Aage Aleksandersen – The Grandfather Of Norwegian Rock

Posted on June 29, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Aage Aleksandersen started out in the band Prudence in the late 60’s, and has been going on since then. The Prudence disbanded in 1975, after a period as one of the best Norwegian rock band – more like The Band than anything else. After this period, he started the band Sambandet as his backing band, went solo and started singing in Norwegian. Six years later his song Lys og varme (Light and Warmth) became an alternative national anthem, and Aage got the same status in Norway that Bruce Springsteen has in the US.

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The Steinkjer Festival 2013 Is Coming Up

Posted on June 25, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

On Thursday this year’s Steinkjer Festival starts again with a night of local artists, before Friday comes with twelve concerts, and Saturday with eighteen including the day program. This will be my fifth festival in Steinkjer, and I am sure it will be just as good as the other ones. Here are some of the artists who are performing this year. I will of course come back with some new pictures after the festival. (Above: Ida Jenshus)

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Susanne Sundfoer – A New Change Of Style

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Susanne Sundfoer has been one of Norway’s most promising and interesting artists since she started out in 2006, 20 years old. She has won two Spellemann awards (the Norwegian Grammy), she has withdrawn herself from nominations, and she has released albums to rave reviews. Saturday June 15th she played at the Bergen Fest, and here are some pictures from that concert.

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Lissie at Bergen Fest

Posted on June 18, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Lissie came on the music scene with a bang in 2010 with her single When I’m Alone, which was chosen as the song of the year by iTunes. The song was featured on her debut-CD, Catching A Tiger from he same year. Saturday she played at Bergen Fest in Norway, two years after her first visit to Norwegian festivals.

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Charles Bradley Is Still Going Strong

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Last year was the first time I saw Charles Bradley at the Oya Festival in Oslo. I was amazed by his voice and also by hjs performance. His style is uniquely personal, but with strong influences from the Black Velvet man, James Brown. Today Charles Bradley played at Bergen Fest, and I realized I was right last year, he is unique!

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Imagine Dragons With Big Drums

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Imagine Dragons is a new band, they released their debut CD, Night Visions in 2012. Luckily for them, the single from that CD, Radioactive, was voted the best rock hit from 2012 by the Rolling Stone Magazine, so they got a real kick-start to their career. Yesterday they played at Bergen Fest, and I was impressed by their live show.

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Rival Sons – Almost A Cover Band

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Rival Sons is a four piece rock band from California, and if I had been short-sighted and with bad hearing, I would have thought they were Led Zeppelin when I saw them at Bergen Fest yesterday. When that is said, they are a great live band with their own personality. The audience in Bergen loved them, and that must be the most important thing.

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Biffy Clyro – Scottish Live Band De Luxe

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The first time I saw Biffy Clyro, at the Hove Festival in 2010, I thought them to be good, but not sensational good. They had a charismatic stage show, lead by singer and guitarist Simon Neil. Yesterday night they closed the third day of Bergen Fest, and they ruled the stage. One of the best live concerts I have seen and heard this year. (Go to the end of the blogpost for the setlist.)

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The Real Ones – a Real Live Band

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The first time I heard the Real Ones from Bergen some 15 years ago, I was amazed by their harmonies, and the general togetherness in their playing. This has been one of their trademarks, together with some really good songs. Yesterday night they played at Bergen Fest to a big and enthusiastic audience. (Picture above: David Vogt and Joergen Sandvik)

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Nick Cave – Still Worth the Money

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Nick Cave has managed to become more successful the older he gets. And he doesn’t really do much to maximize his success, with his morbid lyrics and sometimes quite unaccessible songs. But his show is always worth seeing, with high energy and great style. Tonight he played Bergen Fest, and tomorrow he plays Norwegian Wood in Oslo. They have something to look forward to in Oslo!