A Day In Norway With Serena-Maneesh
Every time I venture into a new city, I can't help but think, "Sure, this glitzy street with MacDonald’s and Starbucks feels authentic enough, but where do the rockers hang out? What do the cool kids get up to?" And maybe I'll have a few friends in town that qualify as "locals" and would-be-scenesters who are up to the task. Luckily for us, however, the one person I could look up in Norway just happened to be the most qualified for just such an "artist tour." And what better way to wrap up our Øyafestivalen coverage than with a primer for your next trip to Oslo?
Meet Emil Nikolaisen, mastermind behind the awe-inspiring Serena-Maneesh.
Serena-Maneesh - "Drain Cosmetics" (MP3)
Serena-Maneesh - "Sapphire Eyes" (MP3)
That day wandering through the streets of the city with Emil was a welcome respite from morning trips on fjords (no shit), afternoons and evenings at Øya, and after-parties at dingy rock clubs. And though the stated intention was to just talk Oslo, I couldn't help but babble on about one of my favorite bands, particularly when I was hanging out with the man-behind-the-magic himself.
The Nikolaisens are fast becoming a dynasty in their native Norway. Think Kennedys, except musical. Or Osmonds, except cool. First, there's Emil's brother, who fronts Silver, a much-loved glam-rock act in Oslo. (Emil played drums for -- and produced -- their past efforts, as he does many up-and-coming Norwegian acts.) Emil's dream has always been Serena-Maneesh, however, and though the band has a bit of a "collective" feel (with some members coming and going), among the permanent players is his dead-ringer-for-Nico sister, Hilma. And as if that wasn't enough familial plentitude, there's Elvira; the clan's pop star, whom Emil calls the "Norwegian Norah Jones." She's a massive musical force in Scandinavia, the type of star you hear when you're shopping for groceries and you see when you turn on MTV. She's the sort of chanteuse even your grandpa knows and loves.
"And I spent my sister's 20,000 Kroner (that's Norwegian for cash money) advance from Sony on Serena merch!" a fact Emil proudly offered as we settled down along a riverbank. "But you see, we help each other out. There’s no compromise. We’ve informed each other, and now the millions she's making as this huge 'Norwegian Norah Jones' figure are allowing Serena to continue to do it totally on our own terms. The freedom is what made the first record possible, and it’s the only way we could do Serena."
And freedom is a tough get for artists in Norway. The city is amongst the world's most expensive and, for those living "alternative" (or artistic) lifestyles, the wages don't quite compensate. "It's a true Robin Hood mentality. We all take what we can, when we can. And we all help each other out."
For a look at this communal love in action, we moved on to Emil's artist pad: a second story apartment housing four others (musicians, photographers, artists and the like). "The fruits of our backstage hoarding," Emil laughed as I perused the random collection of candy bars, water bottles, beers and such in his room. "When we play these shows, they have massive spreads for us. If there’s ever a mistake in the rider, we use it to our advantage and double our alcohol requests!"
I don't blame him! Drinks are SO EXPENSIVE in Oslo. But, Emil had some great recommendations for where to go to satisfy the urge for libation.
Blå –- (Pictured above) "This club is really one of the best in Oslo, but the night you go defines your experience. It's a platform for the avant-garde, but some nights it's just cheesy pop, which I cannot stand! It's a great venue, ranging from truly shitty to truly amazing. It's a truly important venue in Oslo. Just avoid the nights with the hot pop bands of the moment – because they are truly ridiculous."
Last Train -– "This one has been around for twenty years. Focused primarily on punk, aesthetically. Housed in an old, proud building, which holds around 130 people. It's a bit of a mix of an old brown rock bar, and the buildling is turn of the century. It really feels genuine in there."
Elm St. –- "This was another that was really important to me, it’s where I first saw Nikki Sudden and the Jackobites, the Cramps, etc."
Mono -– "Runar, the man who founded Øya, is the one who started this place. He's an incredibly important figure in the Oslo music scene. Except that now it’s all annoying, mid-twenties students that are truly the moderated face of indie rock, only there for the scene and without an open mind to the music. Yet, the people that work there are amazing; I love them. It’s a love-hate relationship with the place, really."
Spasi Bar -- "This bar is in the King’s Castle Park, and it’s connected to the art school. It’s a really great place to go and hang with a great, artistic crowd. Highly recommended."
So What -– "This club really used to be amazing, and went to great lengths to bring truly important bands (like Tortoise, Low, Magnetic Fields) to Scandinavia."
Robenet -– "And this place I’m partial to because our drummer works there (laughs). But it’s really intimate and mellow, and they play awesome music like Fleetwood Mac, The Stooges, Stereolab, the Stones, Zappa."
Domkirke Ken -– "This is if you want to hang out with old Oslo drunks.” (And who doesn’t?) "The backyard is really beautiful, and it can be quite entertaining, really." Ivar's is another great place for this."
"I'd definitely consider a move to Brooklyn," Emil offered as we discussed the relative merits of our hometowns. "But I may have to get rid of my bandana!" I didn't quite follow. "Well, the last time I was hanging out with Sufjan in some bar there (Editor's Note: Sufjan!), the bartender said, 'Sorry man, but you're gonna have to remove the bandana. It's against bar policy because of gang violence.' Soof and I lost it!"
Next, Emil's tips for record shopping in Oslo.
Ringstrom's Antivariat -– "My favorite. They carry new and second-hand vinyl. The tastes are a bit more sophisticated here, and really beautiful."
Neseblod -– "In English, this mean's 'nose bleed,' so it stands to reason that they carry black metal, punk, rock, dark wave and goth stuff. A true Norwegian treat, those genres."
And just which Norwegian artists would Emil recommend we check out at said record stores, you ask? He was good enough to write out a list of recommended artists for ya!
He wanted me to add Noxagt and 120 Days to this list, but you already know about them.
Talking about records lead our conversation to what we listened to growing up, about MP3 blogs, and about the use of this here series of tubes for music proliferation.
"I grew up in a small town north of here, and finding out about real music –- Sonic Youth, Stereolab, The Velvets –- required some independent thought and initiative," Emil offered. "You worked hard to find good music, to understand where it was coming from. And then you really spent some time with those albums. You understood it. It wasn’t like it is now, where you can get the whole family tree in one click, you know what I mean?"
"95% of all music should never have been recorded," Emil said flatly as we walked through a historic and serene graveyard. "Don’t get me wrong, music is very human, and the impulse to create it is beautiful and should never be quelled," he stated reverently as we scanned the multifaceted tombstones. "But back in the '70s, it was like getting signed was a huge deal, and making a record and putting it out was this sacred event! Something about the disposability of music has altered it. But then, I do as you do, and I'm sure your readers do as well: jump up and scream about the 5% that's fucking massive!"
As for Serena’s next step? Well, you won’t get much out of Emil regarding a follow up to their phenomenal, eponymous debut. "By verbalizing it, you begin to commit to an idea as to the sound, and that limits what it could be." He paused, as we sat with our falafels and beers in the ancient ruins adjacent to the Øya grounds. "This is also why I don’t believe in demoing material. We don’t do any serious recording before the actual studio sessions. Maybe just some light sketches and such, rehearse to capture moods, color, and shape for the eventual sessions."
"There is something to the magic of a sound when an idea is conceived," he continued.
"That can't be recreated. In fact, I ended up using snippets of the initial demos for the first record on the actual end product, just squeezed them in there. Next time, the studio will be where every bit of that magic happens."
Awesome. We love magic.
Stereogum wants to say a huge "Thank You!" to Emil for the walk through Oslo and for all of his tips. If any 'Gum readers wanna express their appreciation, get out to one of the dates on Serena-Maneesh's headlining tour through the States, beginning in September (at Bowery Ballroom on the 8th). It is well worth your time; S-M are one of the greatest live acts around.
Posted at 7:51 PM
Tags: Serena-Maneesh
Should I be paying attention to this band? I saw them at a tiny, tiny little club in Uppsala, Sweden and I thought they were so bad I eventually walked out.
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i don't get them either. as far as I'm concerned they have a "hot" blonde who does nothing, but when you acutally see her up close isn't really hot
flash in the pan shoe gaze rip off
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granted, the band is hit or miss live -- but i've seen them drop jaws before. and their record is amazing! so much more than shoe gaze. such great melodies.
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I don't mean to add to the negativy (oh who am I kidding?), but yeah, these guys are way overrated. Why listen to this when I can listen to any 90s Shoegaze band? If these guys had come around then they would've been at the bottom of the Shoegaze barrel. Honestly, none of these "Nu-Gaze" bands are adding anything new to the genre except nostalgia.
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Am I the only that remembers head bandanas were a bad idea the first time around? I feel like I'm in a Twilight Zone episode. "NOOOO! IT'S THE QUIREBOYS! THE QUIIIIIRRRRREEEEBOYS!"
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lol@me, that should be "negativity," not some word I just made up.
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jeez u guys are cranky. thank you emil! the suggestions are great! i'm totally going to norway next month and i'm going t the places you suggested. we appreciate it, and I think the bandana is working! :-)
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I need my live shoegaze fix, maybe I should check them out when they come to Chicago
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The riff on the first one sounds kind of like the Who (only not quite).
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Daydream Nation in Norwegian? Hella cool.
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Now that's what i'm talking about. that was a great read amrit. If I ever go to norway i'm knocking on Emil's door and saying stereogum sent me.
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really liked the serena maneesh album. great article on oslo...
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the thing about this band is yeah, it's a nice album. It's totally fine, "great" even for a few weeks, but it lacks anything to make it stand out from the pack, and withstand the test of time. My guess is, and I'm not trying to rain on everyone's norweigan parade, is that this band will fade from all of our memories sooner than we imagine
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i think this is one of the best record of the new shoegaze era with televise, vetiver and amusement parks on fire
great one
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the record never really breaks away with the timeless status that some of the early shoegaze records did back in the day. it's a bummer that their live show doesn't make up for it, or at least not every night. they were subpar at best when i saw them.
And &
and check out musichawk because
musichawk is badass
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I did an interview with Emil at this year's SXSW before seeing them live. I didn't have a wristband - mere college journalist, I - so Emil snuck me through the band entrance. Amazing show - a tribute to the strength of their studio material, yet a riff on it, as well.
There's some shoegaze rip-off going on, yeah, but the detached, aloof aesthetic is completely absent in S-M's completely inviting style. It's not art-damaged, it's artistic. Anyway, people need to stop worrying about musical history lessons and think about how the music feels. S-M is a trip, and Emil is the shit.
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I love 'em live & loud.
Great profile, Amrit.
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Truly.
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Serena Manesh do the wall-o-noise-shoegaze-drone thing well... but I can't help hearing Spacemen 3 in all of this!! SO, imho, it's kinda been done before.
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Hey there, fact fans! That's not "Daydream Nation" in Norwegian. In Norwegian I guess it would be "Dagdrømsnasjon". Lord knows what language that album in the picture is.
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emil is the shit, geoff, quite right... but don't forget who snuck you into that show, sucker.
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The Daydream Nation cover is in Russian. It's pronounced "Not-see-ya Maych-stah-teh". I hope that helps. It's cool as hell in any case.
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A burden of one's own choice is not felt. Dionisius.
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We don't have those kind of silly-looking letters in Norway. We right our R's the correct way
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write? wright? rite? right? whatever..
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I think that Norwegian band Serena is totally pinnacle
It was only last thursday I got a copy of their music from a well known music store in Chaguanas Trinidad.Down here in the Caribbean (Trinidad in general) we rock real hard with local bands.
However in my adjudication I believe that this band will last forever and will certainly become a legend if they continue with the great music they are making.Lead singer is a bomb shell and voice from heaven she can really sing beautiful.This is GM Charles rock and metal fan from Trinidad and member of the M-R-U late night fright metal mayhem show where only the very best of music is played and I think that serena is a force to be reckon with rock on serena love from Trinidad
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