When Preaching to the Choir Isn't Enough

So, there's a big deal being made over this Norwegian rap group, Gatas Parliament.

Basically, IFILM has posted what claims to be a music video the Norwegian government has banned for advocating direct violent action against the George Bush. Evidentially these fellows have been trying to raise money to hire a hitman to assassinate the president. They've had a bunch of Web sites devoted to the project and have been rather outspoken in the Scandinavian press regarding their disdain for Bush.

In any case, I checked out the video, which I will get to later. First, a bit about the band.

The following is my own poor (it's been nearly a decade since I've been around det norske spraaket) English translation of Gatas Parlament's biography, as posted on their Web site (I have added parenthetical translations for several names):

Gatas Parlament (or Street Parliament) is a revolutionary Norwegian-language rap group from Oslo's Eastside consisting of Elling Batman Zedong, Aslak and Don Martin. But it wasn't always so.

Well, to be precise, it began in about the same way.

Once, in 1993, Elling had rapped a bit for himself, but grew tired of not having anybody to perform for so he got his brother Aslak to join in. After they grew tired of listening to each other, they decided to start a band. The band was called Kveldens Hoedepunkt (or The Evening's High Point). In about ten minutes.

Then Elling and Aslak realized that they also needed a DJ. Don Martin was the natural choice. Don Martin didn't actually want to, but said yes when they promised to get rid of the idiotic name Kveldens Høydepunkt.

The next day the three young gentlemen got together in a plaza in Oslo's east side to throw eggs and rotten tomatoes at Carl I. Hagen, who was trying to hold a speech. After having taken in enough rotten vegetables, Hagan said that it was the Street Parliament that controlled the country. With that, the name was set. The first Gatas Parlament release was called Autobahn til Union and lamented the fact that Norway refused to join the E.U.

Things went smoothly after that. Autobahn til Union was initially slated to be produced by a longhaired, though nice, gentleman named Dr. Akbar. But after the disk was finished, the Gatas-gentlemen learned that Akbar had a couple of reservations, both aesthetic and religious in nature, so collaboration was impossible.

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Article Author: Sobriquet

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