by:Larm – Oslo, Norway 17-19/02/11

It’s 2am, pitch-dark, the temperature is stuck at -9°C and you just spent £18 on a mid-sized burger. You now find yourself – along with a few other unsuspecting foreign visitors – trying to balance on the iciest pavement you’ve ever walked on, desperately trying not to fall over. You hopelessly surrender to the laws of gravity. Ouch! Welcome to by:Larm ladies and gentlemen! But hey, it’s not all that unfriendly after all – on the contrary actually. The otherwise beautiful Norwegian capital is home to one of the most important music showcases in the Nordic region. Since the launch of the Nordic Music Prize this year, by:Larm has firmly secured its place on the Nordic music calendar.

The prize might have gone to Jónsi for his brilliant debut Go (and rightly so, I believe), but it was a fellow Icelander by the name of Ólöf Arnalds that won the crowd’s favour at the awards ceremony, with the intimacy and immediacy of her performance in a packed Kulturkirken Jacob.

In that same church this writer experienced for the first time the piano-driven music of another great Nordic lady- in-the-making Agnes Obel. The Berlin-based Dane has got both the voice and the tunes to make it big. In the meantime, for a quirkier female presence and more energetic tunes we followed-up with Fallulah.

TLOBF also witnessed some new acts from Finland. French Films were good but I’m afraid they sound a tad too much like The Drums and Glasvegas. On the other hand Zebra and Snake managed to pull off a great show reminiscent of early U2 with a vintage synth twist.

But what about local talent? With bright representatives like the outstanding – both lyrically and sonically – songstress Jenny Hval, the scarily young and extremely hopeful pop ensemble Team Me, the superb songcrafting abilities of Einar Stray, the female-fronted staggering mayhem trio Deathcrush and – although the venue was only half-full during their set – Of Norway’s well-programmed glacial beats, be assured that the Norwegian music scene is thriving at the moment.

A special mention should be given to the ever-evolving feedback experts The Megaphonic Thrift, the much-promising festive Icelandic extravaganza Retro Stefson and Swedish electronica household name Familjen.

Team Me: ‘Dear Sister’

Jenny Hval: ‘Blood Fight’

Of Norway: ‘Woods Of Norway’

French Films

Fallulah