My Norwegian sucks. And those dialects, wow. But I’ve played Norwegian scrabble enough to know all the two-three letter Norwegian words that count as points. Putting this newly acquired skill to the test, I’m slowly comprehending this particular band’s lyrical charm, as the opening track, “MÅ ME STÅ” consists of this:
EG STÅR PÅ
EG STÅR AV
EG STÅR MED DEG NÅ
KA SÅ
KOFFOR DET
KOFFOR MÅ ME STÅ?
E DU HER
E DU DER
E DU KOR SOM HELST
KA SÅ
DU E DEG
EG KAN SE DEG SÅ!
DU STÅR PÅ
DU STÅR AV
DU STÅR MED MEG NÅ…
It’s visually, aesthetically pleasing as an English-speaker and wordphile, and perhaps even for Norwegians, to gaze at series of two-three letter, blocky short poetic codas, like Japanese haikus, and for them to make sense. The printed lyrics and layout of this album’s inlay is alluring, complete with photos of Norwegian landscapes and the same workman’s orange uniform seen on their last. (Uniforms, so Bergen…). I suspect their band name has something to do with the textual evisceration of commonly used phrases or words.
But upon listening to this record, I also can’t help but visualize this scenario:
I’m on tour. Someone on tour as an outsider, maybe American, maybe British. We are playing a Norwegian festival. There are five other bands, all Norwegian. The first goes on — they’re young, cute, but crap. The second goes on, they’re just plain crap. The third goes on, they’re pretentious and crap. The fourth goes on and, they’re not bad, musically talented all-around, but nothing radical, nothing I haven’t heard before. Now the fifth band goes on. Maybe they sing in Norwegian, driving the crowd a bit crazier than before. They’re obviously a source of entertainment; kids jump and dance. But the music again, though not bad, is not only something I’ve heard before, but is difficult to differentiate from the semi-good band before it. Syntax Terrorkester is something like this fifth band. Hard to distinguish from past bands of the same indie vein, hard to distinguish from its peers.
This is superbly audience-friendly, listening-friendly, middle-of-the-road weirdness. It has a bit of that emo-quirkiness of American bands Joan of Arc, Braid, Cap’n'Jazz, but even instrumental bands like Tristeza or American Football with that angular guitar-riffing has accomplished things a lot better, a longer time ago (a maxim I feel, the older I get, I’m oft repeating). In a more Scandinavian kinship, it reminds me of Bob Hund, the fun-lovin’ camaraderie, soft/hard, sing-along choruses. But the title track of the album “Land Her O” in all it’s jangliness or strangeness, is a far cry from early 90s Jade Tree records bands for example. And when saxes are utilized, I wish they weren’t just ornaments, but took a more prominent role — think Sweep the Leg, Johnny! or even Rocket from the Crypt. But then again, I’m completely aware of the esoteric nature of a dialect-speaking band on a tiny hipster Bergen label — i.e. it’s either I haven’t jumped on the wave, or a matter of time before the wave phases out.
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8 Responses to “Dialect diatribe dialysis”
Jon - June 20th, 2010 at 10:33
This is an extremely badly written review. The journalist is obviously lacking musical understanding; the review is all about namedropping and references. What is it with you musical journalists? Not capable to do some own thinking? Jesus.
To all the readers: I have been listening to this album the past few weeks, and find it very good and very interesting. It is nothing like miss Lee portrays it to be. Buy it!
Rating of Land Her O!: 9.5
Rating of review: 1.5
Ann Sung-an Lee - June 20th, 2010 at 17:09
Interesting. “Not capable to do some own thinking”– hmm, not sure if you’ve read my writing before but I feel like I’m an overabundance of exactly that; if anything, I’m usually edited to put a cap on my “opinions”. So lately, I’m trying to “portray” and sublimate whatever “subjective” opinions I have. But perhaps you’re saying that unless I do one of these middle-of-the-road press release sounding music worshipping blurbs of the damn thing, like another robot journalist and just reflect YR opinion, it’d truly be what I Iack: “doing my own thinking”. First I’m thinking, if you’ve heard the references I mentioned, you’d know where I’m placing it in context-musically (since you suggest I’m lacking musical understanding), that’s what good music journalists do, right? Have you heard the bands I mention? If they seem esoteric or like name-dropping it could be because you haven’t heard them, and perhaps, should educate a bit on the course or archeology of “independent-indie-pop”. What I mean to say, if this record is perhaps, 10 years too late?–I could dissect this riff-by-riff if that’d please sir in an scientific musical journalistic manner. But I don’t really presume you care. I find the record totally inoffensive and not-bad, and you don’t have to care to enjoy it– I simply don’t, because I do my own thinking. And as you’ve so eloquently reviewed my review, isn’t the internet just a darning quagmire of opinions?
Benjamin Sand - June 22nd, 2010 at 10:25
And to all the haters, it has been my long experience that the music journalists that I most cling to or respect are the ones who do exactly this: Namedrop. They are not namedropping to show the readers they are superior on some banal level. They are actually putting the record into a context amongst the BILLION other releases out there to give you a starting point. Some of the best reviews I have read are ones stuffed with references because it really gives me confidence that the writer knows his musical background and hasn’t just bought a “BEST OF INDIE POP 92″ or a “BEST OF HARD ROCK 89″ to attempt to pass off bands names though he truly only knows one song of each artist.
Free thought is scarce in this country. Lets go about changing that.
Comment from Jon: 0.2/10
ps. I think everything except releases on “Sublime Frequencies” lack balls.
Svein Olav Andersen - June 24th, 2010 at 01:48
Yeah, (Ben), you even thought Botkaput lacked balls, no matter how great it is… Haha, I really like that album. Maybe I’m a 1.5/10 as a music enjoyer. No, it’s great that people have different musical (and otherwise) preferences, and it’s great that any person’s opinion can be allowed access to public, and just for this “I’m willing to die” for your right to have an opinion and say it out loud. Go subjective. The reviewer will reveal anyway its personal understandings through said namedropping and lyrical expressions. Which is exactly why the Botkaput review bugs me (ooops, wrong thread…), 70% of the artists you mentioned, which I know and love, eh, yes exactly, but on the other hand, your description of some people tripping balls in a basement, just playing away on their electronic equipment like there was no today or tomorrow, just a fleeting eternity melting through an eternal now (or rainbows or unicorns, whatever), sounds just like my kind of deal.
Bla bla bla, I should never write again when I’m drunk.
About the Syntax TerrOrkester review:
I have not heard the album, so I can not say much. But I saw them at Revolver, and they rocked it very well live at least. Maybe one song reminded me almost of Sigur Ros (which probably shows how deep my namedropping goes), but except for that it was very good times.
And Ann, I haven’t heard ANY of the bands you namedrop…
jason - June 27th, 2010 at 09:58
Ms Lee seems to spend far too much time trying to sound cool and all knowing. I have read a few of your reviews and picture you sitting there with an open thesaurus trying to find other ways to say ‘dumb’ and ‘not good’.
A good review sounds natural and your reviews are bloated pages of pointlesss words regardless of the quality of music.
Thanks at least for taking minutes of my life I can no longer get back
Ann Lee - June 28th, 2010 at 14:43
The pleasure is all mine!
Benjamin Sand - June 30th, 2010 at 16:06
Jason.
You sound like a man who loves a good cock sandwich.
Åse Bredeli Røyset - June 30th, 2010 at 21:46
Haha, this is hilarious! If ’superbly audience-friendly’, ‘listening-friendly’, ‘angular’ and ‘esoteric’ are the sort of synonyms for ‘dumb’ and ‘not good’ your thesaurus comes up with, Ann, we need to get you another one. It almost hit bull’s eye with that ‘middle-of-the-road’ one though, keep up the good work!