The only Norwegian band ever to have been top of the charts in the USA, A-ha, will reunite for one time only to play at a special memorial concert for those killed in the Oslo bombing and Utøya shootings.
A-ha, famous for their worldwide hit “Take on Me,” had retired after a world tour at the end of 2010 but have decided to play at the official national memorial concert in memory of the terrorist attacks. Their manager, Harald Wiik, told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) that the concert would be a “one-off” for the band who “therefore want the focus to be directed towards what the memorial service is about, namely honouring those affected after July 22.”
A full statement from band members Magne Furuholmen, Paul Waaktaar-Savoy and Morten Harket read, “on July 22, we were, like everyone else in Norway and the rest of the world, shaken to our very core by the cruelty of the events and the terrible provocation against everything we stand for. We are at the same time very proud to belong to a small country where people, politicians and the royal household are united and show solidarity in encountering such a tragedy, and we are grateful to have been asked about participating in the memorial concert. We do this in order to honour those that have been taken away from us, to pay tribute to everyone that did, and is still doing, an awe-inspiring job, and in order to show our sympathy for those left behind that are now in mourning.”
Other acts that will take part in the concert include rap group Karpe Diem and Bjørn Eidsvåg. The concert will begin at 3pm on Sunday August 21, and will be attended by the royal family, politicians, survivors, those left behind and members of the emergency services and volunteer groups that contributed to the terror response. It will be broadcast live on national television by NRK.
Attendees will have the opportunity to visit Utøya island following the concert.
Views and News from Norway/Aled-Dilwyn Fisher
Join our Readers’ Forum or comment below.
To support our news service, please click the “Donate” button now.
