Top » Bands and Artists » R » Rueslåtten, Kari » Biographies
Biography: Kari
From her humble beginnings as a recording artist as vocalist in Norwegian rock act "The 3rd And The Mortal" (with whom she released two albums in 1994), through a moderately successful career as a solo artist in Norway in the late nineties, Kari Rueslåtten (Kari as she is more commonly known) has matured and developed a song-writing and singing style that is unique. Critically acclaimed at home in Norway for each of her releases, Kari has at last reached a point of her musical journey when her music can be heard throughout the world.
Kari explains more:
I released two albums with Sony - Norway, Spindelsinn in 1997 and Mesmerised in 1998. In 1997 I was nominated in the category of best vocal-artists at the Norwegian Grammy Awards, and in 1998 I was nominated best female artist of the year at the Norwegian Hit-Awards. Then I decided it was time to claim more independence.
Tired of explaining to music-programmers and engineers what I wanted my music to sound like, it was time for me to learn the skills myself. I headed for London, leaving with nothing but my electric piano. I set up my own studio, and started the recordings for my new album Pilot. I wanted to create a dogma-style record. I made strict rules for how I wanted the arrangements to be. Always keeping the focus on the melody, and making quite minimalistic arrangements, never making use of any loops and ready-made beats. I have tried to create little melancholic and aetheric universes in which the song can live.
I have always found inspiration in the Norwegian Nature and for the finishing process of the album I decided to go back home. Being amongst my family and friends - it felt like a perfect place to finish off the making of Pilot."
In the past Kari has cited influential female vocalists such as Tori Amos and Enya as reference points for her musical style, but with the release of her album "Pilot" in May 2002 she has perfected a sound of her own. In an age of manufactured music for the masses Kari has trodden her own path. Certainly an album for the 21st century, "Pilot contains 12 distinctively superb self composed tracks.