The year 1995 didn..t have much to show for in the name of Norwegian rock. All the big names were long past their creative peaks and the followers had all called it quits.
The old rockers brought little else than their receding hairlines and steadily expanding midriffs to the cultural scene.
We still hadn..t experienced the international potential of Turbonegro and Motorpsycho.
A golden age of Norwegian rock seemed unbelievable. It was around this time that yours truly opened up a small record store in Tromsø. I still remember it like it was yesterday, I received 5 copies of a 7" called God's Chosen Dealer, the debut single by this band called Gluecifer from Oslo.
I listened to it once at normal volume, then I cranked it up to full
blast and gave it another 20 spins. My girlfriend at the time literally
had to scrape me off the ceiling with a spatula. I was simply extatic! Who the hell were these guys? They couldn..t be from Norway?? They were way too good to be Norwegians. We were proud that they were though. They sang in English and their singer sounded like a cross between Eric Burdon, Iggy Pop, a white Little Richard and some other unknown factor.
He had an authority that was quite simply unique, backed by a band that sounded like this was something they had been doing forever.
Soon to follow was an EP & finally they released their debut album
Ridin the Tiger in 1997.
I remember being totally stoked when I got to book them to our local rock club Blårock for their first live appearance in Tromsø. The contract I signed with them must have been the shortest one ever, it read; "We will play in Tromsø Sunday August 31st for 5000 kroner & 5 packs of Prince Red..s (the strongest sigarettes available) The promoter will pick us up at the airport."
That was the same day Lady Diana died. The rest is history.
Together with Turbonegro & The Hellacopters they became not only the new wave of Scandinavian rock, but the true sound of rock altogether. Suddenly you could read about these bands all the time in the music magazines Kerrang! and NME.
I 1999 Gluecifer declared the Roskilde festival for opened on the main stage, the first Norwegian band to play this slot. One of the largest Danish newspapers loved them & accused the Norwegian press for not making these "damned cool dudes" into superstars.
I couldn..t agree more.
Later the Norwegian media followed up & finally the band could fill up venues all over the country. Their two last albums debuted on 2 on the Norwegian charts & they were gathering large followings all over Europe. Particularly in countries like Spain and Germany, Gluecifer were treated like heroes by thousands of fans.
After 11 years, 5 studio albums, shitloads of singles and more than 800 shows behind them, the band called it quits.
It felt like a big loss. They quit at their peak, they had never been better live, filling up venues wherever they played. Very few other Norwegian bands could pull this off, but Gluecifer lived up to their reputation.
They meant a lot for the Scandinavian rock scene, especially the
Norwegian one. Gluecifer helped make way for Norwegian bands abroad, they had an impact that not many Norwegians really understood. Not that they sold millions of albums or dominated the charts at all times. They did not. They did however show young Norwegians bands that it was possible to go abroad and spread the message. Not the humble Norwegian message of mediocracy; where anything average or lower gets elevated to a status of high cultural value.
Gluecifer had their own formula; an over-the-top but honest sense of self esteem, a real enthusiasm for playing live mixed with a bad
attitude, shitloads of hard work & a great sense of humor. Let this be a lesson to all the middle-of-the-road bands from Norway today where the standard is to make "anybody can like this" music.
At least they quit before they started making crappy albums, giving the same lame interviews over and over and playing dull live shows. And if that isn..t exactly what you really want to happen to your favourite band, then fuck if I know.
R.I.P., kings of rock!
Egon Holstad,
Tromsø, Kill City
Hey, if it isn't our old online buddies Gluecifer!
Thought you might be interested to know that you can now purchase The Suicide Pilots' debut DIY release online through www. Interpunk. com. On the other hand, maybe you're not all that interested, and think we're fucking assholes for this solicitation! Hey, that's okay... maybe we are fucking assholes? Ha Ha!
ROCKS Nr. 5 out NOW with interviews and features on Alice Cooper, Def Leppard, Glenn Hughes, Free, Solomon Burke, Ian Hunter / Mott The Hoople, Journey, ZZ Top, Walter Trout, Felice Brothers, Status Quo, Jon Oliva / Savatage, King's X, Hellacopters, Eric Sardinas, Jaded Sun, John Hiatt, Beggar's Bride, Soul Doctor and much more!
HI GUYS! I'M STILL SAD FOR YOUR STOP!!! :( YOU'RE STILL IN MY HEART!!! GOD BLESS THE GLUECIFER!!! BIFF MALIBU FOR PRESIDENT!!! ;) GOOD LUCK FOR ALL! ROCK ON!!!
Gabba gabba hey! Teddy.
