Willie Nelson is 79 years old today, April 30th, and he just got a statue in his hometown Austin. On top of that a part or 2nd Street in Austin has been renamed Wilie Nelson Boulevard. Here are some pictures I took of him when he was 70 and 75 years old.
Earlier this yar I attended a three-band gig at the Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo. The bands were Street Legal, Junipher Greene, and legendary Ken Hensley with his band Live Fire. It was a great night, and all the bands did a great job. Here are some of the pictures I took of Ken Hensley and Live Fire.
One of the artists I look most forward to see at the Notodden Blues Festival this year, is Ruthie Foster. This will be her first time playing in Norway, and it’s about time!
Obviously Austin, Texas has many artists, some great, some good, and some not so good. Among the great ones there are a few who have put their mark on the music history. Willie Nelson is one of them, and so is Joe Ely, Jimmie Vaughan, John Cotton and a handful of others. Jon Dee Graham is also one of those, being instrumental in defining the term alt.country with The True Believers in the late 80’s.
The headline looks like a contradicion in terms, but americana music is well rooted in Norway. Now the organisation Norsk Americana Forum is established, and their goal is to promote americana music in Norway and to make more people aware of this music.
Austin band Deadman has a name that implies a former existence. That is not far from the truth, since this is the second incarnation of the band. They started out in Dallas, but front man Steven Collins moved down to Austin and restarted the band when the first version broke up. Yesterday they played at Buckley’s in Oslo, Norway.
If you are in Austin on a Tuesday or Wednesday, you have a good chance of seeing James McMurtry at the Continental Club – either solo or with his band, The Heartless Bastards. Whichever version you choose, you will have a great time with one of the best contemporary American storytellers.
Kaizers Orchestra at Sentrum Scene.
Now you don’t have to go to New York, London or LA to be updatet on what’s hot and what’s not. Oslo and Atlanta have been declared by The Independent as the two main trend-setting cities. For Oslo, much of the honour goes to the showcase festival by:Larm. But there are other important contributors to Oslo’s new status that deserve to be mentioned.
Mayhem was formed in 1984 and is the longest living Norwegian black metal band. They have had their problems during the years but are considered to be the pioneers of Norwegian black metal. In February this year they were the closing act of the Norwegian showcase festival by:Larm.
Shortly after founding member of Celtic Frost, Thomas Gabriel Fischer had left Celtic Frost in 2008, he announced his new project, Triptykon. The band has released a full length CD and an EP since then, and Thursday night they played the Inferno Festival.
Artist Pictures Blog 
