Archive for September, 2014

Morten back in the studio

Haugesund, September 26th (From YouTube video by Iwona Magdzinska)

Morten on stage in Haugesund, September 26th
(From YouTube video by Iwona Magdzinska)

Morten was back in Sweden last week, working on new music with Peter Kvint.

“I’m back in the studio with Peter and we’re trying out some stuff. I can’t say that much about it now, but it will be out at some point”, Morten told Radio 102 ahead of his concert in Haugesund.

Peter Kvint also joined Morten at the concerts in Norway this weekend, filling in for Vicky Singh on guitar, while Rickard Nilsson filled in for Christer Karlsson on keyboard.

In the Radio 102 interview, Morten also mentioned that he’s keen on more touring:

“I’m proud of my band, they are excellent musicians. And they have chosen to go on tour with me, even though they could have played with anyone they wanted. They really want to do this, so I would have liked to play even more together with them. I would actually have preferred to do a more extensive tour than we’ve done so far”.

The studio session was also mentioned in an interview with Fædrelandsvennen (subscribers only), in connection with his concert in Kristiansand.

Recent Norwegian concerts – media links:

Bergen, 19 September:
YouTube videos   Bergensavisen review   Hissig.no review
Musikknyheter.no review   Gaffa.no review

Stavanger, 20 September:
YouTube videos   Rogalands Avis article

Haugesund, 26 September:
“Spanish Steps” live   Morten arriving at the airport
Haugesunds Avis interview

Kristiansand, 27 September:
“Los Angeles” live

Magne and Tini on Senkveld

Magne and Tini performing "You Can't Have It Both Ways" on Senkveld, September 26th

Magne and Tini performing “You Can’t Have It Both Ways” on Senkveld, September 26th

Magne and Tini Flaat Mykland were guests on the TV2 talkshow Senkveld on Friday night, to promote Tini’s debut album Undo My Heart which will be released in Norway on October 3rd. The album features several songs written by Magne, including Tini’s new version of “Running Out Of Reasons” from Magne’s solo album A Dot Of Black In
The Blue Of Your Bliss
.

“Tini initially appeared a bit secretive and didn’t quite fit the format of The Voice, as she didn’t really try to show off in her performances. Instead she stood out by being very pure and focused on the music. When I brought the talents I wanted to work with over to England, Tini was the one who got the best reactions and who people wanted to help develop”, Magne said.

“It’s been really exciting. Magne is a fantastic mentor who has helped me a lot, not least by allowing me to grow my ambitions. He has also introduced me to a great network of people, both in Norway and abroad”, Tini said.

Following the interview, Magne and Tini were joined by a few additional musicians and performed a live version of the new single “You Can’t Have It Both Ways”, which has also been written by Magne.

Senkveld is available online through TV2 Sumo (subscribers only).

More info about Tini: tinispage.com

‘Do You Remember Me?’ music video

From the music video; Morten on stage in Kristiansand, July 11th

From the music video; Morten on stage in Kristiansand, July 11th

The new music video for “Do You Remember Me?”, directed by Stian Andersen, premiered on VGTV today.

The black-and-white video was shot during Morten’s solo tour this summer and includes footage from the concerts at Over Oslo Festivalen, Paris, London, Stavernfestivalen and Odderøya Live in June and July.

VG also has an interview with Morten, who turns 55 years old today.

Update: the video has now been added to YouTube by a-ha.com.

Campaign for more a-ha remasters

The remastered deluxe edition of Scoundrel Days. Will more albums get the same treatment?

The remastered deluxe edition of Scoundrel Days. Will more albums get the same treatment?

A new fan campaign has now been started on Facebook, urging Warner Brothers to continue releasing remastered deluxe versions of a-ha’s back catalogue:

“In 2010, WB/Rhino released deluxe 2-CD editions of the first 2 a-ha albums with added demos, extended mixes, live versions and b-side only versions. These products were fantastic, not only greatly improving the sound of these seminal albums but also greatly expanding them with unheard material.

It seemed that the record company were only at the beginning of a release campaign to further improve ALL the a-ha albums. However, since 2010, there have been no further archive projects and the fans have been left waiting and waiting. At the very least, the next 3 a-ha albums (Stay On These Roads/East Of The Sun West Of The Moon/Memorial Beach) should get the same treatment with expansion to 2-CD sets and inclusion of rare and unheard material. “Stay On These Roads” in particular is crying out for re-mastering as the only available CD release sounds very tinny and lo-fi.

In these days of nostalgia, it seems that every artist from the same period apart from a-ha is getting the deluxe treatment. Consequently, their back catalogue is in a mess and seriously needs sorting out. This is a plea to Warner Brothers to do as we ask and accord a-ha with the same respect as it does with the other (sometimes lesser) artists on it’s own roster.”

To read more about the campaign and “like” the page, head over to Facebook.

‘Self-Portraits’ exhibition in Oslo

From A-magasinet, September 5th, with Magne in front of one of the self-portraits, My self as an alphabet, inspired by Edvard Munch's The Scream.

From A-magasinet, September 5th, with Magne in front of one of the self-portraits, My self as an alphabet, inspired by Edvard Munch’s The Scream.

Magne’s latest solo exhibition Self-Portraits opened at Kunstverket Galleri in Oslo on Thursday, September 4th.

The large woodcuts that make up this new exhibition are not traditional self-portraits, but rather Magne’s own idea of what a self-portrait could be.

“I have not been interested in portraying myself in a traditional way. Under the guise of the exhibition title, I’ve been more interested in pursuing an idea. The idea has been to explore different sides of myself; the one I think I am, but perhaps also someone I’m not. It’s also about imagining what it would have been like to be someone else”, Magne said in 6-page interview in A-magasinet yesterday, which is also available online at aftenposten.no.

The interview was done by well-known psychiatrist and author Finn Skårderud.

“I’ve been collecting my whole life, been inspired by others, listened to music, like John Lennon, looked at artworks, and now I’m putting it on display. These images references a lot of things and people that have made an impact, and which have influenced me”, Magne said.

A photo gallery from the preparations and the exhibition opening has been posted on Kunstverket Galleri’s Facebook page.

Self-Portraits will be on display until September 28th.

There is also an article about Magne in the September issue of Art, a German magazine. A photo gallery from Magne’s atelier in Asker in connection with the article can be seen at art-magazin.de.

‘Beatles’ soundtrack now available

Album cover

Album cover

The soundtrack album for the movie Beatles, featuring original music composed by Magne, was released digitally in Norway yesterday and is now available on Spotify, Wimp and iTunes.

30-second samples can be heard at wimp.no.

The album includes 17 tracks, of which 13 are instrumentals by Magne. It also includes a version of “Come Together” by Apparatjik (Feat. Icona Pop & Erik Hassle), “Et Kyss Til” by Hvitmalt Gjerde (taken from their recently released second album), “Sukker og Salt” by Rosenberg Allstars, plus Magne’s own fragile version of “Yesterday”.

“Yeah, that’s me singing. Someone wanted to include “Yesterday”, and we initially tried to use the original Beatles version, but that particular scene screams for something less perfect, and I thought it could be worth a try. It was of course necessary to do a completely different version, as I could never get close to the original one, but the idea was that it needed a certain roughness to match the atmosphere [in the scene]”, Magne told Dagbladet in a recent interview.

When recording the string parts at Abbey Road, Magne brought in a group of musicians from London Philharmonic Orchestra, while David Davidson was flown in from Nashville to oversee the arrangements.

“David Davidson has a PhD in Beatles-strings and is a fantastic guy. He has done string arrangements for a-ha in the past, so I know him well”, Magne told Dagbladet.

Beatles had its nationwide premiere in Norway on August 29th. Although the reviews have been mixed and the box office results have been weaker than expected, Magne’s music has been well-received.

a-ha fan weekend update

This week a-ha.com has posted some updates about the a-ha fan weekend in Oslo next month, including info on an extra concert and guest speakers at the fan convention:

Morten’s concert at Sentrum Scene in Oslo on October 24 has sold out, and a second night has been added! There will be a concert on October 25 at Sentrum Scene, and tickets will go on sale on Monday, September 8 via Billettservice.

We are so pleased to announce that we have confirmed two very special guest speakers for the fan convention: Stian Andersen & Terry Slater!

The ticket sale for the concert on October 25 actually started yesterday on Billettservice, not September 8.

Visit a-ha.com and the 2014 a-ha Fan Party & Convention Facebook page for more info about the events.

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