Norwegian newcomers KVELERTAK shamelessly draw inspiration from every corner of anything that fits into their idea of hard-hitting, catchy, extreme rock ‘n’ roll regardless of genre, always truthful to the basic idea of the band: good songs performed with the tongue-in-cheek attitude of their punk-rock pioneers. Unlike the majority of heavier bands, they sing in their native language, adding yet more character to their already unique sound.
It’s a classic story: A bunch of good friends decide to create a band. It turns out to be a very good band, and from the start of 2007 things have been on fast forward for these young lads from the west coast of Norway. National radio airplay and stunning live performances have taken them to some of the biggest festivals in the country including the infamous Roskilde festival in 2009, where they performed in front of 80,000 crazy fans. Astonishing for a (then) unsigned act with a few demos.
Their self-titled debut album was released June 21, 2010 via Indie Recordings and continues to receive rave reviews from mainstream media and metal websites alike for its unique Turbonegro/black metal/punk/classic rock/blues elements. Produced by Kurt Ballou and mixed by Alan Douches with artwork by John Baizley and guest appearances by Hoest (Taake), Andreas Tylden (JR Ewing and Altaar), Ivar Nikolaisen (Silver), and Ryan McKenney (Trap Them), Kvelertak has been dubbed “the best Norwegian debut album of all time,” and the band “the new Mastodon.” Simon Young of Kerrang! Magazine named KVELERTAK “the best Norwegian band since A-Ha.” They’ve also been reviewed in virtually every European magazine with near perfect rating including: 9/10 Metal Hammer, 8.5/10 Terrorizer, 88/100 Rock Tribune, 85/100 Aardschok, 4/5 Kerrang! and 4/5 Big Cheese. Decibel Magazine picked up that something great was going on in Europe and gave the record a 9/10. Metalsucks.net followed with a 4/5. Three singles from the album were playlisted on Norway’s main broadcaster NRK P3. “Mjød” was “Single Of The Week” two weeks in a row on BBC radio (UK). In addition, the band filmed a video for the same track which was nominated for best Scandinavian video by the Bergen International Film festival.
KVELERTAK was nominated for two Spellemann awards, (the Norwegian equivalent the The Grammys), in the categories of “Best Newcomer” and “Best Rock Album.” The awards ceremony will be held on Saturday March 5. In February KVELERTAK won the Statoil grant and 1,000,000 NOK. The Statoil grant is a prize which helps promising Norwegian bands on the verge of international breakthrough to succeed internationally.
Kvelertak will finally see its North American release on March 15 via The End Records. The North American edition includes six bonus tracks: live recordings of the songs “Fossegrim,” “Sjøhyenar (Havets Herrer),” “Blodtørst,” and “Mjød” from the BBC Sessions last year, as well as demo versions of “Ordsmedar av Rang” and “Utrydd Dei Svake.” For pre-order info visit The Omega Order.
In celebration of the release, the band will embark on a string of U.S. dates with Weedeater and Zoroaster as well as tomorrow’s Scion Rock Fest and several appearances at this year’s SXSW before returning home for another European tour (this time with Comeback Kid) and a trek to Australia. See details below:
KVELERTAK U.S. Tour Dates 2011:
3/05/2011 Scion Rock Fest – Pamona, CA
3/07/2011 Funhouse – Seattle, WA w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/08/2011 Rotture – Portland, OR w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/10/2011 Monstros – Chico, CA w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/11/2011 Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/12/2011 Ruby Room – San Diego, CA w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/14/2011 Yucca Tap Room – Tempe, AZ w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster, Wildildlife
3/15/2011 Launchpad – Albuquerque, NM w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
3/17/2011 Emo’s Full Metal Texas – Austin TX [SXSW showcase]
3/17/2011 Prague – Austin, TX [SXSW showcase]
3/18/2011 Headhunter’s South By South Death – Austin, TX [SXSW showcase]
3/19/2011 Korova – San Antonio, TX w/ Weedeater, Zoroaster
“…a furious, kinetic and coruscating blend of 85 octane burnin’ garage rock, greasy punk, blues, hardcore, Motorhead, black and death metal. They manage to sound like all of the above without exactly sounding like any of ’em, while still seething with enough animated exertion to have those exposed to their fiery brand throwing beer bottles at limousines, kicking fat girls in their cameltoes and fucking bee hives bareback.” — Hellbound
“Imagine if Satyr, Iggy Pop, Nicke Andersson and Lemmy all meet in a rehab program and decided to form a band to channel all their energies and frustrations into music, the end result wouldn’t be too dissimilar from Kvelertak self-titled debut record.” — Scratch The Surface
http://www.myspace.com/kvelertak
http://indierec.net/
http://www.myspace.com/indierecordings
http://www.theendrecords.com