Geir Zahl

Geir Zahl Born 19 May 1975 Is A Singer-Songwriter From Bryne Rogaland Norway. Together With His Childhood Friend Janove Ottesen He Founded The Alternative Rock Band Kaizers Orchestra For Which He Composes Songs Plays Second Guitar And Occasionally Performs Lead Vocals On Certain Compositions In Concert. Ottesen And Zahl Formed Several Other Bands Before Kaizers Orchestra Became A Success And Zahl Has Also Formed Several Solo Projects. His Brother Jan Zahl Wrote Kaizers Orchestra's Official Autobiography. Zahl And Ottesen Both Received Acoustic Guitars Around The Same Time The First Group Which The Two Formed Was Destruction Whose Sets Consisted Mostly Of Cover Songs. In 1991 Blod Snått & Juling Was Formed Their Songwriting "sessions" Consisted Of Recording Eight-Track Tape Versions Of Songs They Had Written For The Other Member To Give Their Input And Opinion. The Group Received Some Mild Attention From Local Newspapers And Their Fan Base Consisted Mostly Of Relatives And Classmates From School. Blod Snått & Juling Released Two Official Tapes Ein Glad Tunnel And Sympatiske Fisk. A Common Associate Of BS&J Was Terje Vinterstø A Musician From The Local Area. A Third Tape Was Left Unfinished In The Studio After The Band Hit A Creative Wall Which Would Eventually Cause The Dissolution Of The Band. In A Short Transitional Period That Followed Zahl Played Bass Guitar In Ibu Ubu. Upon Ottesen's Return From Military Service They Formed Another Band Known As Gnom After Ottesen And Zahl Recorded An Acoustic Demo In 1996 It Became A Proper Group With Some Of The Members Going On To Become Members Of Kaizers Orchestra. In 1997 They Released A Studio Album Mys Which Received Little Press And Poor Sales Forcing Zahl To Get A Primary Job As A Waiter For A Local Café To Pay The Bills. Despite The Lack Of Success On The Part Of The Gnom Project A Song Which They Did Not Record For Mys "Bastard" Became A Staple Of The Setlists Of The Group's Concerts. Unlike The Style Of Most Other Gnom Material "Bastard" Featured A Dissonant Soundscape Tom Waits-Esque Storyteller Lyrics And An Instrumental Break Played On Oil Drums A Song Which Received More Response From Concert-Goers Than Other Songs They Played. After The Dissolution Of Gnom Zahl And Ottesen Used "Bastard" As A Starting Point To Form A New Group Which Would Embrace And Expand Upon The Spirit Of That Song. On 1 January 2000 Kaizers Orchestra Was Formed Originally As A Five-Piece Group. They Recorded A Demo In This Configuration Later That Year And Also Released A Self-Titled EP Better Known As The Gul EP In Conjunction With Their Appearance At By Larm A Music Festival Devoted To Showcasing Up-And-Coming Talent. Zahl And Ottesen Had A Hard Time Managing To Turn Their Vision For The Band Into Reality And Were Dissatisfied With The Sound Of Both The Demo And The EP. Later They Would Add A Sixth Member Terje Vinterstø With Whom Ottesen And Geir Had Collaborated In The Days Of Blod Snått & Juling. While The Group Struggled To Make It Initially Their Unique Musical Style And Energetic Live Shows Gave Them A Small Core Of Hardcore Fans As Well As Some Mention By Media. The Group Entered The Studio In The First Half Of 2001 And Thanks To Their Producers Jørgen Træen And Stian Carstensen They Managed To Convey The Sound They Desired. Their First Studio Album Ompa Til Du Dør Was Released On 1 September 2001. It Received An Almost Previously Unseen Amount Of Critical Praise And Over The Next Few Months The Band Became Norway's Most Requested And Popular Group. A Zahl Composition "Dr. Mowinckel" Was Chosen As The Group's First Radio Single Which Was Put On The A-List Of One Of Norway's Premiere Radio Stations. Initially Zahl Performed Lead Vocals On His Compositions Gradually However Lead Vocal Responsibilities For His Songs Were Given To Ottesen For Reasons Unexplained. Six Years After The Release Of Their Second Studio Album Evig Pint Which Had Featured One Track With Zahl Performing Lead Vocals Their Fifth Album Våre Demoner Featured One Track On Which He Performed Lead Vocals. Some Songs Particularly Those Written In The Band's Early Period Are Co-Credited To Both Ottesen And Zahl And Zahl Often Provides Backing Vocals For Songs. Having Established Themselves In The Norwegian Music Industry The Members Of The Group Periodically Take Sabbaticals From Playing Together During Which Time They Pursue Individual Projects. Zahl's First Such Project Zahl Was An Americana Group Which Released Only One Studio Album Nice For A Change Comprised Of Songs Written In English Which Zahl Had Composed Over The Years. The Album Sales Were Relatively Poor As Was Its Performance On The Norwegian Album Charts And Zahl Claims To Still Have Boxes Of Unsold Album Copies Under His Bed. In 2008 As A Collaboration With John Erik Kaada He Composed Some Of The Songs For The Soundtrack For The Norwegian Film Mannen Som Elsket Yngve Including "Fortapt" Which Is Also Performed By The Character Jarle Klepp In The Film. In 2010 He Announced The Formation Of Another Solo Project Uncle Deadly A Group In Which He Would Be Portraying A Character Based Partly On Himself To Make Himself Feel More Comfortable With The Role Of The Group's Frontman. They Released The Album Monkey Do To A Good Amount Of Success. In 2011 Zahl Became The Guitarist For Hardcore Punk Outfit Exploding Head Syndrome. Outside Of Music Zahl Has Filmed And Directed Several Short Subject Films About Kaizers Orchestra The First Being A Half-Hour Long Documentary Regarding The Recording Sessions For The Group's Fifth Studio Album In Particular The First Single From The Album "Die Polizei". Additionally He Filmed VD Week A Four-Part Series Of Shorts Documenting The Tour Promoting That Album As Well As The Electronic Press Kit For Monkey Do. read less