.  So compellingly good is this song that percussion wizard Trond Bersu of afore-mentioned Highasakite fame, made time in his jam-packed itinerary to craft a rather lush remix of it.  If that ain’t a seal of approval. Recently signed to NO FOREVERS, Ponette are as yet still under the industry radar.  A band to watch out for in 2017.

14. Cats of Transnistria – Thunder Comes (Fin)

Finns Cats of Transnistria served up one of the most stunningly beautiful albums of 2016. Fact. A visceral sonic evocation, ‘Divine’ is woven through imaginative interplay of minimalist soundscapes and Gothic fantasies, expertly arranged and delivered with considerable emotional intensity. Lifted from the album, ‘Thunder Comes’, is a quirky, off-kilter confection of melancholic acoustic, scratchy amps and haunting vocals that is as disturbing as it is mesmerising. The sepia-stained, grainy visual is a perfect fit. Made up of Helsinki based Tuomas Alatalo and Henna Emilia Hietamäki, this duo has had a busy year playing promotional lives in the most out of the way (and we hope exotic) of Arctic locations.  Where will they take their sound or their sound take them in 2017?

13. Bendik – Kriger (Nor)

Bendik

Possibly one of the most uniquely talented and enigmatic of Norwegian music artists to remain a Nordic secret treasure.  Why? Because Silje Halstensen aka Bendik sings in her native tongue.  One can’t help feeling that if, like Icelandic trio Samaris, she ever decides to record any of her thrillingly good songs in English and I’m not for one minute suggesting she should, Bendik would, like all good cream, rise to the top of the music Eurozone.  With a voice that is both at once as powerful as a Boeing engine and soft as a velvet dream, Bendik soars through compelling and passionate synth-fused soft-rock backdrops to create the perfect alt-pop landscape.  I for one, am very much looking forward to hearing what 2017 brings from this genuinely raw and undiluted talent.

12. Snøskred – Blurred Out Lights (Nor)

What do you get when you group four talented, witty, savvy and insightful musicians?  A classy, slick quartet called Snøskred is what.  Erudite, verbose, adept, thinkers outside the lyrical box, this Norwegian four-piece produced one of the best albums of 2016 – ‘Empty House’.  The sound is American, the style is suave, the lyrics thought provoking and the instrumentation consummate.  ‘Blurred Out Lights’ which sadly wasn’t released as a single, is a song for driving in the dark on an unlit, empty road to nowhere.  It dawdles along nicely following a REM-esque line in country until apropos of nothing it brews up a right instrumental storm. One can’t help wondering what would have happened had this album dropped in the US: it has all the sterling hallmarks and polished production to which the Americans are drawn like bees to manuka.  A new album is in the offing for 2017.

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11. Trance Frendz – 23:17 (Ice/Ger)

There aren’t any words in the dictionary to describe the emotional waves that roll over me when I hear the music of Olafur Arnalds and Nils Frahm, the most celebrated keyboardists/pianists/composers of contemporary alt-classical – again one word will not suffice to define the limitless talents of both men.  23:17 is one cog in the wonder wheel that is the Trance Frendz live album, off the hoof improv recorded in Frahm’s Berlin studio over the course of an evening and on into the early hours. The sheer gentleness of Arnalds’s touch, the delicacy of those loops as they fade in and out through Frahm’s altogether darker, more intense sequences is enough to give me goosebumps. Having tried and failed (miserably) to see them play live, both individually and together, I have made this one of my top “must do” missions of 2017.  Expect more brilliance form Arnalds/Frahm this year; nothing that they produce, together or in their own right, ever ceases to amaze.  23:17 starts at 15:22 (and no, that’s not a joke!).

Tune in next time for Part 2 when I reveal tracks 10-1.

 

Therese Aune Records Enchanting Farao Cover For Kultmucke

therese-aune-photo sara-angelica-spilling

“In the fear of being lonely I tried it all to get you back
There were things you never told me Like your heart was painted black”
So run the opening lines of Berlin based alt-pop cum indie artist Farao‘s 2013 single, ‘Tell A Lie‘, a cover version of which has just been released by her fellow Nord, Therese Aune as part of a series of exclusive covers featured by the German Kultmucke publication.

Farao’s original is an even-tempered electro-pop ballad – measured, simplex, bleak in aspect with funereal organ-like synths creating a dark underbelly penetrated by tight guitar loops, jagged handclaps and a refracting click track.  The Norwegian’s voice is as light as a feather and cool as a Winter’s dawn.  Yet, despite the regretful melancholic sentiment that lies at the heart of the song, Farao’s beguiling vocal interpretation remains clear, poised, at times almost detached from the track’s emotional resonance.

Step forward Therese Aune with a dazzling electronic arrangement that takes the tempo and spirit of the song to another level. So delightful is this interpretation that if one didn’t know the lyrics one’s reaction would be one of instant joy!  Aune’s expressive vocal dances around the words and pirouettes between light-hearted synth reps and electro-beats.  It’s as uplifting and energised as Farao’s version is coolly sophisticated.  Two sides of the one song, as diverse as they are impressive.

Covers are always difficult and emulating the original should be avoided at all costs.  With her version of ‘Tell A Lie’ Therese Aune has taken what was obviously a deeply personal song and made it very much her own.  By re-choreographing it she has put her own unique stamp on this gloriously uncomplicated complex song.  Bravo.

Album Review: Ludvig Moon ‘Kin’

samfunnet-bislet-ludvig-moon

The danger with indie is that if there isn’t sufficient diversity of theme, tempo, and instrumental style, it can quickly segue into one continuous jangle cum drone, depending on which line the artist is peddling.

In this regard, Norwegian newcomers Ludvig Moon, appear to have done their utmost to unfurl their creative tendrils in several directions to try to ensure that debut album ‘Kin’, stretches across a broader than generic indie spectrum. For the best part, they have succeeded.

Ludvig Moon have been steadily honing their clearly identifiable sound since the 2014 release of their self-titled debut EP.  It is a testament to their synchronicity as a unit that this multi-member outfit has developed such a tightly woven sound – no mean feat in a group where seven musicians are competing to be heard.  Or maybe that is the secret, that together they recognise the Ludvig Moon whole is greater than the sum of its individual parts.

This septet (see below for the roll call) is a talented cohort with a lot of genuine promise, who produce highly evocative and at times magical material.  As a group, they often seem to be reaching for a sound bigger than the confines of their immediate Oslo environs. One whose sound almost over-reaches; almost.  It certainly spills over beyond the brim of indie, flowing through the outer reaches of American rock,  alt-rock and pop punk – think Green Day, Smashing Pumpkins and Ash.

Whether by accident or design, the sound at which they have arrived, pulls from the vestiges of the glory days of ’80s pop-punk and the classic ’90s indie-rock sounds both defined and dominated by the big American ‘supers’. Eleven track ‘Kin’ spreads its wings across this cross-generational spectrum, dipping and diving into styles coloured by the past blended with that freshness and effervescent urgency that is the trademark of youth.

After a string addled mini-melodrama of an intro, a mere whisper bookended by some windswept cymbals crashing off the shore, the album cracks open with the propulsive ‘When the Storm Breaks’, a song full of vim and vigour, thrashing percussion, great striking guitars, stonking keys and a killer chorus. A track to leave you wanting more.

I dare you to listen to the track ‘Sparks’ and not hear The Cure, albeit the post-punk goths back-dropped by a glorious if frenzied instrumental ascent/descent of musical scales fashioned by what is quite possibly the closest guitars have ever come to sounding like change-ringing.

‘Are We Still’ takes it down a few notches, showing a more restrained and subtle but no less experimental musicianship with its ‘eerie’ touches (redolent of the saw), golden melodies and heartwarming chorus, which by itself is a fine example of the perfect chemistry between fronters Anders Magnor Killerud and Lydia Popkema.

Indeed it is the pairing of Killerud and Popkema, whose vocal contrasts are like fire and ice, that gives so much depth and texture to the band’s songs. The fluidity and balance of their duets heighten the evocative essence of the songs’ lyrical themes. Speaking of which, here’s what frontman and lyricist Killerud had to say about the albums thematic inspos …

“The lyrics are based on stories from my life the past few years. People around lost control over their lives and I lost toucb with many of them during those times. For me this album mirrors the winter of 2015. It’s my soundtrack to life as a young, broke and confused twentysomething in Oslo – not knowing who I was, not knowing what I wanted to become. Filling the album with grandiose sounds felt like my cure against the grey fabric of life at the time. Making the album really helped my through the winter though, especially mentally.”

As expected, singles ‘Houses At Night’ and ‘Cult Baby’ take centre stage, but while the latter is the diamond at the heart of this long playing jewel, something in me remains unconvinced by the former.

For originality and instrumental flair, I find myself veering towards ‘Moth’, a song which more than piqued my interest with its perky finger picking guitar sequences, lively percussion and billowing, swirling synth background.

There’s a filmic vibe to this ever growing spiral, with it’s somewhat subtle shades of country come Americana, as it twists and ascends to a curious finale of alien noises and instrumental riddles.  For ingenuity and musicianship, I’d score this a 9/10.  For me, this is a song that walks a different path and the standout track on the album.

There are a few less noteworthy inclusions but overall the memorable outweighs the forgettable.  The album has some really standout moments, not least the afore-mentioned ‘Cult Baby’, a track which has proved to be a firm radio playlist favourite across the broader reaches of the EU, particularly in the land that shall now always be known as Brexit.  A track that could easily take Ludvig Moon into the US Billboard charts should they ever venture to stray that far, it is a benchmark against which future singles will be measured.

For a debut album, Ludvig Moon have played a strong hand with ‘Kin’, and while there is still room for improvement, they are young, ambitious talented enough to make the upward transition to a more mature and experimental level, with relative ease. They say the second album is always the most difficult.  For Ludvig Moon it should be plain sailing.  They’ve set the bar.  It’s now up to them how far they wish to raise it.

Ludvig Moon are currently on an extensive tour of Norway; having seem them live, I can heartily recommend you check them out, details here https://www.facebook.com/pg/ludvigmoon/events/

Ludvig Moon is : Anders Magnor Killerud ( lead vocals, guitar), Ole Torstein Hovig (synths), Herman K. Hulleberg (guitar), Kristofer Staxrud (Drums), Andreas Andre Myrvold  (bass, vocals), Lydia Popkema (vocals, guitar, tambourine), and Simen Sandbæk Skari (French Connection, vocals, tambourine)

You can follow Ludwig Moon on Facebook and keep up with all my reviews on Dervswerve Twitter and Facebook.  ‘Kin’ is out now via Riot Factory. You can buy or stream it via the following links:

Spotify: http://spoti.fi/2ea9463   iTunes/Apple Music: http://apple.co/2dYzxAC    Tidal: http://bit.ly/2dShQ9e
Vinyl: http://bit.ly/2dYzOUe

Øyafestivalen – The KlubbØya Live Review

Panda Panda Subscene KlubbØya 2016

Where the roving reporter chronicles their Øya pub club-crawl and all that it entailed!

O is for Øya, Oslo and Oh My God! How Much? (no wonder the Norwegians continuously offer up profuse “tusen, tusen takks” when they’re reeling in your hard grafted tusen, tusen krone!).

This Øya trip raised the ‘bar’ to an all time Gin og Tonic high, as we hit new heights both physically and financially in the Radisson Sky Bar.  Beautiful view! ‘Twud want to be at 135 NOK or 15 euro a hit and not even a complementary bar snack in sight!

Anyway, I deviate.

Oslo is home to a musicfest called Øyafestivalen, an annual shindig held early to mid August when the winds are warm, the sun is high, the skies are blue … needle-vinyl-scratch!  Øya is held every August when you’d think the weather would be pretty clement with a day-glo summery vibe, yes? #Computersaysno!

Foto Isak Froseth for Oya Official

I arrived in Oslo on the afternoon of the fest-opener, Klubbdagen, to be greeted by the inclement glumness of grey skies and drip drop showers.  Oh well, says I, the rain can’t get you indoors and indeed it couldn’t as I kicked off my evening’s musical ramble at the Verkstedet venue, having worked out my bearings sans compass but with a lot of inky arrows dotted along my brand-Øya map!

Due to the compression of so many bands into a super short space in time, I opted to see just four acts, with a possible fifth depending on how both evening and bod went.  First up out of the traps was Ludvig Moon, a band with more members than The Specials, or so it seemed as they struggled to find ‘personal space’ on the tiniest of stages in an equally ’boutique’ venue resulting in a band-member overflow spilling out onto the venue floor.

Comprised of Anders (vox/guitar), Ole T (keys), Herman (guitar), Kristofer (drums), Andreas (bass), and Lydia (vox/guitar), Ludvig Moon are still a very young band despite their five years mileage on the clock. Signed to Riot Factory, their releases have been limited to an eponymous EP (of uncertain release geography) and this year’s smash single, ‘Cult Baby‘ whose epicness was drooled over by the likes of Best Fit.

Ludvig Moon Verkstedet Oya 2016

Straight up … Ludvig Moon are a very good band live.  The timbre of the vocals and the instrumentation is pretty much studio to stage without too much of a shift.

On the night though, there was something of a disconnect, as faint as a skipped heartbeat, between both vocalists which, unfortunately, ran the first five minutes of the set ragged.  However, this is nothing that more live gigging and a bit more practice shouldn’t iron out.  Hey even Chris Martin had a total “slam the brakes, what key am I supposed to be in?” moment at Glastonbury for goodness sake!

Live syncing is never easy and I just felt that their nerves got the better of them, but once they settled, it all flowed, and flowed well, so much so in fact that a  30minute cut off did them an huge injustice, as they were just beginning to blossom when their moment in the sun came to a hard stop.

Instrumentally Ludvig Moon are solid, their only downfall is the inexperience of youth.  Musically, they are already there…performance-wise, they are within touching distance of reaching their stride.

One of the songs on their setlist was ‘Swim Dream’.  Obviously a huge fan favourite it went down a storm, and if you peruse this live ‘garden edition’ you’ll understand why!

**If you’re really observant you’ll spot a rogue escapee from Dråpe … one whom I keep running into ’round and around’ Norway’s hotspots!

Next!

To be honest, Chain Wallet were a band I knew very little about before seeing them in Oslo.  Made up of Stian Iversen, Christian Line and Frode Boris (with Marius Erster Bergesen, Adrian Søgnen & Lars Finborud joining live) they hail from that western hub of Norwegian music, Bergen, birthplace of many of Norway’s musical elite including Susanne Sundfor and Anne Lise Frøkedal to name but a few.

Having to glide at high speed down Torgatta from Verkstedet to Internasjonalen caused me to miss their kick off.  Arriving at the venue, it was apparent that they were already full steam ahead and, so was the beyond capacity throng.  The hyped up audience was packed so tightly there was literally no room to move.

There was a particularly good reason that such an huge crowd pitched up; Chain Wallet are incredibly good, I mean amazingly superb, live.  Tearing the varnish off the wood and the paint off the ceilings kinda good.

Chain Wallet Photo by Synne Sofi Bårdsdatter Bønes

Chain Wallet’s music is a modern mirror of the type of 80’s chart-busting sophisticated pop sounds that the likes of Prefab Sprout and Deacon Blue used to produce so well. Enigmatic, tuneful, animated, their music gently draws you into its feelgood soundscape and notwithstanding a faint hint of melancholy drifting around the edges of its melodies, Chain Wallet’s portfolio is pure pop perfection.

Of the three bands I saw perform on the club-night, Chain Wallet’s set was the most cohesive, had the strongest sound and was the most perfectly synchronised.

With a pretty strong line in guitars, confident yet warmly inviting vocals and an ‘in total harmony’ RS, Chain Wallet’s self-assured translation of their superior pop compositions from record to live is pretty faultless.

The band’s eponymous debut album will be released via Jansen Plateproduksjon on 7th October, but is available to pre-order now – http://www.jansenplateproduksjon.tigernet.no/artist/17373–chain-wallet.

You need to be ALL OVER IT!!  (I’m soooo looking forward to reviewing it!!!). 

Chain Wallet wrapped their set with this coolness…get down with it.

Fangirling alert!

If watching Chain Wallet gave me palpitations, standing in front of the magical Hanne Kolstø as she performed a tranche of her greatest hits live brought me to another plane.  I think I reached that nirvana musical folks say they strive for – transcendence.

I had waited so long to see this artist play live, that it was with a lot of nerves and a much bated breath I anxiously waited for her to take to the stage.  Disappoint, she did not. Far from it!

If anything, Kolstø’s performance was the best of the night, and certainly one of the highlights of the festival in toto. (so much so that it’s going to get its own individual review)

Hanne Live at Internasjonalen Aug 2016

 

Hanne’s music is existential indie-pop: honest songs brought to life by intuitive, adept musicianship and produced with class and finesse.  Exceptional is probably the word that springs to mind!

Sublime, fiery, feisty, evocative, intense, passionate, Hanne Kolstø gave this performance her all, and then some, and still had fuel in the tank for more at the close.  The audience roared and so did I…  Kolstø the consummate performer, with a pitch perfect faultless delivery, a choir of instruments singing in unison, she alone made the effort of travelling to Oslo worthwhile.

‘One Plus +’ was one of my favourite songs before seeing Hanne Kolstø play KlubbØya.  It lived up to the live performance and my heightened expectations.

Riding high on the crest of a musical wave I wasn’t long being flushed back down to earth by the deluge of rain in which we had to walk to our next destination- Subscene – to check out Trondheim troupe, Panda Panda.

Oh what an unfortunate choice of venue…(if it was their choice, I’m unsure).  Too stark, too big, Subscene is seriously lacking furnishings, adornment and most importantly, atmosphere.  It was dead, and nothing Panda Panda could do, play or sing was ever going to change that fact.

I first saw Panda*2 perform live up in Blaest in Trondheim, during the annual TC music festival.  They played the opening night to a huge and enthusiastic crowd and their performance was beyond adrenalin on steroids good.  They were stellar; animated, enthusiastic, and in the zone.  They were lit & fired up like they’d been plugged into the Norwegian grid.

While they tried to convey the same verve and, gain the same audience rapport in Oslo that they’d had in Trondheim, sadly it just didn’t happen.  Whether through rain-soaked tiredness, or feeling the flatness of the venue, the crowd just ‘weren’t there’.

Herman Wildhagen, Photo from PP FB page

Which was a shame, because on balance, Panda Panda’s performance was pretty good, and at times, quite amazing.

They mixed it up, crossing some untried newbies with more tried and tested knockouts such as ‘New Friends’.  When they got everything right, it was phenomenal, but there were moments when quite frankly the guitars and drums hit a level beyond ‘noise’ that completely drowned out the lead vocal.

Ragnhild Jamtveit has such a light pitch to her very pure vocal that taking the ‘fuzz’ beyond a certain decibel level is the equivalent of hitting the mute button on her mic.

I genuinely like, admire and am a fan of Panda Panda, and, sincerely want them to do well.  But until they tighten up their on-stage sound they are at serious risk of doing a huge disservice, not just to themselves, but to their supersonic songs!

That said they, especially Jamtveit and drummer Oddbjørn Sponås, totally killed their cover of Abba’s, ‘The Winner Takes It All’.  While the former has sufficient vocal reach and nuance to both carry and emotionally nail this song, the latter is pretty much given free rein to let loose and show his wares, which he did on the night with dynamic aplomb.

With my ears fuzzed, and my pockets a lot lighter than when I set out, I trudged back to my hotel through the dark, dank streets of a not-so-summery Oslo night.  Slightly disappointed, I wasn’t deflated, confident in the knowledge that Panda Panda, who are blessed with talent in copious bucket-loads, are capable of so much more.

This is a band who write blisteringly good songs, which they play with exceptional musical ability, and whose lyrics are teased and translated with intuitive nuance and superb vocal sync and control.  To prove that point, I’ll leave you with an insight into how good Panda Panda can be live.

Øyafestivalen – The Ones That Got Away

Sløtface Foto Fabian Framdal Fjeldvik

In which rather than mourning my Øya losses, I celebrate the anticipation of seeing them play live at another point and place in time …

When you start attending music festivals you learn pretty quickly that no matter how many times or ways you twist and turn the programmes, it is physically impossible to make it to every live set or gig on your bucket list. Crossover schedules call for tough decisions, or failing that, some coin tossing whilst valiantly trying not to cheat when the chosen side lands facing down!

It was no different with this years Øyafestivalen club-night which played host to a rainbow of artists from across a vast and varied Nordic spectrum.  Rather then focussing on the fact that I missed out on several wanna-sees, I like to think of these as the ones that got away; bands who I can continue to pursue in the happy hope that I will one day get to see them play live.

The Øya club-night was possibly my most testing off-site festival challenge to-date, and if you have a look at the night’s programme you’ll understand the predicament in which I found myself.

Lumikide Foto: Magnus Haaland

First off not only were the lovely Therese Aune and the super groovy newbies Lumikide, whose lustrous single ‘Golden’, is as radiant as its name denotes, pitched against each other, worse still they were pitted against the Øya delegate registration cum meet n’ greet. WHATTTT!

I longed to be transported into the fascinating landscapes of Aune’s imagination.  To be whisked up and away on a treadmill of ebony and ivory, blown along by the warm wind gently borne of harmonium bellows. Sighs.

Signed to Riot Factory and with a smorgasbord of creative soundscapes forming an impressive back catalogue, Therese Aune is one of the most understated and widely respected talents on the Norwegian scene.  It would have been neat to have found out if there were offerings a-new from Therese, especially as there was a rather quirky Soundcloud upload as recently as four months ago, entitled – ‘Sound Horn OK Please – Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night’ (of Dylan Thomas fame) which you can listen to here.

Alas, it was not meant to be but, Therese, if you’re reading this, do please send word if you are due to release any new material!! My portal is always open and receptive to new tunes!

I also wanted to see what more those purveyors of aureate indie-jazz, Lumikide, had to offer in addition to the multi-dimensional wonder that is their latest single.

With a disarming vocal so warmly inviting it could have insta-thawed the ice age, ‘Golden‘ is a wonderwall of all that is good about that canny Norwegian trick of melding pop-jazz with indie.

Layers of evocative vocal with that intriguing plaintive edge so idiosyncratic of the Norwegian style, intense hazes of guitar chords, blurry and blingy synths and that wonderful, wonderful drumming of Axel Skjelstad, trained in the jazz style, but whose intuitive feel for exploratory percussion is quite exceptional.  ‘Golden’ is a meld of all of these succulent ingredients, poured together to create this most exquisite of elixirs.

I wanted to hear more of what this band were capable of and how they might sound outside the safety zone of the studio, but alas Oslo, it was not to be!

I set my gig alarm for 7pm.  Surely that would give me enough time to register, pick up my bits n bobs and whisk myself off to venue number one, map flapping in hand (actually it was more map sagging in hand as the weather on the night was just abysmal!).

Ok so where to start … well there was Sløtface in the immense Parkteatret at 7pm.

One of my favourite young bands of the Nowegian now, Sløtface produce slickly finished, sassy punk inspo’d sounds, with razor sharp lyrics laced with kick ass attitude. Their latest number ‘Take Me Dancing’, is their most mature offering to-date. A cheeky little flirt, it’s a catchy soundscape of twist n turn bass chords, rolling percussion and a segue of clean and fuzzy guitar opposites that sync with uncluttered ease.  Together they form an animated springboard for Haley Shea’s expressive vocals which in this instance are topped off with a deliciousness of angelic harmonies.

Sadly I have to be due north at the same time as their set finishes, so I make the strategic decision that as I have already seen these guys rock out live up at Trondheim Calling, I can live a bit longer on the memory, making a promise to keep them on the “must see again” list.  Bearing in mind that they will undoubtedly tour their forthcoming album in 2017, it’s a promise I am quite likely to keep!  For now, let Sløtface take you dancing around the virtual streets of Oslo.

Having settled on a hot date with Ludvig Moon meant that I also had to take a rain-check on Kildaphew – which didn’t impress me one bit!  However, there was some silver lining zipping around the edges of those dark and rainy Oslo overhangs in the form of a Kildaphewian appearance on stage with ARY, when one half of this fantastic pairing, Danielle Christine Brogden, sang backing vocals to Ms. Loinsworth’s live set.

Kildaphew Lene Johansen Photography

Purveyors of experimental electro-rap dipped in funk and wrapped up in a Windies vibe, theirs is one of the most lush sounds you’ll hear this side of 21stC soul.  Danielle’s voice is pitch perfect chocca mocha velvet – sweet, rich, enticing, and moreish.  Their instrumental sound is a collection of cross-border flotsam and jetsam woven with such a delicate and masterly touch as to create a perfectly seamless blend.  Did I want to see them? Hell yeah.  Shame on you programme timing!

On the 100% must see list (a desire reinforced having witnessed Danielle’s brilliant vocal shadowing of ARY the following day), for now I’ll have to satiate my calypso-hip hop needs by hanging out on their Soundcloud page – check this beauty of a track out!

Internasjonalen beckoned with Chain Wallet and Hanne Kolstø in its illustrious line up.  All of which meant that as far as Siv Jakobsen, Pelicat, Sgrow, nrwy, Strangelove and The Hallway were concerned, it was take a ticket and wait for your number to be called (like a watched pot, at some point in a never boiling future!).

The Hallway, John Dee, Oya

Mixing classical and techno backgrounds to produce musical purity of a quality that outclasses many of their peers, Sgrow is a band whose vocal and sonic expressiveness has the clarity of its Nordic roots, the experimental drive of personal inspirations and, the melodic warmth and curious compulsion of the futuristic driven techno age in which it exists.  Missing their set was possibly my biggest mistake of the night!

Luckily, I had the pleasure of meeting the Sgrow folks for a coffee a few days later, which made up in part, for my not seeing them live.  Although, given the fact that they have wrapped up their live set for the present time, it looks like it’ll be quite some wait before I eventually get to see them kill it on stage.  In the words of all the best musical stalkers … “I’m waiting”!  

The Hallway were a band I desperately wanted to see live, especially having heard their now internationally released EP, Vestad a few weeks prior to heading to Oslo. However, as I had been waiting to see La Kolstø since March, sadly, it was a non-runner on the night.  Theirs is my kinda sound, my kinda vibe.  Melodic indie rock with just the right amount of bite, classical snatches of string samples, a little flash of American grunge and a pleasing but ever so slightly terse vocal.

They’re a bit Green Day muddled with Smashing Pumpkins in an ice-capped Nordic kinda way.  Addictive, infectious, vibrant and on the poppy side of rock enough to appeal to the mainstream. The Hallway deserve only good things, and with sparkling creations like ‘I Used to Know’ they’ll probably get them!

So, you can see the challenges that faced me on the night.  To make things worse, all things Toothfairy were happening over at The Villa.  Having been told that the venue would be packed to capacity from early doors pretty much sealed their fate; I didn’t have the time to flit to a venue only to find I couldn’t get in and have to perform an instantaneous volte face to plan B.  Gone, in one fell swoop, Coucheron, Nils Noa(weeps!), Carl Louis and Baya.

My evening drew to a close as I walked in what could only be described as a deluge of rain towards Subscene and the Panda Panda live set, conscious as I was doing so, that I was walking away from opportunity of seeing Frances Wave. “OH cruel Fate, when wilt thou weary be?”

My club-night came to a close and as I walked the short distance back to my hotel through the late night misty murky Oslo streets, I despatched pointless regrets on the North Sea breeze, welcomed the light at the end of the tunnel of possibilities and gently hugged the anticipation of what was still to come.  Hope springs eternal.

Øyafestivalen supported by Music Norway, runs annually in Oslo, usually around the second week of August.  For full details check out the official website http://oyafestivalen.com/

Øyafestivalen … Personally Speaking

Photo of Hanne Kolsto Steinkjerfestivalen.no/

When it comes down to it, music is all about personal taste.  Put ten people into a room and ask them to pick their favourite artists.  How likely would it be that they would all choose the same names?  Surely whatever artist crossover there might be would be unlikely to result in a similar choice of go-to songs?

Music makes the world go around, as do love, cute animals, chocolate and gin (not necessarily in that order).  For those of us for whom music is a consuming passion, picking favourites and making recommendations from across as wide a spectrum as the line up on offer at Øya2016 is one bloody difficult task.

However, there are times when the fence becomes just that bit too hard, and one feels the need to jump off and, as the song goes, “express yourself”.  So, without any intention to cause offence or personal injury … just cos a certain band ain’t on this list, don’t mean I don’t rate them … here are my personal Norwegian must sees during Øya this week.

HANNE KOLSTO

From the moment I heard this gal’s voice I fell in love with its overwhelming emotional depth and ferocious honesty. Hanne Kolstø sings songs crafted with visceral feeling, penned with the ink of experience and delivered with a searing openness that strips her bare of any places behind which to hide.  Self-deprecating, achingly funny and very, very real, Kolstø is a wonderfully charismatic performer with a rare, unfailing ability to get under the skin of her audience. Kolstø doesn’t just connect, no, she touches the very raw nerve of those who go to see her mesmerising live performances.  Having earlier this year released the album ‘Live at Tøyenkirken‘, a piano acoustic rework of some of her best known and loved songs which received huge critical acclaim, without doubt Hanne Kolstø is one of the live must sees of Tuesdays KlubbØya club-carnivale.  Hanne plays Internasjonalen at 9pm.

PANDA PANDA

Unfortunately Hanne clashes with Sgrow … that’s life, this is what festivals are all about … personal challenges and making tough decisions.  Following the plot ain’t easy on club night and in order to see out the full Kolstø performance I must also forego seeing The Hallway.  On top of that I am then left with the nightmare of choosing between Therese Aune and Panda Panda.   Sorry guys, the Pandas have it.

Hailing from Trondheim, this relatively new young band only recently signed to the Riot Factory label, are building up to the release of their debut album.  The first EP, Millions, was a tearaway success, and from what I can gather new music in on the cards for their set at Subscene.  Their brand of vibrant, multi-coloured, youthful indie with its delightful golden vocal duets fuels quite the rush of sonic serotonin; if you don’t walk away from seeing Panda Panda play live feeling uber-energised then I strongly recommend you go to a GP to get your pulse checked!  They’ll hit the Subscene stage running at 10pm and if their KlubbØya performance is even only half as good as that at Trondheim Calling, they’ll rock the roof off the joint.

Another clash on club-night means I’ll miss out on seeing Toothfairy rising star, Strangelove.  He plays The Villa at 9pm and if electronic genius is your thing, then Strangelove is your guy.

ARY

Wednesday however, proves more lucky when it comes to Toothfairy artists.  The sublime ARY will take to the stage at the rescheduled time of 5.50pm having switched slots with SKEPTA.  With whispers of new music tingling the ears, and after spending the Summer honing her live performance across a pretty extensive Euro circuit, ARY’s set at Øya should be pretty special.  Possibly one of the best of all the emerging new talents rising through the mists of the Oslo skies, ARY is definitely one to watch and without doubt one of my top picks for this years festival.  ARY plays the Sirkus stage, 17.50 Wednesday 10th.

FARAO

Farao … just the name alone conjurs up images of a modern day Amazonian Queen.  Strong, powerful, hugely talented, ably creative, Farao is one musical class act.  Now based in Berlin, she is currently working on new music for her second album.  If it’s quality is even a shadow of its predecessor, it will be mind blowingly good.  Friends with other female powerhouse EERA (and with a voice and style not too dissimilar) Farao is by now a well seasoned performer and her set on the Hagen stage, 4.55pm Friday, should be one to remember.

 

FROKEDAL

It is an absolute heart-breaker for me that (due to personal reasons) I will miss the first chance that has presented itself to me to see Anne Lise Frøkedal play live.  One of my top three fave Norwegian artists, I could listen to the sweet melodia of that voice forever and never tire of it.  If anything Frøkedal’s ‘picturesque‘ folky cum indie music transports me mind, body and soul into another world – one of peace, contentment and mindfulness.

Her album ‘Hold On Dreamer‘ has been one of the best album releases this year and with several hit singles lifted from its grooves,  Frøkedal has pretty much cemented her reputation amongst the critical few who do the acclaiming! It is with a heavy heart that I will get on that plane back to Dublin knowing that one of the best sets of the festival has yet to come, and that I alas, won’t be around to enjoy it.  Frøkedal and her band Familien will play the Amfiet stage at 3.55pm on Saturday … say hi from me and enjoy!

ELECTRIC EYE

Finally if there is any band I could ‘suade you to go see, it would be Bergen boys, Electric Eye.  You ain’t seen a gig if you ain’t seen an Electric Eye gig.  These guys blew the roof of their by:Larm venue back in March and ripped shreds out of SWSX and their latest album Different Sun was in altogether a different league.  Their more than masterful instrumental abilities and stonking psych sounds will have your heart pounding, pulse racing and brain whirring in no time.

Their live set is beyond bloody brilliant …  miss it, YOUR LOSS.  These guys are better than good at what they do, the are THE BEST.  Psych crafted with magic-infused guitars, sitars and synths and drumming that is more alive than the sapient pearwood ‘luggage’ in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.  Electric Eye are my TOP TIP for Øya2016  – they’ll set fire to the Sirkus stage at 3.05pm Saturday 13th.

Norway’s Øyafestivalen runs from Tuesday 9th to Saturday 13th inclusive.  Full details of the club night and Toyenparken programme can be found on their official website, available in both Norwegian and English.

Riot Factory – Welcome to the House of Fun!

Photo of Ludvig Moon Riot Factory

Trondheim based indie record label Riot Factory have a happy habit of signing wickedly hip and seriously talented acts that churn out memorable music like Norwegian dairy farmers churn out Brunost; down pat!

Set up by three music mad amigos some mucho moons ago, the Riot label has become synonymous with both identifying and nurturing some of the most unique and spirited of indie / alternative talents to emerge from that Norwegian cradle of music, Trondheim. Farao, Highasakite and Bendik all cut their tyro teeth in this house of fun, which now boasts the creme de l’alt nouveau creme of indie music in the form of Gold Celeste, Snøskred and Tellef Raabe .

Of the myriad mouthwatering music-mongers these riotous ravers have on their roster, four will take to the stage for your delectation on the opening #Klubbdagen night of Øyafestivalen.  Yep, you can sink your teeth into the meaty madness of music by Commonplace, walk in the thunderous wake of punk/noize dinosaurs, Sauropod, float in the inky night skies illuminated by the stars of Ludvig Moon and/or get up close and cuddly with those adorable Pandas*2.  See below for full details.

Dinosaurs of the rockier side of the Riot stable, Sauropod are no strangers to whipping up a crowd with their noisesome fare and their headline set at Verkstedet bar should be pretty bloody thunderous and then some!  The ironically named ‘Sunny Day‘ was released as a single in the depths of darkest January, read my review here, preceding their more aptly entitled album, ‘Roaring at the Storm’ which with much-a-play on words, was a roaring success.  Sauropod produce music darker than night but seriously switch the light on with their canny and often witty lyrics … not for the faint-hearted but worth the morning after temp tinnitus.

Sauropod Live July 2016

Back in darkest March, and oh boy was it dark, and cold, myself and the guys over at The 405 had the pleasure of premiering the raw, unnerving neo-punk track ‘Complex Mental State’ from five-piece postpunkers commonplace! Coincidentally, the very same band have a new single, ‘Her Sultry Eyes’ out on release this week on 3rd August (sorry, no advance sneak peeks), but here’s a deco at the artwork.  Tune into the bands FB page here, to give it an early post-release hearing on Wednesday!

In the meantime, clear the cobwebs with this sonic scouring pad and prepare yourself to be hyped to the ceiling when they perform this number live next week!

Earlier this year, sextet Ludvig Moon released ‘Cult Baby’, the lead single from their forthcoming album, to rapturous media applause.

Photo courtesy Ludvig Moon

Hailed by Best Fit as a “soaring, small scale epic”, ‘Cult Baby’ catapulted LM into the realm of UK music media and fans alike, setting the band in seriously good stead for any future releases and/or live dates.  To boot, the accompanying visual was pretty nifty and not one to go unnoticed!  I did my own wee bit of waxing lyrical about both and you can read my review here. While you’re doing so, you can give ‘Cult Baby’ another listen (‘cos we know you’ve already heard it, right?).

Last but definitely not least are personal faves, Panda Panda.  My fangirling of the Pandas was born out of a huge addiction to their first single, ‘New Friends’, the pull of which was so strong it lead me to bump the Riot club-night during Trondheim Calling in favour of the packed out PP gig at Blaest, which due to some very inconsiderate timing on the part of the festival organisers, was on the same night.  Ironically, Panda Panda, a then unsigned band, were to sign with said jilted Rioters only a matter of weeks later!  Where I lead and all that … !

Panda Panda at Ladehammerfestivalen

Since being signed to the Riot label, Panda Panda have dropped more singles, as well as their debut EP, Millions.  They’ve spent the Summer dipping between festivals and studio, and a full length album should be in the offing in the not too distant future.

In the meantime, you can pop in to see Panda Panda and their Riot stablemates in various venues across Oslo on Tuesday 9th August, details below.  Until then, we’ll leave you with that magnetic first heard, never forgotten single, ‘New Friends’.  See you in Oslo!   For further information on Riot Factory, check out their website, http://www.riotfactory.no/

Tuesday 9th August, Oslo, all events are part of the official Øyafestivalen club night or Klubbdagen.  Øya runs from 9th to 13th August, and all details of artists and the full festival programme can be found on the official website, http://oyafestivalen.com/

Hosted by SubScene Oslo              

23.00 High Tone Low
22.00 Panda Panda
21.00 Tirades
20.00 Syndrom

Hosted by Verkstedet Bar

23.30 Sauropod
22.30 Frances Wave
21.30 Simen Mitlid
20.30 Skóg
19:30 Ludvig Moon

Hosted by BLÅ

00:30 LIIMA (DK)
23:30 Death Team (SE)
22:30 PRTLVX
21:30 commonplace
20:30 Stian Westerhus
19:30 Moon Relay