Bergen Arbeiderblad, Tuesday 22 April 22. 1986
| Translated by Dag Sirnes: 19-year-old for a soon breakthrough Very rarely do we get the opportunity to observe top artists nationally and internationally before they have made their breakthroughs. It is all the more exclusive and exciting when the opportunity arises, and the artist leaves no doubt that what the audience is experiencing now is a small event - worth remembering when the name has become big. We are talking about the 19-year-old Hamar girl Silje Nergaard, who visited Bergen this weekend. She is a vocalist / songwriter / leader / keyboardist in the group '' Mellow Yellow ''. Previously it was called Silje Nergaard Band, but the girl does not want to emphasize her name. The music is difficult to identify, but the closest we come is to use the term jazz rock - a label that the young musical talent strongly dislikes. Music circles both in Oslo and in Bergen have long caught the eye of the extremely talented girl. She was "discovered" at the jazz festival in Molde two years ago. She ran as a candidate in the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix last year - a great failure / success, depending on how you assess it. She did not fall in the jury's liking. Her versions of "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child", "The Girl from Ibanema", "Your Song" give these classics new life. The undertone of her voice seems strong and genuine - we are tempted to give her the stamp "orphaned child" "because of the hurt, insulted, sore and beautiful in her voice. That she does not lose this "undertone" when she moves into faster and more winding songs, shows that she is a great artist. In several cases, she turns typical "masculine" rock songs into at least as good "feminine" varieties. In other words, the fulsome praise does not end when it comes to Silje Nergaard. Stressed record label bosses will eventually bite their tongues for not clawing at her in time. The praise ends when it comes to the performance at "Hulen" on Saturday. Silje can advantageously "tighten" on stage. As it is now, it seems a bit unplanned and uneasy - okay for dongery and hot dog, sort of. Even the smartest sound people can not make Grieg Hall out of the venerable bomb protection room. Despite a marketing almost equal to zero, the venue was full, which means that the front ones have their ears blown off, while the backs stretch their toes to see, if not hear the vocalist. But that's how it should be in this place with the unique guest list - where soon only Aha and the Beatles are missing. A review like this must be unfair to the other musicians in the band. To have mentioned it: "Mellow Yellow" is a group of young quality musicians who have no reason to be ashamed of themselves. We look forward to a new meeting with "Mellow Yellow" at Exodus in the Grand Prix week. Maybe a foreigner comes and snatches this talent from us? Harald Vikøyr |