Röyksopp

Röyksopp (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈrœ̂ʏksɔp]) are a Norwegian electronic music duo from Tromsø formed in 1998. The duo consists of childhood friends Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland who formed Röyksopp during the Bergen Wave. After experimenting with different genres of electronic music, the band solidified their place in the electronica scene with their 2001 debut album, Melody A.M., released on the Wall of Sound record label.

Röyksopp has consistently experimented with various genres pertaining to electronic music. Stylistically, the band makes use of various genres, including ambient, house music and synth-pop. The band is also known for its elaborate concert performances, which often feature eccentric outfits.

Since their 1998 debut, the duo has gained critical acclaim and popular success around the world. To date, Röyksopp has been nominated for two Grammy Awards, won seven Spellemannprisen awards, performed worldwide tours, and produced albums that have topped the charts in several countries, including four consecutive number-one albums in their native country.

Røyksopp literally means "smoke mushroom". It is the Norwegian word for the class of mushrooms known as puffball. The band's name replaces the second letter (ø) with ö, which is non-existent in the Norwegian alphabet but corresponds to the same sound in the Swedish alphabet.

Berge and Brundtland were introduced to each other through a mutual friend in Tromsø, Norway, when Berge was 12 years old and Brundtland was 13. They enjoyed the same films and music, and shared an interest in electronics. The two began playing music together due to a shared interest in electronica, experimented with various forms of electronic music. They bought a drum machine together part of the Tromsø techno scene of the early 1990s. Their childhood in Tromsø and the natural scenery of Northern Norway have often been mentioned as some of their most important inspirations. The pair separated before obtaining any popular success with their music, but reunited with each other in 1998 in Bergen, Norway.

Bergen, a city of 212,944 people in 1990, had overtaken Tromsø's position as the most vital scene for underground electronic music in Norway, and Röyksopp worked with other Norwegian musicians like Frost, Those Norwegians, Drum Island, and Kings of Convenience's guitarist and singer Erlend Øye in what was called the Bergen Wave. During this time, the duo befriended Geir Jenssen. Under the tutelage of Jenssen, the duo started a band called Aedena Cycle with Gaute Barlindhaug and Kolbjørn Lyslo. In 1994 Aedena Cycle recorded a vinyl EP called Traveler's Dreams. The EP was released under the R&S Records sublabel Apollo. Following the release of the EP, Jenssen almost convinced the band to sign a full record deal with Apollo Records.

After recording as part of Aedena Cycle, Berge and Brundtland left the group to form their own band, Röyksopp. The word röyksopp is a stylized version of the Norwegian word for the puffball mushroom, "røyksopp". The band has stated that the word could also evoke the mushroom cloud resulting from an atomic blast.

Röyksopp's debut single was released by local Bergen Wave-era independent label Tellé. Röyksopp's first single "So Easy", which was later re-released on their first album, was the second record released by Tellé. After being used in a UK T-Mobile advertisement, "So Easy" became popular in the UK market and was later re-released, combined with their later single "Remind Me".

After leaving Tellé, the band signed with British label Wall of Sound and released Melody A.M., which became certified platinum in the band's native Norway and sold over a million copies worldwide. The album peaked at number one in Norway, and produced the UK Top 40 singles "Eple", "Poor Leno", and "Remind Me". A final single, "Sparks", was also released. Eple (IPA: [ˈɛ̀plə]) – meaning "apple" in Norwegian – was licensed by Apple Inc. for use as the welcome music to the company's Mac OS X Panther operating system, playing the first time a user booted a new Apple-brand computer.

The band's popularity was boosted by several graphically experimental music videos, many of which were put into heavy rotation by MTV. The music video for "Remind Me", featuring an infographic-style video by French company H5, won the 2002 MTV Europe Music Award for best music video. In this same event the duo was nominated in three more categories: "Best Nordic Act", "Best New Artist" and "Best Dance Act". The duo performed the song "Poor Leno" at the event. One year later they received a nomination for "Best Group" at the Brit Awards.

During this period Röyksopp slowly gained popularity in the United States. "Remind Me", one of the two Röyksopp and Erlend Øye collaborations found on Melody A.M., was featured in a Geico car insurance commercial, the fourth of the "It's so easy a caveman could do it" ads.

During this time, Röyksopp were approached to compose the soundtrack for The Matrix Reloaded, although they declined the offer.

Röyksopp's second studio album, The Understanding, was released on 12 July 2005, preceded by the single "Only This Moment" on 27 June 2005. The single managed to peak at number 33 in the United Kingdom. The video for "Only This Moment" is closely based on the events of the Paris 1968 riots, and elements of propaganda are found throughout the video clip. The album's second single, "49 Percent", with the vocals of Chelonis R. Jones was released on 26 September 2005. A third single, "What Else Is There?", including vocals from Swedish singer Karin Dreijer of The Knife, became the album's biggest single, peaking at number 32 in the United Kingdom, and at number four in Norway. "Beautiful Day Without You" was the album's fourth single, and a non-album track, "Curves", was also released.

Building upon the success of Melody A.M., The Understanding was very successful in Europe. The album peaked at number one in Norway, and at number 13 in the UK. During this time, Röyksopp's popularity continued to increase in the United States. The album charted on many Billboard charts, and peaked at number two on the Top Electronic Albums chart, number 22 on the Top Heatseekers chart, and number 32 on the Top Independent Albums.

After the release of The Understanding, some of Röyksopp's singles were licensed for movie appearances. "What Else Is There?" was featured during a scene in the 2007 American film Meet Bill and during the end credits of the 2006 British film Cashback, and "Circuit Breaker" was used in the 2007 snowboard film Picture This.

On 19 June 2006, Röyksopp released a nine-track live album called Röyksopp's Night Out. Notably, the album contains a reinterpretation of the song "Go with the Flow", originally by Queens of the Stone Age.

On 5 March 2007, Röyksopp compiled their favourite tracks by other artists for the Back to Mine series. Called Back to Mine: Röyksopp, the album was released in the US on 5 March 2007, and in the UK on 27 April 2007. The album also includes their own track "Meatball", released under the pseudonym "Emmanuel Splice". Svein Berge also contributed as a board member for the celebration of the Grieg year, as Norway celebrated their famous composer Edvard Grieg.

On the tenth anniversary of Röyksopp's formation—15 December 2008—the band released a new track, "Happy Birthday", free of charge to celebrate the event. The song was released via free streaming on the band's website.

Röyksopp's third studio album, Junior, was released on 23 March 2009, featuring the single "Happy Up Here". The song debuted on BBC Radio 1's Pete Tong show on 9 January 2009. It was officially released digitally on 16 March 2009. The music video for "Happy Up Here", made by Reuben Sutherland, features elements from the arcade game Space Invaders. Both the single and the video were met with positive reactions from the press and fans.

"The Girl and the Robot", the second single from the album Junior, featuring vocals from Swedish singer Robyn, was released on 15 June 2009. The vinyl and digital versions of the single included remixes of the song by Kris Menace, Chateau Marmont and Spencer & Hill. At the 52nd Grammy Awards, the Jean Elan remix of "The Girl and the Robot" was nominated for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical. "This Must Be It" is the third single from the album, including vocals from Swedish singer Karin Dreijer of The Knife and Fever Ray. The single also featuring remixes by Thin White Duke, LehtMoJoe, Rex the Dog and Apparat, among others. The band later released the stems for the song "Tricky Tricky" as part of a remix competition and the winning entries were released on 27 October 2009.

Junior was a success around the world. The album peaked at number one in Norway, the band's third consecutive release to do so. Junior also peaked at number 21 on the UK Albums Chart and charted on many Billboard charts, including the Billboard 200–the first Röyksopp release to do so–where it peaked at number 126. The album also peaked at number four on the Top Electronic Albums chart and number two on the Top Heatseekers chart.

Junior was followed by Senior, which is more quiet, "withdrawn and introspective" and "create[s] an atmosphere and an ambiance". Senior is the duo's first album to consist solely of instrumental tracks. The first single from the album, "The Drug", was released on 9 August 2010. The album itself was released on 13 September 2010, and was successful in the band's native Norway, peaking at number one, the band's fourth consecutive release to do so.

In January 2013, Röyksopp released a song called "Running to the Sea", a collaboration with Norwegian artist Susanne Sundfør. According to the band, the song was written and recorded in two days for a televised performance. The single was released on 16 December 2013, with a B-side containing a song called "Something in My Heart", featuring Jamie McDermott from The Irrepressibles. Röyksopp and Sundfør also collaborated in creating a cover version of Depeche Mode's "Ice Machine" for their Late Night Tales compilation album, Late Night Tales: Röyksopp.