Bj\u00f8rn Nes might just be Norway’s most obscure guitar hero and composer. His new record “Abacus” is roughly 55 intense, calm, strange, confusing, recognisable, fast, and slow minutes of music. It\u2019s quirky, melodic, bluesy, arranged with total abandon, and guitar-driven for the most part: a musical cocktail of 70s power pop, blues rock prog, and baroque colored contemporary classical music.\u00a0It\u2019s a record that doesn\u2019t strive to be defined but rather strives to reflect creative diversity, improvisation, and experimentation: from the fragile piano and linear story in \u201cHotel Royale\u201d to the allegorical and rough \u201cIf I Die In a Combat Zone (…)\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bj\u00f8rn is a fan of what he calls progressive melodies and arrangements that take the listener by surprise. His music is melodic at heart, sore, but rough around the edges: as one would expect from someone with a background in rock music. American record producer Beau Hill (Ratt, Winger, Alice Cooper etc) who previously worked with Bj\u00f8rn on a different project stated that he had \u201cexcellent material, an unusual focus on arrangement details, and progressive melodic hooks (…),\u201d and that about sums Bj\u00f8rn up.
Bj\u00f8rn has written and produced Abacus himself on a minimal budget. But with a little help from both new and old friends. The record is mastered by Don Bartley, possibly Australia\u2019s most prolific mastering engineer (Metallica, Nick Cave, INXS, ABBA and Beatles re-issues etc), and printed by Diger Distro in Oslo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n