Salem have their own unique sound and style. Part soundtrack to an imagined previously unreleased Spaghetti Western, and part existentialist symphony packed with literary references, mariachi trumpets, banjos, bells and a Russian army choir, Salem are impressive! Through bombastic landscapes of sound ingeniously orchestrated to intimate cabaret-like night club gusto, Salem combine a vast variety of genres and styles and refuse to be pigeon holed in one particular direction. A common denominator, however, is the superb vocal that shies no comparison to the greatest crooners of all times and the songs that, though founded in a pop-context, dare wrestle the great philosophical themes of our time with poetical flair and lyrical beauty.
In 2000 Salem was formed by singer Mikkel Risbjerg and composer Kasper No Behrens. Manifested in the release of the band's first album 'I Kicked the Dog' the duo had established one of the most exciting and unconventional acts on the Danish rock scene.
With the release of the Trilogy - "I Kicked the Dog" (2002), "The Anatomy of Pain" (2003) and "From the Riverbank" (2005) - Salem has taken the Danish critics by storm, receiving two nominations to the most important and highest ranked Danish music award, The Steppenwolf 2006, and several top 10 album-of-the-year rankings by an agreeing unity of Danish written medias.
In 2006, Salem released "Nord1" - an album celebrating the Scandinavian folklore tradition, hence sung in their native language Danish. Nord1 was nominated for Danish Music Awards 07 and ranked top 5 album-of-the-year by the newspaper Information.
As a result of substantial airplay on various international radio stations, along side with requests from the European and American movie industry, a need emerged for an album designed to an international audience. ”The Rest of the West” (2007) is Salem’s first international album and contains – besides material from the duo’s first three albums – new tracks as well. A historical step was made with the brand new track “The Needle in the Butterfly“ as Salem was given permission by Lars von Trier (Dancer in the Dark, Dogville, etc.) and Zentropa to use sequences from the director’s masterpiece “Europa“ (1991) as basic tapes for a music video - hence, engaged the young talented underground director Anders Boetter as converter between the two universes. The music video "The Needle in the Butterfly" was nominated for a HUGO-award - the annual award donated by the Danish Department of Film and Media (AFM) - and on June 29th, it won not only the HUGO, but also The Technical Prize 2007.
“The Rest of the West” manifests Salem’s awesome potential and would suit any motion picture - especially the one within your mind - so lean back, enjoy and check out more on www.houseofsalem.dk and www.coperecords.com
APRIL: Release "The Rest of the West" (DEN)
MAY-JUNE: Release "The Rest of the West" (SWE/NOR)
JUNE: Release "The Rest of the West" (GER)
AUGUST: Release "The Rest of the West" EP/Singles (MEX)
Hi, Thanks so much for the vids... they're great. We took them to the TV station today to be edited into the TV programme. I'm going to record it with my camera and we'll get a copy later hopefully which I can send to you. They've just finished a new space for the TV programme which is www. expresionlibre. tk if you want to add them as friends to your myspace. All the best Selina.
Takker for en superskøn koncert i Portalen. Det var pragtfuldt at få oplevet jer live & det var præcis så godt som jeg havde forventet. Glæder mig til næste gang jeg får muligheden : )
Hej 'Your Own Personal Minstrel Ape Jesus' is back and ok... I've had a shitty three months... brought about mainly by the evil fairer sex but let's not dwell on that afterall I am a monkey Viking!.. we need to talk. Love as always Martyn X
Hope y'all can make it along as BONANZA presents The Surgens album launch party...
Hi how are you? We've just sent off the CD to be made now so it shouldn't be too long till we get it in the shops. By April all the paperwork should be done. Hope you're fine. all the best Selina.
just stopping in to see how the most awesome band with the greatest NAME ever is doing?? haven't heard from you in awhile, hope all is good for you. Take care Salem Elizabeth
We got your music, we loved it, we played it. Check out Episode 65 of IndieCan Radio to see what Salem song is featured in this fabulous hour of indie music.
Let us know what you and your fans think!
Cheers,
Joe Chisholm host IndieCan Radio www.indiecan.com info@indiecan.com
Hi How are you? We should get the promo CDs to start promoting by the end of this week. We are waiting for word from the pressing plant. As soon as we get them, I'll send you a message...all the best Selina. Impacto.
JUNKIE LOVE, by Phil Shoenfelt, won the Firecracker Alternative Book Of The Year Award (Drug Books Section) for 2002. Now licensed to Ebury Press/Random House, and available in bookshops in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Also available directly from www.randomhouse.co.uk, Original Twisted Spoon Press edtion available in bookshops in the USA and Canada, or from www.twistedspoon.com, Both versions available via www.amazon.com,
"A nice, nasty read. I enjoyed it a lot." Nick Cave
"A fine, gutsy, spare rendering of the drug underworld." Will Self
"Ever-descending scenes of brute squalor." Michael Gira
"The best book about heroin since "Junky". An essential read." Nikki Sudden
