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Norwegian reviews of Mazarin
11 replies
tcooh said on June 17, 2003 11:57:
The Norwegian newspapers started giving reviews of Per Gessle’s Mazarin today, and so far they’re thrilled.
First of is the newspaper VG (www.vg.no), Norways biggest newspaper, and the only newspaper present at the Halmstad releaseparty. The article has not yet be publish on the internet, just through the regular printed newspaper. Link will follow shortly. Below you find a translation of the whole review.
Per Gessle: “Mazarin” (Elevator/EMI)
“Mazarin” are miles away from Roxette, but it’s still better than any album Per Gessle has ever done with Roxette.
5 out of 6 in the throw of dice
This soloalbum – his first since 1985! – is so, so right for Per Gessle. And so important. Because in Roxette pop-relation the lack of inspiration and ideas have been striking for a long time, and a close to unreasonable milking of the Roxette-catalog with two best of- albums in 6 months was far from how we wanted to remember one of Scandinavian’s greatest songwriters.
This doubt is swiped away efficiently by Gessle as he returns to his mother tongue, and serves a mature, great pop-rock-album with some of the strongest songs he has ever written. Not ultra-commercial like Roxette, but commercial enough that Gessle should dominate both radio stations and sales charts through this summer.
Because this is summer music. The album is filled with delightful pop-details – from clapping of hands to chimes – which substantiate the melody-lines, for example Shalala-chorus from “På promenade genom stan”, the George Harrison-guitar in “Om du bara vill” og the cautions strings in the background of “Tycker om när du tar på mej”. All in all it seems like Per Gessle has refound his playfulness which characterized his scent early in his career with Gyllene Tider. Just that you won’t have to go further than to the irresistible opening song “Vilket hall du än går” to understand. When Gessle finishes with a melancholic easy listening-echo from the 60-ties in the title-song, it’s just to establish that this is a man you really knoews his art.
Reviewed by Stein Østbø.
SuiraM said on June 17, 2003 14:09:
In Aftenposten, also a pretty big newspaper, they gave him 5 out of 6.
http://oslopuls.no/cityguides/nav/review.jhtml?context=music&id=565969
tcooh said on June 17, 2003 14:27:
Another newspaper to review Mazarin is Nettavisen; (in Norwegian) http://www.nettavisen.no/servlets/page?section=22&item=272669 - translation below
Gesslish nice
5 out of 6 in the throw of dice
Reviewed by Martin Thronsen
Per Gessle sings in Swedish again, and here he has created a summerish pop-album which stands strong compared to the best songs of both Gyllene Tider and Roxette.
As a little cigarette I discovered The Kids (Norwegian rock band from early 80-ties) on Norsktoppen. Then I found Gyllene Tider, and that was truly golden times. To say something else whould be a total lie.
To have walked ones childhood shoes to Gyllene Tider, the band that was together centuries before boybands appeared, made it quite difficult to hate Roxette as they coughed up their high point acts.
Even though Gessle has passed 40 long ago, he is still a UNGSAU in his head, an eternal twenty-something which probably always will sing of the same old stuff.
Maybe he is as calculate and smart that a successful popsong MUST consist of both simple and catchy lyrics about love and ditto simple and catchy melody, but when I hear the songs on “Mazarin”, it’s almost like I believe that’s how HE IS.
That means, an eternal romantic who sings his songs as he believes in them himself, a fellow that can allow himself clichés on a row because he doesn’t even try to imagine or make himself more complex than he is.
At the same time the melodies he here serves so obvious often have that little extra that make them stick on your mind, that little peculiarity that makes you want to hear the song again.
Gessle is actually better in swedish than English. At the same time the productions is quite timeless - there is nothing here to make you associate to other periods of time – which is the trap in which most other pop-dudes run into when they try to make a difference at their older age.
In short this is a superb popalbum. If you don’t dear to come out and stand up, I think you should at least enjoy and worship this album in secret.
tcooh said on June 17, 2003 14:27:
Fourth review is from NRK, radio and TV station; (in Norwegian) http://www.nrk.no/magasin/musikk/nyhende/pop_og_rock/2844557.html - It’s not so much a review, but an introduction to Mazarin, the upcoming tour and appearance on NRK1 on June 25th. Translation below:
Summer hit by coincidence
Per Gessle broke all possible rules in the business when he made his soloalbum “Mazarin”. Next week he will guest Sommeråpent (Summeropen) on NRK1.
By Mikael Forsell og Ståle de Lange Kofoed, NTB
With his brand new album ”Mazarin”, the one half of Roxette, Per Gessle, has broken nearly all rules of the record business. Actually it comes too close to Roxette’s last album, which came in April. There are no obvious singles, and for the most the unwritten rule of record business says never to release an album just before summer.
- “This album I made to please myself.” I didn’t make it to sell many records, Per Gessle tells.
Played for himself
In Sweden the expectations for Gessle’s first soloalbum in Swedish in 18 years has been enormous, and prior to the release yesterday “Mazarin” had been pre-sold in 45 000 copies. And the album has got good reviews both in Sweden and Norway. That surprises Gessle, which had full control over the recording of the album.
- “I didn’t want to get into the system. I wanted to do it myself, and not having loads of people telling me what to do – but rather do it in my way.”
Together with musicians and producers Christoffer Lundqvist og Clarence Öfwerman, Per Gessle stayed in a VANDRARHEM in the darknest of Småland, and recorded the album within a couples of weeks. And even though the album was created in the winter, it has already be classified as a summer album.
- “Yes, even though many of the lyrics is about a cold winter, it turns into summer”, Gessle laughs. “I don’t know what this comes from, but it could have something to do with my voice.”
- ”The first single; “Här kommer alle känslorna (på en och samma gang)” , is about a fellow who is going to build a boat, and is going to sail in the spring. But still it becomes a summersong, That’s quite strange” Gessle continues.
Fredriksson is better
It’s easy to notice that Per Gessle made this album as a joyride. (Not using this word thought, red.) 18 years have passed by since his last soloalbum in Swedish, and in the meantime Roxette has conquered the world. But he doesn’t feel finished with Roxette.
- “This album probably has been a reaction for me, but there will come another time when it will be great fun to record new Roxette songs” he means.
- But you are a dad, and Marie Fredriksson has been sick with cancer?
- “Yes, but I can still tour for a few months?”
- How is Marie now?
- “She’s fine. I visited her a few weeks ago when she had her birthday. But at the same time we can’t get away from the fact that she has been through an agonizing period. She has received full treatment.” Says Gessle.
- Is she recovering?
- “Yes, sure. She has got her hair back too. We keep in good contact”
On tour
Gessle will come to Norway next week, and is looking forward to appear on Sommeråpent on NRK1 next wedensday (June 25th). And in pure happiness over the album, the former Gyllene Tider vocalist has decided to go on tour this summer.
- “The only reason why we have rehearsed the songs with a band was because we were goint to play at the TV-show “Allsång på Skansen”. But now it will additionally be a full tour of Sweden.” Says Gessle.
According to Aftonbladet the tour starts in Gessle’s hometown, Halmstad, July 29th, and Gessle still doesn’t know how long the tour will last. “It’ll be a dream vacation. Imagine travelling around in August with your family and 200 000 of one’s closest friends. I’ll go on ‘till it starts snowing” he says.
tcooh said on June 17, 2003 21:43:
English translation of the Aftenposten review at http://www.oslopuls.no/cityguides/nav/review.jhtml?context=music&id=5659...
A fun fact, they actually shows the link to www.gessle.nu as if it was his official webpage!
Popchampion
PER GESSLE - Mazarin - (Captiol/EMI)
5 out of 6 in the throw of dices
Golden summerfeelings and facinating choruses
Since 1979 Per Gessle has pumped popmusic to the market. First with the partially enchanting youthpopband Gyllene Tider, and almost 20 years as a professional, but often a bit too calculating through the hitmachine Roxette. In between he has made attractive soloalbums with relaxed (/lowered) shoulders.
Mazarin is not a routineproduct shaked out of teh sleve of a atoll (/fox), as one could expect. THis might very well be his best album ever. It sounds so simple when Per Gessle conjure up one pearl after the other, but only a true champion can make swarm popsongs whish sound like they’ve always been here. With his eneternal puberty voice he sings simple and effective words about love to melodies so attractive that we become a bit emotional, and believes everything. Just like only the very best popmusic can do. Reviewed by ASBJØRN BAKKE.
SuiraM said on June 19, 2003 19:19:
A review from norwegian “Dagsavisen”. http://www.dagsavisen.no/nyetakter/anmeldelser/2003/06/736718.shtml?stri...
Nice sunshinepop
17.06.3003: For those who‘s waiting for the perfect summerpop, Per Gessles new record comes as ordered.
Per Gezzle
Capitol/EMI
Gessle has got one of the strongest hammering popbrains in the whole world, and eaven when he has taken to easy solutions in Roxette, he knows when he‘s got a god idea in his head. Then it is possible to make a record eaven when it follows all of the normal formulas for guitarpop, still so remakable catchy as this.
The songs is mainly played with acoustic guitar, affected by the big dittytradition (songtradition) like the finest swedish popmusic. The pearls is henging tight: «Vilket håll du än går», «Här kommer alle känslorna (på en och samma gång)», «Smakar på ett regn», «Varmt igen» and all of the other songs is almost perfect popsymphonies, with easy and effective lyrical pop influenced by longing and hope.
Gessle gives us plenty from the pophistory. «Spegelboll» is his version of Blondies «Atomic», but he does it very well. It has taken 20 years since Per Gessle came with his first solo-album, and he has‘nt changed alot. It‘s nice to hear him sing in swedish again, far from being as young and fashion-inspired as Håkan Hellstøm or Kent, but mutch better and more uplifting.
(Hope you understand the translation, tricky to translate it 100% right)
tcooh said on June 20, 2003 16:16:
Two more reviews found today, especially the second is worth reading, the person actully crashed his PC while trying to listen to Mazarin, and trashed the review.
http://www.trondheimpuls.no/cityguides/nav/review.jhtml?context=music&id...
Sommartider hej (Summertimes hi) - Per Gessle once again sings in Swedish, on a sweet summeralbum full of delightful popfeeling.
5 out of 6 in the throw of dice
Gyllene Tider might have been a pain in the butt in the early 1980’s, but no one can take away Per Gessle’s ability to commit classic pop songs. Roxette has accationally been a pain in the butt through 1980’s and 1990’s, but some of the success can without doubt be credited to Gessle pounding popheart. Here he is back with his first Swedish speaking album in 11 years.
Mazarin is one of the finest albums from Gessle’s hand, a half-mature pop album where he does it so simple and well, steals beautifully from the pop history and give his voice just the right pressure to make it beautiful summerpop. “Jag sitter og gungar” he sings in one of the mane treasures on Mazarin. That’s what this album does.
That “Gungar”. The best is that many of the songs grow over time. Her kommer alla känslorna (På en och samma gång) is the sound of summer, bu a pop artist i 2 minutes and 4 o seconds pure pop happiness, with wistling in the end.
Highpoint: Här kommer alla känslorna (På en och samma gång) and Gungar
Reviewed by: Terje Eidsvåg
http://www.gjengangeren.no/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?AID=/20030620/KULTUR/1...
Swedish
Per Gessle – Mazarin – Pop 3 out of 6 in the throw of dice – Reviewed by: Harald Nygaard Kvam
Per Gessle (from Roxette) has published his first soloalbum in 18 years. With his companion Marie much redusced after cancer Roxette has taken a brake. But Gessle isn’t of the lazay type, and is now out with “Mazarin”. On the outside the album shows quality, here are shiny paper and great pictures, the content on the other hand; nicely rapped in, but not very impressive, Many of the songs is similar to Abba-clones, and what’s worse, that’s mediocre Swedish pop! (I have nothing against Swedish pop, just the bad such) (As if, red.) Gessle dears to use his mother tongue and that could have worked, but it has become VISEPREGET and dull. There are nothing we haven’t heard before, and even some of the songs remarkably sounds like Kent’s “Vapen & ammunition”, just without Kent’s drive (passion). Gessle should have stayed within Roxette, han is a gifted musician, but doesn’t quite make it, at least not on Mazarin.
Additionally the album is affected by a paranoid fear of piracy copying. One must install a new program to listen to it on the computer, and it ended in total crash and restart and this writer’s PC . Not good. OK that one doesn’t want it to be copied, bit it must at least work properly! This doesn’t affect the music (As if, red, 2), but it doesn’t improve the impression.
Gessle has matured since “Gyllene Tider” but the listener is left behind with a feeling of mass-produced pop afterwards. A predicted summerhit is “Här kommer alla kjenslorna (på en och samma gang)” while “Varmt igjen” and “Om du bara vill” are acceptable. But there are better in the Swedish pop jungel.
tcooh said on June 17, 2003 11:58:
More Norwegian newspapers have reviewed Mazarin today, this is Dagbladet’s article; (in Norwegian) http://www.dagbladet.no/kultur/2003/06/17/371348.html
Translations of the review is below.
The cheer up
Per Gessle; “Mazarin”, Capitol.
4 out of 6 in the throw of dice
Sympathetic and personal from Swedish pop’s mentor.
Reviewed by Martha Breen
While Roxette lie fallow because of Marie Fredriksson’s brain tumour, Per Gessle take the opportunity to release his first solo-album in 18 years.
CD: It’s the first time since Gyllene Tider that he writes in his mother tongue, and he proves here that he still has got the touch. Is seems that we meet a more personal side of Gessle than through Roxette, and he has naturally matured lyrically since “sommartider hej hej”. But even if he sometimes closes in on the Swedish VISEE-traditions, this must still be called pure pop. Sometimes it reminds me of Cajsa Stina Åkerström’s lovely debut album. The up-tempo single “Här kommer alle känslorna (på en och samma gang)” is predicted to be one of this year’s summerhits. And here are more songs with the same cheering up calibre; the radio-friendly opening “VIlket hall du än går”, the hummable “Om du bara vill” and the ballad “Varmt igen”.
I will return as more reviews are published!