Heute erscheint Sapien, das atemberaubende neue Album von RAM-ZET. Exklusiv für Popmonitor hat Bandbegründer HENNING RAMSETH die zehn Tracks des Progressive-Metal-Meisterwerks kommentiert …
ZEROCANE
Zerocane is an alter ego, or a form of extra personality that comes out when you need him the most. He eventually becomes the dominant character and you have no control over yourself anymore. He becomes like a self-worshipping God. This was our first single and based on a semi-ethnic guitar riff that I worked, brilliantly complemented by Sareeta, the song came pretty quickly and landed properly when I got the catchy(?) riff in place. A little sick little part is needed + unison bass and guitars and, as on many of the other songs – 8 strings make it fun to make riffs..
CRANIUM
We all wear a mask. Behind it is everything we don’t want the world to see. On the outside, we only show the good, sweet and innocent. Under the mask lurks the monster. This was our second single… And a little country music on 7 strings wouldn’t hurt, and if you combine it with a little blast beat afterwards, you’re onto something.. I think so. The chorus was also a redeeming part here, and definitely one of the most fun things to play live that I’ve ever been a part of!
SLEEPERS
We walk around the world like sleepwalkers. We can’t relate to reality and distance ourselves from the world as it actually is. SoMe and the like are destroying us as people. We are just shadows of who we once were. Speaking of ethnic… here they play with Norwegian-ish folk tunes… in the opening.. and it carries on. But we take our time with the intro here.. it’s not always that we’re as patient. I don’t really know how to place this song in a genre.. but folk-prog with a bit of growl and retro synth with a circus-lyre box part.
BOZZADEVIL
Chaos. You don’t always manage to speak the same language. Sometimes you want to scream, throw knives and create chaos. It is also a redeeming factor in the chaos that leads to silence after the storm. This one got to keep its working title and I think that’s great. How bozza it is, scholars can probably discuss, but it’s fun! And.. the songwriting for Sapien started in 2020 yes.. but this one Küth and I actually played with at rehearsal all the way back in 2018 I think it was. And has become a pretty fun little thing, where Sareeta gets to use her Hardanger fiddle, and we continue with inspiration from both here and there. Lanius is allowed to do some slapping in the sick middle part and into a rather sacred part before the Hardanger fiddle craziness begins.
PEACE25?
We had peace? on the first albums – as a break between sides 1 and 2, because I have always been a bit of a vinyl guy, but we didn’t get to make vinyl at the beginning of the 2000s! NOW.. it will be vinyl.. double even. but I would like to include a „peace?“ here too – and then the idea came to do something that I have wanted to do for a long time. Involving an old Ram-Zet fan from way back. Ronni Le Tekrö – TNT – was on the jury that selected Ram-Zet for the grammy the first album, and has been a declared fan ever since. We’ve worked together a lot, so when I asked if he wanted to jam „peace25?“ with me, it was a clear yes. I went to Studio Nyhagan and there we had a (possibly two) glasses of wine, and went into the studio with Kjartan in his regular place as technician. We made about 3 versions, I think, but when I got the files the next day, I was completely sure that take no. 1 was the shit, without a doubt. It must be admitted that it was quite a lot longer.. because it was a lot of fun to record it.. but here’s the essence of it. A musical description of the contrast between the hope and the probability of peace…and the sad reality!
AS WOLRDS COLLIDE
A worldview. How are we going to find our way out of this labyrinth and find a common way out of the destruction humans have caused in the world? Nice drum and bass intro – and really like those verses here. Very striking and decisive keyboard elements here too and overall a song that I quite like. Will be fun to play live! I’m practically avoiding vocals here.. just a couple of small inputs. Good to relax a bit for an old hook! Fun with pizzicato violins on the 2nd verse and powerful and massive at times. And here I am, very happy that we have a vocalist of Sfinx caliber! Proud – proud of everyone! Another 8th string riff that is fun to play.. and on to more 70s keyboard fun.
PSYCHOSIS
In a kind of psychotic state. You float around in an incomprehensible world where nothing feels real. Once again, a bass intro – beautifully performed by Mr. Lanius and into a guitar riff, which I also had a lot of doubts about until I heard Sareetas contribution that put it all in place. Pop verse – this sounds a bit foreign to us, – before a pretty cozy aaaaa part – before REF, which I quite like …haha. Sure. We tend to load up on elements, and then a raucous mix is terribly important. Kudos to Kenneth Skaarholen for doing such a great mixing job. At about 5.10. there is a nice quiet part that leads smoothly into one groovy 8-string riff!
IN THE MIRROR
Do you really manage to see yourself for who you are in the mirror? The good and the bad. Can you forgive yourself and find a love that is deeper because of it? Forgiveness of yourself. The piano theme here came to me one Sunday morning while I was sitting in my apartment looking out over Lake Mjøsa – I probably sat and played it for an hour because I thought it was so nice. I still think so. The rest of the song was also made from that mood. A kind of ballad there… -but not without a little agg. in the middle of course. At the end there is a guitar solo that is clearly a „demo solo“ but then suddenly there was a message from Sareeta that she had made a „dubb“ on the second half… and I don’t know if I managed to hide my skepticism… but it was easily put to shame, because it was just so damn cool and the solo was given eternal life. Incidentally. And then, from Azzuu you get a slightly gloomy 70s keyboard lead in there.
CATCHING FLIES
A picture of how suffering can be too much for a person to bear. Loneliness that leads to death being the only way out. You are left covered in blood with flies buzzing around your body. You catch flies with your mouth. Inner war. Another somewhat intricate intro riff that I had to work with a lot to get it flowing. Beyond that, it is a rather gloomy, but energetic song, which, as usual, opens up for some beautiful themes. It is a luxury to have a vocalist that you can do „whatever you want“ and it is conveyed with the same degree of empathy and quality. Sfinx is amazing. The song ends with a keyboard lead from our newest member, Azzuu, who has also twisted our keyboard sound in a completely different direction than before… very much in line with the organic expression.
HANGMANS JAZZ
No matter how bad the world feels sometimes, there is always hope. You have to fight your way out of yourself and find a reality outside of yourself. Sure.. another rare intro.. a little jazz … A little two-part vocal can also be enjoyed here + a chorus based on whole-tone leaps, something I have always been quite fond of. The drums and bass on this song are, in my ears, an extremely good swing.The calm riff in the song here is also something that I really think was extremely nice, and even a pretty nice guitar solo! And the whole song ends up in instrumental exposure.
RAM-ZET
Sapien
(ViciSolum Productions)
VÖ: 27.03.2026
