Norwegian bands and artists

[Guybrush]

I haven't quite taken to any of Ulver's stuff myself, but they're certainly interesting for taking their sound to so many different places. I'm mostly familiar with their early stuff and their black metal back then is so horribly produced (as was the style) and their folky stuff is kinda cool, but hasn't quite grabbed me.

I've yet to dig into their more recent art poppy stuff.

[grindy]

I haven't quite taken to any of Ulver's stuff myself, but they're certainly interesting for taking their sound to so many different places. I'm mostly familiar with their early stuff and their black metal back then is so horribly produced (as was the style) and their folky stuff is kinda cool, but hasn't quite grabbed me.

I've yet to dig into their more recent art poppy stuff.

I've really enjoyed the synth pop album I posted since it came out.
I also love Blood Inside. I've labelled it as prog metal but honestly it doesn't sound like the usual suspects from that genre. Totally unique take. And of course I always dig some raw-ass BM but that's just me.

[Suburban Placeholder?]

Xploding Plastix

Their stuff seems to range from jazzy stuff to lounge, trip hop and a load of Aphex Twin type electronic weirdness.
And they just put out new material after a 15 year hiatus.

[grindy]

Xploding Plastix

Their stuff seems to range from jazzy stuff to lounge, trip hop and a load of Aphex Twin type electronic weirdness.
And they just put out new material after a 15 year hiatus.

They seem to not be that well known but I love those guys! Gotta check out the new stuff.

[Lisnaholic]

When it comes to art and culture, I am like a traitor, always having focused my attention outside and elsewhere.

Still, I'm not completely ignorant - just mostly and vastly - so I thought it might be fun to do a thread.

- although in fact, of course, you turn out to be pretty knowledgeable, Guybrush.

All the artist names in this thread are new to me, so rather randomly, based on the descriptions kindly provided, I listened to:-

Pixie Ninja - atmospheric electronic rock or something

Verdict: good, solid rock with various more experimental sections that still keep up the momentum.

Kings of Convenience - "Homesick"

I adore everything KoC has released. Quiet, reflective folk at its finest.

Verdict: completely unfair to both the artists and ISB, I was a little disappointed that this didn't sound more exotic, evoking some windswept icy landscape. Instead, this track made me think of the early Simon & Garfunkel albums - so actually, it is good after all.

One Norwegian band I like are Kaisers Orchestra *, who have a kind of theatrical rock sound and (what I expect from Norway), lyrics I can't understand:-

This track of theirs has a great video, showing what I'm going to assume are scenes of everyday life in Norway :-

* Quite possibly I was introduced to KO by grindy- in which case, thanks.

[Guybrush]

- although in fact, of course, you turn out to be pretty knowledgeable, Guybrush.

One Norwegian band I like are Kaisers Orchestra *, who have a kind of theatrical rock sound and (what I expect from Norway), lyrics I can't understand:-

Not particularly knowledgeable for a music interested Norwegian, I think 😄

Kaiser's Orchestra is a good example. They are inescapable in Norway, yet I know precious little about them except the town they came from and I half-heartedly started listening to their debut once.

Sad thing is I'm pretty sure they're actually great and well worth the plunge. As it is, I only know their hits and my favorite out of those is this (as I'm a sucker for ballads):

I posted a Turboneger song in the Workout thread and of course they deserve a bigger mention here, but while we wait for that to happen..

Knut Schreiner, Turboneger's guitarist, had Kåre & The Cavemen as one of his side projects and for a while, they made deliciously funky, instrumental 70s west coast music. My favorite is their album Long Day's Flight Till Tomorrow which has this awesome banger on it:

How funky is that?

The band name was so unsellable to foreigners, so when they tried marketing themselves abroad, they changed name to Euroboys.. as an attempt to tail Turboneger's success by using Knut's Turboneger stage name (Euroboy). I don't know if the Cavemen, now boys, made anything as great as this again, but then.. I should probably check.

[Gandalf]

Bel Canto, if you want something on the dream pop and ethereal spectrum.

[Guybrush]

Bel Canto, if you want something on the dream pop and ethereal spectrum.

That album was quite a hit in Norway in the 90s and Anneli Drecker is still a known figure here.

The title track was the big hit, but my own favorite track from that was Le Temps Degage which, in the refrains, sounds big and atmospheric

[larsvsnapster]

I only know Karin Krog and a handful of metal bands from Norway.  Of course i know Abba but they're far from favourites.  Out of all the metal bands Dimmu Borger is probably the most popular in the states.

[Lisnaholic]

^ My tip to a new-comer to SCD: mentioning Abba probably won't do much for your credibility as a music nerd around here, lars
On the other hand, you also mention two bands I've never heard of - so credibility restored

Not particularly knowledgeable for a music interested Norwegian, I think 😄

Kaiser's Orchestra is a good example. They are inescapable in Norway, yet I know precious little about them except the town they came from and I half-heartedly started listening to their debut once.

Sad thing is I'm pretty sure they're actually great and well worth the plunge. As it is, I only know their hits and my favorite out of those is this (as I'm a sucker for ballads):

I posted a Turboneger song in the Workout thread and of course they deserve a bigger mention here, but while we wait for that to happen..

Knut Schreiner, Turboneger's guitarist, had Kåre & The Cavemen as one of his side projects and for a while, they made deliciously funky, instrumental 70s west coast music. My favorite is their album Long Day's Flight Till Tomorrow which has this awesome banger on it:

How funky is that?

The band name was so unsellable to foreigners, so when they tried marketing themselves abroad, they changed name to Euroboys.. as an attempt to tail Turboneger's success by using Knut's Turboneger stage name (Euroboy). I don't know if the Cavemen, now boys, made anything as great as this again, but then.. I should probably check.

Thanks for letting us know the status of some of these bands in their home country. You are definitely our expert on that, Guybrush.
Yep, that Down The Road Of Golden Dust track is a real belter !

[Guybrush]

I also consider Abba Swedish, even if they had a Norwegian born member 🙂

I associate Abba with Eurovision (due to Waterloo). Although I like Abba just fine, I typically don't care for Eurovision music.. But here's a Norwegian exception, Åse Kleveland's Intet Er Nytt Under Solen (Nothing Is New Under the Sun) from 1966.

I've wondered if the odd meter was inspired by Brubeck's Take Five.

She also served as Norway's minister of culture from 1990 to 96 and as director for the Swedish film Institute from 1999 to 2005, among other things.

A patron of the arts and all around impressive person.

[Saulaac]

Sven Libaek, film/soundtrack composer born in Oslo in 1938 and moved to Australia in the 60s. Solar Flares is a great album and this title track is sublime.

Sven Libaek - Solar Flares - 1974

..as is his soundtrack to Ron & Val Taylor's Inner Space.

Sven Libaek - Inner Space - 1973

[Guybrush]

^Hey @Saulaac ! Very cool 🙂 Sven Libaek is new to me, but I love these very 70s soundtracks. Thanks for sharing! I'll definitely check him out 🙂

Since we're now talking soundtracks, I thought I'd post something every Norwegian knows, but which surely must be obscure abroad. There's a nationally very famous stop motion animation movie from 1975 called The Pinchcliffe (or Flåklypa) Grand Prix. It's about an old inventor, Reodor, who makes his own race car to compete in a Grand Prix. He has some help from his two weird animal mates. Everyone from my generation knows it well and it's still popular, if a little dated.

The guy who made music for it was a Danish guy, Bent Fabricius-Bjerre. The most popular song is Reodor's ballad played when Reodor is sad and can't sleep, so he goes out to play his harmonica under the moon.

To play the harmonica on the soundtrack, they had a Canadian player, Tommy Reilly, perform. But Tommy had a Norwegian student, Sigmund Groven, who would become a popular harmonica virtuoso in Norway. He did his own version of Reodor's ballad which is the one people appreciate the most today, I believe.

So here's a slice of Danish-Norwegian movie soundtrack sentimentality.

Sorry about all the yadda-yadda 🙂

[Lisnaholic]

I've wondered if the odd meter was inspired by Brubeck's Take Five.

^ Yep ! Totally, just from those opening bars ! Good one !

[Guybrush]

So Kvelertak is a band I expect others might know, maybe more so than I do as I've only really checked out their debut. It made quite a splash when it came.

I don't dabble too much in metal and especially not the black sort (our biggest cultural export), but Kvelertak's fusion of hard rock mixed with elements from black metal makes for a potent mix and one I quite like 🙂

By the way, Kvelertak means Stranglehold and Fossegrim is a river faerie that looks like a young man, lives in a waterfall ("foss") and that can be persuaded to give violin lessons.