The Øya Festival 2018 – Saturday with Patti Smith, Bendik, Neneh Cherry, Sløtface, Curtis Harding and more

Patti Smith 11082018-21The last day at Øyafestivalen starts early, and the last band stops at 11 PM, which means ten hours of music from six stages. Twenty eight bands and artists plus book talks and artist interviews. And after the last act has finished, the party continues at clubs in Oslo, like the other three nights. With the club day Tuesday before the festival venue opens, much more than a hundred bands and artists have presented themselves for their fans. (Photo above: Patti Smith)

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The Øya Festival 2018 – Friday with St. Vincent, Lykke Li, Steamdome, Halie, Charlotte Gainsbourg and more

St Vincent 10082018-12Friday at Øya had sun, but a heavy wind that threatened many of the constructions at the venue. The organizers had torn down the covers on the fences around the venue to avoid the wind. Luckily nothing happened, and the fans had a good time this day, too. Personally I saw seven bands and artists, five of them female. (Photo above: St. Vincent)

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The Notodden Blues Festival 2018 – Bonnie Raitt, Vintage Trouble, Gov’t Mule and many more

Vintage Trouble 04082018-24The 31st edition of the Notodden Blues Festival ended on Sunday. It has been a long weekend with music from early in the day until 2 AM, and a lot of friendly and smiling blues fans all around town. This year Ry Cooder was the biggest name together with Bonnie Raitt, and then a lot of other great artists after these two. Here are my photos from the festival. (Photo above: Ty Taylor from Vintage Trouble)

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Månefestivalen 2018 – Sunday with The Waterboys, Bel Canto, Lars Vaular and more

Waterboys 29072018-18Sunday was the last day of a most successful Månefestival. I have had four super hot days with music, happy people and great artists. For a local festival, Månefestivalen has top booking with a mix of big names, Norwegian and from other countries and local well known and up and coming artists. The headliner on Sunday was Waterboys. (Photo above: Mike Scott from The Waterboys)

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Månefestivalen 2018 – Friday with Hellbillies, Knut Reiersrud, Hanne Boel and Bernhoft

Hellbilles 27072018-32Månefestivalen started officially Friday, with Thursday’s OBOS på Månen as a kind of vorspiel. The festival is slightly alternative from many of the other festivals because they have a predominately Norwegian booking. And in 2014 they booked only female artists and bands with female members. On the first day of this year’s edition, Hanne Boel from Denmark was the only female and non-Norwegian artist. (Photo above: Hellbillies)

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Øyafestivalen 2017 – Saturday with Lars Vaular, The Hellacopters, Stein Torleif Bjella, Mø and more

Lars Vaular 12082017-20The last day of the Øyafestivalen 2017 had a more Nordic mix than the other days. Or it can be that I chose Nordic that day – six Norwegian acts, one Danish and one Swedish. With no other big international (“un-nordic”) names on the schedule, artists like Mø, Lars Vauler and Hellacopters showed that they can headline a festival just as well as many bigger acts from the US or the UK. (Photo above: Lars Vaular)

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Månefestivalen – with Savage Rose, Madcon, Lissie, Per Gessle and more

Savage Rose 23072017-39Månefestivalen in Fredrikstad, 60 miles south of Oslo, has been around since 2002. They started at the grounds of the former Fredrikstad Mekaniske Verksted, but moved after a few years to the Old Town (Gamlebyen), a part of Fredrikstad from the 16th and 17th century. The festival fits nicely in between the old buildings with a beautiful garden at the back as a hang-around area. (Photo above: Annisette and Savage Rose)

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The SPOT Festival 2017, A Danish Showcase Festival In Aarhus

Siigrid 06052017-20Every year since 1994, with the exception of 2001, the SPOT festival has been held as a showcase festival and conference in Aarhus. The initiative came from ROSA, The Danish Rock Council, and they have organized the festival all these years. In 2005 the Danish minister of culture proclaimed it to be the most important musical event in Denmark. I attended the festival regularly from 2004 and on, but I haven’t been there since 2013 until this year. (Photo above: Sigrid)

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My Favorite Photos from 2014, A-M

Janelle Monae © Per Ole HagenOK.  So here is the first batch of my personal favorite photos from 2014, from Audrey Horne to Morudes. I might have loved the concert, or not, but I liked the visual performance and thought I managed to capture it on camera, too. Some of these bands and artists are well known, and some aren’t. Most are from Norwegian festivals and concert venues. I have posted them in alphabetic order, with no ranking of which I like the best.  Enjoy! (Pictures above: Janelle Monae from the Oya Festival)

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My Favorite Photos from 2014, N-W

Silver © Per Ole HagenHere is the second batch of personal favorite photos from 2014, from Neil Young to Watain. Many of the photos have been used in other articles, or I have posted them on my Facebook photo page or my profile. But these are the rest of my personal favorites from this year, and hopeful some of them show why I like this so much! (Picture above: Silver)

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