The last of the wild ’80s

An English retelling from Kjell Moberg's manuscript.

The later ’80s widened my life beyond punk: motorcycles, parties, new records and changing band ideas competed for attention. After S.P.Y., Psychokillers & The Blockheads played one Os Rock show, while Rasputinene, Disney Babies and Sound Of Confusion each gave me a different musical setting before the decade turned.

After S.P.Y. began to dissolve, the same circle moved through new combinations. Psychokillers & The Blockheads brought together rockabilly, glam, Iggy Pop, The Jam and David Bowie, and played once at Os Rock in 1986. Around the same time, motorcycles, parties and home video changed our routines. New records and styles, including Stray Cats, The Cult and Hanoi Rocks, widened what I heard.

I joined Rasputinene on guitar for a short period, with Eivind Hodneland, Arne Amundsen Bergo and Kai Morten M. Helland. Rehearsals attracted visitors, and the band played several local shows, but our musical directions differed and I left before the EP. Disney Babies was a looser rock project with Tore Vågen, Asgeir Fonn and Odd Bahus; a live cassette later showed that some good work survived. In 1989, Morten Brekke, Kai Morten and I started Sound Of Confusion. We recorded live at Frikk Studio, played around Bergen and ended the decade with a small body of music that later found new listeners.