The abundance of popular American and British English music acts makes it uncommon if not difficult to break into the charts while hailing from elsewhere, but fortunately for me it is a feat Röyksopp, an electronic music duo from Norway, accomplished. With songs to suit many moods, they became a stand-by in my collection for many years.
420 to 30: A Music Retrospective
Here's 7 of my favorites from Röyksopp.
Week 41: RÖYKSOPP
#281/420 - Röyksopp, “She’s So”
While a lot of Röyksopp’s music features vocalists, many of their songs also do not. This is one of those instrumentals, and one of my favorites, from their debut album in 2001, which is also my favorite album of theirs, beginning to end. This is an extremely chill, sexy, back alley piece with auditory neon lights reflected in puddles on definitely some kind of substance. It’s dominated by swelling synth and blaring saxophones, which patter and meander about before the beat pulls them into a swirl.
It should come as no surprise on my 420 countdown there are some great songs to get stoned to on here, and with or without inhaling, this album has the power to take you at least halfway there. Trees and clouds, man. Trees and clouds.
#282/420 - Röyksopp, “Forsaken Cowboy”
It’s very interesting to me that a song without words and without sound effects and obviously without visuals, even without seeing its title, can still sound like its title. Maybe it is a little spacier than the Old West, but the rhythm seems to have perfect pace with a trotting horse and its bobbing rider and the ethereal, forlorn voices exude despondency and loneliness.
It could also be being conditioned by film scores to hear certain music as certain themes, but the music written for the films has to be imagined in the first place and there is a methodology and a why to this, but it goes a bit over my head as a non-musician. For me, it is just a feeling I recognize.
Either way, this is an enjoyable and relaxing song, and album, to zone out to.
#283/420 - Röyksopp, “Happy Up Here”
This song came on the radio and first caught my attention during a delivery job of mine for a sandwich shop back in 2009. I remember thinking it was an unusual kind of song to hear on what was primarily an alternative rock station, but I dug it, and it prompted my tracking down all of Röyksopp’s first three albums. I am glad I did. It’s poppy, video game-ish, club music, full of warmth; a fun song and worthy entry point into some great music.
#284/420 - Röyksopp, “Röyksopp Forever”
My favorite instrumental from Röyksopp. Where “She’s So” excels with the saxophones, this one has it in droves with the string section. It has a very epic feel, fitting of the “forever” in its title, and is easy to imagine as part of film soundtrack; through headphones, the soundtrack of your life. Like most great epic themes, it also features a rewarding build-up throughout the song, increasing in parts, drama, and intensity. And after all that, it suddenly crashes and crumples away, tying itself off for whatever comes next in the playlist, shuffle, or album itself.
It’s one of the most satisfying Röyksopp tracks, deserving of the duo’s name as part of its own.
#285/420 - Röyksopp, “Remind Me”
The song that introduced most of us to Röyksopp, whether we realized it or not, was this one, featured in an insurance advertisement featuring a caveman on a moving sidewalk that received major airplay and even, bizarrely, turned into a short-lived sitcom. Moments of mega-fame aside though, this is the stand-out track for me on their first album and my personal favorite. Cool, chill, subdued, and aquamarine, it’s reflective and calm and makes for a perfect song choice in such moments.
The singer, Erlend Øye, is from another Norwegian band, Kings of Convenience, and really does the track justice with just the right touch on the microphone. Berge and Brundtland made an all-timer with this one, on an album I highly recommend.
#286/420 - Röyksopp, “This Must Be It”
My favorite vocalist to work with Röyksopp is Karin Dreijer of another electronic duo, The Knife, from Sweden. Here she excels amid charged electronic sounds. I love the energy this song comes in with right from the start, not wasting any time in getting its super-awesomeness on. I also enjoy how it maintains it throughout. There is no slow down or change-up to take away from the momentum at any point, which means your head bobs and hip wags need never let up either.
Röyksopp is able to put out a great dance track just as well as it can a subdued atmospheric piece and it makes trekking through their catalog all the more diverse and enjoyable.
#287/420 - Röyksopp, “What Else Is There?”
The Nordic partnership has done it again. A truly great song from Röyksopp and Karen Dreijer, and my personal favorite from the group. This is a very well-produced track that really has it all. The vocals are amazing, the instrumentation is epic and dramatic in all the right ways with nuances and passionate swings, and the lyrics are just cool. It’s one of those songs that seems possible to have direct meaning, but yet has the correct dosage of mystery and ambiguity to allow your own applications and interpretations to deepen the meaning and scope of the words.
We cover distance, but not together
I am the storm and I am the wonder
And the flashlights, nightmares, and sudden explosions.
I don't know what more to ask for
I was given just one wish
It’s an entrancing song and one that almost always capped off my Röyksopp playlists. Their music has been the soundtrack to many great, relaxed moments in my life and it’s been a jolly time reminiscing this week.
Next week, I’ll be featuring a legendary group in rap music that, in my opinion, featured the greatest lineup ever assembled, on Beatles level relative to their genre in terms of raw talent in a single group. They were only fully together for what amounted to a fleeting moment in the grand scope of things, but their influence and prominence in hip hop continues to this day, straight outta Compton, N.W.A.
420 to 30: A Music Retrospective
Week 2: The Jackson 5/The Jacksons
Week 3: A Tribe Called Quest
Week 4: Weezer
Week 5: Bob Dylan
Week 6: Led Zeppelin
Week 7: 2Pac/Makaveli
Week 8: Billy Joel
Week 9: Electric Light Orchestra
Week 10: Elvis Presley
Week 11: Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band
Week 12: The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Week 13: Nirvana
Week 14: The Doors
Week 15: The Rolling Stones
Week 16: Gnarls Barkley
Week 17: Gábor Szabó
Week 18: Galaxie 500
Week 19: Simon & Garfunkel
Week 20: Gorillaz
Week 21: Ennio Morricone
Week 22: The Moody Blues
Week 23: Koji Kondo
Week 24: Rob Zombie/White Zombie
Week 25: Paul McCartney/Wings
Week 26: George Harrison
Week 27: Phil Spector
Week 28: John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
Week 29: Public Enemy
Week 30: The Love Language
Week 31: Barry White
Week 32: Frank Sinatra
Week 33: David Bowie
Week 34: Queen
Week 35: The Offspring
Week 36: Louis Prima
Week 37: The Notorious B.I.G.
Week 38: Nancy Sinatra
Week 39: Stevie Wonder
Week 40: Roger Miller
View the full list of "420 Songs" here: https://tinyurl.com/y8fboudu (Google spreadsheet link)