Hard to believe a year has just about passed since this album of perfection came out but it still never gets old, its still holds up and is giving a-ha 3 of the best albums of the decade so far. So with a year passed i thought i would review the cd track by track and give some more info on whats in the future with a-ha.

First its very important to get the lineup, because many people dont realize their names

Morten Harket-Vocals
Magne Furuholmen-Piano,Guitar,Bass,Vocals,Keyboards
Pal Waaktaar Savoy-Guitar,Vocals,Bass,all strings


With that said its important to note that a-ha are not the 80's new wave band that people consider them to be, in fact Keyboards have been pretty much gone from their albums since 1988. Also the songwriting duties have become more divided between all three more than ever, at one point Paul was writing 75% of the material, over the last 3 records the Songwriting has become a 40% Paul 40% Magne and 20% Morten, this shift has led many to believe that there are major conflicts in the band and true they dont always see eye to eye and are very different as far as musical taste, but thats what seperates good bands from Great and since 1988 a-ha have gone from good to great approaching best.

Now the tracks

Celice- the albums first single, reaching top 5 in germany and norway, not released in the uk as a single. The song at one time was rumoured to be a part of the film "davinci Code" but a-ha didnt feel confident about the film when screened. The song is very dark, guitar driven, the video was banned in Norway and many markets since it showed the inside of a whore house basically. All in all this song was a great kick off and was the opener at live shows

Dont do me any Favours- mixed messages about this track, some say its a snub at their former label WB, some say its a shot at "Take on Me" due to the upbeat tempo of the song, great guitar riffs at the close of this song show an anger in a-Ha that wasnt shown before, many compared this track to something could have been on Ok Computer.

Cosy Prisons- From day one i knew this song kicked ass, background vocals from Graham Nash. I heard this song Live in NYC at a-ha's only USA show, and the place went nuts for it. Once again a dark mood, but a really interesting piano-keyboard mix in the middle, song was written by piano/keys player Magne, also was the third single released from the cd, second single in the UK, very chilling video too.

Analogue- the title track, written by Paul was the first single in the UK, and it reached the top 10 there which was there first in the UK since 1988. Just a perfect pop/rock number, strong chorus, almost written to be a hit. Also reached top 5 and number 1 in other markets like germany and norway.

Birthright- to me this has become my favorite track, supposed to be the fourth single was never released though. a-ha also did not often perform this song on tour, doing it mainly at special acoustic shows, which allowed it to grow even more. Written once again by Magne, this was written mainly from his writers block, strong Piano based track, sweeping strings at the end clearly put it up there as one of their best.

HolyGround-Written by Morten, a very spiritual song, almost could have been a solo track by him if not for the three part harmonies near the end. Once again Magne on Piano very strong.

Over the treetops- Very Crosby stills and Nash like track, which is why Graham once again is in the background, very acoustic, Beatle like also, yet more proof on jus how far a-ha can stretch

Halfway through the Tour- A very odd number, starts once again as an upbeat Beatle like, harmonizing, and ends with a 3+ minute spacy instrumental, very sgt pepper like, as the track slows itself down to the end.

Fine Blue Line- Yet another masterpiece from a-ha and also Magne with his writing. Heartfelt lyrics, great vocals as always. The instrumentation is flawless, a-ha has shown how to craft perfect songs.

Keeper of the Flame- a very nostalgic number about the hey days of RockN Roll, and just their youth, references to Bob Dylan and Vinyl Days and how its all gone now, amazing track live too.

Make it Soon- Written by Morten, a very simple song at the get go, but then a trashing of guitart solos that i wish radiohead could do again. This track showed me how much Queen influenced Morten in his writing.

White Dwarf- Very strange song written by Paul, some say its about drugs, some say aliens, but Paul says he has no clue. And thats what makes it great, i dont wanna know why he wrote the song, it ruins it when artists tell me what they do things for, leave the mystery.

Summers Of Our Youth- Perfect ending to a perfect record, with a strange twist. Magne now on Lead vocals this time, a very underrated simple, yet chilling voice. This song is all about growing older obviously and rewinding our past like Movies in our minds, Morten does do the choruses, and Magne the verses, perfect.


Overall yet another step to a perfect record is what the band say, i say they have now done 3 straight perfect records, but if you know a-ha they are very critical of themselves and very proud of what they do, and a-ha as a band. I recently found out that one of the reasons they played here in NYC last september was to showcase to industry people what they could do, and i was told that many were interested but a-ha felt they couldnt deliver what the USA and the labels want from them, which is strong week 1 numbers, a nostalgic take of a comeback in america, a source said one label suggested to doing another cartoon video, so a-ha turned down the usa at this time, until they can do it their own way. Well a-ha right now is on tour in Russia and will wrap it up in a few days and then get working on their 10th Record, there is a chance of a Usa tour once again, but it all depends on the politics, a-ha are a very ego driven band and trust me they will not do a Take on Me 2007 to have a hit in the Usa.





[Edited 11/7/06 20:36pm]

Great fucken record from start to finish good call

Great album

Fine piece of work.