Arve studied at University of Trondheim, Department of Music, and has since 1989 worked as a freelance musician. He has worked with a wide selection of musicians, like Jon Balke, Anders Jormin, Edward Vesala, Jon Christensen, Marilyn Mazur, Marilyn Crispell, Nils Petter Molvær, Misha Alperin, Arkady Shilkloper, Marc Ducret, Ketil Bjørnstad, David Sylvian, Steve Jansen and Tore Brunborg.
DISCOGRAPHY
Chron, Rune Grammofon 2012
Cartography, ECM 2008
Strjon, Rune Grammofon 2007
Chiaroscuro, Rune Grammofon 2004
Sakuteiki, Rune Grammofon 2001
with Supersilent
"8" Rune Grammofon 2007
"7" [live DVD] Rune Grammofon 2005
"6" Rune Grammofon 2003
"5" Rune Grammofon 2001
"4" Rune Grammofon 1998
"1-3" Rune Grammofon 1997
with Veslefrekk
"Valse Mysterioso" NORCD 2004
"Veslefrekk" NORCD 1994
with Christian Wallumrød Ensemble
"A Year From Easter" ECM 2005
"Sofienberg Variations" ECM 2003
"No Birch" ECM 1998
with Trygve Seim Ensemble
"Sangam" ECM 2004
"Different Rivers" ECM 2000
with Food
"Last Supper" Rune Grammofon 2004
"Veggie" Rune Grammofon 2002
"Organic And GM Food" Feral 2001
"Food" Feral 1999
with Jon Balke Magnetic North Orchestra
"Kyanos" ECM 2002
"Solarized" Sonet/Emercy 1999
with Audun Kleive Generator X
"Ohmagoddabl" Jazzland 2004
"Generator X" Jazzland 2000
with Nine Horses
Snow Borne Sorrow Samadhi Sound 2005
and has numerous appearances on many other recordings.
Thermal
Arve Henriksen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Your small body clinging tightly to mine
With frightening dependency
Life defining, impossible to betray
And with that...
The mattress rose
Set adrift on the burgeoning emotional tide
Of an uninhabited life
What had been concealed
Was exhaled from god knows where
Colour-drained, unsalvageable
Shape shifting
And, with function relinquished
Resigned from service
Two blue sleeping bags
Nudged against one another
Bearing the once warm imprint of our bodies
The sun-baked stone garden
Retracted its promise
It was cold in that place of perpetual summer
If you were afraid you didn′t show it
You who were born bearing the face
Of irrepressible grief
So as not to disappoint you
I lay motionless
Rapt by the rise and stall of your breathing
Your fingertips and thighs
Quietly affirming my place at your side.
The lyrics of Arve Henriksen's song Thermal depict the intimacy and emotional bond between two individuals, specifically a parent and their child. The song begins by illustrating a moment in time where the child is asleep, clinging tightly to the parent's small body, and the parent meditates on the significance of their relationship. The child is described as having a "frightening dependency" that is "life-defining" and "impossible to betray." This reveals the gravity and responsibility that comes along with raising another human being.
The second verse takes a sudden shift in tone as it becomes clear that this moment is fleeting and will soon disappear. The mattress rises and the objects that were once stationary are now colliding with the increasing emotional tide. The objects in the room can signify the outside world that is ready to take over the parent-child relationship, and the parent is hesitant to let go of it. What was once concealed is now exhaled, color-drained, and unsalvageable, as the parent realizes that life will never be the same. The sleeping bags that were once warm with the imprints of their bodies illustrate how they have now become empty with the absence of life and warmth.
The third verse reveals the external world as a sun-baked stone garden that has retracted its promise, emphasizing the change that is happening not only on the inside but also outside. The parent acknowledges the child's "irrepressible grief" but chooses to lay motionless as not to disappoint them, reveling in the seemingly mundane yet profound moment of their breathing, fingertips, and thighs, affirming their role as the child's caregiver and protector.
Overall, Thermal is a deeply poignant and introspective song that captures the fleeting yet profound moments of parental love and the emotional weight that comes with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Morning, you lay sleeping
The singer is addressing someone who is sleeping beside them in the morning.
Your small body clinging tightly to mine
The person sleeping beside the singer is holding onto them tightly.
With frightening dependency
The singer finds the level of dependency of the person sleeping beside them scary.
Life defining, impossible to betray
Despite the dependency, the artist feels that they cannot betray the person sleeping beside them as it is a defining part of their life.
And with that...
The mattress rose
Set adrift on the burgeoning emotional tide
Colliding with the once stationary objects
Of an uninhabited life
The artist's emotions start to rise, causing everything in their life to seem different and collide like the mattress rising and colliding with previously stationary objects in the room.
What had been concealed
Was exhaled from god knows where
Colour-drained, unsalvageable
Shape shifting
And, with function relinquished
Resigned from service
Something that had been hidden is coming to light and it is irreversible and impossible to regain its original color or function.
Two blue sleeping bags
Nudged against one another
Bearing the once warm imprint of our bodies
There are two blue sleeping bags lying next to each other with imprints of the singers' bodies still visible from the warmth.
The sun-baked stone garden
Retracted its promise
It was cold in that place of perpetual summer
The artist is in a place that is always sunny and warm but it feels cold because of the situation they are in.
If you were afraid you didn′t show it
You who were born bearing the face
Of irrepressible grief
The person sleeping beside the artist looks like they are always in pain and even if they are scared, they don't show it.
So as not to disappoint you
I lay motionless
Rapt by the rise and stall of your breathing
Your fingertips and thighs
Quietly affirming my place at your side.
The artist lies still so as not to disappoint the person sleeping beside them and is reassured by their presence through the rise and fall of their breaths and the touch of their body parts against their own.
Writer(s): David Sylvian, Eivind Aarset, Jan Bang, Arve Henriksen, Audun Kleive
Contributed by Mackenzie R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@dancing_on_the_valentine_83
How I love David's voice... Since 1977 until now...
@tulrob
I totally dig this group... Its interesting how they can still improvise over the sampling.. really talented players... really touching music
@DavidMarshall32
Superb music from a superb album. Also contains Sorrow and its opposites track - my personal favorite. Amazing live. When is Arve Henriksen going to release another CD like this?
@ondaride777
i have chills!
@anahg17
me gusta mucho verle reir..
@blackmore4
The "burgeoning emotional tide"! Hahaha