The band was founded by Janove Ottesen and Geir Zahl, two childhood friends from the small town of Bryne, Rogaland, Norway. The two had earlier played in several bands together, including Blod, snått & juling, and gnom. The musical and lyrical style of Kaizers Orchestra was in part conceptualized during the active period of latter group. Despite the release of a studio album, Mys, any recognition eluded gnom. However, one song written during gnom's active period, called "Hemmelig beskjed", featuring a musical style the group themselves labeled "ompa" music, which elicited significant response from live audiences. This inspired Ottesen to compose a new song, "Bastard"; the song's dissonant sound and absurd storytelling lyrics, clearly inspired by Tom Waits, as well as the unusual inclusion of oil barrels as percussion, inspired them to reinvent their sound, image and name. Kaizers Orchestra was officially founded on 1 January 2000; it was initially a five-piece group that naturally evolved from gnom, with Ottesen as primary vocalist, Zahl as guitarist and secondary vocalist, drummer Rune Solheim, organist Helge Risa, and Jon Sjøen, an educated musician who had become a member of gnom after their previous bassist quit.
Throughout 2000, Kaizers Orchestra held sporadic performances at various small venues in Norway, having received little to no publicity at the time. In July of that year, Ottesen and Zahl performed acoustic shows at Det Beste Stedet in Sandnes, their sets consisting of partly Blod, snått & juling, gnom and newly-written Kaizers Orchestra material. A 14-track demo was recorded, but Ottesen and Zahl grew frustrated at finding it hard to bring their vision for the band to tape. They recorded an unnamed EP in 2000, known as Gul EP (Yellow EP), featuring a recording of "Bastard" (which had not been recorded while gnom was active). After months of struggling, they finally signed a deal with the independent label BroilerFarm. In 2001, Terje Vinterstø (later Terje Winterstø Røthing) joined the band as their first guitarist. In the studio, co-producers Jørgen Træen and Stian Carstensen succesfully aided the group in capturing Ottesen and Zahl's vision for the band's sound, and the album was recorded in six days, "leaving the last day for partying."
Their debut album, Ompa til du dør, was released on 1 September 2001, receiving high praise from critics and launching them into the national spotlight. The album would go on to win a Spellemannspris (the Norwegian equivalent of the Grammy Awards) and become the best-selling Norwegian rock album of all time. Subsequently, as bookings became more and more frequent, Kaizers Orchestra performed in nearly every part of Norway until the end of the year. Early 2002 saw the release of their second EP, Død manns tango. In the summer, they released another EP, Mann mot mann, and performed their first international live concert at the prestigious Roskilde Festival in Denmark, to much critical praise. In early 2003, they performed as part of the Eurosonic festival in the Netherlands, where they made a huge impression on both festival-goers and music business executives.
On 3 February 2003, their second studio album, Evig pint, was released. This album was cited as having a darker atmosphere, and notably included only one song featuring oil barrels, which had become a trademark for the band by then. The album did not receive the same level of critical acclaim their debut album did, nor did it sell as well. Despite this, the band went on a highly successful tour, now often including shows outside of Norway as well, helping to build an international fan base. Later in 2003, Ottesen and Zahl released a remastered version of Mys, the only official release by gnom, including a recording of "Bastard", despite the fact that the track had been recorded only after the band's dissolution. In the same year, Jon Sjøen would leave the group for personal reasons, with the group promptly making Øyvind Storesund, who had served as substitute for Sjøen at concerts he was unable to attend, their new bassist.
In 2004, they signed a recording contract with Universal Germany, and a majority of their backlog was re-released in European countries. By this time, the band had performed in nearly all major countries in Europe. In 2005, they released their third studio album, Maestro, which was released in certain European countries as well as Norway. The album received a majority of positive reviews, however, some were disappointed (the album received the lowest marks given from a Swedish magazine in some time) and the album failed to sell as well as the record company planned, something which the band blamed on little support and promotion from Universal Germany. Nevertheless, the Kaizers embarked on the "Maestro Tour", spanning over ten countries, which perpetuated into 2006.
After the release of their first live album, Live at Vega (as well as a live DVD, Viva La Vega) in 2006, Kaizers announced that they were embarking on a one-year hiatus from performing in 2007. The "Grand Finale Tour" commenced in the fall of 2006, spanning more than 10 countries, culminating in four consecutive shows at Vega, Copenhagen, Denmark; the same venue in which Live at Vega and Viva La Vega were recorded. Concurrently, Kontroll på kontinentet, a book about Kaizers Orchestra and their past, present and future, chronicling their rise from obscure guitar duo to one of the biggest Norwegian music exports in some time, was released. It was written by Geir Zahl's brother Jan Zahl, and featured photos taken by their staff photographer Paal Audestad.
Despite their previously announced hiatus from live performances, the band played three shows in 2007; One at their old favorite, the club Folken in Stavanger, at the Documenta 12 art expo in Germany, and the Sziget Festival in Hungary. Shortly after the Sziget concert, information was released pertaining to their next album. Their fourth studio album, Maskineri, was released on 18 February 2008. It received favorable reviews in Scandaniavian press. The supporting tour received great response and was followed up with a summer tour, with the band performing at various festivals throughout Europe. In the fall of 2008, the band released 250 Prosent, a live compilation album featuring recordings from the Maskineri Tour. Shortly thereafter, the band embarked on the 250 Prosent Tour, during which they played rare songs that they had dropped from setlists long time ago or had never really played much in the first place. Notably, very few songs from Maskineri were played at these concerts.
Early in 2009, Kaizers Orchestra released information concerning a new studio album called Våre demoner; a compilation of re-recordings of songs that had not been released for various reasons. This selection of songs spanned the band's entire career up to that point, and some songs which ultimately appeared on Våre demoner had been bootlegged by the fan community or otherwise leaked, among them the titular song "Våre demoner", of which a demo version was leaked. The album was released in limited quantities on 27 April 2009, followed by a subsequent mini-tour of small venues in Norway. The events of the week of the tour was captured on film by Geir Zahl, as were the recording sessions for the album.
In 2007, Ottesen composed two to three songs a day for the duration of ten days as part of a massive creative outpouring he was experiencing at that time. In the fall of 2009, basic information regarding the upcoming studio album was released, citing a 2011 release date. The band announced a Studio Tour of venues across Norway; the proceedings from these concerts were to finance the next studio album. Attendees were to be given a special edition of the new album at a later point in time. On 10 February 2010, the album's title and format were revealed; it would be a series of three albums, each a part of a trilogy known as Violeta Violeta, to be released gradually throughout 2011 and 2012.
One of the singles from Violeta Violeta Volume I, "Hjerteknuser", became the most successful single of the band's career, and was also the subject of a contest that allowed unsigned talent to cover the song; the prize was an opportunity to perform as a support act for the band, and have their version officially released. Volume I was released on 31 January 2011, and received a varying reception, although critics accentuated positives more than negatives. Concerts for the supporting tour incorporated abstract storytelling visuals projected onto a screen on-stage. The final concert of the tour, to be held at Oslo Spektrum on 9 April 2011, served as the band's tenth anniversary celebration. The entire performance was recorded and released as Live i Oslo Spektrum on 11 November 2011 on CD as well as home video formats.
Violeta Violeta Volume II was released on 11 November 2011; the album's first single, "Tusen dråper regn", was released on 31 May 2011. Around the same time, the many remixed versions of "En for orgelet, en for meg", a song from Volume I, were released as the En for orgelet, en for meg digital EP. On 11 August 2011, Violeta Violeta Volume II was performed, in its entirety, for the very first time at the Øya Festival in Oslo, Norway. Notably, the album features Zahl's return to the position of lead vocalist on the songs he has composed for the album; this has not occurred since the release of Evig pint ("Stormfull vals", featured on Våre demoner, was originally written before the release of their first album, and as such do not meet the specifics).
The promotion for the final installment of the Violeta Violeta trilogy began with "The Kaizervirus", an enigmatic viral marketing campaign. The first single from the album, "Aldri vodka, Violeta", was released in September 2012, and Violeta Violeta Volume III was released on November 2, 2012. Following several tour dates in 2013 (including their first ever concert in the UK), they have announced an indefinite hiatus from performing as a group after an extended series of concerts at the DNB Arena in Stavanger, situated in Ottesen and Zahl's home county of Rogaland. The final concert performance for the foreseeable future took place on 15 September 2013. While the group has cited that a reunion is more or less inevitable, when this will occur is unknown for now.
Tvilling
Kaizers Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Det er vanskeligere å sei når det ikkje går an å ta på
Du må vær mi søster for hvis ikkje så
Eg ser du promenerer akkurat som meg
Eg ser du balanserer akkurat som meg
Hør, du argumenterer akkurat som eg gjor, som eg gjor
Som på min, har du en ring på din fing
Koffor har ingen fortalt eg har en tvilling
Som går som meg
Og snakker som meg
Som ser ut som meg
Og ler som eg lo
Er dette meg eller er det deg eg ser på nå?
Sei meg mor
Var det kun meg eller var me ikkje to?
Er det kun mine ord
Eller kunne me sagt de i kor?
Eg ser meg sjølv gjer ting som eg aldri har gjort før
Heilt uvirkelige ting som eg aldri hadde trudd at eg tør
Tør du å svare hvis eg tør å spør?
Eg ser du promenerer akkurat som meg
Eg ser du balanserer akkurat som meg
Hør, du argumenterer akkurat som eg gjor, som eg gjor
Som på min, har du en ring på din fing
Du er så rask, kan forsvinne i en vind
Koffor har ingen fortalt eg har en tvilling
Som går som meg
Og snakker som meg
Som ser ut som meg
Og ler som eg lo
Er dette meg eller er det deg eg ser på nå?
En gong skal det nok bli vår tur
Det løftet står risset i en fengselsmur
Det står meg pluss deg for alltid
Ingen andre kan leva ditt liv enn du, Cecilia I. Velur
Spør du meg nå må du vær sikker på
At du tåler å høre det svaret du får
For det er for seint når det er forsnakket
Illusjonen din er kanskje ødelagt
Men spør du meg igjen neste år
Og eg kan stå her og du står der du står
Du kjenner meg ikkje igjen
Ikkje eg deg heller då
Kan det vær et heilt annet svar du får
Men tid er så mangt, bare tenk deg om
I et maleri, er det tid inni sånt?
Frys et sekund for evigheten
Så kaller du det kunst, eller sannheten
Minnene dine er som bilder i en film
Du ser om og om igjen
De fester seg som lim
Nå står du utenfor og ser inn
Og så spør du meg om det er deg du ser
Eller tvillingen din
Spør du meg nå må du vær sikker på
At du tåler å høre det svaret du får
For det er for seint når det er forsnakket
Illusjonen din er kanskje ødelagt
Men spør du meg igjen neste år
Og eg kan stå her og du står der du står
Du kjenner meg ikkje igjen
Ikkje eg deg heller då
Kan det vær et heilt annet svar du får
Men tid er så mangt, bare tenk deg om
I et maleri, er det tid inni sånt?
Frys et sekund for evigheten
Så kaller du det kunst, eller sannheten
Minnene dine er som bilder i en film
Du ser om og om igjen
De fester seg som lim
Nå står du utenfor og ser inn
Og så spør du meg om det er deg du ser
Eller tvillingen din
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
"Tvilling" by Kaizers Orchestra is a meaningful song that talks about identity and the line between individuality and similarity. The lyrics delve into the idea that we all have a twin, someone who looks like us, thinks like us and laughs like us, but we cannot recognize them until we see them. The singer is questioning whether it is him or his twin out there and how he cannot tell the difference between the two. The lyrics also touch on the idea that memories are like pictures stored in a film, and we can revisit them repeatedly as if we are watching the same movie over and over.
The singer is asking his mother if they were always two people or just one. He further reflects on how he sees himself doing new things he never thought he would do before and questions whether the person he sees doing those things is him or his twin. The verses suggest that while the singer sees someone who looks like him, behaves like him, and has the same mannerisms as him, he still doesn't know if it's him or his twin. The chorus features the singer asking whether the person he sees is him or his twin.
In conclusion, the song is about identity and questioning whether we are truly unique or whether we have someone who looks and behaves like us, just like a twin.
Line by Line Meaning
Er det meg eller er det deg eg ser på?
Questioning whether it's oneself or someone else being observed
Det er vanskeligere å sei når det ikkje går an å ta på
It's more difficult to determine since it's intangible
Du må vær mi søster for hvis ikkje så
The person being observed must be the singer's twin or sister
Eg ser du promenerer akkurat som meg
The person being observed walks exactly like the singer
Eg ser du balanserer akkurat som meg
The person being observed balances exactly like the singer
Hør, du argumenterer akkurat som eg gjor, som eg gjor
The person being observed argues exactly like the singer
Som på min, har du en ring på din fing
The person being observed wears a ring on the same finger as the singer
Du er så rask, kan forsvinne i en vind
The person being observed is so quick that they could disappear in a gust of wind
Koffor har ingen fortalt eg har en tvilling
Questioning why no one told the singer that they have a twin
Som går som meg
The twin walks like the singer
Og snakker som meg
The twin speaks like the singer
Som ser ut som meg
The twin looks like the singer
Og ler som eg lo
The twin laughs like the singer
Er dette meg eller er det deg eg ser på nå?
Questioning whether it's oneself or the twin being observed
Sei meg mor
Asking mother
Var det kun meg eller var me ikkje to?
Asking if it was just the singer, or if there were two people
Er det kun mine ord
Questioning whether the words being spoken are solely the singer's
Eller kunne me sagt de i kor?
Asking if the words could be said in unison
Eg ser meg sjølv gjer ting som eg aldri har gjort før
The singer sees themselves doing things they've never done before
Heilt uvirkelige ting som eg aldri hadde trudd at eg tør
Things that are completely unreal that the singer never thought they had the courage to do
Tør du å svare hvis eg tør å spør?
Asking if the other person is willing to answer if the singer asks the question
En gong skal det nok bli vår tur
Someday it will be our turn
Det løftet står risset i en fengselsmur
The promise is carved into a prison wall
Det står meg pluss deg for alltid
It says that it is the singer and the twin together forever
Ingen andre kan leva ditt liv enn du, Cecilia I. Velur
No one else can live your life but you, Cecilia I. Velur
Spør du meg nå må du vær sikker på
If you ask me now, you have to be sure
At du tåler å høre det svaret du får
That you can handle the answer you receive
For det er for seint når det er forsnakket
Because it's too late once you've said too much
Illusjonen din er kanskje ødelagt
Your illusion may be broken
Men spør du meg igjen neste år
But if you ask me again next year
Og eg kan stå her og du står der du står
And I can stand here and you stand where you are
Du kjenner meg ikkje igjen
You don't recognize me
Ikkje eg deg heller då
Nor do I recognize you
Kan det vær et heilt annet svar du får
You might get a completely different answer
Men tid er så mangt, bare tenk deg om
Time changes everything, just think about it
I et maleri, er det tid inni sånt?
Is there time inside a painting?
Frys et sekund for evigheten
Freeze a second for eternity
Så kaller du det kunst, eller sannheten
Then you call it art or the truth
Minnene dine er som bilder i en film
Memories are like pictures in a movie
Du ser om og om igjen
You see them again and again
De fester seg som lim
They stick like glue
Nå står du utenfor og ser inn
Now you stand outside and look in
Og så spør du meg om det er deg du ser
And then you ask me if it's you that you see
Eller tvillingen din
Or your twin
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
Ååååååh, åååh
Contributed by Lucas B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
MarkFilipAnthony
"When Violeta was born, Beatrice was pregnant with twins. One of the girls was stillborn. Violeta was never told that she had a twin, nevertheless, she has always felt related to a mirror image of herself. A person who is just like her, but who has her own life. Violeta and her twin have grown up on each their own side of life. One has a physical life, while the other has a non-palpable. Or, as Kenneth calls it, "a polaroid life". What Violeta believed to be a reflection of herself turns out to be contact, despite the barriers, between the two. When Violeta confronts her mother with the question if her twin really exists, she gets a counter question as answer. How do you define "real"? The question and the answer change and give different results, depending on when the question is asked ...
Nmgreendragon 7
GOD DAAAAAMN
I absolutley love this band
Kim Nyhammer Photography
Åja, takk for tolkningen din :) elsker kaizers sine dype tekster <3 Var på konserten i Bergen på Kohengen 21. August, var legendarisk <3
Elise R
Favoritten min fra vol 3! <3
firefly9339
Så uendelig vakkert!
Vini Silva
Denne sangen er favoritten min også :)
Matt Valdes
jag älskar från 3:44 till slutet
MemphisBlueAgain
Fryktligt vakkert...
Daniel Fatnes
eksepsjonelt
Hannah Steinum Kvalvik
Jeg skjønner hvorfor den heter violeta violeta, og ikke bare violeta!!!