Bio
NAVIGATORS – SECOND NATURE (2011)
"The art of making a good rock record is to be direct". These words belong to the singer and songwriter in Navigators, Trond Andreassen, and no-one can accuse him of not living up to his words. The Fredrikstad band landed like a comet on the Norwegian rock music scene just before the end of 2009 with their hit single "Wall of Stone", a song that went straight to the top of the Norwegian charts. Their debut album also became a qualified success and there was no doubt that Navigators were the biggest positive surprise in the rock year of 2010. Now the band is ready for their follow-up album, "Second Nature". It comes directly.
So what does a hardworking band do after having tasted the sweet smell of success? Well, of course they gather at their rehearsal space to hone and meticulously work out arrangements for a new set of songs signed by Trond Andreassen! Just one year after their debut album triumphed in the charts, Navigators are releasing a follow-up. "Second Nature" is the sound of an even more co-ordinated band who really wants to rock – and who does that. They've collaborated more on the arrangements and instrumentation this time, and the songs have been allowed to grow organically and, in many ways, find their own form. It was a well-prepared band who re-entered Athletic Sound in Fredrikstad's neighbouring town Halden.
Along with producer Per Borten (Moving Oos, The New Violators, Cadillac) and co-producer Sven Olsen, "Second Nature" was recorded in just over a week - something which may sound unthinkable in 2011, but which was surprisingly easy for a red-hot and co-ordinated band like Navigators. Producer Borten has also contributed a liveliness to the project and made the sound bigger and more massive, without losing or overlooking the important small details. In addition, the legendary horns from Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes contribute to several tracks, as they've done previously for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The expression Second Nature means "habit or tendency so well-developed and long-practiced that it seems to be done unconciously", and that seems appropriate, as Navigators really have become a full-blooded rock orchestra with an intuitive sense of rock's past and present. And on "Second Nature" they deliver eleven very strong songs as evidence.
Anchored in classic rock, the band has never hidden their fascination for artists like Bruce Springsteen, Rocky Erickson, Del Shannon, Frankie Valli, Lee Hazlewood and The Kinks. Their name Navigators is drawn from a Bob Dylan quote about the legend Johnny Cash, and you can't avoid hearing Andreassen's garage rock roots, along with elements from psychedelic pop, 60's soul and the chanson tradition in the style of Jaques Brel. In other words, timeless rock music popular in both 2040 and 1980.
Lyrically, "Second Nature" is a continuation of the debut album which again was related to the eternal blues tradition - a universal language that's as customary in Fredrikstad as it is in Memphis, Tennessee. Again, the lyrics are co-written by Christian Bloom, and titles like "Troubled Heart", "Swing Low", "Until I'm Drunk Again" and "Out of The Blue" tend towards the blue side of the colour spectrum. From self-reproach to arrogance, from hope to ruin, from ragged love to desire – to a place where hope is thin and glasses are half-empty. Constantly. Navigators convey through their text and music life itself in a direct and barefaced way, and with top marks.
Navigators played their first concert in the late summer of 2009, after only a few rehearsals among the cranes and rusty hulks of the old shipyard in Fredrikstad. The venue was the town's fabled watering hole, "Siste reis", which on this night was so packed that half of the crowd had to watch the concert from the quay on the outside. Trond Andreassen had returned to his hometown after several years in Oslo as singer in the garage rock group Ricochets. With a bag full of songs intended for a future solo project, Navigators turned into a band when several local musicians became attached to his project. Sven Poppe (keyboards), Magnus Abelsen (guitar/vocals), Christoffer Schou (guitar), Espen Holtan (bass) and Johan Edvardson (drums) today forms the solid foundation behind Andreassen's direct singing style – a voice that often has been described as the country's strongest rock vocals.
At the end of 2009, the song "Wall of Stone" was played a lot on Norwegian radio stations and went straight into the Top 10 after its release. Produced by Turboneger wizard Knut Schreiner, and with an unmistakable piano riff, the song's strong soul and identity hit the zeitgeist perfectly. Later, it went to number one on the sales chart and the iTunes chart, and it was put on NRK P3's playlist. It may have been surprising that the Fredrikstad crew had played themselves straight into the premier league of Norwegian rock. Without play-offs!
Along with co-producer Sven Olsen, they had recorded their debut album, "The Straight and Narrow", in Athletic Sound. It showed the power of Navigators' rock music. Founded in solid songwriting and soulful presentation, the album received great reviews and went to number two on Norway's official chart. It was followed by 60 gigs all over the country, including Hovefestivalen, Øyafestivalen and Månefestivalen.
The single "Gone Away" preceded the album, which will be released in early September. Once more, Navigators are ready to conquer Norwegian rock fans, and again they will tour all around the country after the album's release. With a rocking and direct record under their belts, the group takes its sound to another level and does what no other does better than them: They navigate all the way home.
