Raga Rockers
Raga Rockers is a Norwegian rock band from Oslo with Michael Krohn on vocals. The band was formed in 1982 by front man Michael Krohn. The other original members were Livio Aiello on bass, Bruno Hovden on guitar, Jan Arne Kristiansen on drums, Hugo Alvarstein on keyboards. They recorded their first album in 1983, called The Return of the Raga Rockers. One year later they recorded their second album, Maskiner i Nirvana. Tore Berg on guitar in 1984 and Nils Aune on guitar and keyboards in 1988. The band has made various changes in its line-up with more recent joiners including Hugo Alvarstein, Eivind Staxrud and Hågen Rørmark.
Raga Rockers | |
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Origin | Oslo, Norway |
Genres | Rock and roll, New wave, rock, Suomi rock, raga rock, Post-punk |
Years active | 1982–present |
Labels | Virgin |
Website | http://www.ragarockers.no |
Members | Michael Krohn (since 1982) Livio Aiello (since 1982) Jan Arne Kristiansen (since 1982) Eivind Staxrud (since 2009) Hågen Rørmark (since 2010) |
Past members | Bruno Hovden (deceased 1985) Nils Aune (1988–1989, 1998–2009) Tore Berg (1984–2000) Hugo Alvarstein(1995-2010) |
After a long hiatus from 2000 onwards, the band had a big comeback in 2007 with their album Übermensch that topped the VG-lista, a Norwegian albums chart and the single "Aldri mer" taken from the album making it to number five in the Norwegian singles chart. The follow-up album Shit Happens also made it to number on the VG-lista chart.
Members
- Original line-up
- Michael Krohn - vocals (1982–present)
- Livio Aiello - bass (1982–present)
- Jan Arne Kristiansen - drums and percussion (1982–present)
- Arne Sæther - keyboards (1982–present)
- Bruno Hovden – guitar (1982–1985)
- Changes
Tore Berg, a guitarist and keyboards player joined in 1984, just two years after the formation of the band and stayed until 2000.
Bruno Hovden played on the debut album The Return of the Raga Rockers and the follow-up Maskiner i Nirvana. He died shortly after being critically injured in a car accident in January 1985.
Guitarist Nils Aune joined in 1988–1989 credited on the albums Forbudte følelser (1988) and Blaff (1989) before leaving for a full decade and returning in 1998 to stay until 2009.
Relatively newer members who are presently members still members include Hugo Alvarstein on guitar, keyboards who joined in 1995, guitarist Eivind Staxsrud who joined in 2009 and guitarist Hågen Rørmark who joined in 2010.
Covers
Norwegian Black Metal group Vreid recorded a Raga Rockers cover ("Noen Å Hate"), and in January 2010 released it as part of a three song digital single.
Discography
Albums
- Studio albums
Year | Album | Peak positions |
---|---|---|
NOR [1] | ||
1983 | The Return Of The Raga Rockers | |
1984 | Maskiner i Nirvana | |
1987 | Varme dager | |
1988 | Forbudte følelser | 17 |
1989 | Blaff | 7 |
1990 | Rock'n Roll Party | 7 |
1995 | Perler for svin | 5 |
1997 | Til Helvete med Raga Rockers | 11 |
2000 | Raga Rockers | – |
2007 | Übermensch | 1 |
2010 | Shit Happens | 2 |
2010 | Faktor X | 34 |
- Live albums
Year | Album | Peak positions |
---|---|---|
NOR [1] | ||
1990 | Raga Live | 12 |
1995 | Alive again | 38 |
1995 | Fritt liv | 14 |
2016 | Rockefeller 20.06.14 | 20 [2] |
- Compilations
Year | Album | Peak positions |
---|---|---|
NOR [1] | ||
1993 | The Beginning of The Raga Rockers | – |
2005 | Ragas beste 1983–2000/live roskilde 1999 | 2 |
References
- "Raga Rockers discography". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- http://lista.vg.no/liste/topp-40-album/2