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Cast in Steel

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Cast in Steel is the tenth studio album by Norwegian band A-ha. The album was released on 4 September 2015 by We Love Music and Polydor. It is their first studio album since Foot of the Mountain (2009), following their second reunion in early 2015.[1]

Cast in Steel
Studio album by
a-ha
Released4 September 2015
Recorded2014–2015
StudioAtlantis Studios and Studio Brun (Stockholm, Sweden); Athletic Sound (Halden, Norway); Albatross Recorders (Oslo, Norway); Real World Studios (Wiltshire, England); The Alabaster Room, Systems Two Recording Studios and Electric Lady Studios (New York City, New York, USA); Little Big Sound (Bellevue, Tennessee, USA).
GenreSynth-pop, alternative rock, pop rock
Length47:01 (CD), 38:44 (vinyl)
LabelWe Love Music, Polydor, Universal
ProducerMagne Furuholmen, Morten Harket, Peter Kvint, Erik Ljunggren, Jon O'Mahony, Steve Osborne, Alan Tarney, Pål Waaktaar-Savoy
A-ha chronology
Ending on a High Note: The Final Concert
(2011) 		Cast in Steel
(2015) 		Time and Again: The Ultimate a-ha
(2016)
Singles from Cast in Steel
  1. "Under the Makeup"
    Released: 3 July 2015
  2. "The Wake"
    Released: 28 August 2015
  3. "Forest Fire"
    Released: 15 September 2015
  4. "Cast in Steel (Steve Osborne Version)"
    Released: 12 February 2016
  5. "Objects in the Mirror (Steve Osborne Version)"
    Released: 12 February 2016

Cast in Steel is the first a-ha album to use the original band logo since Memorial Beach from 1993, and the first album to be produced by Alan Tarney since Stay on These Roads (1988).[2]

Background and recording

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Following the release of their ninth studio album, Foot of the Mountain, a-ha announced that they would retire as a band. In 2015, however, the band announced that they would re-unite for a two-year period and release Cast in Steel, followed by a world tour to promote the album. Cast in Steel was released on 4 September 2015, shortly before a-ha performed in Brazil at Rock in Rio on 27 September for the festival's 30th anniversary.

Initially Pål Waaktaar-Savoy and Morten Harket began recording the album in New York without Magne Furuholmen. Waaktaar-Savoy said of the process: "It began quite small with Morten dropping by my studio now and then, and I played some of my new songs for him. Then he recorded his vocals on the songs he liked and the rest we didn't use. That continued until we had ten to twelve songs."[3] He also revealed that the three members of a-ha were never present in the same studio during the recording of the album, and said: "It often ends up like this, and many bands do it this way. But I do miss the feeling of us being in the same studio, working on the same song in real time."[4]

Furuholmen has said the reunion wasn't his decision: "The other two wanted to do it, and I had to decide: do I block it, let them do it without me, or make a fool of myself, with my statements about this being the end."[5]

Singles

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"Under the Makeup" was released as the album's first single internationally on 3 July 2015. The music video was shot in Telemark in Norway and stars Danish actress Sofie Gråbøl and Swedish actress Frida Farrell.[6]

On 19 August 2015, "The Wake" was premiered on BBC Radio 2.[7] The song was released as the album's second single in the United Kingdom on 28 August 2015.[8][9]

A-ha performed the album's third single "Forest Fire" on 3 September 2015 at the 2015 Radiopreis-Gala in Germany.[10] On 15 September 2015 a lyric video was released on YouTube.[11] "Forest Fire" was added to the BBC Radio 2 playlist on 28 October 2015 as the third single from the album in the UK.[12]

The Steve Osborne remix of "Cast in Steel" was released as an international single on 12 February 2016.[13] On the same date, the Osborne remix of "Objects In The Mirror" was released as the fourth single in the UK.[14][15]

Commercial performance

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Cast in Steel debuted at number eight on the UK Albums Chart, selling 7,828 copies in its first week. It is a-ha's sixth Top 10 album in the United Kingdom.[16] The album debuted at number four on the German Albums Chart, and became the 99th best-selling album of 2015.

Track listing

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No.TitleLyricsMusicProducer(s)Length
1."Cast in Steel"Pål Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoySavoy, Erik Ljunggren, Peter Kvint[a], Morten Harket[a]3:50
2."Under the Makeup"Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, Ljunggren, Kvint[a], Harket[a]3:25
3."The Wake"Harket, Ole Sverre OlsenHarket, KvintHarket, Kvint3:45
4."Forest Fire"Magne FuruholmenFuruholmen, Harket, Martin Terefe, KvintSteve Osborne, Furuholmen, Ljunggren, Kvint[a], Harket[a]3:54
5."Objects in the Mirror"FuruholmenFuruholmenOsborne, Furuholmen, Ljunggren, Kvint[a], Harket[a]4:14
6."Door Ajar"Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, Alan Tarney, John O'Mahony[b]3:46
7."Living at the End of the World"Harket, OlsenHarket, KvintHarket, Kvint4:06
8."Mythomania"FuruholmenFuruholmenFuruholmen, Ljunggren, Kvint[a], Harket[a]3:49
9."She's Humming a Tune"Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, Ljunggren, O'Mahony[b]4:02
10."Shadow Endeavors"Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, Tarney, O'Mahony[b]4:21
11."Giving Up the Ghost"FuruholmenFuruholmenFuruholmen, Ljunggren, Kvint[a], Harket[a]4:15
12."Goodbye Thompson"Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, Tarney, O'Mahony[b]3:34
Deluxe edition (bonus tracks)
No.TitleLyricsMusicProducer(s)Length
1."The End of the Affair"FuruholmenFuruholmenFuruholmen, Ljunggren3:31
2."Mother Nature Goes to Heaven" (original version)Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoya-ha4:33
3."Nothing Is Keeping You Here" (original version)Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoya-ha4:41
4."Shadowside" (demo version)Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoya-ha, Ljunggren4:16
5."Start the Simulator" (stereophonic mix)Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-SavoyMark Saunders, Roland Spremberg5:19
6."Foot of the Mountain" (Mark Saunders remix)Waaktaar-SavoyWaaktaar-Savoy, FuruholmenSaunders4:18

Vinyl edition

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Side A

  1. Cast in Steel - 3:50
  2. Under the Makeup - 3:25
  3. The Wake - 3:45
  4. Forest Fire - 3:54
  5. Objects in the Mirror - 4:14

Side B

  1. Door Ajar - 3:46
  2. Living at the End of the World - 4:06
  3. Mythomania - 3:49
  4. Shadow Endeavors - 4:21
  5. Goodbye Thompson - 3:34
Notes
  • ^[a] signifies a vocal producer
  • ^[b] signifies pre-production

Personnel

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a-ha

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Additional musicians

  • Erik Ljunggren [no] – programming (1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 13)
  • Chuck Zwicky – programming (1, 6, 10, 12)
  • Rob Schwimmer – Theremin (2)
  • Peter Kvint – programming (3, 7), guitars (3, 7), bass (3, 7)
  • Steve Osborne – keyboards (4), programming (4), guitars (4), bass (4)
  • Florian Reutter – programming (4)
  • Alan Tarney – keyboards (6, 10, 12), guitars (6, 10, 12), additional backing vocals (6, 10, 12)
  • Eliot Leigh – programming (6, 10, 12)
  • Kurt Uenala – programming (6, 10, 12)
  • Even Ormestad – bass (1, 2, 9)
  • Karl Oluf Wennerberg – drums (1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 13)
  • Per Lindvall [sv] – drums (7)
  • Joe Mardin – drums (12)
  • Macedonian Radio Symphony Orchestra – orchestra (1, 2)
  • Lars Horntveth – orchestral arrangement (1, 2)
  • Bylund Strings – strings (7)
  • Mattias Bylund – string arrangements (7)
  • Sarighani Reist – cello (5, 11)
  • Julie Tanner – cello (5, 11)
  • Monisa Angell – viola (5, 11)
  • Kristin Wilkinson – viola (5, 11)
  • David Angell – violin (5, 11)
  • David Davidson – violin (5, 11), string arrangements (5, 11)
  • Conni Ellisor – violin (5, 11)
  • Mary Kathryn Vanosdale – violin (5, 11)

Technical and Design

  • Kai Andersen – recording
  • John Brant – recording
  • Janne Hansson – recording
  • Dag Erik Johansen – recording
  • Peter Kvint – recording, mixing (3)
  • Eliot Leigh – recording
  • Erik Ljunggren – recording
  • Even Enersen Omnestad – recording
  • Steve Osborne – recording
  • Max Ross – recording
  • Bobby Shin – recording
  • George Tanderø – recording
  • Chuck Zwicky – recording
  • Cenzo Townshend – mixing (1, 8, 9, 11)
  • John O'Mahony – mixing (2)
  • Simon Nordberg – mixing (3, 7)
  • Maret Pompetzki – mixing (4, 5)
  • Ren Swan – mixing (6, 10, 12)
  • John Davis – mastering at Metropolis Mastering (London, UK)
  • Jeri Heiden – art direction, design
  • Glen Nakasako – art direction, design
  • Just Loomis – photography
  • Lars Gundersen – photography
  • Harald Wiik – management

Charts

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References

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  1. ^ Veka, Camilla (21 March 2015). "A-ha gjenforenes og lager nye låter". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 21 March 2016.
  2. ^ "a-ha / Cast in Steel: Track by track | superdeluxeedition". Superdeluxeedition.com. Retrieved 2015-10-15.
  3. ^ "a-ha med nytt album og stor turné til høsten". Dagbladet.no. 25 March 2015.
  4. ^ Veiåker Johansen, Robert (9 September 2015). "a-ha: The rescue operation". Aftenposten. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  5. ^ Valentish, Jenny (18 March 2016). "The highs and lows of being a-ha". Financial Times. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
  6. ^ [1] [dead link]
  7. ^ "World premiere of 'The Wake' on BBC Radio 2. News. The Official Website of a-ha". Archived from the original on 2015-09-12. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
  8. ^ "Album the Wake, A-Ha | Qobuz: Download and streaming in high quality".
  9. ^ "BBC Radio 2 Playlist News: A-A-B-C!". 26 August 2015.
  10. ^ "A-ha".
  11. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "'Forest Fire' (Lyric Video)". YouTube.
  12. ^ "A-ha goes straight on to the BBC Radio 2 B List!". 28 October 2015.
  13. ^ "New single 'Cast in Steel' out now!. News. The Official Website of a-ha". Archived from the original on 2016-03-09. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
  14. ^ "'Objects in the Mirror' A-listed on BBC Radio 2. News. The Official Website of a-ha". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
  15. ^ "A-ha Goes Straight Onto the BBC Radio 2 and BBC London Playlists!". 24 February 2016.
  16. ^ [2] [dead link]
  17. ^ "Austriancharts.at – a-ha – Cast in Steel" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  18. ^ "Ultratop.be – a-ha – Cast in Steel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  19. ^ "Ultratop.be – a-ha – Cast in Steel" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  20. ^ "Top Stranih" [Top Foreign] (in Croatian). Top of the Shops. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  21. ^ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 37.Týden 2015 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  22. ^ "Danishcharts.dk – a-ha – Cast in Steel". Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  23. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – a-ha – Cast in Steel" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  24. ^ "Lescharts.com – a-ha – Cast in Steel". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  25. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – a-ha – Cast in Steel" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  26. ^ "Official IFPI Charts – Top-75 Albums Sales Chart (Week: 24/2015)". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  27. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2015. 37. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  28. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 37, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  29. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – a-ha – Cast in Steel". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  30. ^ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  31. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  32. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – a-ha – Cast in Steel". Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  33. ^ "Swisscharts.com – a-ha – Cast in Steel". Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  34. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  35. ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts – 2015" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
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