Motorpsycho - You Gotta Hang On To The Trip You're On...

...to be continued...
If you have material to contribute to this section, send your stuff to TrueMiddle@gmx.de .

From diverse editions of the German magazine INTRO.
English translation / transcription by Jeanette.

From INTRO March 1996 regarding Blissard:

Rainbirds: «I like it a lot. Nice cover. But I'd like to strangle their singer.»

Front 242: «You don't need to go to Abba's studio to sound like my Philips 2-Track Tube Recorder. Is this music an excuse for this experiment?»

Skunk Anansie: «Shit!»

From INTRO March 1997 regarding AADAP:

U.D.O./Accept: «Interesting sound elients & rock passages, although not my cup of tea.»

The Inchtabokatables: «Really chic noise-pop. We like that.»

From some Norwegian magazine? Anyway...
Transcription by Kalle. English translation by Paul Caspers.

In Norwegian.

22 Pistepirko: «Utlendinger vil høre annerledes musikk enn de er vant med fra før og legger bare merke til de sære bandene fra Finland. Men akkurat nå kan jeg ikke komme på noen kule finske band. Fra Norge syns jeg Motorpsycho er ganske kule, men på Roskilde spilte de så høyt at jeg måtte gå.»

In English.

22 Pistepirko: «Foreigners want to hear different music than they're used to from the past and they only notice the weird bands from Finland. But right now i can't think of any cool Finnish bands. From Norway, I think Motorpsycho are really cool, but at Roskilde they played so loud I had to leave.»

Taken from an interview with Monster Blomster from the Norwegian student magazine UDUSKEN – DUSKER #13, 1996.
Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers.

In Norwegian.

[...]Med sin fokus på melodier i musikken, skiller Monster Blomster seg fra de fleste andre rockeband med kredibilitet fra Trondheim.
Monster Blomster: «Trondheim er jo heavyrockens vugge, noe som nok henger litt igjen. Stilmessig er vi vel litt på sida av rockiiljøet i byen, men vi har likevel mye med andre band å gjøre. Miljøet er skikkelig bra; bandene backer hverandre opp, selv om de ikke nødvendigvis er kjipefans av hverandres musikk», forklarer Øyvind. «Monster Blomster har blant annet delt øvingslokale og kompetanse med Motorpsycho».

«Motorpsycho har vært helt enestående, så all ære til di. De har hjulpet oss både med praktiske og musikalske ting. De som studerer innertekstene på platene våre vil finne ut at det bare er Snah som ikke har spilt på platene våre.[...]»

In English.

[...]Focusing on the melodies in their music, Monster Blomster are different from most other rock bands with credibility from Trondheim.
Monster Blomster: «Trondheim is after all the cradle of heavy rock, which is a little #$$%$#!~?!. When it comes to style, I think we're on the side of the rock scene in town, but we also have a lot to do with other bands. The scene is quite good: the bands back each other up, even though they're sometimes not great fans of each other's music», explains Øyvind. «Monster Blomster has for example shared the rehearsal room and equipment with Motorpsycho.»

«Motorpsycho have been really special, so all credit to them. They've helped us out with both practical and musical things. If you study the linernotes of our albums you'll find out it's only Snah who hasn't played on our records.[...]»

Taken from an interview with / article about Turbonegro in the German magazine INTRO, 1998.
Transcription / English translation by TrueMiddle.

In German.

Turbonegro: «Wir kennen die Jungs natürlich lange. Die sind schon sehr gut in ihrem Bereich, es gibt auch keine Rivalität, aber ich halte die für etwas angeberisch. Sie behaupten immer, von CAN und SUN-RA beeinflußt zu sein, aber alles, was ich von ihrer Musik dann höre, ist eine Art heftigeres DINOSAUR JR. Als wir kürzlich in deren Stadt [Trondheim] ein Interview gaben, haben wir deswegen verkündet, Krautrock und MILES DAVIS seien unsere größten Einflüsse, und Glamrock natürlich.»

English translation.

Turbonegro: «We know the guys for quite a while of course. Sure enough they're very good in their field and there isn't any rivalry [between us] also, but I think that they're a little bit pretentious. They always claim to be influenced by CAN and SUN-RA, but all I'm able to recognize when I hear their music is some sort of more heavy DINOSAUR JR. When we gave some interview in their hometown (Trondheim) recently, we for this reason announced that 'Krautrock' and MILES DAVIS are our biggest influences, and glamrock of course.»

Taken from an interview with Autopulver from the e-zine THE KINDA MUZIK YOU LIKE! #5, 1998.

In English.

Frode Famøy / Autopulver: «[...] Overall, I think Norwegian musicians are getting more confident every day now and really believe in what they're doing. You know, Motorpsycho did break the ice and everybody (in the rock'n roll business at least) are really proud of them. [...]»

Taken from an interview with Kay Runar Rasmussen, drummer of Velvet Belly from the Norwegian musicians' magazine MUSIKKPRAKSIS 1998-09-16 in a paragraph where he talks about drumming influences...
Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers.

In Norwegian.

Kay Runar Rasmussen / Velvet Belly: «[...]Mange er forøvrig på god vei allerede. Etter at vi kom inn på 90-tallet ser det ut til at musikerne generelt har blitt mer bevisste på lydstyring og dermed er i bedre stand til å finne fri uten at produsentene kommer i veien. Det gjelder også her i Norge; hør på Håkon Gebhardt i Motorpsycho. Åpningstrommene på Nothing to Say (Dion Box) har en helt glimrende lyd. Flott trommis forresten; han gjør mye bra innenfor meget store og krevende rammer. [...]»

In English.

Kay Runar Rasmussen / Velvet Belly: «[...]And many are on the right track already. After we've arrived in the 90's it looks like musicians generally have become more aware of directing their sound and thus are more capable of managing it without producers getting in their way. The same goes for Norway; listen to Geb from Motorpsycho. The intro drums on Nothing to Say (Dion Box) have a really beautiful sound. Great drummer by the way; he does a lot of good things within a really large and dianding context. [...]»

Taken from VG – Tett på nett: Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys, 1998.
Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers.

In Norwegian.

[...]Hvordan innflytelse har norske band på dere? Foeler dere at dere er i skyggen av et band som Motorpsycho (de er jo forresten ikke så hippe og urbane som dere)?
Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys: «Vi har aldri hørt så mye på Motorpsycho, men vi har stor respekt for di og det de har fått til internasjonalt. Vi føler oss generelt på utsida av det "etablerte" norske rockmiljøet. Det er band i vår omgangskrets som inspirerer og influerer oss; [...]»

In English.

[...]What kind of influence do Norwegian bands have on you? Do you feel that you're in the shadow of bands like MP (they're not as hip and urban as you, by the way)?
Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys: «We never listened to MP that much, but we have a lot of respect for them and what they've accomplished on an international level. We usually feel we're on the outside of the "established" norwegian rock scene. There are bands in our circle of friends that inspire and influence us; [...]»

From a private conversation between Paul M. Caspers and Tup Wanders, member of the Dutch band Dandruff (which once was a support act for MP)
Transcription and English translation by Paul Caspers.

In English.

Tup Wanders / Dandruff: «[...]What do I think of Motorpsycho? Norwegian Pre-Goth-Hippies. That's what I think. But you shouldn't ask me, I don't know a thing about music [...]»

Taken from an interview in PULS, April 1998: Beyond Dawn.
Transcription by TrueMiddle.

In Norwegian.

[...]De tre blir raskt enige om at de ikke vil tilhøre noen spesiell scene.
Beyond Dawn: «Folka bak Deathprod, Origami, ja Oslo elektroscene i det hele tatt, og band som Dunkelheit og Red Harvest, det er interessant. Der har man stå på folk og ildsjeler», mener Tore.
«Det er alt for mye av de derre studentene som går på So What og enes om at Nå liker vi Motorpsycho, dere! Men det skal samtidig sies at det er det eneste norske alternative band som har oppnådd størrelse og beholdt respekten. Seigmenn er et strålende eksipel på hva norsk musikkbransje liksom skal klare å produsere av bra norsk indieband. Det er plastikk plastikk plastikk![...]»

Taken from the website of the Norwegian band: Respatexans,
one of Lars Håvard Haugen's (Hellbillies, HGH) bands.
Found and sent in by Kristoffer.

In English.

[...] Few are aware the Lars Håvard also received training on guitar at the Trøndertun Folkehøyskole.
Lars Håvard Haugen: «I began at the school the first year they established the Rock Music major in 1988 / 89. In fact, Torstein Flakne's father was the dean. The guitarist from Motorpsycho, Snah, also attended and as well as I can remember, he was then heavily into Terje Rypdal. [...]»

Taken from from: Music Minded #22, July / August 2000
(excerpt from an interview w/ Celestial Season by Willem de Kort
about (the recording of) the album «Lunchbox Dialogues») –
Translation by Paul.

In English.

[...] Some people pointed out beforehand that we might get infected by the Motorpsycho virus by working with [Pieter Kloos]. All five of us were already pretty much fans of the band, so we wouldn't have minded all that much. But in the end there weren't many outside influences on the album. [...]»


[review snips: other bands about motorpsycho]
	...to be continued... If you have material to contribute to this section, send your stuff to TrueMiddle@gmx.de . From diverse editions of the German magazine INTRO. English translation / transcription by Jeanette. From INTRO March 1996 regarding Blissard: Rainbirds: «I like it a lot. Nice cover. But I'd like to strangle their singer.» Front 242: «You don't need to go to Abba's studio to sound like my Philips 2-Track Tube Recorder. Is this music an excuse for this experiment?» Skunk Anansie: «Shit!» From INTRO March 1997 regarding AADAP: U.D.O./Accept: «Interesting sound elients & rock passages, although not my cup of tea.» The Inchtabokatables: «Really chic noise-pop. We like that.» From some Norwegian magazine? Anyway... Transcription by Kalle. English translation by Paul Caspers. In Norwegian. 22 Pistepirko: «Utlendinger vil høre annerledes musikk enn de er vant med fra før og legger bare merke til de sære bandene fra Finland. Men akkurat nå kan jeg ikke komme på noen kule finske band. Fra Norge syns jeg Motorpsycho er ganske kule, men på Roskilde spilte de så høyt at jeg måtte gå.» In English. 22 Pistepirko: «Foreigners want to hear different music than they're used to from the past and they only notice the weird bands from Finland. But right now i can't think of any cool Finnish bands. From Norway, I think Motorpsycho are really cool, but at Roskilde they played so loud I had to leave.» Taken from an interview with Monster Blomster from the Norwegian student magazine UDUSKEN – DUSKER #13, 1996. Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers. In Norwegian. [...]Med sin fokus på melodier i musikken, skiller Monster Blomster seg fra de fleste andre rockeband med kredibilitet fra Trondheim. Monster Blomster: «Trondheim er jo heavyrockens vugge, noe som nok henger litt igjen. Stilmessig er vi vel litt på sida av rockiiljøet i byen, men vi har likevel mye med andre band å gjøre. Miljøet er skikkelig bra; bandene backer hverandre opp, selv om de ikke nødvendigvis er kjipefans av hverandres musikk», forklarer Øyvind. «Monster Blomster har blant annet delt øvingslokale og kompetanse med Motorpsycho». «Motorpsycho har vært helt enestående, så all ære til di. De har hjulpet oss både med praktiske og musikalske ting. De som studerer innertekstene på platene våre vil finne ut at det bare er Snah som ikke har spilt på platene våre.[...]» In English. [...]Focusing on the melodies in their music, Monster Blomster are different from most other rock bands with credibility from Trondheim. Monster Blomster: «Trondheim is after all the cradle of heavy rock, which is a little #$$%$#!~?!. When it comes to style, I think we're on the side of the rock scene in town, but we also have a lot to do with other bands. The scene is quite good: the bands back each other up, even though they're sometimes not great fans of each other's music», explains Øyvind. «Monster Blomster has for example shared the rehearsal room and equipment with Motorpsycho.» «Motorpsycho have been really special, so all credit to them. They've helped us out with both practical and musical things. If you study the linernotes of our albums you'll find out it's only Snah who hasn't played on our records.[...]» Taken from an interview with / article about Turbonegro in the German magazine INTRO, 1998. Transcription / English translation by TrueMiddle. In German. Turbonegro: «Wir kennen die Jungs natürlich lange. Die sind schon sehr gut in ihrem Bereich, es gibt auch keine Rivalität, aber ich halte die für etwas angeberisch. Sie behaupten immer, von CAN und SUN-RA beeinflußt zu sein, aber alles, was ich von ihrer Musik dann höre, ist eine Art heftigeres DINOSAUR JR. Als wir kürzlich in deren Stadt [Trondheim] ein Interview gaben, haben wir deswegen verkündet, Krautrock und MILES DAVIS seien unsere größten Einflüsse, und Glamrock natürlich.» English translation. Turbonegro: «We know the guys for quite a while of course. Sure enough they're very good in their field and there isn't any rivalry [between us] also, but I think that they're a little bit pretentious. They always claim to be influenced by CAN and SUN-RA, but all I'm able to recognize when I hear their music is some sort of more heavy DINOSAUR JR. When we gave some interview in their hometown (Trondheim) recently, we for this reason announced that 'Krautrock' and MILES DAVIS are our biggest influences, and glamrock of course.» Taken from an interview with Autopulver from the e-zine THE KINDA MUZIK YOU LIKE! #5, 1998. In English. Frode Famøy / Autopulver: «[...] Overall, I think Norwegian musicians are getting more confident every day now and really believe in what they're doing. You know, Motorpsycho did break the ice and everybody (in the rock'n roll business at least) are really proud of them. [...]» Taken from an interview with Kay Runar Rasmussen, drummer of Velvet Belly from the Norwegian musicians' magazine MUSIKKPRAKSIS 1998-09-16 in a paragraph where he talks about drumming influences... Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers. In Norwegian. Kay Runar Rasmussen / Velvet Belly: «[...]Mange er forøvrig på god vei allerede. Etter at vi kom inn på 90-tallet ser det ut til at musikerne generelt har blitt mer bevisste på lydstyring og dermed er i bedre stand til å finne fri uten at produsentene kommer i veien. Det gjelder også her i Norge; hør på Håkon Gebhardt i Motorpsycho. Åpningstrommene på Nothing to Say (Dion Box) har en helt glimrende lyd. Flott trommis forresten; han gjør mye bra innenfor meget store og krevende rammer. [...]» In English. Kay Runar Rasmussen / Velvet Belly: «[...]And many are on the right track already. After we've arrived in the 90's it looks like musicians generally have become more aware of directing their sound and thus are more capable of managing it without producers getting in their way. The same goes for Norway; listen to Geb from Motorpsycho. The intro drums on Nothing to Say (Dion Box) have a really beautiful sound. Great drummer by the way; he does a lot of good things within a really large and dianding context. [...]» Taken from VG – Tett på nett: Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys, 1998. Transcription by TrueMiddle. English translation by Paul Caspers. In Norwegian. [...]Hvordan innflytelse har norske band på dere? Foeler dere at dere er i skyggen av et band som Motorpsycho (de er jo forresten ikke så hippe og urbane som dere)? Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys: «Vi har aldri hørt så mye på Motorpsycho, men vi har stor respekt for di og det de har fått til internasjonalt. Vi føler oss generelt på utsida av det "etablerte" norske rockmiljøet. Det er band i vår omgangskrets som inspirerer og influerer oss; [...]» In English. [...]What kind of influence do Norwegian bands have on you? Do you feel that you're in the shadow of bands like MP (they're not as hip and urban as you, by the way)? Kåre & the Cavemen / Euroboys: «We never listened to MP that much, but we have a lot of respect for them and what they've accomplished on an international level. We usually feel we're on the outside of the "established" norwegian rock scene. There are bands in our circle of friends that inspire and influence us; [...]» From a private conversation between Paul M. Caspers and Tup Wanders, member of the Dutch band Dandruff (which once was a support act for MP) Transcription and English translation by Paul Caspers. In English. Tup Wanders / Dandruff: «[...]What do I think of Motorpsycho? Norwegian Pre-Goth-Hippies. That's what I think. But you shouldn't ask me, I don't know a thing about music [...]» Taken from an interview in PULS, April 1998: Beyond Dawn. Transcription by TrueMiddle. In Norwegian. [...]De tre blir raskt enige om at de ikke vil tilhøre noen spesiell scene. Beyond Dawn: «Folka bak Deathprod, Origami, ja Oslo elektroscene i det hele tatt, og band som Dunkelheit og Red Harvest, det er interessant. Der har man stå på folk og ildsjeler», mener Tore. «Det er alt for mye av de derre studentene som går på So What og enes om at Nå liker vi Motorpsycho, dere! Men det skal samtidig sies at det er det eneste norske alternative band som har oppnådd størrelse og beholdt respekten. Seigmenn er et strålende eksipel på hva norsk musikkbransje liksom skal klare å produsere av bra norsk indieband. Det er plastikk plastikk plastikk![...]» Taken from the website of the Norwegian band: Respatexans, one of Lars Håvard Haugen's (Hellbillies, HGH) bands. Found and sent in by Kristoffer. In English. [...] Few are aware the Lars Håvard also received training on guitar at the Trøndertun Folkehøyskole. Lars Håvard Haugen: «I began at the school the first year they established the Rock Music major in 1988 / 89. In fact, Torstein Flakne's father was the dean. The guitarist from Motorpsycho, Snah, also attended and as well as I can remember, he was then heavily into Terje Rypdal. [...]» Taken from from: Music Minded #22, July / August 2000 (excerpt from an interview w/ Celestial Season by Willem de Kort about (the recording of) the album «Lunchbox Dialogues») – Translation by Paul. In English. [...] Some people pointed out beforehand that we might get infected by the Motorpsycho virus by working with [Pieter Kloos]. All five of us were already pretty much fans of the band, so we wouldn't have minded all that much. But in the end there weren't many outside influences on the album. [...]» Back to the Record Reviews page...