Gustaf Norén

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Gustaf Norén
Norén in 2012
Norén in 2012
Background information
Birth nameGustaf Erik David Norén
Born (1981-02-01) 1 February 1981 (age 43)
Borlänge, Sweden
GenresIndie, Alternative, Rock, Pop
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • Songwriter
  • Actor
Years active1996–present

Gustaf Erik David Norén (born 1 February 1981) is a Swedish musician (songwriting, vocals, guitar) and actor. He was previously one of the two frontmen of the Swedish band Mando Diao and is one half of the duo Gustaf & Viktor Norén.

Beginnings[edit]

Gustaf was born to Jan Norén and Kerstin Bengtsson-Norén on 1 February 1981, in Borlänge (Sweden). He has two younger brothers, Viktor and Carl, and a younger sister Josefine. Gustaf describes the rural surroundings of his childhood as carefree and creative. His talent for music showed very soon at school, as well as his liking for playing roles. According to his mother, he was a born actor.

During Gustaf's childhood and teenage years football played a big role. As other members of Mando Diao, he was a fan of FC Brage (Borlänge), a local football club with strong roots in the working class.

After football, rock music was the second most important topic at school. Gustaf had a soft spot for the music of the 1960s, especially The Beatles. New bands like Nirvana (band) were added to his favourites and since 1995 Britpop bands like Oasis (band) and Blur (band).[1]

Musical career[edit]

Mando Diao[edit]

Gustaf Norén performing in Mando Diao (2014)

Gustaf Norén, was one of the two frontmen (vocals, guitar) of the Swedish rock band Mando Diao. In 1996, Gustaf met Björn Dixgård at a party. A short time later Björn invited Gustaf to join his band; they became the two frontmen of Butler, the band Björn Dixgård had founded together with Daniel Haglund, the future keyboarder of Mando Diao. Gustaf's father Jan for some time was part of the band too. In 1997, the name Butler was changed to Mando Jao. Allegedly Björn had a dream where a man appeared and shouted at him, telling him to name his band Mando Jao. Björn obeyed. Gustaf left the band in 1998 after he moved to Falun and had become alienated from his friends; however, after a short time he returned.[1]

In 1999, the name was changed to Mando Diao as the band was sure it would offer a better English pronunciation. Band members at this time were Björn Dixgård, Gustaf Norén, Daniel Haglund, and Carl-Johan Fogelklou. During the same year Samuel Giers joined the band as the drummer. Daniel Haglund left the band in 2004 and was replaced by Mats Björke.

Touring bars and small locations all over Sweden were soon followed by performances in Central Europe; the US and Japan. Each of Mando Diao's album releases became more successful; today they are one of Sweden's most well known bands.

In 2008, Gustaf Norén and Björn Dixgård joined the artist collective Caligola; in 2012, the album Back To Earth was the first release of the music project.

Mando Diao's biggest success in their home country Sweden was achieved with the sixth studio album Infruset where ten poems of the Swedish poet Gustaf Fröding were set to music in 2012.

On 3 June 2015, Gustaf Norén separated from Mando Diao.[2] On the same day, a press release from Sony Music announced the separation due to band members having "different visions".[3][2]

Other music projects[edit]

Gustaf has made some of his music available for free on SoundCloud, such as the song Ma Queen Of Everything which was released on 19 September 2015. Ma Queen Of Everything is an early version of Higher Love, a song which Gustaf debuted just a few months later as part of State of Sound.[4][5]

Gustaf Norén was featured on the Swedish singer Eric Saade's song Wide Awake. The Russian DJ duo Filatov & Karas released a remix of Wide Awake which charted in Russia, the Ukraine and in France.

State of Sound[edit]

State of Sound
OriginStockholm, Sweden
GenresElectronic pop/rock
Years active2016-2019
LabelsSony Records
MembersGustaf Norén
Viktor Norén
Joakim Andrén

In January 2016 Gustaf Norén, his brother Viktor Norén and their friend Joakim Andrén introduced their new project State of Sound. Their debut single Higher Love was gold certified in Sweden.[6] Their subsequent single Uti vår hage was also gold certified.[7]

Gustaf & Viktor Norén[edit]

Gustaf & Viktor Norén
OriginSweden
GenresElectronic pop/rock
Years active2016-present
MembersGustaf Norén
Viktor Norén

In 2019 Gustaf and Viktor Norén went on tour in Sweden and also started working on their first joint full album. Hymns to the Rising Sun was recorded in the renowned RMV Studios on the island Skeppsholmen in Stockholm and released in October 2020, preceding the singles Rise Again and Walk With You.[8]

In 2021 Gustaf and Viktor Norén were featured in Helt lyriskt, a Swedish music and culture television show on Sveriges Television (SVT) in which famous artists interpret famous poets. They interpreted Gustaf Fröding by setting his poem En fattig munk från Skara to music.[9][10]

In the same year the duo joined the line-up of Så mycket bättre, a Swedish music television show on TV4 (Sweden) in which artists of various genres gather to interpret each other's songs.[11]

In December 2021 they released the compilation album Samlade Sånger which among others features the previously released singles I Feel Like Christmas and Amerika, as well as their interpretations from Helt lyriskt and Så mycket bättre.[12]

In June 2022 TV4 (Sweden) announced that Gustaf & Viktor Norén are set to film their own music television program which will be broadcast in 2023.[13]

Acting career[edit]

Ingen kom ner[edit]

In 2009, Gustaf had his first appearance as an actor in the short film Ingen kom ner, a Swedish production directed by Torbjörn Martin. It tells a horror story and had its premiere at the Gothenburg Film Festival on 23 January 2009. On 18 April 2009 it was shown at the Arizona International Film Festival under the name No Come Down.[14]

She's Wild Again Tonight[edit]

On 12 November 2015, the Swedish movie She's Wild Again Tonight with Gustaf Norén and the Swedish actress Shima Niavarani as the main characters has had its premiere at the Stockholm Film Festival.[15] Directed by Fia-Stina Sandlund, She's Wild Again Tonight is the third part of Sandlund's film trilogy; the preceding two parts are She's Blonde Like Me (2011) and She's Staging It (2012). The screenplay by Fia-Stina Sandlund and Josefine Adolfsson is a contemporary take on August Strindberg's play Miss Julie (Fröken Julie) from 1888. The plot is set in Brooklyn and Gustaf Norén and Shima Niavarani play their own fictionalized personalities. What begins as a professional meeting between two politically conscious young artists develops into a game of power where their inner selves are exposed. With feminism and anti-racism as weapons, She's Wild Again Tonight examines the modern gender roles in the young urban conscious sphere and blurs the boundaries between reality, drama, and fiction.[16][17][15]

Others[edit]

In April 2021 it was first revealed that Gustaf Norén is set to act in a new movie alongside actress Liv Ullmann.[18][19]

Personal life[edit]

In 2004 Gustaf Norén was named 'Sweden's best dressed man' by the Swedish magazine Café.[20]

In 2006 Gustaf was named 'Sweden's sexiest man', he was on top of the ranking which altogether featured 100 celebrities.[21]

Discography[edit]

Norén at Storsjöyran festival in Östersund (2006)

Albums[edit]

Mando Diao[edit]

Main article: Mando Diao discography

Caligola[edit]

  • 2012: Back to Earth
  • 2012: Resurrection

State of Sound[edit]

  • 2016: Higher Love
  • 2018: Evighetens sommar

Gustaf & Viktor Norén[edit]

Title Year Peak chart positions
SWE
[22]
Hymns to the Rising Sun 2020 55
Så mycket bättre 2021 – Tolkningarna[23] 2021 —
Samlade sånger[24] 18
[25]

Singles[edit]

Gustaf & Viktor Norén[edit]

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
SWE
"Rise Again" 2020 – Non-album single
"Walk with You" –
"I Feel like Christmas"[26] –[A] Samlade sånger
"Amerika" 2021 –
"Guldet blev till sand" –[B] Samlade sånger
and
Så mycket bättre
"Sånger från dig (Tunna skivor)" 77
"Aldrig igen"
(with K27 [sv]) 		88
[29]
"Musiken är mitt liv (Bo Diddley)" –[C]

State of Sound[edit]

Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
SWE
 BEL
 NED
"Higher Love"
(State of Sound feat. Viktor Norén & Gustaf Norén) 		2016 98
[30] 		– – SWE: Gold Higher Love
"Uti vår hage" – – – SWE: Gold
"Wake Up Where You Are"
(State of Sound) 		58
[31] 		Tip 96
[32]
"Love Me Like That"
(State of Sound) 		2017 97
[33] 		– –
"Sommarvind"
(State of Sound feat. Gustaf Norén) 		2018 – – – Evighetens sommar
"Somebody Like Me"
(State of Sound feat. ORKID) 		2019 – – –

As featured artist[edit]

Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
SWE
 FRA
 RUS
 UKR
"Wide Awake"
(Eric Saade featuring Gustaf Norén) 		2016 – – – – Eric Saade album
Saade
"Wide Awake" (remix)
(Eric Saade featuring Gustaf Norén & Filatov & Karas) 		– 166
[22] 		9
[34] 		24
[34]

Filmography[edit]

  • Ingen kom ner (2009)
  • She's Wild Again Tonight (2015)

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ "I Feel like Christmas" did not enter the Swedish Singles Chart, but peaked at number 16 on the Swedish Heatseeker chart.[27]
  2. ^ "Guldet blev till sand" did not enter the Swedish Singles Chart, but peaked at number one on the Swedish Heatseeker chart.[28]
  3. ^ "Musiken är mitt liv (Bo Diddley)" did not enter the Swedish Singles Chart, but peaked at number 10 on the Swedish Heatseeker chart.[28]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Süße Rebellen. Die Mando Diao Story Buch portofrei - Weltbild.at". Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Gustaf Norén hoppar av Mando Diao: "Det finns ingen som kan planera ett liv"". Aftonbladet.se. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  3. ^ "Mando Diao Without Singer Gustav Norén". The ScanPost. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  4. ^ "Ma Queen Of Everything". Soundcloud.com.
  5. ^ "En rockstjärna som musiklärare". Värmlands Folkblad. 4 September 2015.
  6. ^ "State of Sound". Spotify.
  7. ^ "Login • Instagram". Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  8. ^ "Gustaf & Viktor Norén". Spotify.
  9. ^ "Helt lyriskt".
  10. ^ "De är klara för säsong två av "Helt lyriskt"". 15 December 2020.
  11. ^ "Allt du behöver veta om Så mycket bättre 2021". 3 September 2021.
  12. ^ "Gustaf & Viktor Noréns nya album "Samlade sånger" ute nu". 7 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Bröderna Norén: "Vi vill skapa musik MED svenska folket"".
  14. ^ "No Come Down". IMDb.com.
  15. ^ a b "She's Wild Again Tonight | Stockholm Film Festival". Archived from the original on 28 December 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  16. ^ "She's Wild Again Tonight". IMDb.com.
  17. ^ "She's Wild Again Tonight (2015)". IMDb.com.
  18. ^ "Avslöjar: Gustaf Norén spelar Näcken och Liv Ullman högaktuell som mormor i ny storfilm i Dalarna: "Det blir sällsynt vackert"". 22 April 2021.
  19. ^ "Gustaf Norén spelar Näcken i nytt kvinnodrama". 27 May 2021.
  20. ^ "Stiltoppad lista! Sveriges bäst klädda män de senaste tolv åren". 24 September 2014.
  21. ^ "Sveriges 100 sexigaste män". Aftonbladet. 14 November 2006.
  22. ^ a b "ERIC SAADE FEAT. GUSTAF NORÉN & FILATOV & KARAS - WIDE AWAKE (CHANSON)". French Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
  23. ^ "Så Mycket Bättre 2021 - Tolkningarna – EP by Gustaf & Viktor Norén on Apple Music". Apple Music. 21 November 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  24. ^ "GUSTAF & VIKTOR NORÉN släpper "Samlade sånger" 3 december och medverkar i årets upplaga av TV4's Så Mycket Bättre med premiär på Lördag" (Press release) (in Swedish). PR & Beyond. Mynewsdesk. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  25. ^ "Veckolista Album, vecka 49". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  26. ^ "Gustaf & Viktor Norén följer upp debutalbumet med jullåt – "I Feel Like Christmas" – Lyssna här!" (Press release) (in Swedish). PR & Beyond. Mynewsdesk. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  27. ^ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 52, 2020" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  28. ^ a b "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 47" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  29. ^ "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 47". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  30. ^ "STATE OF SOUND FEAT. GUSTAF NORÉN & VIKTOR NORÉN - HIGHER LOVE (SONG)". Swedish Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
  31. ^ "STATE OF SOUND - WAKE UP WHERE YOU ARE (SONG)". Swedish Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
  32. ^ "STATE OF SOUND - WAKE UP WHERE YOU ARE (SONG)". Dutch Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
  33. ^ "STATE OF SOUND - LOVE ME LIKE THAT (SONG)". Swedish Charts Portal. Hung Medien.
  34. ^ a b "Search > Gustaf_Norén". Tophit. tophit.ru.
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