Sturle Dagsland

Translated excerpts from Russian:


"In the 21st century it is difficult to surprise, but this is what Sturle Dagsland does. Combining a palette of electronics, instruments and most importantly a fierce, uncompromising, primitive and at the same time ephemeral vocal, they sound like nothing I've ever heard before. With his long blond hair and elvish good looks Sturle sings mythical songs that leaves no one feel indifferent.. And from his piercing eyes you can not hide even in the darkest corners of the room. Agressive vocals turning into a falsetto and vibrato – hissing, screaming, moaning, strangulation.. Mysterious singing in Elvish language and even wolf barking, while his brother furiously pounds on countless of instruments from all over the world" - Musecube.org, Moscow - Musecube.org

The increasing prevalence afforded neo-classic musical concerns is an intensely positive contemporary occurrence, although if one thing may be said of such compositional fare then it’s that, at times, it can all sound gently heterogeneous. And we ought to be thankful, therefore, for the emergence of nascent Norwegian eccentric Sturle Dagsland, whose latest – the spectacularly unhinged Wardenclyffe Aquarium – sounds the scoring of an irrevocable mental breakdown. Beautiful as it is discombobulating, crime thriller squeals meet with martial rattles, bursts of carnivalesque fanfare and ephemeral moments of acoustically affected respite to make for the wildest few minutes of this, or indeed any week. For you’ll hear nothing quite like it all year, and I’m almost certain that’s a similarly affirmative thing to suggest… - Dots & Dashes

It’s not often that my jaded ears prick up at a song simply because it’s so downright unusual, but today I’m skipping the preamble and getting right to the chase, because Sturle Dagsland did just that.

The last time this happened, it was Seward who reached through my lugs into my brain, tickled the Parahippocampal gyrus, and ended up as ANBAD’s band of 2012.

And what was so unusual about Seward – their unique application of sound and language into music – is also the devastatingly enthralling trait in Sturle Dagsland’s terrifyingly brief Mokèlé-mbèmbé.




Well. Here’s a unique song.

It begins with a scream and ends with a flurry of sweet, rich noise. In between, over the course of a minute and a half, dish after dish of aural delicacies are placed unceremoniously onto this particular feasting table.

It’s rare to find a song that sounds so different, so unusual and so appealing all at once. It occurred to me at one point that this might be what poking your head into an alien nightclub sounds like.

Is all of Sturle Dagsland‘s music like this? No. It couldn’t possibly be. But this is brilliant and enthralling. - anewbandaday.com

Translated excerpts from lithuanian:
"I dont know how many years Ive dreamt to see raging madness in its purest form on the stage, something like GG Allin, Costes, Rockbitch, or Satan Panonskis psychodramas. On the other hand I never though that I would receive it from someone walking on the stage barefoot, wearing wet pants, hungrily devouring kiwis." - www.15min.it


- 15min.it

(In norwegian, check my bio for a rough translate)

Etter mange timer i solsteiken begynte konsentrasjonen å svikte, og det må nok innrømmes at flere av oss etter hvert konsentrerte oss mer om halvliterne enn om det som foregikk på scenen. Men plutselig kom det noen himmelske lyder fra scenen. “Hvem i alle dager er dette?” undret jeg og speidet forgjeves etter den vanvittige kvinnestemmen jeg trodde jeg hørte. På scenen satt det imidlertid bare to unge menn med akustiske gitarer. I programmet sto det ikke stort annet enn at “Sturle Dagsland er en 20 år gammel artist fra Stavanger. Etter år med å ha laget musikk i sin egen musikalske sfære debuterte han på konsertscenen med sin egen musikk i 2010“. Det var ikke all verden til informasjon. Det som kom fra scenen var imidlertid svevende godlyd som sendte tankene til noe et sted midt mellom Sigur Ros og Tom McRae (fra den tiden han fremdeles var spennende). Konserten var en deilig gåsehudfremkallende affære og et befriende unikt pustehull i det tettpakkede konsertprogrammet.

Etter litt leting fant jeg senere fram til Dagslands ulike sider på nettet. Jeg var rett og slett nødt til å få bekreftet at jeg ikke hadde fått solstikk. Det viste seg heldigvis at det ikke var varmen som spilte meg et puss. De fenomenale sangene “Dollhouse” og “White Witch” kan nytes på NRK Urørt, MySpace og Facebook. Der kan vi også lese at han jobber med å ferdigstille materiale til sin første EP, og at denne etter planen skal komme ut i år. Jeg gleder meg. Maken til vokaltalent er det lenge siden jeg har hørt.

- Berekvam.com

translated from spanish:
"Sturle Dagsland does not leave anyone feel indifferent, turning their concerts into a wild brutal apocalypse" - Asociación Cultural Somos Arte - Somos arte

. - ALLSCANDINAVIAN:COM

Future Sound Share’s latest gig promoted by David Houston, was at The Star of Kings in Kings Cross. A lovely venue,small,dark and intimate,it proved to be an ideal setting for the first band of the night who were Sturle Dagsland. This 3 piece group from Norway play a huge variety of instruments blending into one of the most unique sounds I’ve heard this year.Dagsland creates a theatrical figure on stage,seemingly fey and vulnerable with a voice ranging through falsetto trills, cries and yelps. Their sound is jagged, off beat and won’t appeal to everyone. Instruments ranging from guitar and mandolin that are beaten as much as played and accordion, trumpet and percussion amongst others that seem to be used to make random sounds are beyond mainstream.The resulting sound and sound effects would be brilliant as an accompanying soundtrack to an art house film,pushing the boundaries of rhythm and style. Overall,it worked in The Star but it remains to be seen if it would work as well in a larger venue.The musical effects demand contact with the audience which would be lost in a venue that separated audience from the stage as the intimate atmosphere is part of the charm. Sturle Dagsland are currently touring; The Star was their first gig in this country.Details can be found on Facebook. - Lisa Parker

"An adventurous spirit, a unique sound and an irrefutable intensity... The music has a primitive and ethereal feeling. It's dark, disruptive, astonishing and groundbreaking...They cannot be categorized, because they sound like nothing that already exists." - The Wall. - THe Wall

"This pixie-like Norwegian man proceed to unleash an extremely potent racket... Sounding quite unlike anything I've heard before. Sturle shrieks and emotes, his clever fingers flickering like a campfire over a broken accordion.,, Wonderfully, it seems to divide the crowd completely down the middle....Watching these two inscutable fair folk playing the wooden beamed main stage while the sun beats down, I can't help but feel that something very special indeed is occurring". - The Quietus

"I'm staring with my mouth wide open by undiminished wonder. It's impossible to describe their performance in words. Sturle Dagsland is not from this planet. He might be here, but he is not a man. The soundcape, voices, energy and their nightmarish performance is indescribable!" - Postimees.ee

It begins with a scream and ends with a flurry of sweet, rich noise. In between, over the course of a minute and a half, dish after dish of aural delicacies are placed unceremoniously onto this particular feasting table.

It’s rare to find a song that sounds so different, so unusual and so appealing all at once. It occurred to me at one point that this might be what poking your head into an alien nightclub sounds like. - anewbandaday.com

It begins with a scream and ends with a flurry of sweet, rich noise. In between, over the course of a minute and a half, dish after dish of aural delicacies are placed unceremoniously onto this particular feasting table.

It’s rare to find a song that sounds so different, so unusual and so appealing all at once. It occurred to me at one point that this might be what poking your head into an alien nightclub sounds like. - anewbandaday.com