Posts Tagged ‘savoy’

Savoy: New podcast and magazine interviews

From the latest issues of Musikkpraksis and Norway Rock Magazine

Paul is the main guest in the latest episode of Norwegian guitar podcast “Kan du skru ned litt” [“Can you please turn it down a little?”], hosted by El Cuero guitarist Øyvind Blomstrøm. During the hour-long conversation, which was recorded in Oslo in early January, they talk in detail about Paul’s studio and live setups from the early days until today.

The podcast episode is available at acast.com, or in your preferred podcast app.

The magazine Musikkpraksis has an 8-page interview with Paul and Lauren in its latest issue (#1/2018), where the two of them talk about each track on the new Savoy album. There is also a 2-page interview with Paul in the current issue (#1/2018) of Norway Rock Magazine.

Both magazines are available in selected Narvesen stores across Norway.

‘See The Beauty…’ enters album chart at #7

Savoy’s new and well-received album

See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown has entered the Norwegian album chart at #7 in its first week, making it Savoy’s sixth top ten album in Norway. See the whole chart at vglista.no.

Here are the band’s previous first-week positions on the Norwegian album chart:

Mary Is Coming (1996): #1
Lackluster Me (1997): #12
Mountains Of Time (1999): #1
Reasons To Stay Indoors (2001): #8
Savoy (2004): #7
Savoy Songbook Vol. 1 (2007): #7

In other news, Paul and Lauren were guests on another radio show on 14 January, Søndagsåpent on NRK P1. The whole interview is in English, and available here.

Additional Norwegian album reviews have been posted by musikknyheter.no and arildronsen.no, while the first German review has appeared on bleistiftrocker.de.

Great reviews for Savoy album and concert

Paul and Frode at Parkteatret, 11 January
(Picture by Carlos Maciá)

The good reviews for See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown have kept coming since the album release last Friday. Here are a few more from the Norwegian press:

Dagsavisen (5/6): “Paul Waaktaar-Savoy’s songs are more vital than in a long time and oozing of confidence.”

Aftenposten (5/6): “An album that demands some time, but offers a lot of good and timeless pop music.”

Klassekampen (5/6): “After more than 20 years Savoy are reaching new creative heights, while maintaining a down-to-earth playfulness.”

Morgenbladet: “The frustration and (passive-)agressiveness that was a part of the previous albums has been replaced with a likeable musical optimism.”

Hamar Arbeiderblad (4/6): “The band make a departure from their previously guitar-driven sound in favour of a shameless flirt with 80s electro-pop. And as long as the result is this good, there’s nothing to be ashamed about.”

Åsane Tidende (4/6): “Low-key pop with a soul.”

Bergens Tidende (3/6): “The album includes both the alternative pop-rock they’re known for, and a more surprising element: synthpop.”

Lauren at Parkteatret, 11 January
(Picture by Carlos Maciá)

There have also been some album reviews on blogs and fansites:

Campaign For More a-ha Remastered Deluxes: “This album contains a truly great collection of songs. At this stage in his career, nobody needed any further proof that Pål Waaktaar-Savoy is a genius but we can all be thankful that he has once again supplied us with some.”

Popklikk: “See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown features so many melodious and utterly fine songs that I’ve almost become addicted.”

The Wilhelmsens (6/6): “Paul deserves credit for his lyrics. He has an excellent way of combining music and lyrics, which always puts the song at the center.”

Dave’s Place Music: “See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown is an album that shines from various lights, sometimes glowing like a nocturnal sun, sometimes glimmering like a candle in plain daylight, as it is surely intended to do with such an album-title.”

The Savoy concert at Parkteatret last Thursday has also been getting good reviews:

Musikknyheter (8/10): “A strong release concert, featuring many old songs. (…) Waaktaar sings better than ever, and with great authority and confidence. In particular on “End of the Line” and “Rain”. As a guitarist he was also impressive throughout the concert. (…) Savoy appeared as a skilled live band.”

Norway Rock Magazine (4,5/6): “Despite low expectations, this turned out to be a very enjoyable evening with Savoy in front of a crowd of 3-400 people.”

There are some great photo galleries from the concert on Flickr, taken by Johannes Andersen and Carlos Maciá. And a selection of video clips have been posted on YouTube.

Lauren and Paul signing albums at Big Dipper, 13 January
(Picture by Carlos Maciá)

No additional Savoy concerts are scheduled at the moment, but hopefully there will be more:

“We’ll probably do a few more concerts eventually, and we’re hoping to do some festivals. Unfortunately we had to turn down an offer from Bergenfest, due to other commitments, but of course we’re hoping to do a concert in my hometown”, Frode Unneland said in an interview with Åsane Tidende yesterday.

“We have actually talked about doing a club tour, just the three of us. We recently rehearsed as a trio in New York. It’s tempting. Savoy is a project without any stress. There’s no outside pressure to sell a lot of tickets. So there’s a great atmosphere when we’re working together”, Frode told Bergens Tidende in another interview last Friday (paywall).

Even though Savoy has only recorded one of Frode’s songs (which remains unreleased), he still feels that he’s actively contributing to the creative process:

“Savoy is basically our joint rock project. We all sing as well. The vocal work is very important to the band – and I think many struggle to hear the difference between Paul and myself.”

Frode also mentions that he’s been working on a new solo project, with 15 songs ready.

On Saturday Paul and Lauren signed copies of the new album at Big Dipper record store in Oslo. A lot of fans showed up, and the album was sold out within minutes after the signing started.

The album will be released in Germany tomorrow, 19 January, and the CD and vinyl can be ordered from amazon.de. In the UK the album will be out on 9 February and amazon.co.uk has the CD and vinyl available for pre-order.

Savoy at Parkteatret

Savoy and Zoe Gnecco performing “Velvet”
(Picture by Jakob)

Savoy played their first concert in nearly ten years at Parkteatret in Oslo tonight, to celebrate tomorrow’s release of See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown.

Paul

The 18-song setlist featured songs from all of their albums, including four songs from the new album.

Paul, Lauren and Frode were joined by Linn Frøkedal on keyboards and Chris Holm on bass.

Lauren

Special guest Zoe Gnecco had flown in from New York for the show, and joined them on stage for a few songs from the World of Trouble album, plus a Waaktaar & Zoe version of “Under The Makeup” with slightly different lyrics. She also did the female vocals on “Velvet”.

Frode

Here’s the full setlist:

1. Tears From a Stone
2. I Still Cry
3. Manmade Lake
4. January Thaw
5. Girl One
6. End of the Line
7. Whalebone
8. Night Watch
9. Rain
10. Fearlist
11. Sycamore Leaves
12. Beautiful Burnout (w/ Zoe Gnecco)
13. World of Trouble (w/ Zoe Gnecco)
14. Under The Makeup (w/ Zoe Gnecco)
15. Daylight’s Wasting
16. Star
17. Velvet (w/ Zoe Gnecco)
18. Falls Park

The fansite a-ha France has posted a 45-minute video clip from the concert on Facebook, which can be seen here.

Some selected live pictures from Instagram:
Picture 1    Picture 2     Picture 3    Picture 4    Picture 5    Picture 6

Paul and Lauren on NRK radio

Picture by Spillerom on Instagram

Paul and Lauren visited NRK’s radio studios in Oslo yesterday, to promote the new Savoy album.

First up was Nitimen on NRK P1. The full interview, which is mostly in English, can be heard here.

They were also guests on Spillerom on NRK P2, which included the radio premiere of the song “Bump”. Hear the interview here.

More pictures from the interviews have been posted by Drabant Music on Instagram.

New Savoy single “January Thaw”

Single cover

“January Thaw”, the second single from Savoy’s new album See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown, was released by Drabant Music on Friday 5 January. Listen to the song here.

VG has published a new interview with Paul and Lauren, along with the premiere of the “January Thaw” music video, directed by Jason Brandenberg.

They have also been interviewed by Dagsavisen (paywall), which mentions that Paul and Lauren will be promoting the Savoy album in different countries while on the road with a-ha.

The first reviews of the new album, which is released on 12 January, have already started to appear:

Dagbladet (5/6): “In many ways the album seems to build a bridge between a-ha’s synth-dominated universe and Paul’s roots in 60s and 70s classic pop.”

VG (4/6): “Paul Waaktaar’s best vocal performance ever, and definitely one of the most consistent set of songs the married couple has delivered since [Mary is Coming].”

The Electricity Club: “Overall this is a confident – and surprisingly seamless – collection; playful, adventurous, and boasting a production that benefits from retaining its rough edges.”

On Thursday Savoy will be playing their first concert in nearly ten years at Parkteatret in Oslo. Tickets are still available from ticketmaster.no. According to Electricity Club, they will be joined by two musicians who haven’t played with Savoy before; Linn Frøkedal on keyboards and Chris Holm on bass. Zoe Gnecco will also be there as a special guest.

It’s been a very long time since Paul last visited the Parkteatret venue, which previously used to be a cinema. “I haven’t been there since I watched a Tarzan-movie as a 7-year-old”, he tells Dagsavisen.

On the contrast between playing live with a-ha and Savoy, he says:

“It’s like two different beasts. I always get something from one of them that I don’t get from the other. But everything is more vulnerable with Savoy. There’s more of a nerve to it, without a parachute. a-ha is a bigger production, with more you can lean on.”

On Saturday at 14:00, Savoy will be signing copies of the new album at the Big Dipper record store in Oslo. It might be possible to get other items signed as well; “I’ll sign any album I’ve worked on…anything but blank checks”, Paul wrote in a comment on Instagram, alongside a preview of the gatefold vinyl edition.

Fans who aren’t able to be at the signing session on Saturday can pre-order the album from Big Dipper now and receive a signed copy in the mail (only inside Norway).

‘See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown’ tracklist

Album cover

The tracklist of the upcoming Savoy album See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown (12/01/18) has now been posted on amazon.co.uk and other Amazon sites, along with 30-second samples of each song.

1. Night Watch
2. A Month Of Sundays
3. Falls Park
4. Manmade Lake
5. Bump
6. January Thaw
7. Shy Teens Suffering Silently
8. We’re The Same Way
9. Sunlit Byways
10. (My) Weathervane

As we can see, the album includes new Savoy-versions of the previously released “Manmade Lake” and “Weathervane”. The song Lauren wrote for her short film Scent of a Woman is now called “Bump”.

Besides the digital release, the album will be available on CD and as a gatefold vinyl.

Tonight, Ørjan Nilsson and Audun Vinger will be doing another conversation about Tårer fra en stein, this time held at the library in Tromsø. It will include the premiere of one of the songs on the album, “Falls Park”, exclusively for the audience.

“Night Watch” available now

“Night Watch”, the first single from Savoy’s upcoming album See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown has now been released digitally worldwide. Listen on your preferred streaming service here, and watch the music video on YouTube.

Single cover

“Night Watch” is a surprisingly potent and contemporary track and is – besides “Foreign Film” and “Fearlist” – the closest Savoy has ever been to the dancefloor.

A classic Waaktaar-Savoy song, with carefully layered synths and guitars – but with a gritty edge and pounding beat, or “dark dance” as Lauren called it in a recent interview. Especially halfway through the song, when you’re suddenly transported to a dark and sweaty club.

Paul has said he’s “super excited” about the new album, and this is certainly a very promising start.

Although Savoy have had several gold- and platinum-selling albums in Norway, international success has been elusive so far. It “could have happened / almost did”, as Paul sings in “Night Watch”. Maybe the new album will open new doors, and 2018 will prove to be Savoy’s year?

Savoy announce release concert in Oslo

Savoy live at Rockefeller, 21 May 2008 (Picture by Jakob)

Savoy have announced they will be doing a release concert at Parkteatret in Oslo on Thursday 11 January 2018, the day before their new album See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown is released.

This will be the first Savoy concert in nearly ten years. The last time they performed together were the five shows at Rockefeller and Royal Albert Hall in May 2008.

It will also be the first time they perform at Parkteatret, which has a capacity of 500 people. Magne did a solo concert at the same venue in 2004.

Tickets go on sale via Ticketmaster on Friday 24 November at 9 am, but there will be an a-ha.com presale on Thursday.

New Savoy album: ‘See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown’

New publicity photo by Jason Brandenberg

The new Savoy album is called See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown and is scheduled for release on 12 January. First single “Night Watch” is coming on 24 November. See the single and album covers on the Savoy Facebook page.

Savoy have signed with Oslo-based Drabant Music for this album, the same record label that released the Waaktaar & Zoe album earlier this year.

In a new interview with Dagbladet today, Paul and Lauren reveal that Augie moved to California this summer to study, which means they now have more time to focus on the band.

“We have time to fill. We were “football parents” for 15 years, with lots to do all the time. Now there’s a void”, Paul says.

“I don’t want to be moping about an “empty nest”. It feels like a kick in the butt when your kid leaves home. Suddenly you have more capacity to do the things you want”, Lauren says.

According to Dagbladet there’s a clearer connection between Savoy and a-ha on the new album. Lauren says that’s partly because of the massive Moog-synth in their home studio:

“While Paul has a dark dimension as a composer, he is also good at making dance music. I call it “dark dance”, which I think is something new for us. Just like the album title we’re mixing ugliness with beauty, darkness with light.”

The interview also mentions the fact that since Savoy last released music, a new Brooklyn-based band with the same name has garnered some attention in the US:

“I couldn’t believe it. We take a little break, and these guys show up. But she’s the real Savoy”, Paul says with a laugh and nods towards his wife.

He admits that it’s annoying, but says there’s no use in suing them.

As for the album title See The Beauty In Your Drab Hometown, Paul says that it doesn’t refer to Oslo, New York or Bergen, but something more abstract:

“Maybe it’s Manglerud – he he. No, I think it’s more about the grass always being greener on the other side. The point is that you have to be actively looking for beauty. It’s easy to dismiss it – and sometimes you don’t even have the chance to go somewhere else.”

Savoy are now also on Twitter. You can follow the band here.

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