A Good Start For Blues In Hell 2013

Posted on September 7, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

One of my favorite festivals started yesterday. Or rather, they started on Thursday, but yesterday was the official opening. with a full blues night on two stages. When one of the stages is a Magic Mirror tent, you can’t complain about the venue. There is also nothing to complain about with the artists, on the contrary. And for the nimble-minded, Hell is a place in Norway, and it means a cave in the mountain side, not a hot place somewhere else! (Picture above. Candye Kane)

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Blues In Hell 2013 Is Coming Up

Posted on August 28, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The weekend September 6-7 is the yearly blues weekend in Hell. In Norway, Hell isn’t a place with eternal fire and damnation, it is actually a place outside of Trondheim. And there is nothing hellish about the place. You can get there by train – round trip or one way ticket, but the easy way to get there is by plane, since Hell is located in spitting distance from the Trondheim airport. The festival is one of my favorites during the year, and here are some of the highlights from last year, while we are waiting. (Picture above: Carolyn Wonderland at the Notodden Blues Festival 2012)

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Half Moon Run – The Best From Canada

Posted on August 25, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Until last weekend I had never heard of Half Moon Run, and knew nothing about them. After they played at the Pstereo festival in Trondheim I have listened to their CD many times, and so far it is one of the best CDs I have heard this year.

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Saturday In Pstereo

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The last day of Pstereo was a good festival day. Many different artists, but the same quality booking with different styles, some well known bands, and many new, at least for me. The big headliner Saturday was Motorpsycho, who played their 1997 album Blissard. But before them we got 6 hours of non stop music from three stages. And while Friday night had a few light rain showers, the weather was also good on Saturday. With two sold out days, it looks very promising for Pstereo next year.

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Friday Night In Pstereo

Posted on August 17, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The Pstereo festival in Trondheim has established itself as one of the most interesting festivals in Norway with a booking that only Oya surpasses. For a two day festival with three stages plus a talent stage, they have an unusually eclectic variety in their booking. The other good thing is that the fans like it, this year, for the first year, Friday night was sold out. (Picture above: Oliver Sim from The xx)

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The Oya Festival – The Third Day

Posted on August 14, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Friday at Oya was sunshine again. Most of the mud had dried, and it was good to come down before the music started. This was the day of Kraftwerk, and many had come to see them. But before they entered the stage and the fans put on their 3D glasses, there were lots of other great acts to see.

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The Oya Festival – The Second Day

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Thursday started out with some terrible rain. It stopped before the festival started, but we got some more showers during the evening. The only advantage of no sun, is for the photographers, that the light on the artists – especially on the stages that are facing south – is better. Here are pictures of the bands I saw on the second day of Oya. (Picture above: Rhyan Hahn from Local Natives)

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The Oya Festival – The First Day

Posted on August 11, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The Oya Festival in Oslo is over, and all the attendees have had the time to sleep, relax and start preparing for a new week. I have sorted out my photos from the festival, and here are my pics from the first festival day, Wednesday August 7th. (Picture above: Laura Mwula)

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Slayer At The Oya Festival

Posted on August 11, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

Slayer is one of the Big Four in trash metal, and yesterday night they headlined the Sjosiden stage at the last day of the Oya festival in Oslo. The space in front of the stage was packed with fans, they were quite visible during the day, waiting for their heroes. Most of them thought the wait was worth it.

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Blur – Brit Pop At The Oya Festival

Posted on August 8, 2013 by Per Ole Hagen

The two big brit pop bands in the mid 90’s were Oasis and Blur. Suede and Pulp were also there, but didn’t reach the same level as the other two bands. I saw Oasis at the ACL festival in 2005 and wasn’t impressed. Yesterday Blur played at the Oya Festival in Oslo, headlining the big stage, and I saw a vital and well played band.