THE BITTERSWEETS: Lesson One LP

Description

The year is 1995 and The Bittersweets started as a surplus project by John Martinsen and Arne Thelin. Both John and Arne were in other bands at the time, John playing rhythm guitar in The Yum Yums and Arne doing lead vocals and leading The Kwyet Kings. Both had songs which didn’t quite fit in with their main bands so they decided to join forces and get the songs released. John said he dreamt the band name and The bittersweets was born in the fall that year.
The template for The Bittersweets’ music was pop punk along the lines of Ramones, The Queers, Riverdales and Hard-ons among others. Tomas Dahl (ex Abusers, The Yum Yums, later Vikings, Wonderfools, Turbonegro and Caddy) joined on drums, Kåre Pedersen (ex Kåre and The Cavemen, Abusers, The Kwyet Kings, later Gluecifer, Rejects, Euroboys and Cavebones) on guitar, Bjørn Haukaas (ex T-Zers and Fuck Ups) on bass and Lars Dehli Johnsrud (later Mensen and The Good Bad And The Zugly) on organ. Studio was booked and the album was recorded over two weekends during spring 1996 at Athletic Sound Studio in Halden, Norway with Kai Andersen as engineer and co-producer. The recordings were released on CD in the summer of 1996 on That’s Entertainment Records through Voices of Wonder with the title Lesson One.
Kåre quit right after the recording and was replaced by Mads Husvik (ex The Basement Brats, later The Nuggets) on guitar and the band played two gigs during winter/spring in Oslo and Halden respectively. Bjørn was then replaced by Lars Kristian Gulbrandsen – Zugly (ex Abusers, later Wonderfools and The Good Bad And The Zugly) on bass. The plan was to record a second album, but Arne left for work in Asia and the band faded slowly away.
This reissue is remastered and for the first time on vinyl.

THOMAS DAHL – drums, vocals and guitar
LARS DEHLI JENSRUD – organ and vocals
BJØRN HAUKAAS – bass and vocals
JOHN MARTINSEN – guitar and vocals
KÅRE PEDERSEN – guitar
ARNE THELIN – lead vocals and harmonica
MADS HUSVIK – guitar (non-recording)

Backing vocals on ‘Love Can‘t Buy Me‘ by THE BASEMENT BRATS

PRODUCED BY THE BITTERSWEETS AND KAI ANDERSEN
Recorded, engineered and mixed by Kai Andersen spring 1996 at Athletic Sound, Halden, Norway
Edited by Audun J. at Strype Audio, Oslo, Norway
Remastered by Magnus Gulbrandsen at Jeløy Sound Mastering, Moss, Norway
Photos by Morten Andersen. Cover design and layout by Pupavac and Bernt B. Ottem
Originally released on That‘s Entertainment Records as CD only in 1996

TRACKING:
Love Can’t Buy Me
Good Looks
All Set To Go
Out Of Here
I Surrender
Story Of Love
I’m Gonna Miss The Ramones
Hear What I Say
Anything From You
Love It To Death
Colour Of Day
My Baby Is Cool