A twist of fate and a few small miracles

Posted on by

Árstíðir – Stallet, Stockholm; February 9th, 2015

Stockholm was the impossible gig, the one I could not possibly attend, no matter how hard I wished for it or how often I looked for flights. I was scheduled to land in Oslo at 16:30, flight time to Stockholm is one hour. The concert was announced for 19:00 and allowing for transfer times there was no way to get there that quickly. All of this is true and yet, by a simple twist of fate and sheer unbelievable luck I made it to Stockholm and only missed the first song. “HOW?“ you may ask. Let me tell you my story…

My friends A. and K. were going to Stockholm, we’d been texting back and forth and I was somewhat bummed about not being able to make it there, but after the wonderful time I’d just had in Svalbard, I had banned the thoughts from my mind and settled for going home with happy memories. My plans began to change when I got a text message from the airline that my evening flight from Oslo to Hamburg had been canceled. At first all I thought about was making it back to work on Tuesday morning so I would not lose a vacation day. I really tried being the responsible adult that I’m not. Then, when it turned out that Germanwings would rebook me on one of their own flights to Hamburg the next day, but not pay for anything else and the only possible flight home that evening was rather expensive and might not be reachable if my plane out of Longyearbyen was delayed, another thought crept into my mind: “What if…?”

So while I was at the airport I checked flights to Stockholm, but things were still the same: The flight I could reach for sure left Oslo at 19:00, landing in Stockholm one hour later and I would still have to make it to the venue. I started wondering if it was worth flying to Stockholm just to spend the night after the concert with my friends instead of being lonely at Oslo airport. Somewhere during that waiting time I remembered that the Arlanda Express only needs 20 minutes to get into the city. I checked the venue’s location and found it was roughly 4 km from the central station. Now if only the guys didn’t start at 19:00 I might have a chance. There was another band playing after all. Thus, I messaged Ragnar to find out their stage time.

For the entire flight to Oslo I tried to gather information via on board wifi, but it was impossibly slow and I gave up, leaving my browser open to the one possible flight from Oslo to Stockholm. On the bus to the gate I got the answer to my question: Two bands before, estimated stage time 20:30. My heart jumped and on the spot I decided to give it a shot. Walked directly to international transfer, opened my laptop and announced that I’d now be booking a flight to get me through the security check. It took a while to connect to wifi, but finally I had it and started booking. After ten minutes or so one of the security guys asked me if I had a boarding pass, so I answered “Not yet, but I will if you give me five minutes.” He asked to see what I was booking and was satisfied with what he saw. Got the confirmation soon after and made it through security. I’m sure they have a story to tell now. 😉

I still had 90 minutes until my flight so I wrote down the venue’s address and booked a flight to Germany for the next morning and ticket for the Arlanda Express – I love online booking. My flight was not only on time, it landed ten minutes early and despite sitting in the last row on the plane and being bussed to the terminal, I made it onto the train at 20:05. At 20:25 I hopped in a taxi and gave the driver the address. We got there about 10 minutes later, but wait – what? This place was closed. After calling Masha I realized there were two places called “Stallet” and this was the wrong one. Back into the taxi it was. Added difficulty: The right place was full and they did not want to let any more people in, but by her very own magic Masha fixed that for me. Was at the right place around 20:50, was let in through the otherwise locked door and immediately heard the music. Dropped my luggage and jacket downstairs and went in. It was a nice cozy room, seeing the guys on stage painted a huge smile on my face and soon I found myself in a hug with Masha. All was well, I had really made it!

After that song was over I made my way to the front and sat down on the floor in the middle of the chairs to my left and right. My friends K. And A. were sitting right there and greeted me warmly. My smile grew bigger – there was no other place I would have wanted to be at that moment. The room was nicely filled, but not totally packed and compared to the much larger venue and huge sound at Polar Jazz, this felt like a living room concert. It was more quiet, people really had to listen to the music and they did. It was also incredible hot in the room (at least compared to the -24 C I had felt that morning). That did not take away my enjoyment though. From the first note I heard I was caught up in the music and for the few pictures I took I really had to force myself to do it. All I wanted was sit there, listen and dream.

The whole concert was so beautiful it almost became too much to bear. Luckily the guys shared some funny stories about Svalbard and the gun policies there. Since pretty much everyone carries a gun for defense against polar bear, it is no big deal to take that on a helicopter and apparently it was only recently ruled that guns cannot be carried into the bank. 😀 There were more stories and we got some attention from the guys too. The nicest part was when Gunnar dedicated ‘You again’ to all three of us saying that they meet great people and tour and three of them were sitting right there. <3 He also took the crown for *the* killer version of ‘Nú gleymist ég’ that night, belting out every line with so much passion that it left me in awe.

All the other songs were amazing as well and I could have listened to them for hours. When they finally ended with ‘Kill us’ I did not want to move. I did of course, finally hugging my friends who were so happy I had made it and eventually saying hello to and hugging all the guys as well. 🙂 We stayed at the venue for some time before ending up at a bar, chatting and sharing stories until they closed. A last search for late night food, followed by a last goodbye hug and we parted ways. I didn’t have a place to stay, but A. and K. took me to their hostel where K. stayed up with me until they had to leave for the airport. I accompanied them to their bus, saying goodbye for the last time this weekend. Luckily we all knew it wouldn’t be long until we meet again.

Setlist

Himinhvel
Things you said
Someone who cares
Ljóð í sand
Á meðan jörðin sefur
Ró
Moonlight
Shine
Nú gleymist ég
You Again
Shades

Kill Us

It was a long and winded trip back home from there, but it was worth every cent spent and every kilometer traveled. These memories will last me a lifetime. Thank you, K., thank you A. and last but not least, thank you Árstíðir for one of the most intense and amazing weekends of my life. I love you more than words can say.

Blue light and silver shine

Posted on by

Árstíðir – Longyearbyen (Polar Jazz), February 7th, 2015

It must have been somewhere in November last year when Ragnar told me they would play Svalbard in February. I immediately considered going, saying something along the lines of “If you can make it there, I can!” Little did I know what I signed up for. When finally the date was announced I was torn between my heart’s desire to go to a place I might ever get to see otherwise and my inner voice of reason telling me spending so much money on one trip was not sensible. Of course, desire won – I have never been sensible when it comes to my favorite bands…

Now, after the fact and having returned from one of the most intense trips of my life with memories to cherish forever, I know that it really wasn’t a question of choice at all. Being there was the only option! Not only did I get to hear a beautiful concert, but I learned what it feels like to live in polar night, drove a dog sled under stars and northern lights, saw reindeer roaming the streets, almost froze my fingers off and got to party with friends until three in the morning.

It all started with a long night, going to Hamburg with an evening train and spending the last few hours until my flight at Hamburg airport. It was straight to Oslo from there and soon onwards to Longyearbyen, 78 Degrees north, the most northern permanent settlement. On the three hour flight I said goodbye to the sun, expecting to be in pitch darkness for the next few days. My expectations were wrong though. When we landed, everything was bathed in beautiful blue light that lasted for a few hours and gave the place a mystical feel. After checking in I sent the rest of the day walking around downtown, before calling it an early night. Meanwhile the guys were playing a gig in Barentsburg – so close, yet so far away, because in winter it can only be reached with a helicopter and I did not have access to one of those. This was one of the very few times a concert was really impossible for me to get to., so I tried not to dwell on it and caught up on some much needed sleep.

The next morning, after having breakfast and putting on most of the layers I had brought, I set out to brave the minus 20 degree cold and go ice caving. Despite going on a snow cat, our tour never reached the cage. It was just too much snow to get there. Thus we ended up driving around a little, encountering a few polar bear warning signs (luckily no polar bears) and reindeer roaming the streets to find food. It was a beautiful day and I was in such a state of bliss that nothing could bother me. It only got better from here.

The afternoon was again spent walking around and enjoying the view before resting a bit and finally setting out for the concert. Got there way too early, met Daníel and chatted with him for a bit. When the doors opened and I walked in, Ragnar was sitting at the piano and playing. He stopped and greeted me with a hug. We talked for a while before he disappeared backstage. Soon the concert hall filled up and we only had to wait a little longer, before the guys were announced and started the concert with ‘Himinhvel’. I immediately noticed how good the sound was – loud, clear and strong. The audience’ reaction was strong too and it could have been amazing if not for the two women behind me who talked loudly through the entire set. I considered telling them to shut up, but decided against it. It was distracting though and getting into the mood took me longer than usual.  However, I was much too happy to be there (still somewhat in a state of disbelief at that pint) to let it get to me.

‘Things you said’ was next, followed by ‘Someone who cares’ and when ‘Moonlight’ started I wondered if they’d play the entire album in order. I would have liked that, but it ended here and thy continued with ‘Ljoð í sand’, ‘Á meðan jörðin sjefur’ and ‘Heiðin’. Watching them I could not stop smiling. They all looked so very happy, singing and playing with all their might. It seemed as if, with finishing the album, a huge weight had been taken off of their shoulders and now the music as once again flowing freely. With the pre-release of the new album to the Kickstarter backers, their process of reinventing themselves as a new band, had finally come to an end and now this new band was demonstrating their powers. Even the old and often played songs suddenly sounded fresh again, gaining a new life on that stage.

The audience thanked them with thunderous applause, starting a wave on energy that kept going back and forth between the stage and the people in front. That alone made it all worthwhile. 😀 The guys shared stories during the night, Daníel talked about arriving in Barentsburg in the moonlight and Ragnar shared memories of the first concert he had played in Longyearbyen 12 years earlier. Once again they made me remember why I fell in love with them in the first place. Not only can their music instantly cure any grief and take me to a better place, but their stories and on stage banter will always make me laugh.

We didn’t get to hear ‘Friðþægingin’ and ‘Unfold’ the two songs from ‘Hvel’ they had not played live yet, but many beautiful renditions of other songs from ‘Silfurskin’ and ‘Shine’ to ‘Nú gleymist ég’ and finally ‘Shades’. As soon as the last note rang out, people started clapping and screaming for more. Not that I understood what they yelled, but it must have been Norwegian for “We want more!” Being there, in the middle of it all and witnessing such a great reception, made me incredibly happy. Even at a place that felt a bit like the end of the world to me, Arstidir took their audience by storm. They ended the night with a killer version of ‘Kill us’ and I’m sure, if time had allowed, they could have easily played another encore or a few. 🙂

While the guys were collecting their instruments I finally got to say hello and hug Gunnar and Karl. Only Guillaume disappeared quickly and wasn’t seen again for the rest of the night.

Setlist

Himinhvel
Things you said
Someone who cares
Moonlight
Ljoð í sand
Á meðan jörðin sjefur
Heiðin
Ró
Silfurskin
Days & Nights
Nú gleymist ég
Shine
You again
Shades

Kill us

Next up were Bo Kaspers Orkester, a band Daníel, Ragnar and Gunnar had all recommended to me. Thus, I had decided to check them out and was much rewarded. They were brilliant musicians, playing songs that got everyone dancing and singing along. Every note fit, watching them play was so much fun. I have no idea for how long they played, but time went by quickly and I left with a happy smile on my face.

Outside, in the café, I met the band again. Gunnar being all giddy and fanboyish about Bo Kaspers, hurrying backstage to meet them. Finally, I ran into Masha too, sharing big hugs with her. Everyone was chatting and there were many friends of the band all around. Eventually we left the Kulturhuset to explore the bars of Longyearbyen. A few drinks later, those of us who didn’t feel the need to sleep yet, ended up at Huset, dancing. Walking home at four in the morning, I could not have been happier. 😀

My Svalbard adventure didn’t end there though, because I went on a dog sledding trip the next day. Standing at the back of the sled, driving through polar night under a canvas of stars felt a bit surreal, but wonderful. Especially when the northern lights showed up I realized once again just how lucky I am. <3

The following day my time in Svalbard ended and I was homeward bound or at least that was the plan. Things didn’t go accordingly though, but that’s another story for another blog. 😉

Árstíðir pictures

Bo Kaspers Orkester pictures