Hellbillies

Norwegian country-rock outfit the Hellbillies—Aslag Haugen, Arne Sandum, Lars Havard Haugen, Björn Gunnar Sando, and Arne Moslatten—set out on the path to folk-hero standing in 1990. Their first two albums, Sylvspente Boots (1992) and Pela Stein (1993), showcased an idiosyncratic take on cover material drawn chiefly from American country favorites. The band translated John Prine’s “Grandpa Was a Carpenter” into Hallingdal dialect and retitled it “Goffa Min va Handelskar,” a practice repeated across the debut LP, which consisted entirely of such adaptations, among them “Ho Birgjit Lien” (“Sweet Rosie Jones”) and “Ikkje Grav Med Ned” (“Please Don’t Bury Me”). After that initial record, the Hellbillies reduced their reliance on outside material and began writing songs that wove in traditional Norwegian folk elements and subject matter. Issued the same year as their second album, Pela Stein earned the group the Spellemannsprisen Award and balanced newly composed pieces with longstanding repertoire. By the time of their fourth release, Drag (1996), every track was an original composition. Although already well liked, the band reached widespread national prominence only with Urban Twang (2001), which moved more than 30,000 copies in its opening month and secured gold certification. Later efforts CoolTur (2002) and Niende (2004) cemented the former novelty act’s place among Norway’s leading acts.