Våre demoner
Encyclopedia
Våre demoner is the fifth studio album by Norwegian
alternative
rock group
Kaizers Orchestra
. Recorded during early 2009, it was released in limited quantities on April 27, 2009. Unlike their four previous albums, the material on Våre demoner consists of re-recorded versions of old material that was never released officially for various reasons. The album's liner notes
contain information about how the lyrics relate to one another within the "universe" of the band's songs as well as lyrics.
in 2008, the band toured throughout Europe
during fall of that year, playing songs that they had either dropped from their usual setlists a long time prior or had never really been played much at all. During this period, rumours began circulating that the band were going to record some of their unrecorded material.
The rumours intensified when, at the beginning of 2009, the band had been spotted in a recording studio in Jæren
, Stavanger
, Norway. After meticulous speculation on the part of the band's fans, information about the album was released on February 14, with a complete tracklist being released.
("Gruvene på 16", "Prosessen", "Stormfull vals"), three during the Evig pint
period ("Kavalér", "Du og meg Sonny", "Die Polizei"), four from Maestro
("Medisin og psykiatri", "Våre demoner", "Señor Torpedo", "Fanden hakk i hel"), and two from Maskineri
("Den sjette sansen", "Under månen").
The band stressed that although all of the songs were recorded on demos, this would not be a collection of "B-sides", but rather new recordings of old material. Several songs from the album had already been heard by fans, such as "Die Polizei", "Medisin og psykiatri" and "Den sjette sansen" which they have played live on several occasions, as well as "Våre demoner" and "Stormfull vals", of which some early demos were leaked. The remainder of the album's tracks were never heard by the public. They recorded the album in more or less one take, recording it as a band and then editing in orchestrated strings, banjo, brass and guest musicians afterwards.
. This performance was recorded and scheduled to be aired on national TV, but it was eventually cut from the programming due to unknown reasons. The video was later released online. The single was released in the iTunes Store
and several other musical stores on March 25, 2009.
On April 2, it was revealed that the various releases of the album would be limited, and that both the vinyl and CD releases would be withdrawn from the market after seven days. On April 20, as part of a marketing campaign with Platekompaniet, the band released preview versions of two tracks from the album each day, until the day of its release.
On April 8, the band released a half-hour long documentary chronicling the history and recording sessions of "Die Polizei", directed by Geir Zahl
, one of the band's guitarists and founders.
A week after its release, Våre demoner assumed the number one spot in official Norwegian album charts and "Under månen", a downloadable bonus track, entered the national Top 20 Singles charts at the twentieth spot.
unless otherwise noted. The lyrics are in Norwegian
with only some phrases in English.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
alternative
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
rock group
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
Kaizers Orchestra
Kaizers Orchestra
Kaizers Orchestra is a Norwegian alternative rock group formed on January 1, 2000. The two leading members, vocalist Janove Ottesen and guitarist Geir Zahl, had known each other for years, and first played together in a band called Blod, Snått & Juling in 1989.Kaizers Orchestra are notable for...
. Recorded during early 2009, it was released in limited quantities on April 27, 2009. Unlike their four previous albums, the material on Våre demoner consists of re-recorded versions of old material that was never released officially for various reasons. The album's liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
contain information about how the lyrics relate to one another within the "universe" of the band's songs as well as lyrics.
Background
After the release of MaskineriMaskineri
Maskineri is the fourth studio album by Norwegian alternative rock group Kaizers Orchestra, released on February 18, 2008. Recorded and mixed during November and December 2007, the album was released on the independent label Petroleum Records in Norway on February 18, 2008 and on Sony BMG in...
in 2008, the band toured throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
during fall of that year, playing songs that they had either dropped from their usual setlists a long time prior or had never really been played much at all. During this period, rumours began circulating that the band were going to record some of their unrecorded material.
The rumours intensified when, at the beginning of 2009, the band had been spotted in a recording studio in Jæren
Jæren
Jæren is a traditional district in the county of Rogaland. The others are Dalane, Ryfylke and Haugalandet.Jæren is the largest flat lowland area in Norway, stretching from the municipality of Randaberg in the north to Hå in the south. The coast is flat compared to the rest of the Norwegian coast,...
, Stavanger
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
, Norway. After meticulous speculation on the part of the band's fans, information about the album was released on February 14, with a complete tracklist being released.
Overview
Janove Ottesen has stated that the songs are diverse in origin, their styles differ depending on which era they were from. Three of the songs originated during the writing sessions for Ompa til du dørOmpa Til Du Dør
Ompa til du dør is the debut album of Norwegian alternative rock group Kaizers Orchestra, released on September 1, 2001.- Background :...
("Gruvene på 16", "Prosessen", "Stormfull vals"), three during the Evig pint
Evig Pint
Evig pint is the second studio album by Norwegian alternative rock group Kaizers Orchestra, recorded in November and December 2002 and released on February 3, 2003.- Background :...
period ("Kavalér", "Du og meg Sonny", "Die Polizei"), four from Maestro
Maestro (Kaizers Orchestra album)
Maestro is the third studio album by Norwegian alternative rock group Kaizers Orchestra, released on August 15, 2005. It was later released as a 2CD Limited Edition with bonus tracks and videos....
("Medisin og psykiatri", "Våre demoner", "Señor Torpedo", "Fanden hakk i hel"), and two from Maskineri
Maskineri
Maskineri is the fourth studio album by Norwegian alternative rock group Kaizers Orchestra, released on February 18, 2008. Recorded and mixed during November and December 2007, the album was released on the independent label Petroleum Records in Norway on February 18, 2008 and on Sony BMG in...
("Den sjette sansen", "Under månen").
The band stressed that although all of the songs were recorded on demos, this would not be a collection of "B-sides", but rather new recordings of old material. Several songs from the album had already been heard by fans, such as "Die Polizei", "Medisin og psykiatri" and "Den sjette sansen" which they have played live on several occasions, as well as "Våre demoner" and "Stormfull vals", of which some early demos were leaked. The remainder of the album's tracks were never heard by the public. They recorded the album in more or less one take, recording it as a band and then editing in orchestrated strings, banjo, brass and guest musicians afterwards.
Promotion and release
Shortly after information about the album came to light, the first single, "Die Polizei", was announced. To promote the new single, the band performed the new version of the song at Cafeteateret in OsloOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. This performance was recorded and scheduled to be aired on national TV, but it was eventually cut from the programming due to unknown reasons. The video was later released online. The single was released in the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
and several other musical stores on March 25, 2009.
On April 2, it was revealed that the various releases of the album would be limited, and that both the vinyl and CD releases would be withdrawn from the market after seven days. On April 20, as part of a marketing campaign with Platekompaniet, the band released preview versions of two tracks from the album each day, until the day of its release.
On April 8, the band released a half-hour long documentary chronicling the history and recording sessions of "Die Polizei", directed by Geir Zahl
Geir Zahl
Geir Zahl is a Norwegian musician. He is known for playing guitar in the Norwegian rock group Kaizers Orchestra. The band was founded by Geir Zahl and Janove Ottesen who had both played together in some other bands, namely Blod, snått & juling and gnom...
, one of the band's guitarists and founders.
A week after its release, Våre demoner assumed the number one spot in official Norwegian album charts and "Under månen", a downloadable bonus track, entered the national Top 20 Singles charts at the twentieth spot.
Track listing
All songs written by Janove OttesenJanove Ottesen
Janove Ottesen is a Norwegian musician, born at Bryne, Rogaland, Norway. He specializes in vocals, guitar and barrels, and is a leading member of the Norwegian band Kaizers Orchestra.-History:...
unless otherwise noted. The lyrics are in Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
with only some phrases in English.
- "Medisin & psykiatri" (Medicine and Psychiatry) - 4:25
- "Våre demoner" (Our Demons) (Geir Zahl) - 2:40
- "Die Polizei" (The Police) - 4:56
- "Fanden hakk i hel" (The Devil on Our Tails) - 3:55
- "Kavalér" (Dance Partner) - 3:42
- "Gruvene på 16" (The Mines on 16) - 4:40
- "Señor Torpedo" - 3:02
- "Den sjette sansen" (The Sixth Sense) - 3:43
- "Sonny" - 4:12
- "Prosessen" (The Process) - 4:10
- "Stormfull vals" (Stormy Waltz) (Zahl) - 4:42
- "Under månen" (Beneath the Moon) - 5:35
Guest musicians
- Gjertrud Økland - Violin & Viola
- Bodil Vossgård Mathisrud - Cello
- Øyvind Grong - Tuba & Trombone
- Steven James - French Horn
- Jan Kåre Hystad - Clarinet
- Ivar Atle Fjordheim - Pauker
- Jørgen Sandvik - Banjo & Nominasjonsukulele on “Prosessen”
- Jan Olav Olsson - Banjo on “Stormfull Vals”