GusGus : This Is Normal 1999

[ Artist Biography by John Bush

 As a quirky, several-member co-ed band from Reykjavik, Iceland, GusGus were almost bound to inspire comparisons to the Sugarcubes, though a mid-'90s arrival caused the group to inherit influences from contemporary club music as well as trip-hop, rather than the post-punk lunacy that inspired the Sugarcubes during the late '80s. Associations with a pair of the hippest independent labels -- first England's 4AD, and then Germany's Kompakt -- powered the group's sustained profile from the late '90s through the mid-2010s.

Formed as a cinema collective in early 1995 by filmmakers Stefan Arni ?orgeirsson and Sigur?ur Kjartansson, the group gradually expanded to include musicians such as DJ Magnus Gu?mundsson (aka Herb Legowitz) and programmer Birgir ?orarinsson, as well as singer/songwriters Daniel Agust Haraldsson, Hafdis Huld ?rastardottir, and Magnus Jonsson (former actors all), producer Baldur Stefansson, and a few additional members.

The band's decidedly indie sensibilities led to its signing by 4AD after a self-released, self-titled album was issued in 1995. Among a handful of groups in the late '90s with access to both close-knit dance circles as well as the uptight indie community, GusGus gained support from LFO (with Mark Bell's remix of "Believe")
and one of London's most celebrated DJ stores, Fat Cat Records, while playing its first date in England. Awarded a combined U.S./U.K. release due to 4AD's agreement with Warner Bros., GusGus' Polydistortion -- which included ten of the songs from their 1995 album in remixed form -- hit stores in 1997. The more song-oriented and house-rooted This Is Normal followed in 1999. ]


[  AllMusic Review by Heather Phares 

Gus Gus' second album, This Is Normal, heralds their discovery that they are first and foremost a pop band. While the spacious, sophisticated electronica they developed on their debut (Polydistortion) is still evident,
 This Is Normal's smooth, streamlined finish has more than a nodding acquaintance with dance-pop. ]
This Is Normal is the third studio album by the Icelandic group GusGus. It was released in 1999 on 4AD Records.

Released : 26 April 1999
Genre :    Electronica,Trip hop
Length : 53:35
Label :    4AD
Producer : GusGus, Pall Borg, Alfred More


Tracklist

01. Ladyshave
02. Teenage Sensation
03. Starlovers
04. Superhuman
05. Very Important People
06. Bambi
07. Snoozer
08. Blue Mug
09. Acid Milk
10. Love Vs Hate
11. Dominique

FLAC . Size : 355 MB