ALL SCANDINAVIAN continues the monthly Top 10 routine with a look at ten great opening tracks on ten debut albums. The nineties dominate, but there’s also an unavoidable flashback to 1985 and representatives from the new millennium. In other words; we get around and hope you will take the trip with us – we’re certain you’ll enjoy it.

Dizzy Mizz Lizzy (DK) - Waterline
From: Dizzy Mizz Lizzy (1994)
Okay, so excessively anal types might argue that the opening track on Danish grunge heroes Dizzy Mizz Lizzy is ‘Waterline Intro’ and ‘Waterline’ is in fact track two. Well, that’s not important. What is important is the utter greatness of ‘Waterline’ that helped make ‘Dizzy Mizz Lizzy’ sell 220.000 copies in Denmark alone, making it the best selling Danish debut album of all time. 14 years after its release the track stands the test of time and the brilliant intro could easily make its way into a Top 10 of the best guitar riffs of all time - which, incidentally, is a list coming to your favorite music site in near future.

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a-ha (NO) – Take On Me
From: Hunting High And Low (1985)
Now this is the way to kick off a career! Not only a massive hit in its time, ‘Take On Me’ has stood the test of time to become one of the most enduring songs from the neon decade (We dare you to find a jukebox or a karaoke machine without ‘Take On Me’). The Norwegian trio wrote several versions of the song before hitting it right with the perfect combination of an easily recognizable theme and a haunting chorus that made it an almost instant classic and became the number one reason for ‘Hunting High And Low’ selling over 10 million units worldwide. Number two was singer Morten Harket’s good looks, and three the groundbreaking video accompanying the single which more or less revolutionized the music video.

Gestir (FO) – Hvørt Fótafet
From: Burtur Frá Toftunum (2006)
Opening track on Faroese quintet Gestir’s champion debut album is a class example of what a good opening track should do – apart from being a good song: Set the scene. Already in the intro with its thumping beat, ominous synths and delicate guitars you get the feeling that big emotions are at stake, something underlined by singer Ólavur Jákupsson’s high-pitched, gently desperate vocal and the grand chorus. ‘Hvørt Fótafet’ make promises beautifully kept by the other 11 songs on ‘Burtur Frá Toftunum’ – and that’s really all you can ask of an opening track.

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The Hellacopters (SE) – (Gotta Get Some Action) Now!
From: Supershitty To The Max (1996)
Recorded live in just 26 hours ‘Supershitty To The Max’ is rock’n’roll as it should be: It’s loud, it’s fast, it’s simple and it takes no prisoners. The opening track is especially worth mentioning on this particular list as the 12 other songs on the album sounds pretty much exactly the same – as does every song on the six others albums the Swedish garage rockers made before splitting up in 2008. But hey, if it ain’t broken…

Kaizers Orchestra (NO) – Kontroll På Kontinentet
From: Ompa Til Du Dør (2002)
Coming out of nowhere (well, they’re from Bergen, but musically) with a brilliantly exotic take on rock, Norway’s Kaizers Orchestra took most people completely by surprise. Straight up rock’n’roll with lyrics in a local dialect even many Norwegians can have a hard time understanding combined with Balkan rhythms, oil-barrels and a now legendary pump-organ plus equal measures of madness and great songs is the essence, all captured in this grand opening track. Since then the Kaizers have released a further three albums, sold a shitload of them and build a reputation as perhaps Scandinavia’s best live band.

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HIM (SF) - Your Sweet Six Six Six
From: Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666 (1997)
Many Finnish rock and metal bands have made an impression outside Finland but few as much as His Infernal Majesty with their catchy ‘love metal’. To say that it’s obvious that the band will soon rule the world judging by the first track on their first studio album might be a stretch, but it sure as hell rocks. ‘Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666’, incidentally, also contains a bitching cover version of Chris Isaak’s ‘Wicked Game’ that is very much worth checking out.

Sigur Rós (ISL) – Sigur Rós
From: Von (1997)
When released in Iceland this debut sold just 313 copies and it would take another seven years plus two critically acclaimed followups before ‘Von’ (“Hope”) was released internationally. You kinda get why, when you dig in to Sigur Rós’ very experimental debut, because this is not easily accessible. It is, however, at times hauntingly beautiful and always incredibly gutsy, the latter underlined by the opening track’s almost ten minutes of ethereal noise. And to actually name it after the band is just pure genius…

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Ace Of Base (SE) – All That She Wants
From: Happy Nation (US version)/The Sign (1993)
Not many bands have had their debut album released three times in a year and in four different versions. Swedish pop sensation Ace Of Base have and that’s why they’re on this list, because on three – the American version titled ‘The Sign’, the European rerelease ‘Happy Nation (US Version)’ and the Brazilian ‘The Sign/Happy Nation US Version’ – smash-hit ‘All That She Wants’ is the opening track and first single. On the fourth (and first) version, simply titled ‘Happy Nation’, it’s track and single two. Confused? You’re not alone. Anywho, ‘All That She Wants’’ mix between reggae and great pop was seemingly what the world needed at the time and the single helped propel sales of the debut to a stunning 23 million copies worldwide, earning Ace Of Base the honor of being the best selling debut band ever.

The Dø (SF) – Playground Hustle
From: A Mouthful (2008)
We were quite excited about this Finnish/French duo’s debut when we got our sticky hands on it last year. Singer Olivia B. Merilahti (Finland) and multi-instrumentalist Dan Levy (France) roam playfully around everything from and in-between alt-folk to trip hop over pop and rock without loosing the grip. It all starts with ‘Playground Hustle’, an excellently quirky stomp-like banger in which Ms. Merilahti manages to be a full kids choir that will move and shake booty’s everywhere.

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Aqua (DK) – Happy Boys & Girls
From: Aquarium (1997)
Much can be said about Danish bubblegum pop quartet Aqua, but as a Dane one thing especially needs to be said: Sorry! With that out of the way it’s hard not to respect the pop abilities of prime songwriters Søren Rasted and Claus Norréen who’s insanely catchy, easy forgettable (and often quite humorous) universe ended up becoming the biggest Danish musical export success ever with sales exceeding 30 million worldwide and spawning a – at the time seemingly endless – string of copy acts. And it all started with this song. On album anyway. We all know it was battleship track ‘Barbie Girl’ that propelled them to stardom, but this opening track is as much a hit.