Petter Carlsen
You Go Bird
EMI

Petter Carlsen hails from the northernmost county in Norway. Alta, Finnmark. Quite a cold place for warm pop music like this. This is way, way up north, up in the land of the Midnight sun, of harsh winters, with horrible bird-size mosquitoes in the summertime, and the territory of the Norwegian indigenous people; the Sami/Lapp people. Dare I say lapp-pop.

Well, jokes aside (not that I want to make fun of native people, don't get me wrong). Petter Carlsen (29) is just a "newcomer" (he put out his debut EP, A Taste Of What To Come (which is included here) some three years ago, and landed a deal with EMI) in the Norwegian pop business, on the pop scene. Of pleasant pop, that is. Because You Go Bird holds music of rather straight format. No, not some middle-of-the-road shite, but quite likeable as in radio friendly, for slightly bigger masses. Epic, and sometimes sophisticated pop with pathos, yet it's sort of down to earth. And, it's no doubt Petter Carlsen has got some talent as songwriter, and has got a fine voice.

The opening title track makes me think of William Hut, except Hut's got a more high-pitch vocals. "A Taste Of What To Come" is really stylish and great, as several of the songs. Like "The Race Is On" and "Half". You Go Bird is well-written, well-arranged, well-performed, well-everything. Maybe that's one of the problems I've got when listening. I'm not moved by the music. But, mind you, Petter Carlsen is way better and far more interesting than, say, "old boy" Sondre Lerche. Or, dare I say old-timers a-ha...

Copyright © 2009 Håvard Oppøyen