Upside Down.
Imagine a series of houses by the river, take a quick glance as you head home in the evening. The lines you would envision as regular and straight are instead askew and oblique, altered by the river water. Your brain insists on depicting them as straight and rigorous, yet your eyes continue to perceive the alteration. It is an inner conflict that persists until you avert your gaze from the row of fragile dwellings.
Translate this sensation into music. What you imagine as rhythmic becomes atypically arrhythmic, and instead of the sound of a guitar, your eardrums perceive trumpets.
Here they call it “annet.” A sort of "delving into the ancient." The latest effort from the "orchestra" of Stavanger is a striking example. With two excellent works behind them, they have managed to pull a new little gem from their magic hat. Without renewing, because they don’t need to renew something that is in constant evolution, they have once again succeeded in attempting to aggregate the unaggregable. A bit like a mixture of oil and water. The rhythms are Gypsy, they have the Caucasian flavor of abused violins and balalaikas, and they perfectly make love with electric guitars and deliberately arrhythmic drums. All topped with singing in Norwegian that deals with fantasy political themes.
The Kaizers have created a sort of new world in words and music and enjoy playing with it, imagining song thieves and figures from Eastern European political mythology, and having their quirky (but never trivial) characters interact with their quirky (but incredibly well-arranged) music. Maestro, the title track, is a small masterpiece that ranges from moments of Balkan musical madness to electric guitar riffs in a sort of engaging and overwhelming crescendo, but it is the entire album that is a kind of micro masterpiece.
A must-listen at least once, even if the complexity of the Norwegian lyrics might be a hurdle for those who want to fully understand the whimsical world of the Kaizers Orchestra.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Maestro (04:43)
Eg ser på det eg har skapt
og teller på liv som har gått tapt
Eg ser at det som før låg i vater
eg ser det er blitt skakt
Men tiå har vært snill
mot mitt håndtverk
Eg la ner stein for stein
Eg har stått på min terrasse
og styrt skutå beint
Eg har vært tøff mot min klasse
og knukket nogen bein
Eg har gjort mine grep
og holdt samvittigheten rein
Sving din hammer
til din papa drar deg inn
Trekk et rom nummer
men ikkje bland din med min
Maestro
Å Clementine, om du var min
og ikkje hadde lagt deg sjøl inn
Då sko du tatt del i det som blir
Flamingos dynasti
02 På ditt skift (04:38)
Sjå kva katten drog inn
Han trur han traff blink
Skøt seg i foten, kan ikkje gå uten hink
Sjå kva katten drog inn
Og det var en møkkakampanje
Du satte folk opp mot kvarandre
Det lukter brendt av dine kastanjer
Sjå kva katten drog inn
Det var på ditt skift Direktør, på ditt skift
Du gikk aldri i trappå, du tok heisen
Og brukte litå skrift i kontrakten
Og det var dråpen
Du sko aldri tatt heisen
Det var på ditt skift Direktør, på ditt skift
Katten drog deg inn
og forsvant som en vind
Nå henger eg det ut sånn at alle som ser
inn i mitt vindu i mitt atelier
Deg. De ser deg
Og en vakker dag skal en mann gå forbi
ser inn på deg med jævelens smil
Meg. Det er meg
Han forsvant på ditt skift
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