Archive for 2010

Apparatjik performance at Flø

The cube in action at Flø (Picture from Sunnmørsposten)

The cube in action at Flø
(Picture from Sunnmørsposten)

The four members of Apparatjik held their second ever concert/art-performance as part of Hugo Opdal’s “Go with the Flø” art festival on Friday, June 5th.

We are four musicians who perform and create things together within a short period of time. It may sound like a concert, but we view it more as a discussion forum“, Magne told TV2’s evening news.

The concert had been criticized in the local press beforehand, because of the steep ticket prices; 2000 Kroner ($309) per ticket. And according to Sunnmørsposten, not a single ticket was sold in advance (although Hugo Opdal claimed he had sold 20 tickets on Facebook). But the sales picked up when the price was lowered to 1000 Kroner shortly before the concert. Many local people at Flø and random people visiting were also allowed to enter for free, to fill up the venue.

Magne and Jonas emerging from the cube (Picture from Sunnmørsposten)

Magne and Jonas emerging from the cube
(Picture from Sunnmørsposten)

Apparatjik also launched their “Bolshevik Box” at Flø – a limited edition box set containing a CD, DVD, 12″ vinyl record and one of eight art prints. The Apparatjik prints were also exhibited on the walls of Hugo Opdal’s gallery.

An NRK news report about the art festival can be seen at NRK.no. There are some screenshots on the WOTM forum.

Moods of Norway has some pictures of the guys on Facebook.

 

And the latest clip in a series of Apparatjik video podcasts, this time featuring a heavily-distorted Magne, is now available here.

Kiel concert

Morten letting the audience sing in Kiel, June 1st

Morten letting the audience sing in Kiel, June 1st

Yesterday’s concert at the Sparkassen Arena in Kiel went ahead as planned, with around 5500 people in the audience.

Fan reports say that Morten’s voice was in better shape last night, although he did say that he went on stage against his doctors’ advice.

Like in Trier “Early Morning” was left out of the setlist, and the audience helped sing along when Morten needed to rest his voice.

The Hessentag concert in Stadtallendorf has now been officially rescheduled for Sunday, June 6th, according to NH24.de, among others. Tickets from last Sunday remain valid and there are also tickets left. Luckily, the weather is expected to be much better this time – warm and sunny.

Magne in Kiel, June 1st

Magne in Kiel, June 1st

Magne will now travel back to Norway to play with Apparatjik at Flø on Saturday, June 5th – and hopefully he’ll be able to get back to Germany in time.

Press:
a-ha-Effekt in Kiel (NDR2)    Picture set 1 (NDR2)    Picture set 2 (NDR2)

 
BTW, here’s a small update on the new song; according to Irene’s a-ha fan café blog, “Butterfly” will be included on a new and updated “Best of” 2CD album with 36 tracks. The Norwegian release date is said to be September 20th.

Talent grant finalists

a-ha and their jury members have now decided on the final eight bands and artists that will be competing for the four talent grants of 1 million kroner each in Norway this summer.

They are: Shining, Hanne Hukkelberg, Moddi, Adjagas, Casiokids, Lars Vaular, Susanne Sundfør og Pink Robots.

The eight finalists were chosen from a list of 50 candidates, which can be seen at the bottom of this article.

There were suprisingly similar reactions and enthusiasm toward some of the acts – and then there were split opinions on some of the others“, Magne tells VG today.

– Did it turn into loud discussions?

Yes, we always have loud discussion“, Magne laughs.

Harald Wiik talks about cancellation

An empty Hessentag stage in the rain yesterday (Picture by Valerie)

An empty Hessentag stage in the rain yesterday
(Picture by Valerie)

a-ha manager Harald Wiik has been interviewed by VG today, in connection with yesterday’s cancelled Hessentag concert in Stadtallendorf, Germany. Here’s what he had to say:

– We’re hoping to replace yesterday’s concert with a new show on Sunday [June 6th]. That’s our focus at the moment.

– We think [tomorrow’s concert in Kiel] is going ahead as planned, and that we won’t have to cancel any more concerts. But obviously we’ll have to monitor his condition.

– We had some problems in South America, but a-ha haven’t cancelled a single concert since 1986. But like everyone else, Morten can get a virus infection. It’s impossible to have any guarantees against that.

– The voice problems are probably due to the drafty conditions [in Mönchengladbach]. Morten’s vocal performances are so demanding that he becomes particularly vulnerable.

– We’d prefer to go ahead as planned, but Morten is better now, so we’re hoping to reschedule the concert for Sunday and that we won’t have to cancel further shows.

Stadtallendorf concert cancelled

Tonight’s concert at the Hessentag event in Stadtallendorf has unfortunately been cancelled due to Morten’s voice problems.

Morten went to see a doctor after last night’s concert in Trier, and again this morning, but at 11am today it was announced that it’s not possible for him to perform tonight.

Hessentag is a kind of festival that is held between 28 May – 6 June, but it remains to be seen if it’s possible to re-schedule the concert to a later date.

Morten is well but can’t sing – we are confident that he will be back in shape for Kiel!“, a-ha.com has posted on Twitter tonight.

Article in German from mittelhessen.de: “a-ha”-Konzert fällt aus

Trier concert

Trier, 29 May (Picture by Sandra - more pictures here)

Trier, 29 May
(Picture by Sandra – more pictures here)

Morten had problems with his voice during last night’s indoor concert at Arena Trier. Apparently it was not a problem with his vocal chords, but rather an inflammation at the back of his throat that prevented him from singing at full power.

By the end of the concert, his voice was almost completely gone, according to fans who were in the audience. However, “Early Morning” was the only song that was left out. And it was still a really good show despite Morten’s voice issues, fans said afterwards.

Trier, 29 May (Picture by Sandra)

Trier, 29 May
(Picture by Sandra)

Setlist (with YouTube-links):

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth, Major Sky
6. Summer Moved On
7. Move To Memphis
8. The Blood That Moves The Body
9. Stay On These Roads
10. The Living Daylights
11. And You Tell Me
12. Scoundrel Days
13. The Swing Of Things
14. We’re Looking For The Whales
15. Manhattan Skyline
16. I’ve Been Losing You
17. Cry Wolf
18. The Sun Always Shines On TV
19. Hunting High and Low
20. Take On Me

“Butterfly” – new a-ha song

a-ha’s upcoming final song is called “Butterfly”.

The info comes from New York-based mixer Michael Brauer, who has posted the following info on his website at mbrauer.com:

May 5, 2010 – I just mixed the final recorded song to be released by A-ha called Butterfly.

Brauer has previously mixed Lifelines and How Can I Sleep With Your Voice In My Head. He also mixed Magne’s solo album Past Perfect Future Tense and the songs “Whalebone” and “Rain On Your Parade” for Savoy.

It is not yet known if “Butterfly” will be released as a single or included on a new “best of” album – or both.

VG article and slideshow

Picture from VG

Picture from VG

There is a 9-page article about a-ha in today’s paper edition of VG. The article was done in New York earlier this month and features several pictures taken by Janne Møller-Hansen.

A great slideshow with more of Møller-Hansen’s pictures from New York, set to the tones of “Real Meaning”, is also available online at VG Nett.

Here are some quotes from the article:

Magne: We could easily have continued with a-ha, it’s difficult to say stop when things are going as well as they do. But the question is: Would we continue to inspire each other? I think the answer is no.

Morten: Magne is put together differently than me. Magne doesn’t live in a contemplative room. He just grabs the afterthought as he goes along, while he is saddling two horses that he rides at the same time. His work is his meditation. I’m completely different, I spend a lot of time reflecting on things.

Paul: I’m spoilt in the way that I hear Morten’s voice when I’m writing songs. I would be interested in writing more songs for him, even if we’re not together as a-ha anymore.

Paul interviewed by Südkurier

There is a German interview with Paul on the Südkurier website today.

Here are a few quotes from the interview, which was done over the phone in Toronto a few weeks back:

Mönchengladbach, 28 May (Picture by Sandra)

Mönchengladbach, 28 May
(Picture by Sandra)

You are currently on your Farewell Tour. But why are you ending the band?
– Well, 25 years is a long time for any band. Although we could have continued for another two – three years, of course. But at this point it felt right to try out new things.

For example?
– In my case I really want to write songs for other bands, other singers. So I’ll start doing that, and then see what direction it takes. And I also still have my own band Savoy.

Your last three concerts ever will be held in Oslo in December. They have been sold out for a long time. Is that a symbolic place to end it all?
– Sort of – even though we originally had completely different plans. But it’s fitting. It all started in Norway.

Mönchengladbach, 28 May (Picture by Sandra)

Mönchengladbach, 28 May
(Picture by Sandra)

Which songs are you playing on your Farewell Tour? All of them?
– When you add up all the albums there are around a hundred songs – so it’s quite difficult to choose. The setlist in America will be a bit different than in Europe, where other songs were more popular. We’re trying to see what works, what’s fitting, what we like ourselves. It keeps changing…

You are going to re-release your first album “Hunting High And Low”, among other things?
– Yes, and with added material. We have tried to track down the original masters and the very first versions of our early songs. I like many of those better than the versions that ended up on the albums. And there are still a lot of songs that we have never recorded, because we didn’t have the time. Many of them are really good – they could have turned into great albums.

Read the full interview with Paul in German here.

Mönchengladbach concert

Mönchengladbach, 28 May (Picture by Sandra)

Mönchengladbach, 28 May (Picture by Sandra)

a-ha played the first of four German concerts in front of 8000 people outdoors at the Warsteiner HockeyPark in Mönchengladbach last night.

They opened with “The Bandstand” and the rest of the setlist was similar to the recent concerts in USA and Canada. The new song that Paul mentioned in the RTL radio interview was nowhere to be heard, but there’s another chance tonight, as the band moves on to Trier to play indoors at the city’s sports arena.

More pictures taken by Sandra can be seen here. There are also many pictures from the concert on the German forum here.

Paul mentions new song in radio interview

a-ha will play the first European concert of their Farewell Tour tonight in Mönchengladbach, Germany.

In connection with the German concerts Paul has been interviewed by RTL Radio. An audio clip of the interview can be heard here.

We’re pretty excited about it. We’re gonna play songs from all the nine albums and there might even be a new song that hasn’t been released yet“, Paul says about what the audience can expect this weekend.

G-Sharp guitars

Paul using a G# Classical in New York, May 6th (Picture by Catherine - Romanglass on Flickr)

Paul using a G# Classical in New York, May 6th
(Picture by Catherine – Romanglass on Flickr)

Paul has been known to be a fan of the Norwegian G-Sharp guitars for some time now. He’s using several models on the farewell tour, and you can see Magne and Morten also using them on “Move To Memphis” in this YouTube clip (and in Corina’s picture that I posted yesterday).

The official G-Sharp website has recently been updated with some info about this. It also mentions a-ha’s rumoured final single, which is “soon to be released” according to the site:

a-ha’s PAUL WAAKTAAR SAVOY and MORTEN HARKET join the G# league!

Paul has the whole range of G# guitars and accessories, and he is so pleased with the G# products that he uses a G# guitar on all guitar tracks on a-ha’s soon to be released latest song!

Morten has one Natural Mahogany, and one Antique White G#.

We are very proud that Paul is using the G# guitar on three songs on stage during the ongoing a-ha “Ending On a High Note” tour: “Summer Moved On”, “Crying In The Rain” and “Early Morning”.

 

On the same topic, here’s some info about the Norwegian music shop Lydkilden getting Paul an endorsement deal with guitar pedal manufacturer T-Rex Engineering not too long ago.

Paul’s current selection of T-Rex pedals include Mudhoney, Tremster, Bass Juice, Room-Mate, Squeezer and Comp-Nova.

Toronto radio interview / Deluxe Edition preview clips

Massey Hall, Toronto, May 10th (Picture by Corina - Kimtris21 on Flickr)

Massey Hall, Toronto, May 10th
(Picture by Corina – Kimtris21 on Flickr)

While in Toronto last week, a-ha were interviewed by Jian Ghomeshi on the music show Q on CBC Radio.

The whole 43-minute interview, with all three members in the studio, is now available for listening here: http://www.cbc.ca/q/uncut/

 
Preview clips of all the songs on the upcoming deluxe editions of the first two albums are now available on Rhino.com:
Hunting High and Low
Scoundrel Days

Those of you outside the U.S. can pre-order the 2-disc deluxe editions from Amazon.co.uk if you scroll further down this page (and support a-ha-live.com with your purchase).

 
And check out this amazing YouTube clip of “We’re Looking For The Whales” live in Los Angeles on May 16th (notice the guy dancing at the front!).

The user Tourlaub also has many other high-quality clips from recent concerts.

New interviews and concert reviews

a-ha taking a break from rehearsals at Crown Heights in Brooklyn, May 4th. (Picture by Janne Møller-Hansen for VG)

a-ha taking a break from rehearsals at Crown Heights in Brooklyn, May 4th.
(Picture by Janne Møller-Hansen for VG)

 
Here is some recent press from the North American tour:

Interviews with Paul:
The Toronto Star: The a-ha moment to say goodbye (6 May)
National Post: a-ha: Finally confident that life is OK (7 May)
Sundance Channel: A Q&A with a-ha’s Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (10 May)
Chicago Sun-Times: a-ha will be no-mo (11 May)

Interviews with Magne:
Metromix New York: Q&A: a-ha (10 May)
Rolling Stone: The Secret History of a-ha’s Smash “Take on Me” (14 May)

Live reviews:
New York Post: A last chance to take on a-ha (8 May)
The New York Times: Two Scandinavian Acts… (9 May)
Billboard.com: a-ha / May 8, 2010 / New York (10 May)
Toronto Sun: Norweigan pop act a-ha ending on a high note (11 May)
Chromewaves.net: Ending On A High Note – Massey Hall in Toronto (13 May)
Spinner.com: A-Ha Play Second-Ever Chicago Show on Farewell Tour (14 May)
The Orange County Register: Saluting a-ha… (16 May)
Consequence of Sound: a-ha waves goodbye to Chicago (17 May)
Dagbladet.no (Norway): – Goodbye America (17 May) – with video report
Hollywood Icon Magazine: A-Ha Leaves Their Mark On America… (18 May)
Hearsay.cc: Without a-ha, there might not be a Coldplay… (20 May)

 
And some recent German interviews:

Bild.de: “A-ha-Songs sind wie Kinder” (17 May)
Rheinische Post: A-ha will ins Museum Abteiberg (17 May)
Westdeutsche Zeitung: “A-ha ist unser gemeinsames Kind” (17 May)
Volksfreund.de: “Musik ist Teil des Lebens” (21 May)

Pre-order remastered Deluxe Editions

The remastered 2-disc Deluxe Editions of Hunting High And Low and Scoundrel Days will be released in the UK on July 12th 2010.

Both albums can now be pre-ordered from Amazon.co.uk using the links below:

Hunting High and Low:
Deluxe Edition

Tracklist:

Disc 1:
1. Take On Me
2. Train Of Thought
3. Hunting High And Low
4. The Blue Sky
5. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale
6. The Sun Always Shines On T.V.
7. And You Tell Me
8. Love Is Reason
9. I Dream Myself Alive
10. Here I Stand And Face The Rain
Bonus Tracks:
11. Take On Me (Original 7″ Version 1984)
12. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Extended Mix)
13. Train Of Thought (U.S. Mix)
14. Hunting High And Low (Extended Remix)

Disc 2:
1. Take On Me (Demo)
2. Train Of Thought (Demo)*
3. Hunting High And Low (Demo)*
4. The Blue Sky (Demo)
5. Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale (Early Version)*
6. The Sun Always Shines on T.V. (Demo)*
7. And You Tell Me (Demo)
8. Love Is Reason (Demo)*
9. I Dream Myself Alive (Demo)*
10. Here I Stand And Face The Rain (Demo)*
11. Stop And Make Your Mind Up
12. Driftwood
13. Dot The I*
14. The Love Goodbye
15. Nothing To It*
16. Go To Sleep
17. Monday Mourning
18. All The Planes That Come In On The Quiet*
19. Never Never
20. What’s That You’re Doing To Yourself*
21. You Have Grown Thoughtful Again*
22. Lesson One (Autumn 1982 Demo)*
23. Presenting Lily Mars

* previously unreleased

Scoundrel Days:
Deluxe Edition

Tracklist:

Disc 1:
1. Scoundrel Days
2. The Swing Of Things
3. I’ve Been Losing You
4. October
5. Manhattan Skyline
6. Cry Wolf
7. We’re Looking For The Whales
8. The Weight Of The Wind
9. Maybe, Maybe
10. Soft Rains Of April
Bonus Tracks:
11. I’ve Been Losing You (Extended Version)
12. Cry Wolf (Extended Version)
13. Manhattan Skyline (Extended Version)

Disc 2:
1. Scoundrel Days (Demo)*
2. The Swing Of Things (Demo #3)*
3. I’ve Been Losing You (Octocon Studio Demo)*
4. October (Demo)*
5. Manhattan Skyline (Demo)*
6. Cry Wolf (Demo)*
7. We’re Looking For The Whales (Demo)*
8. The Weight Of The Wind (Demo)*
9. Maybe, Maybe (Demo)*
10. Soft Rains Of April (Guitar Version)*
11. Scoundrel Days (Octocon Studio Demo)*
12. This Alone Is Love (Original Version)
13. Days On End (Demo)
14. Train of Thought (Live In Croydon)*
15. I’ve Been Losing You (Live In Croydon)*
16. The Blue Sky (Live In Croydon)*
17. Looking for The Whales (Live In Croydon)
18. Cry Wolf (Live In Croydon)*

* previously unreleased
 
 
 
 
 
 

Good ticket sales in Norway

.

.

Tickets for the a-ha concert at Brann Stadium in Bergen on 28 August are selling surprisingly well. Although it’s more than four months away, 17.350 tickets have already been sold.

Initially 16.000 tickets were made available, but an additional 8.000 tickets have now been added. Although the stadium has a capacity for even more people, the audience limit will be 24.000. This is because the concert will be quite unusual, with the stage placed on one of the long sides, and the organizers want everyone to have a good view.

a-ha are selling well in all the six Norwegian cities where they’ll be playing. The best-selling concert so far is Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo, with Brann Stadium in Bergen as a very good number two“, Arne Svare from concert organizers Stageway tells Bergens Tidende.

I’m not surprised by how well a-ha are selling on their farewell tour. But the fact that they have sold so many tickets in such a short time is surprising“, Svare – who had the idea for the Norwegian stadium tour – says.

If all the 24.000 tickets are sold in Bergen, this will be the largest concert ever in the city. The current record is held by Bruce Springsteen, who played two concerts with an audience of 23.500 people each night in 2009.

New exhibitions

A Magne F exhibition of 30 graphic prints, probably Alpha Beta, will be held at Galleri Elsa in Namsos from 24 April to 21 May.

We have been in a dialogue for a while, and it finally worked out. It’s always fun to get someone who hasn’t exhibited here before. It will be interesting for both the audience and the artist, and I’m really looking forward to it“, gallery owner Elsa Elden tells Namdalsavisa.

Magne will also be exhibiting as part of the annual Soddjazz Festival at Inderøy, which is held between 28 April and 2 May. He’s been named this year’s festival artist and Alpha Beta will be on display at Nils Aas Kunstverksted.

It’s not known if Magne will be able to visit Namsos and Inderøy himself.

New details about a-ha talent grant

Magne and Morten first announced the a-ha talent grant at a press conference on 1 March

Magne and Morten first announced the a-ha talent grant at a press conference on 1 March

New details about the a-ha talent grant competition in Norway have been announced today. Instead of having the bands and artists themselves signing up to be nominated, the candidates will be nominated by a jury consisting of a-ha and six other people from the music industry. The jury currently has a list of around 30 bands and artists that will be reduced to 8 finalists over the next month or so – 2 from each part of the country (Northern- and Mid-Norway, Western Norway, Southern Norway and Eastern Norway).

a-ha have teamed up with Norway’s largest newspaper VG for this, and the 8 finalists will compete against each other at the “VG Lista” summer shows that are held in various cities every year. The 4 lucky winners will then be decided by the Norwegian people, who can vote by SMS or online at VG Nett.

It’s really cool that the audience can participate, and that we’re making this as fun as possible for as many as possible“, Magne tells VG today.

In addition to one million kroner and a support gig for a-ha, the winning bands/artists are given newspaper ads in VG worth one million kroner.

We’re looking for a combination of distinct artistic expression and a confident attitude – and we think it’d be really fun if we end up with artists that are more of a fresh breath of air than just obvious favorites to win“, Magne says.

This is the jury of six people that will assist a-ha in choosing the eight finalists:
– Tone Lise Skagefoss (Norway) – music journalist and former judge on Norwegian Idol
– Øystein Ronander (Norway) – works for by:Larm and Bureau Storm
– Kristian Riis (Denmark) – manager and musician in the Danish band Nephew
– Martin Terefe (Sweden) – London-based producer and Apparatjik-member
– Marie Dimberg (Sweden) – manager of the band Roxette
– Markus Hartmann (Germany) – head of A & R at Starwatch Records

New dates / Morten in Classic Rock Magazine

The July concert at Clam Castle near Linz has now been confirmed by a-ha.com. The first of the Russian concerts in November has also been officially confirmed:

16 July: Clam Castle, Linz, Austria
09 November: Olimpiysky Arena, Moscow, Russia

 

There was an interview with Morten in a recent issue of Classic Rock Magazine, where he talks about discovering his “prog heroes” Uriah Heep in the mid-70s.

Heep meant everything to me in those years – on records like Magician’s Birthday, Demons and Wizards and, of course, Wonderworld, their songwriting was so very good – and I still feel the same way“, Morten says.

A scan of the magazine feature can be found on the official Uriah Heep website here.

 

And Brazilian fan Alek Quissak has made a video tribute to the band and wanted me to post the link: http://www.vimeo.com/10329859

There you go, Alek.

Santiago concert

Santiago, March 23rd

Santiago, March 23rd

The South American tour ended with the rescheduled concert at the Movistar Arena in Santiago last night, where the band played for an audience of 9000 people.

Morten’s voice is clearly improving after the problems he had last week, so it was back to the 20-song setlist this time.

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth, Major Sky
6. Move To Memphis
7. The Blood That Moves The Body
8. Stay On These Roads
9. The Living Daylights
10. Early Morning
11. Crying In The Rain
12. Scoundrel Days
13. Manhattan Skyline
14. I’ve Been Losing You
15. We’re Looking For The Whales
16. Cry Wolf
————
17. Train Of Thought
18. Hunting High And Low
19. The Sun Always Shines On TV
————
20. Take On Me

There’s an article with more pictures from the concert on rocknvivo.com.

Fortaleza concert

Paul in Fortaleza. More pictures can be seen on this blog.

Paul in Fortaleza.
More pictures can be seen on this blog.

a-ha played their last ever Brazilian concert at the Siara Hall in Fortaleza yesterday. Because of Morten’s voice problems, they did the same shortened 18-song set as in Recife. But it seemed like his voice had improved a bit since the last concert, a fact he mentioned himself during the show.

The setlist:

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth Major Sky
6. Move To Memphis
7. The Blood That Moves The Body
8. Stay On These Roads
9. The Living Daylights
10. Crying In The Rain
11. Scoundrel Days
12. Manhattan Skyline
13. I’ve Been Losing You
14. We’re Looking For The Whales
15. Cry Wolf
————
16. Hunting High And Low
17. The Sun Always Shines On TV
————
18. Take On Me

 
Now it’s off to Chile for the last concert of this first leg of the tour on Tuesday.

“It’s been a strange experience”

Morten on stage in Brasilia earlier this week

Morten on stage in Brasilia earlier this week

“It’s been a strange experience to be on stage without my singing voice, but absolutely fantastic to be met by such overwhelming support from the entire audience during the concerts in both Brasilia and Recife. a-ha is definitely more than just me, and the band has performed brilliantly in the absence of my voice, singing along instead of me”, Morten tells VG Nett today, in a text message via his personal manager Sverre Flatby.

a-ha are supposed to perform their last ever Brazilian concert in Fortaleza tonight, and hopefully it will go ahead as planned.

“His condition is being continously monitored. Morten has to a large degree managed to avoid these problems through a 25-year career and has an impressive track record of not missing many concerts. Ideally he should be giving his voice complete rest at the moment, but Morten is weighing this up against a strong wish to not disappoint all those who have been waiting for a-ha in South America”, Sverre Flatby tells VG.

Morten’s voice problems are also mentioned on Dagbladet.no.

“Morten has performed two concerts with a virus infection on his vocal chords, and was therefore examined by doctors in both Brasilia and Recife”, a-ha manager Harald Wiik tells the newspaper.

Recife concert

Morten was flown by helicopter to a local hospital where he was diagnosed with pharyngitis and tonsillitis.

Morten was flown by helicopter to a local hospital where
he was diagnosed with pharyngitis and tonsillitis.

Because of his throat infection Morten’s voice was in even worse shape last night in Recife. Therefore the setlist was shortened by another two songs, leaving out “Summer Moved On” and “The Swing Of Things”.

Despite undergoing medical treatment in a local hospital earlier in the day, Morten was almost voiceless when the band entered the stage at the Chevrolet Hall nearly an hour late, as you can see in this clip.

The air conditioning was reportedly switched off in the venue, which made the temperature unbearably hot. But his voice did seem to get better later in the concert.

Under different circumstances the show would perhaps have been cancelled, to prevent any damage to his vocal chords that could affect future concerts, but I guess since it’s the Farewell Tour with little chance of rescheduling they went ahead anyway.

“I’ve lost my voice, as you can hear, but I don’t want to cancel the show. So you need to help me”, Morten told the crowd before “Minor Earth Major Sky”.

The setlist:

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth Major Sky
6. Move To Memphis
7. The Blood That Moves The Body
8. Stay On These Roads
9. The Living Daylights
10. Crying In The Rain
11. Scoundrel Days
12. Manhattan Skyline
13. I’ve Been Losing You
14. We’re Looking For The Whales
15. Cry Wolf
————
16. Hunting High And Low
17. The Sun Always Shines On TV
————
18. Take On Me

Magne in Vestkantmagasinet

The magazine cover

The magazine cover

Magne is featured in the spring 2010 issue of Vestkantmagasinet, a free magazine distributed in the Oslo area.

In the interview he talks about the sculpture he made for the Nobel Peace Centre, working with his former mentor Kjell Nupen and the Alpha Beta project.

a-ha is also mentioned:

– What is important to you in 2010?
– 2010 is the year where we sum things up with a-ha, and for me that’s an opportunity to end a chapter of my life with dignity. I also hope to return to a healthier lifestyle – working double shifts every day is apparently not healthy in the long run, I’ve been told…

– And what are you most looking forward to?
– a-ha’s farewell tour this year. It will be interesting to see the world through “a-ha glasses” one final time.

The interview with Magne can be read in Norwegian on the magazine’s website here.

Brasilia concert

Brasilia, March 16th

Brasilia, March 16th

a-ha played for an audience of 5000 people at the large indoor sports arena Ginasio Nilson Nelson in Brasilia yesterday. Morten was struggling with his voice because he’s gotten a throat infection. This caused the concert to be the shortest of the tour so far, with only 20 songs on the setlist.

I need you to help me out today, because I have a throat infection“, Morten told the audience – as you can see in this video clip. And they were happy to oblige, singing along whenever Morten held out the microphone to the crowd.

Setlist:

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth Major Sky
6. Summer Moved On
7. Move To Memphis
8. The Blood That Moves The Body
9. Stay On These Roads
10. The Living Daylights
11. Crying In The Rain
12. Scoundrel Days
13. The Swing Of Things
14. Manhattan Skyline
15. I’ve Been Losing You
16. We’re Looking For The Whales
17. Cry Wolf
————-
18. Hunting High And Low
19. The Sun Always Shines On TV
————-
20. Take On Me

Belo Horizonte concert

Belo Horizonte, March 14th

Belo Horizonte, March 14th

An audience of 5500 witnessed the sold-out concert at the Chevrolet Hall in Belo Horizonte yesterday. No surprises in the setlist this time. “You Are The One” was not played last night and the band seems to be alternating between 22 and 23 songs.

Here is the setlist:

Belo Horizonte, March 14th

Belo Horizonte, March 14th

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth Major Sky
6. Summer Moved On
7. Move To Memphis
8. The Blood That Moves The Body
9. Stay On These Roads
10. The Living Daylights
11. Early Morning
12. Crying In The Rain
13. Scoundrel Days
14. The Swing Of Things
15. Manhattan Skyline
16. I’ve Been Losing You
17. We’re Looking For The Whales
18. Cry Wolf
———–
19. Train Of Thought
20. Hunting High And Low
21. The Sun Always Shines On TV
———–
22. Take On Me

Festival dates in Japan

Two festival dates in Japan were announced on a-ha.com a while ago, only to be removed shortly afterwards. The dates now seem to be back on, with the Summer Sonic festival’s website now featuring a-ha as part of its lineup.

The festival is held in Tokyo and Osaka on 7 and 8 August.

Rio concert

Rio, March 13th

Rio, March 13th

The band had yet another surprise in store when they played before an audience of 7000 people at the Citibank Hall in Rio de Janeiro yesterday; an acoustic version of “You Are The One”, a song that hasn’t been played live since 1991.

The new acoustic-ish version of “Minor Earth Major Sky” remained in the setlist, while “Touchy” seems to have been dropped after its only appearance in Bauru.

The setlist (via a-ha.com):

Rio, March 13th

Rio, March 13th

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Minor Earth Major Sky
6. Summer Moved On
7. Move To Memphis
8. The Blood That Moves The Body
9. Stay On These Roads
10. The Living Daylights
11. Early Morning
12. You Are The One
13. Crying In The Rain
14. Scoundrel Days
15. Swing Of Things
16. Manhattan Skyline
17. I’ve Been Losing You
18. We’re Looking For The Whales
19. Cry Wolf
—————
20. Train Of Thought
21. Hunting High And Low
22. The Sun Always Shines On TV
—————
23. Take On Me

Press reviews: O Globo   Rock em Geral

Wennerberg speaks

Karl Oluf Wennerberg

Karl Oluf Wennerberg

a-ha/magne f-drummer Karl Oluf Wennerberg, who comes from the small town of Vennesla in southern Norway, is interviewed by his local newspaper Vennesla Tidende today.

I’m looking forward to playing in every city, it’s really fun. There’s been a good atmosphere so far. The highlight will probably be the concert at Sør Arena [in Kristiansand] on September 11th. It will be special to be on home ground“, Wennerberg says.

A translation of the whole interview, which was done over the phone in Bauru on Tuesday, can be found in the articles section here.

 

a-ha.com on Twitter continues to provide small updates from the tour. Here is a picture of Magne with Brazilian football legends Junior and Zico.

The “a-ha The Best” blog has more pictures from this meeting.

Sao Paulo concert

Sao Paulo, March 10th

Sao Paulo, March 10th

Last night’s concert at the Credicard Hall in Sao Paulo saw some positive changes to the setlist, with “Minor Earth Major Sky” (new acoustic version) and “The Swing Of Things” being added. “Touchy” (which didn’t really seem to work the previous night) was dropped, along with “And You Tell Me” and “Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale”.

The concert was sold out, which meant around 7500 people in the audience.

The setlist (with YouTube-links):

Sao Paulo, March 10th

Sao Paulo, March 10th

1. The Bandstand
2. Foot Of The Mountain
3. Analogue
4. Forever Not Yours
5. Summer Moved On
6. Minor Earth Major Sky
7. Move To Memphis
8. Stay On These Roads
9. The Blood That Moves The Body
10. The Living Daylights
11. Early Morning
12. Crying In The Rain
13. Scoundrel Days
14. The Swing Of Things
15. Manhattan Skyline
16. We’re Looking For The Whales
17. I’ve Been Losing You
18. Cry Wolf
————
19. Train Of Thought
20. The Sun Always Shines On TV
21. Hunting High And Low
22. Take On Me

Brazilian press reviews: Terra   UOL Musica   R7   MTV Brazil   Rolling Stone Brazil   Yahoo Brazil   Yahoo picture set on Flickr

Now the band has a few days off before the next concert in Rio on Saturday.

BTW, the concert in Brasilia on the 16th has been moved from Centro de Convenciones to Ginasio Nilson Nelson, which is a larger venue.

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