'Dazed and Confused' Magazine June 1999

Trained killers, Audrey Hepburn look-alikes; Scandinavian Grammy Winners, Velvet Belly has a sound as exquisitely foreboding as the shark as the shark after which they're named.

It's strange how fame is divided by borderlines of countries. Bush,for example are a British band known here only for being big in the States. Johnny Halliday's easy listening savoir faire has never quite managed to swim the English Channel. And Ruby Wax us just another gauche loudmouth in her native land of stars and stripes.

Occasionally however, the hording of artistic treasures means other miss out on something really special. take Velvet Belly. an, experimental Norwegian pop band who craft exquisitely layered melodies that sound like glaciers melting in the sun.

No doubt, you've never heard of them. But last year the quintet claimed the Norwegian Grammy for the sophisticated sounds of Lucia. Not their second, or third, but their fifth album, Velvet Belly's native fans have patiently watched the band as they've flowered from Indie wannabes into fully bloomed rock stars over a period of some ten years.

But Britain is finally to get a taste of Velvet Belly's sonic elixir. To this end, their first single "Easy", iced with Boilerhouse Boys remixes, is a slice of magical melodia that lifts you up and transports you into the fjords and snowy plains of Scandinavia. And then there is the not so small matter of the band's soulful singer Anne-Marie and her generous charms. With her huge china doll eyes, Audrey Hepburn cheekbones and cheery-red lips, she's an international pin-up waiting to happen.

Her soft sensuality is reflected in the band's name, which comes from a deep water shark with a train as unusual as their music. The soft surface of the Velvet Belly's tummy shines like the Northern Lights during courtship, luring potential mates through the ocean depths.

Velvet Belly's is an unconventional lifestyle. By night, the strapping blonde Tor Henning Sundgot is an accomplished guitarist in the ethereal, folk tradition. By day. he's a captain in the Norwegian Army, forced to dress up in olive-green uniforms, responsible for drilling Norway's National Guard. The others teasingly refer to him as "Captain Rock". "He's a trained killer" concurs Anne Marie.

Meanwhile Kay RR, the laid-back chain smoking drummer designs pipes for the oil industry, and is married with children. While shy, pony-tailed bassist Paul Anderson used to work as a lab technician "analysing sand" for use in glass and porcelain - in his own words, "Boring, huh?" - these days he takes care of a 27-year old poet paralysed from the chest down in a diving accident. "I saw this guys add in the paper and it seemed really interesting." What about his poems? "I don't understand them! But the chemistry between us is very good. He likes Velvet Belly..."

"IN NORTHERN NORWAY THERE ARE MONTHS WHEN YOU DON'T GET TO SEE THE SUN, IT GIVES PEOPLE STRONG FEELINGS" - ANNE MARIE

The other strange thing about Velvet Belly is their lack of concern for the fact that they live so far apart from one another. Paul and Kay live in Kristiansand, the cut of southern coastal town in Norway's bible belt that is a mere 350km from Oslo, where the others live. "At least the rhythm section are in one town, " says Paul wryly. "Lately we've been meeting up a lot so that's quite nice," he says," But we've been working in intensive periods throughout the years. There's been a lot of cars, planes, trains... you name it."

Velvet Belly's courageous bridging of gaping distances seems to be instilled by the vast. imposing Scandinavian landscape, where a pint from a local corner shop can mean a four hour drive. "Norway is a very big country," agrees Anne-Marie. "It's three times the size of Holland with three times less people. So there's a lot of nature and more a feeling of being lost. You can walk for weeks alone and meet no one. It's wild and there are huge mountains."

Matching the isolated wastelands's atmosphere is a darkness that creeps across into much Scandinavian music, whether it's Gus Gus or Bjork or Stina Nordenstam or even The Cardigans. Perhaps more than any of their icy cousins, Velvet Belly convey the faint gloomy nature of the lonely hunting, fishing, skiing life. There's a menacing undercurrent and innovative edge that hallmarks their anti-pop sensibility. "It's true, the music is more melancholic. You see it in film also, for example, with directors like Bergman," Anne Marie says in her serious, quiet voice. " It must be something to do with the very long, very dark winters. In northern Norway, there are months when you don't even see the sun. It gives people strong feelings. On one side there is isolation and loneliness and wilderness. But it's also what makes them strong, because they have to be able to cope with that."

However far the physical distances, one can't help feeling that Velvet Belly are too much of a tight unit to ever feel alone. Seated together in a West London restaurant they resemble a sort of caring Norwegian Family Robinson, in their own little universe.

After a decade together, the line-up remains largely unchanged aside from their recent addition of Vidar. Though Anne Marie writes most of the lyrics, the final product is a concerted team effort. "There is a common passion, and we have been presenting new music to each other in a creative way and educating each other," says Tor.

Certainly, their individual reference points are impeccable pedigrees. Between them, they notch up Nick Drake, Johnny Mar, Brian Eno, King Crimson, Kate Bush, Captain Beefheart and, of course, mighty krautrockers Can whose sonic influences can be detected on tracks like "Drift". Their favourite albums this decade are Jeff Buckley's Grace and Talk Talk's Spirit of Eden.

Indeed Velvet Belly only seem truly relaxed when discussing music, either their own or other peoples. It's practically their lifeline. Tor worries that he has said too much about the army and not enough about the songs. When asked in Anne Marie has a boyfriend, she visibly shrinks away, saying, "I'd rather not talk about that. Our mission in society is being their for people with our music."

And you can be sure the music has passed some rigorous self-testing mechanisms to pass Velvet Belly's high quality control. "If someone is doing something wrong you can be pretty sure you're going to hear about it," says Tor. "We're a very critical band. We have very high standards."