Sweetheart is a trio originating from small towns around the Norwegian capitol Oslo, playing a quiet and acoustic form of Americana, you might call it Norwegicana, with grand piano, pedal steel and acoustic guitar.
Sweetheart originally originated as an alternative country band in 2003 and played over 50 concerts in two years, among them two opening acts for Jesse Sykes and Phil Wandscher from Whiskeytown. Sweetheart received radio play on national radio – NRK P1 and P3 – with self-produced CDR-releases, and they also played a mini concert live on NRK P3. Sweetheart was predicted a promising future by renowned industry profiles such as Tom Skjeklesæther and Claes Olsen, but the band suddenly broke up a winter evening in 2005. After a break that lasted 13 years, Sweetheart emerged as a quieter trio and released their debut single «World War 3» in December 2018. After the comeback, Sweetheart has played several clubs and festivals in Norway and played support for the acclaimed Canadian singer-songwriter Jerry Leger. This autumn, August 6th, Sweetheart will be playing at a club on one of the largest music festivals in Norway, Øya Festival, which annually has over 80 000 visitors.
I was immediately taken by the gentle strumming and autumnal melancholy in the love song “The Color I’m Saving For You.” I guess I just can’t resist that chord sequence. In our interview, the band breaks down their approach to their sound, and how you can be melancholy without being depressed.
Does your album have an overarching theme?
Well, I think in all our songs there’s a melancholy, and feeling of someone who’s not there. An absence. Something missing. There is also a car in almost all of our new songs. God knows why, I’m not interested in cars, can’t fix anything on them, I’m a really mediocre drive, and our car is an ugly station wagon with dents and used napkins on the floor. Perhaps a car is in the songs to add a sense of traveling, leaving, going somewhere.
Explain the title of your album.
I was playing guitar and started thinking of a memory. I remembered a vacation with my wife. We traveled to the U.S. and were driving this oversized rental car that we named Doug through the redwoods in California, and we had a really nice time. I wrote about that, and started to rummage my mind for any other memories, and I wrote down them to. So the lyrics for that song is just a collection of memories, for situations I remembered about my dear. So there was the title: “I Remember Us, My Dear.”
Have you ever been given something remarkable by a fan?
I can’t remember if we have ever been given anything. But recently a fan came up to me, she liked the melancholy and the sadness in our songs and said: “I hope you stay depressed for a long time.” And I’m not even depressed! So, it was a sort of gift in words.
Name a perfect song and tell us why you feel that way.
I was at an after party in a hotel room and we started naming the songs we would like to be played in our own funerals. What a sad thing to do, but it was a fun night. For me, it has to be “I’m Not Going Anywhere” by David Ramirez. I love that song, the mood, and the lyrics, and his dark voice. He has also said that that song is a middle finger to death, so it kind of suits the situation. So…that’s what I would like to say in my own funeral, I’m not going anywhere.
Do you start off with the music or lyrics first? Why?
I always start writing a song when I’m playing my guitar. A melody or some chords catches my attention, and then I just start singing whatever comes to mind. Usually, those first lyrics are just silly, not even real words, but I keep singing them until the melody sticks. Sometimes I keep some of the words. After that, I can sit down and just write lyrics, but I always have to go back to the guitar to check if it sounds good. And sometimes I can remember those first silly words for a year or two, before I finish the song.