Danish Music Foreigners Living in Denmark Should Discover 

"It is hard to overstate Larsen’s popularity amongst Danes. His songs have been the soundtrack for the lives of several generations and are likely to live on forever." great quote after he passed

The correct translation would be "Life is long, happyness is short, blissful is he who dares give it away."

I think as an introduction to Danish music for foreigners, it might be prudent to focus (initially, at least) on artists that sing in English, at least some of the time. The argument "their lyrics are excellent" doesn't carry as much weight when the people you are trying to convince don't understand those lyrics. For people who are trying to learn Danish, listening to music in Danish is certainly a good idea, but you do need at least a basic understanding of the language to appreciate the lyrics. There are so many Danish artists that do sing in English either wholly or partly, and that are either mostly or wholly unknown abroad, or are primarily popular in a single part of the world. Artists like Michael Learns To Rock, who had only a single hit here in Denmark, but who went on to become immensely popular in southeast Asia. Bands like D-A-D (formerly Disneyland After Dark) who have been a staple of the Danish music scene for the past 30 years. Or Sort Sol, who have been around since... 1977 😲Same as me, then. Bands with unique styles like Fielfraz or Picnic. Pop artists like Thomas Helmig and Hanne Boel. Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, Carpark North, VolBeat, the list goes on and on. My point is, if the point is introducing foreigners to Danish _culture_ rather than specifically the Danish _language,_ then these artists are just as much a part of Danish culture as ones that sing only in Danish, and may prove to be a better starting point for some. Also, talking about Kim Larsen's place in Danish music history without mentioning Gasolin at all borders on sacrilege 😀

This year I've really fallen in love with Danish music: Rest in Beats, Nephew, Minds of 99, so many. Love the aesthetic, the feel, the production levels.

As a Norwegian,even i have to admit that Denmark has the very greatest music industry in Scandinavia!❤❤❤❤❤❤

I'm from Philly also so I grew up in one of the best music scenes imaginable. I am learning Danish and my absolute fave musician so far is Marie Key, who I have not seen mentioned in any comments. I did find some Savage Rose as a young kid at a thriftyard in Philly. Loving the comments, so many good suggestions to explore.

This video brings back fond memories from when I grew up in Denmark. I emigrated to America in 1978, so my experiences in Denmark predates the participants in this video by a couple of years. However, the tradition of writing personalized lyrics to well known songs in Denmark, is still practiced in my family. Of course, I have to write lyrics that fit well known songs in America, when we celebrate birthdays and other occasions. Of course, when I am in Denmark to visit family, almost every day is celebrated with pickled herrings, liver paste, frikkadellen, and cheese. All accompanied by snaps and beer, of course. The more snaps, the better the singing!

Glemte du ikke lige "Dansevise" ? Den er så smuk!

To understand Kim Larsen, you do have to go back to he's days in the band Gasolin, the best Danish rock band ever. You need to listen to the early albums from Gasolin. I am sure these songs, are the foundations for the later and solo Kim Larsen.

Danish born Agnes Obel gets a lot of play for me. She appeared on the Dark soundtrack and I love her.

I love your new format - very Pro, guys, Best of luck going forward!

Hi Mike & Derek This is a bit of a long comment, but hopefully well worth the effort.. I only just found your channel and now I'm coming off a delightful binge through 6 years worth of content. Which i, as a Dane, naturally enjoyed immensely(Yeah i know, it's practically a trope by now😅). Seeing my little country through your eyes has been a wonderful experience. I'd have left it there, but this video just seemed the perfect opportunity to return the favor since you did *specifically* call out Kim Larsen 😉 I know you couldn't dig very deeply into it in the video, so i spent waaay to much time translating and annotating one of his songs, one which i believe the two of you might be uniquely qualified to relate to. I think it exemplifies a lot of the quintessential Danish mentality you've covered so lovingly in your videos, (You're not allergic to sappiness right?) ~Enjoy Hjerter Dame Song by Kim Larsen from the iconic album 'Forklædt som Voksen' ('Disguised as an Adult') --- See how the snow falls so white Se hvor' sneen falder hvidt (Hvor', could[arguably] mean both 'where' and 'how' here if the latter is intended as emphasis) Sugary and angelicly Sukkersødt og engleblidt Like crystals upon your brow Som krystaller på din pande ('Forehead' is the literal translation, but just. NO😅) - The swans are a shiverin' Svanerne de skutter sig ('Skutte'(adj) old fashioned term for shaking/shivering, hence the Dylanesque translation) Wonder if they're longing, just as I Længes de mon ligesom mig (The Swan 'Knopsvane'(Danish) is actually the national bird of Denmark~) After exotic countries? Efter eksotiske lande? (~It was voted so in a national TV poll in the 80's on the much loved show called 'Dus med Dyrene') - The Irma hen flashes in the darkness Irma-hønen blinker i mørket (55°41′14.84″N 12°33′45″E) Just lying there and laying eggs Ligger bare der og lægger æg (Sadly no more eggs from Irma anymore*) I kind of compare you to that one Jeg sammenligner dig lidt med den (Quintessential Danish sarcasm*) But just for fun Men kun for skæg ('But only for beards' according to Google🤣) - We both leave footprints Vi sætter fodspor begge to On Queen Louise's bridge På Dronning Louises bro (This is practically in you guys' backyard, see coordinates above) Among thousands of others Imellem tusinde andre (Hmm.. This seems a bit like the premise of your channel?🤔) Soon they'll be whisked away Om lidt er de visket væk (Literally 'erased' but found that a little extreme) Yet you and I still walk Men du og jeg går stadigvæk Hand in hand with one another Hånd i hånd med hinanden (Not 'with each other', this is literally about holding hands) - And longing so ineffably for summer Og længes så usigeligt efter sommer (Literally 'Unspeakable' but 'ineffably' conveys the sentiment perfectly) And warmth, peace and calm Og varme, fred og ro ('ro' can mean 'quiet' too, but 'quiet' is[arguably] more like 'stille') But it's a long way off, we know that Men der er længe til, det ved vi godt Both of us Begge to - For see how the snow falls soft and white For se hvor' sneen falder blødt og hvidt Sugary sweet and clandestinely Sukkersødt og hemmeligt (Could be 'secretly', but the theme is about being out after dark in the cold~) On you, on you På dig, på dig (~Sharing a simple moment of comfort/connection in your 'kæreste*'s company) My Queen of Hearts Min hjerter dame (Literally 'Hearts Lady' play on words for both the card and his kæreste*) --- *) Specifically Covered in one or more of your videos. I taken some poetic license with this to get the finer points across, also went a bit pedantic on the annotations too so that more people have a chance to follow along.. But at least i didn't try and make it rhyme. Well i did.. BUT only once..'just for fun' 😉 P.S. Igen; Tusinde tak for alle de pragtfulde videoer og muligheden for a dele jeres rejse igennem vores underfulde samfund.

Thanks for this. I've been trying to put a Danish playlist together for some time now. So many Danish artists perform in english, making it difficult to find just Danish lyrics.

Just dreamt of the song from Saybia - The second you sleep. SO beautiful.:-) Thank you for all your work, for everything Danish. Love the new studio 💟

Didn't anyone mention Shubidua yet?? Now, THAT'S an old band to look into if you wanna dig into Danish lyrics. They play with the words a lot and sing about all kinds of things that songs normally aren't about, like killing seals, wearing expensive clothes, sweaty cooks, but also about dying, AIDS, climate. Try looking up their song En Sang For Livet from their 12th album, which they wrote in the end of the 80's when the AIDS epidemic took the lives of way too many men. And Den Røde Tråd which is a song about being someone, becoming someone, going through life - but with a twist. Listen to the lyrics of those songs if you wanna learn new ways to use the Danish language.

I grew up in Scania and my parents listend to Kim Larsen, a lot when I grew up, he is very popular here also (but totally unknown in rest of Sweden)

So it took me a long time to get through the video with Theo X 🙂That’s mainly because I started googling him, because I have never heard of him before 🔍So I watched music videos and performances, but there isn’t a lot about him, so used most of the time searching. Then I was oh shit I have to go back and watch the rest of the interview😅Always a pleasure thank you for doing this, I like podcasts but I love when there is a video along with it😍 I can’t tell you enough how incredible 🤩 it is to see your country, your culture, your people through others eyes I learn so much from you so thank you 🙏🏻🥰

Never been thinking that much about how much singing there are here, maybe Højskolerne was part of that?

yes most everyone knows at least a few Kim Larsen songs/ songs by his former rock band Gasolin, even if they didn't nescessarily grew up with him in their family. I'm glad he mentioned Sebastian, he is such a good songwriter, and he has a pleasant voice I think, but yes kinda folksy like Bob Dylan, is maybe a good way to describe it. And Tina Dickow is great too. Some artists that most Danes know as well would be Anne linnet, Sanne Salomonsen and Lis Sørensen, that has been around since the 70's like Kim Larsen, Sanne is also called The danish Rock Mamma by the way. For some fun quirky yet insightful lyrics with a lot of danish wordplay maybe give the band Shu-bi-dua a listen. (In their early career they did danish versions of foreign songs too like Stærk Tobak(strong tobacco) a use of Twist and shout with new lyrics or Fed Rock(Cool Rock), wich used the melody from Jailhouse Rock. Many Foreigners might already know about Lukas Graham and MØ, since they were/are big outside Denmark, and for example Christopher and Alphabeat and Infernal and Michael Learns To Rock has also had success outside Denmark. I'd really reccoment Alex Vargas as well. Some rock bands I love that I think, you should listen to, if you like rock is Carpark North(electronic rock), Dizzy Mizz Lizzy or just Tim Christensens solo stuff, Go Go Berlin, The Raveonettes, Volbeat, D-A-D, Jonah Blacksmith(kinda Folk rock), to name a few.

Aqua (Barbie Girl), Safri Duo (Bongo Song) & Volbeat (Still Counting)

Talking about Sebastian, there is a Chinese tribute album to him called Nordic Echo: China listens to Sebastian. Its made by various artists

Kim Larsen is the father of the danish style of country music. He became a public frontier of the right to freedom and celebration of the simple life and joy. His songs even from the early band days are rooted in danish values and history, which is why it reasonate strongly with a lot from his generation. He is a big part of the acceptance of the freedom state Christania in Copenhagen in the society. That's why a lot of danes find comfort and strength in his lyrics, and passed it on to their children as cultural learning. That's why he his work is regarded very highly. He was also part of making the style and genre very popular in Denmark and several very popularitet 70's sing-along songs about simple daily lives things, can mention artists like Bamse, John Mogensen, Lars Lilholt Shu-bi-dua and so on.

lars lilholt probably also deserve a shoutout, but a bit like how he described sebastian. you either like it or not

Lot's of great danish artists. Alex Vargas, Savage Rose (as someone else mentioned), Mads Langer, Kira Skov, Tim Christensen - and one who should be more known: Hannah Schneider.

I grew up with Gasolin' in the 70s (Kim Larsen's former band). My all-time favorite Danish rock band which were also hugely popular in Norway and Sweden. I still listen to their music regularly.

I think you missed some absolutely crucial artists - which is understandable when the video is so short, so I'll try not to be too insulted 😉 But here’s a (very much incomplete) list of the ones you "forgot": - The three greatest modern Danish lyricists: CV Jørgensen, Allan Olsen, and Steffen Brandt. - Other glaring omissions: Anne Linnet, Nephew, D-A-D, TV•2, Shubidua. And you talk about the Eurovision Song Contest without even mentioning the brilliant "Dansevise", the winner from 1963. The lyrics are out of this world, there are entire sentences where several or all syllables rhyme (eg., "En rislen i bækken // en hvislen i hækken"; "Dugvåd ligger engen // Puk-kåd ud af sengen"); Jørgen's simple, elegant guitar is perfect, and Grethe's hauntingly beautiful singing with just the right touch of melancholy is sublime.

I listen to alot of Danish music my partner and her mum have introduced me to to help with my learning. Dizzy Mizz Lizzy,Magtens korridorer, Barselona ,Nephew, D-A-D so many great bands some sing in English or a mix of both. Great video thank you! :D

There’s also many great metal and rock bands from Denmark. Mercyful fate, King Diamond, D-A-D, Hatesphere, Volbeat, Pretty Maids etc.

For those who haven't seen, the very excellent documentary about Gasolin, it can be found here on YT. From DR, 1 and a half hour. In Danish, sry. Try anyway. Lots of old clips from the sixties and seventies. "Gasolin' dokumentar"

Nephew has some great lyrics that play a lot around with the language

I love Kim Larsen and used to listen to Gasolin.

Meget interesant! Tak!

If you want good danish music, you have to go back in time. Maybe im being biased, but in the 90's and 80's we had a more wide variety of genres. King Diamond/Merciful death, D-A-D, MC Einar, Sort Sol, Aqua, Whigfield, Den Gale Pose, Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, Moon Jam, Lars HUG and TV2.. Just to mention a very small, but broad, selection. Even the best live bands are from back then. The selection we have now is to uniform.

Personally I have always really loved Rasmus Seebach. Also if you’re curious about what our really old folk music sounded like the band Virelai make awesome Viking/medieval music it is just so beautiful

Tøsedrengene and later Anne Dorte Michelsen solo. Still going strong after 45 years.

You mostly talk about modern popular songs and artists that people listen to. Thankfully you mention our song book Højskolesangbogen. This contains songs from all ages by the greatest composers and poets. E.g. poems by Hans Christian Andersen have inspired the greatest composers such as Carl Nielsen - the list is long - and are loved through generations. And sung by (almost) all at school, family gatherings etc. And performed by choirs and great artists.

Kim Larsen, the darling of the Danish Dental and Cancer Association. He was popular in Jylland, but then they had little access to good international music, they completely overlooked New Wave and grunge bands to keep the likes of Joe Cocker on DR.

I loved gnags back in the day and Kim Larsen too

Bamse / John Mogensen / johnny madsen / lars lilholt / Michael Falch/ Rockers vy choice / Mc einer ect.......

If we expand the definition of Denmark, I gotta go with Týr from the Faroe Islands.

Shu-bi-dua and TV-2

on more rocky bands: Dizzy miss lizzy oll gen x rock classic. king diamond, oll school metal metal-scene is quiet vibrant and copenhell festival is a must . in rap ,suspekt. mainstream pop tobias rahim, mø, and others. the danish music scene is very vibrant.

I would realy like you to listing to the bamd Bifrost. The song Narredans and Når Verden blir' min. And the band Cracy Carrary. OK it's Bifrost. But could the band brake in the US or UK in the early '80? I like the songes by CC , Breakin' Out, Cobweb and Autumn Song. OK, there best songs ad well knwn are. Hej Maria (luk vinduet op) and Det er morgen. But the most famous are - I kan ikke slå os ihjel.

As a danish person i can say this is nice to be honest🤣

How about Shu-bi dua and Bifrost?

You could look in to the old beat band Savage Rose - if for nothing else, then because there's little Danish music of International standards. Like that kind of music or not, they are excellent musicians. Perhaps make a little video about "the good old days," when the Danish Royal Ballet danced NAKED and it was broadcasted... prime time saturday evening. The ballet is called "Dødens Triumf". You don't have to show pictures 😉 Savage Rose could have made it really big, if they'd been ready to conform to their US music company. The Koppel Family in general might be Denmarks most musically talented family and the 3-4 generations master everything from gospel to opera, classic to rock. They haven't done much pop, though 🤔 It was news, that Royal Ballet dancers threw their clothes on stage in 1972. 4 years before Dr. Hook did it at Roskilde 😆

Try the group Kashmir.

Lukas Graham is the only Danish band I really know.

Dont forget that DK is not just know for its older stuff but all so that wee had an influencual voice in heavy metal since the 80's

You guys should definitely try give *(Sort Sol)* translates to *(Black Sun)* most of there lyrics are in English, but definitely a Danish band *(edit)* give Nephew a go to most of there lyrics are in Danish 👍🏻

There’s just something about classic Danish rock and Kim Larsen is just the most iconic or popular of them. Maybe it’s also because his name don’t have æ ø or å so that’s just easier to say if you’re talking to someone in English

Thanks for to new names but also look up Gasolin and CV Jørgensen

I think “Higher Ground” with Rasmussen was a great song. Øve os på hinanden with Fyr go Flamme was also a decent song but got trashed by the juries unfortunately.

Mads LANGER ❤

Danser med drenge - Griber du mig når jeg falder. Yeees!

im sorry, but i cant take this serious, when you dont even mention shu-bi-dua ...

Shu-Bi-Dua!

Syntes det var lidt en skam Flemming Bamse Jørgensen ikke var nævnt men også forståligt nok.

Its Tina Dickow, not Tina Dico - it looks like only her songs in english pop up if you search "Tina Dico" so be sure to look up the proper name if you want her full discography!

"Sådan er kapitalismen" er vel dansk?

Myrkyr, Afsky, Konvent

Danish Eurovision is bad, because the musicians doesn’t get enough out of it. They don’t get enough exposure, they’re not even guaranteed airplay on Denmark’s Radio. In Italy, in Sweden, in Norway, they have several evenings and they promote it properly.

Medina

Go listen to some rock! D:A:D, Bersærk, Carpark North, Volbeat (danish-ish), Timechild...

Shame he missed the 80s metal bands. Pretty Maids was brilliant. Ronnie Atkins has some brilliant solo albums and he sings for Nordic Union. Oh well, just my opinion. Ooops, I left Rene Shades solo work out. Sorry, my bad.

Moonjam

SEBASTIAN BEST EVER!!!!!!

I have dream bands, and duos, and would have loved to have seen a musical meeting of Kim Larsen and Tom Waits.

Sort Sol

not to forget, Shu-bi-dua , the golden lions( de gyldne løver) , Birthe Kjær, Flemming Bamse Jørgensen, John Mogensen and Tommy Seebach

D-A-D

As a dane i would compare Tina Dico to Shania Twain.. calm, flawless technique, rythmic and just a pro...but no country... Dico is a pop/indie/singer songwriter type..

Oh i hate Kim Larsen. But C.V Jørgensen ❤

Kim larsen has said no to being knighted by the queen ,as he said i am a boy from the streets .and dont deserve it

Two words: Under Byen

Gnags

MGP is "cringe" from a Danish perception, in the way it could ruin your professional career unless you are into that special type of "festival" pop music. So a Birthe Kjær and Tommy Seebach made a living out of this, while his son Rasmus try to keep as far away from it as possible, because it would ruin his career.

Older danish bands. Shu-Bi-Dua needs to be mentioned. It is playing with words, humour and at the same time some criticism on society

You didn't even mention Cartoons? Smash Danish hitmaker #1 🤌

Gnags