The Margarets

The Margarets, a Norwegian pop group formed in 1991 on the tiny island of Giske with its 6,000 residents near Ålesund, feature Alex Rinde handling vocals alongside guitarists Rune Berg and Ante Rune Giskeødegård, bassist Lars Berg, and drummer Ronnie Michael André Giskegjerde Larsen. Their sound draws most heavily from Manchester acts, especially the Smiths, Joy Division, and the Stone Roses. After shifting base to Oslo late in the 1990s, the band crashed the national mainstream in 2001 via the breakout single “Rubber Rubbish,” which climbed to number two on the domestic chart. Their first full-length, What Kept You?, followed in 2002 and likewise peaked at number two. Later releases Love Will Haunt You Down (2005) and Twenty Years Erased (2008) landed inside the Top Five and Top Ten respectively, earning solid critical notices even though neither matched the debut’s commercial peak; the latter disc also brought a 2009 Spellemannsprisen nod for Best Pop Band of the Year. Their fourth album, Look for Love (2008), yielded the singles “One Summer Night” and “Look for Love.”