He grew up list… Read Full Bio ↴Erlend Øye was born on 21 November, 1975, in Bergen.
He grew up listening to Leonard Cohen, Nick Drake, Suzanne Vega and The Smiths. During high school in the mid-'90s, he and some friends formed the band Skog ("forest" in Norwegian), taking inspiration from A Forest by The Cure. In 1996, he joined the band Peachfuzz as electric guitarist, playing several times in London between 1996 and 1998. In 1998, he moved to London, and then in 1999 to Manchester.
When he was back home in Bergen for vacations he jammed with Eirik Glambek Bøe, his former high-school and Skog mate. The duo formed Kings of Convenience in 1998 and released the debut record, Quiet is the New Loud, in 2001. In the same period, he collaborated with the electronic Norwegian duo Röyksopp, lending his voice for the song Poor Leno and Remind Me on the record Melody A.M.. As a result, he became interested in electronic music. He spent the next years either in Berlin or traveling around the world. He recorded his solo album Unrest in ten different cities with ten different electronic artists. He the toured as a DJ, and released a remix record for the DJ Kicks series in 2004.
In the same year, Kings of Convenience released the second record Riot on an Empty Street. He also founded another project in Berlin, The Whitest Boy Alive. The band originally started as an electronic band, but slowly developed into a band with no programmed elements. Debut record Dreams was released in 2006, while Rules was released in 2009. In 2006, he appeared in the Italian movie Shooting Silvio acting as a DJ during in a house party.
In 2009, Kings of Convenience released Declaration of Dependence. In 2013, he released a new single, entitled La Prima Estate, sung in Italian and inspired by his time living in Italy. He is currently working on more songs in Italian, which will be collected in the future. In 2014, The Whitest Boy Alive announced the end of the project. On 3 October, 2014, he will release his second solo album Legao, recorded in Reykjavík with Hjálmar, a reggae group from Iceland. Despite currently living in Sicily, he is stlll involved in the Bergen music scene, promoting local bands and assisting the organization of the annual Traena Music Festival.
Friends And Lovers
Erlend Øye Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Saying goodbye to each other
Their way
Your way
Gathered in garden and parting in doorways
And it's over
Anyway that's what the papers said.
And I wonder
You were there
You were there
I'd like to ask
Did anybody touch you?
Come and go it went so fast
Did anybody touch you?
Friends and lovers
Turning away from the others
Your way
Their way
Closing their doors and then climbing their
Stairways
And it's over
Anyway that's what the people say and I wonder
Does it really have to be this way
You were there
You were there I'd like to ask
Did anybody touch you.
Come and go it went so fast
Did anybody touch you.
Come and go it went so fast
Did anybody touch you?
Or did you stand alone until the darkness came
Just one more room where everybody knew
Your name.
Friends and lovers
Ever apart from others
Endless hallways
Just say goodbye and it's over for always
And it's over
Didn't you believe me when I said and I wonder
What was going on inside your head
You were there
You were there I'd like to ask
Did anybody touch you?
Come and go it went so fast
Did anybody touch you?
The song "Friends and Lovers" by Erlend Øye is a reflective piece on the fleeting nature of relationships, particularly romantic ones. The song opens with lines referencing the end of a relationship, with the two people involved taking different paths, closing doors, and parting ways. The singer wonders about the thoughts going through the other person's mind during this time of separation.
The chorus of the song involves the singer asking if anyone else was with the person during this time of change, and if they were touched or influenced by others. The lines "Come and go it went so fast" and "Or did you stand alone until the darkness came" suggest that the breakup was quick and unexpected, leaving the person feeling alone and bewildered.
The final verse of the song returns to the theme of separation, with the image of endless hallways representing the emotional distance between the two people. Even though they were once friends and lovers, they are now apart from each other and the goodbye is final. The singer implores the other person to consider their connection, asking again about whether anyone else touched them during this time of separation.
Overall, "Friends and Lovers" presents a melancholy look at the end of a relationship and the loneliness that can accompany it. The singer's gentle voice and the dreamy music create a wistful atmosphere that perfectly matches the song's mood.
Line by Line Meaning
Friends and lovers
Referring to a group of people who are both friends and in romantic relationships.
Saying goodbye to each other
Parting ways and ending their relationships.
Their way
Each person has their own path to follow.
Your way
Acknowledging that the artist and listener have different paths to follow.
Gathered in garden and parting in doorways
Meeting up in certain places and then saying goodbye as they leave.
And it's over
The relationships have come to an end.
Anyway that's what the papers said.
There may be rumors and speculation about why the relationships ended.
And I wonder
The artist is curious about what actually happened behind closed doors.
What was going on inside your head
The artist wonders what the other person was thinking and feeling during the breakup.
You were there
The artist acknowledges the other person's presence during the relationship and breakup.
I'd like to ask
The singer would like to know more about the other person's experience in the relationship.
Did anybody touch you?
The artist wonders if the other person was satisfied physically in the relationship.
Come and go it went so fast
The relationships seemed to start and end quickly.
Turning away from the others
The friends and lovers are distancing themselves from their social group.
Closing their doors and then climbing their Stairways
Metaphorical actions that represent each person's journey after the breakup.
Does it really have to be this way
Questioning whether breaking up and distancing themselves from their social group was the best choice.
Or did you stand alone until the darkness came
Wondering if the other person was isolated and alone after the breakup.
Just one more room where everybody knew Your name.
The singer is reminiscing about being in rooms and public places where everyone knew who the other person was.
Ever apart from others Endless hallways
Despite the group of friends, the friends and lovers feel isolated and alone in their individual experiences.
Just say goodbye and it's over for always
Saying goodbye signifies the permanent end of the relationship.
Didn't you believe me when I said and I wonder
The artist is questioning whether the other person trusted them during the relationship.
Come and go it went so fast
The relationships seemed fleeting and impermanent.
Did anybody touch you?
The singer is concerned about the other person's experience in the relationship.
Writer(s): James Griffin, Robert Wilson Royer, T. Hallinan
Contributed by Jack L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.