When I first heard The Weeknd's big hit, Blinding Lights, I immediately thought, like many people, that the rhythm of the song was very similar to Take On Me. But after a few listens, in my opinion, the musical resemblance is even more marked with Forest Fire whose tone of the synth-keyboards are very similar in addition to the tempo. A-HA continues to inspire the new generation of artists... Timeless A-HA! 😊🎶
I always imagine how this would sound like if it was sung by a younger and more energetic Morten, back in the day when he’d obviously have switched to his belting voice in the last chorus - and had more air and wings to his falsetto 🤩 (thinking about his delivery in, say, Train of Thought and Stay on These Roads). Great tune, production and vocals none the less!
Forest Fire hooked me immediately when I first heard it, and that's probably because it reminds me so much of the band I fell in love with as a teenager. It was my favorite on the album for a while, but later several others have passed by. Compared to other songs, it's like a fierce and short-lived crush that turns into friendship, while most of a-ha's music is either a fierce crush that turns into lasting love or friendship that turns into love. For my part, there are not many enemies or random neighbors among the songs. Although I have experienced losing the family cabin in a forest fire, and the song therefore reminds me of exactly that fire that gave us a new and nicer cabin, I agree with Marjorie regarding the lyrics.
@@JesperHellvik 🤷♀ I understand personal tastes are different on all the other songs, but I can't get how people can endure tgis one, less alone like it! 🤣 I was pleasantly surprised to hear Jesper and Peter agreed with me. 🙂 Even though we disagree sometimes, I think in the big picture we mostly agree.
Forest Fire is one of the best songs on this album and it's so energetic, I love this song. In many a-ha songs, music and lyrics are at odds. Although the lyrics are very serious and sad, the music, the tempo is very energetic. Many people only realized after the MTV unplugged concert what a sad text actually lies under Take On Me (I hope that the MTV unplugged concert is in your list 🙏😁). In the video for Forest Fire, the lyrics are shown in sync with the vocals, so the lyrics play the main role in the video. There is somehow a connection to Mag's artistic work, he is also a very good and renowned artist besides his work in a-ha and being a musician. His sculptures and paintings have often been exhibited in museums. Mags works a lot with texts and letters. On the other hand, I always had the feeling that the Forest Fire video was a reference to Morten's often incomprehensible vocals 😂😂 Forest Fire / A-ha Goes around Comes around It doesn't really matter, yeah Something wrong A false alarm Doesn't ring that true Watch it flare up Where do we begin We are flames in the forest fire Dancing from within That's where we begin We take you far and wide And like always Leave a silver lining scar The stores in town Are closing down And everything's in ruin Borderline Just turn around Out of every ditch, a path Watch it flare up Time to reign it in So let's begin We are flames in the forest fire Rising from within That's where we begin And we fuel desire And like always Leave a silver lining scar
Thank you as always for another great comment! And yes, I do have access to the MTV Unplugged album, and we will indeed go through that in the not-too-distant future. :)
Hi Matt, running late watching your reaction I was working today then I fell asleep so I’m watching it now. Forest Fire - music written by Magne Furuholmen , Morten Harket, Martin Terefe and Peter Kvint. Words by Magne Furuholmen . There is no denying that this is the catchiest tune on cast in steel. It has swathes of fire metaphors mixed with dazzling keyboard work. This track was unashamedly a commercial crowd pleaser and o enjoy listening and singing along to it I’m sure your going to enjoy it to Matt. Looking forward to your comments on this track. Take care and I’ll catch you on the next one. I hope you and all the A-HA family have a great weekend. 😘❤️🇳🇴❤️🏴🇺🇸
Max Martin who wrote blinding lights co wrote Analogue song and his is a huge fun of the band...be is the third biggest composer in Billboard chart ever
"Cast In Steel" went in a direction that was more mellow than ever on some of the tracks, but "Forest Fire" is a good one to play for people wanting to know what later a-ha sounds like. I like "The Wake" a little more, but "Forest Fire" is great too. There is one song on "Cast In Steel" that I think you're going to like a lot, but I'm waiting to see your reaction. I'll mention it when you get there.
This one has a lot of energy & pace, probably the paciest on the album. I like this upbeat track it’s a got a jollier less melancholic lyrical content and a driving beat, with Morten soaring as usual gloriously. As for what it means…I take it as moving on and rebuilding your life, or a relationship, after burning the old one down (metaphorically speaking).
Arguably the poppiest track on the album, it wouldn't have sounded out of place on the last album probably due to Steve Osborne returning to co-produce the track. Of course it was released as a single. I wasn't very excited by this album when it was released - cherry picked tracks, like this one - but it's better than I remember.
I'm not mad about the intros Foot of the Mountains copy cat refrain. Otherwise it's a little forgettable for me. I can hear a lot of protool being used here (everyone uses it but it seems obvious to me here).
I think the album was actually mixed in Logic Pro X and not Protools - I seem to remember a clip where you could see LPX on the monitor in the background. But I might be wrong.
Okay, You two are speaking Greek to me. I am curious though. Can you tell me what Protool and Logic Pro X means? If you’re up for it. If not, it’s all good.😂
@@shelld1261 Those are both vocal correction tools used to make singers voices "clean"er. Bending the notes to the perfect pitch in moments where the singer misses a note or is a little off. It's very common these days (he says, trying to sound like he has any idea about modern music).
😳 This is it. Absolutely awful! 😫 This is my worst-ever a-ha track. Totally unbearable. 😵 I didn’t know if I would be able to stand it while watching your reaction, but - as always when I force myself to listen to it - I just shook my head and laughed and couldn't wait for it to be over. 😝😅 Phew! Now I am glad it is over and done with, and this is a reaction I will surely not watch again. 😵💫 Everything is awful, even Morten's voice, for the first time! It's so annoyingly high-pitched and so very strained in the chorus, it is almost painful. You say " high floating vocals", but that is not what I hear. 😜 I hear an almost ridiculously strained voice, not pleasing at all. Every time I hear this song, I keep repeating that chorus in my head in an irritating high-pitched voice and when I "sing" it my own voice is a parody of it, I can't take it seriously. It was a great coincidende that you said it gave you Take On Me vibes, because I always thought that this song was Magne's attempt at writing another Take On Me (I don't remember now if I read it somewhere or if it came from my own brain)! A fast-paced synth riff, an upbeat song exploring Morten's falsetto at its highest - a total failure, in the end, to my ears. What a wreck of a track! 🤦♀Written by Magne, Morten, Martin Terefe and Peter Kvint (Morten’s latest writing partner) in an obvious attempt at writing a commercially successful track. I remember they played it in a few TV shows, promoting the album, and it was so cringing to me! 😩 It was the only time I was not very proud to be a fan. What I get from the lyrics (not that I ever try... but some words and phrases are clear enough) is equally bad and awkward. This is Magne at his very worst for me, and I wish they had never recorded this. 😝 I see I am running against the tide here as many fans say they love this song 🤣, but I already knew it would happen. Let me just say that a few of the band's greatest and more knowledgeable fans agree with me on this, fortunately, so I don't feel I am alone. 😉 Now that we got this one out of the way (ufff, I hope I won't hear it again any time soon!), we will finally begin with the album as I usually listen to it. 😁 Most of the times I skip the first 4 songs: I love Cast In Steel and Under The Makeup, but as they were released as singles months before the album came out I was already a bit tired of them when I got the album, and anyway they always feel a bit "dislocated" when I think of the album, like they are something apart; I don't like The Wake and I can't stand this one, so for me the album usually starts with Objects in The Mirror, which is a great "start". ☺ Then we are in for a proper ride, though I don't really like Morten's second song on this album, but it's better than the first one. The greatest thing about this video was getting a short glimpse of Lucca, but even that might have been much better! 🤣 Ok, I liked to see you too, Matt. 🙃 I knew you would enjoy the synths... Enough of this, I am glad we are moving on to better songs (well, everything is better after this! 😅). 👍
@@mattsnider2667 saying it isn’t my cup of tea is putting it veeeery mildly. 😅 Of course I couldn't skip this reaction of yours, I am here all the way! But I'm so glad this one is behind our backs now! 😁
*Movie scene of people standing and cheering loudly*. I'm glad the wait is over. And you said you wouldn't have much to say. I'm thrilled not to be the only one who actively disliked an a-ha song in this way. I love your honesty here. Whilst i don't hate this track, it's just nothing really. I barely remembered it at all but for the Foot of the Mountain copy in the intro. Great Review and from a personal point of view, I'm very proud that you got to shout it from the digital roof tops. Don't you feel better now ? LOL
I knew it! I knew it all along, I just knew 🤣🤣🤣 As soon as you confirmed it was on Cast In Steel, I realised it would be this. And I know you're not alone - you can't imagine my fury and indignation when I saw Jesper and JP ranked it almost at the bottom! 🤬🤬🤬😂😂😂 I can't believe the wait is over! I'm going to miss the anticipation 😆 I also can't believe you like Halfway Through The Tour more than this 🙄 🤣
@@elyssia7026 Yeah The anticipation is over... Like the last song of a great concert. You say to yourself "that was great" then the realisation that it's over sets in... However, I'm glad that Sofia got to air those views. My personal hell track ranks bellow the bottom of the list.
When I first heard The Weeknd's big hit, Blinding Lights, I immediately thought, like many people, that the rhythm of the song was very similar to Take On Me. But after a few listens, in my opinion, the musical resemblance is even more marked with Forest Fire whose tone of the synth-keyboards are very similar in addition to the tempo. A-HA continues to inspire the new generation of artists... Timeless A-HA! 😊🎶
I thought of A-ha and Howard Jones as a mix when I first heard the Weekend’s song. 👍🏼
I always imagine how this would sound like if it was sung by a younger and more energetic Morten, back in the day when he’d obviously have switched to his belting voice in the last chorus - and had more air and wings to his falsetto 🤩 (thinking about his delivery in, say, Train of Thought and Stay on These Roads).
Great tune, production and vocals none the less!
Forest Fire hooked me immediately when I first heard it, and that's probably because it reminds me so much of the band I fell in love with as a teenager. It was my favorite on the album for a while, but later several others have passed by. Compared to other songs, it's like a fierce and short-lived crush that turns into friendship, while most of a-ha's music is either a fierce crush that turns into lasting love or friendship that turns into love. For my part, there are not many enemies or random neighbors among the songs.
Although I have experienced losing the family cabin in a forest fire, and the song therefore reminds me of exactly that fire that gave us a new and nicer cabin, I agree with Marjorie regarding the lyrics.
I love this song! Such a great energy, so 80's! You could've fooled me into believing this was written during the HHAL and Scoundrel Days era.
🤦♀I don't know how anyone can like this song. 😅 On this one I fully agree with Jesper and Peter. 😉
@@sofiamar18 And I don't get that they hate it that much 😁
@@JesperHellvik 🤷♀ I understand personal tastes are different on all the other songs, but I can't get how people can endure tgis one, less alone like it! 🤣 I was pleasantly surprised to hear Jesper and Peter agreed with me. 🙂 Even though we disagree sometimes, I think in the big picture we mostly agree.
The train is giving its approval of A-HA 🤣❤️🇳🇴❤️🏴🇺🇸😘
Forest Fire is one of the best songs on this album and it's so energetic, I love this song.
In many a-ha songs, music and lyrics are at odds. Although the lyrics are very serious and sad, the music, the tempo is very energetic. Many people only realized after the MTV unplugged concert what a sad text actually lies under Take On Me (I hope that the MTV unplugged concert is in your list 🙏😁).
In the video for Forest Fire, the lyrics are shown in sync with the vocals, so the lyrics play the main role in the video. There is somehow a connection to Mag's artistic work, he is also a very good and renowned artist besides his work in a-ha and being a musician. His sculptures and paintings have often been exhibited in museums. Mags works a lot with texts and letters. On the other hand, I always had the feeling that the Forest Fire video was a reference to Morten's often incomprehensible vocals 😂😂
Forest Fire / A-ha
Goes around
Comes around
It doesn't really matter, yeah
Something wrong
A false alarm
Doesn't ring that true
Watch it flare up
Where do we begin
We are flames in the forest fire
Dancing from within
That's where we begin
We take you far and wide
And like always
Leave a silver lining scar
The stores in town
Are closing down
And everything's in ruin
Borderline
Just turn around
Out of every ditch, a path
Watch it flare up
Time to reign it in
So let's begin
We are flames in the forest fire
Rising from within
That's where we begin
And we fuel desire
And like always
Leave a silver lining scar
Thank you as always for another great comment! And yes, I do have access to the MTV Unplugged album, and we will indeed go through that in the not-too-distant future. :)
@@mattsnider2667 Thank you
Hi Matt, running late watching your reaction I was working today then I fell asleep so I’m watching it now. Forest Fire - music written by Magne Furuholmen , Morten Harket, Martin Terefe and Peter Kvint. Words by Magne Furuholmen . There is no denying that this is the catchiest tune on cast in steel. It has swathes of fire metaphors mixed with dazzling keyboard work. This track was unashamedly a commercial crowd pleaser and o enjoy listening and singing along to it I’m sure your going to enjoy it to Matt. Looking forward to your comments on this track. Take care and I’ll catch you on the next one. I hope you and all the A-HA family have a great weekend. 😘❤️🇳🇴❤️🏴🇺🇸
Max Martin who wrote blinding lights co wrote Analogue song and his is a huge fun of the band...be is the third biggest composer in Billboard chart ever
Pure 80's !
Love the pace & energy🥳
"Cast In Steel" went in a direction that was more mellow than ever on some of the tracks, but "Forest Fire" is a good one to play for people wanting to know what later a-ha sounds like. I like "The Wake" a little more, but "Forest Fire" is great too. There is one song on "Cast In Steel" that I think you're going to like a lot, but I'm waiting to see your reaction. I'll mention it when you get there.
Love it, love it, love it! One of my favourites, it's just brilliant.
Uh-oh... 😬😳
@@sofiamar18 No, no, no, it's not this. No. It's not. You must be mistaken 😂
@@elyssia7026 hehehe, no hope for us, then? 😅😇 I am sure we will still agree on many others. 😉
@@sofiamar18 😂😂😂
This one has a lot of energy & pace, probably the paciest on the album. I like this upbeat track it’s a got a jollier less melancholic lyrical content and a driving beat, with Morten soaring as usual gloriously. As for what it means…I take it as moving on and rebuilding your life, or a relationship, after burning the old one down (metaphorically speaking).
I see! Sort of fits with what I was thinking about the title but I didn't catch enough of the lyrics to know if that was the case.
Mi piacciono molto il ritmo e la musica di questa canzone
😊❤🎵🇳🇴
Arguably the poppiest track on the album, it wouldn't have sounded out of place on the last album probably due to Steve Osborne returning to co-produce the track. Of course it was released as a single. I wasn't very excited by this album when it was released - cherry picked tracks, like this one - but it's better than I remember.
I'm not mad about the intros Foot of the Mountains copy cat refrain. Otherwise it's a little forgettable for me. I can hear a lot of protool being used here (everyone uses it but it seems obvious to me here).
I think the album was actually mixed in Logic Pro X and not Protools - I seem to remember a clip where you could see LPX on the monitor in the background. But I might be wrong.
@@JesperHellvik you are probably right. My son is studying sound engineering and tells me protool is more often used for live settings.
Okay, You two are speaking Greek to me. I am curious though. Can you tell me what Protool and Logic Pro X means? If you’re up for it. If not, it’s all good.😂
@@shelld1261 Those are both vocal correction tools used to make singers voices "clean"er. Bending the notes to the perfect pitch in moments where the singer misses a note or is a little off. It's very common these days (he says, trying to sound like he has any idea about modern music).
@@UnhandyCandy280 Oh okay cool. Thank you. I appreciate that. Always cool to learn stuff. Hey, you knew more than me, so there you go. 😉
😳 This is it. Absolutely awful! 😫 This is my worst-ever a-ha track.
Totally unbearable. 😵 I didn’t know if I would be able to stand it while watching your reaction, but - as always when I force myself to listen to it - I just shook my head and laughed and couldn't wait for it to be over. 😝😅 Phew! Now I am glad it is over and done with, and this is a reaction I will surely not watch again. 😵💫
Everything is awful, even Morten's voice, for the first time! It's so annoyingly high-pitched and so very strained in the chorus, it is almost painful. You say " high floating vocals", but that is not what I hear. 😜 I hear an almost ridiculously strained voice, not pleasing at all. Every time I hear this song, I keep repeating that chorus in my head in an irritating high-pitched voice and when I "sing" it my own voice is a parody of it, I can't take it seriously.
It was a great coincidende that you said it gave you Take On Me vibes, because I always thought that this song was Magne's attempt at writing another Take On Me (I don't remember now if I read it somewhere or if it came from my own brain)! A fast-paced synth riff, an upbeat song exploring Morten's falsetto at its highest - a total failure, in the end, to my ears. What a wreck of a track! 🤦♀Written by Magne, Morten, Martin Terefe and Peter Kvint (Morten’s latest writing partner) in an obvious attempt at writing a commercially successful track. I remember they played it in a few TV shows, promoting the album, and it was so cringing to me! 😩 It was the only time I was not very proud to be a fan.
What I get from the lyrics (not that I ever try... but some words and phrases are clear enough) is equally bad and awkward. This is Magne at his very worst for me, and I wish they had never recorded this. 😝
I see I am running against the tide here as many fans say they love this song 🤣, but I already knew it would happen. Let me just say that a few of the band's greatest and more knowledgeable fans agree with me on this, fortunately, so I don't feel I am alone. 😉
Now that we got this one out of the way (ufff, I hope I won't hear it again any time soon!), we will finally begin with the album as I usually listen to it. 😁 Most of the times I skip the first 4 songs: I love Cast In Steel and Under The Makeup, but as they were released as singles months before the album came out I was already a bit tired of them when I got the album, and anyway they always feel a bit "dislocated" when I think of the album, like they are something apart; I don't like The Wake and I can't stand this one, so for me the album usually starts with Objects in The Mirror, which is a great "start". ☺ Then we are in for a proper ride, though I don't really like Morten's second song on this album, but it's better than the first one.
The greatest thing about this video was getting a short glimpse of Lucca, but even that might have been much better! 🤣 Ok, I liked to see you too, Matt. 🙃 I knew you would enjoy the synths... Enough of this, I am glad we are moving on to better songs (well, everything is better after this! 😅). 👍
Hahaha, I love this comment! Sorry this one isn't your cup of tea but Lucca and I thank you for giving the video a watch all the same!
@@mattsnider2667 saying it isn’t my cup of tea is putting it veeeery mildly. 😅 Of course I couldn't skip this reaction of yours, I am here all the way! But I'm so glad this one is behind our backs now! 😁
*Movie scene of people standing and cheering loudly*. I'm glad the wait is over. And you said you wouldn't have much to say. I'm thrilled not to be the only one who actively disliked an a-ha song in this way. I love your honesty here. Whilst i don't hate this track, it's just nothing really. I barely remembered it at all but for the Foot of the Mountain copy in the intro. Great Review and from a personal point of view, I'm very proud that you got to shout it from the digital roof tops. Don't you feel better now ? LOL
I knew it! I knew it all along, I just knew 🤣🤣🤣
As soon as you confirmed it was on Cast In Steel, I realised it would be this. And I know you're not alone - you can't imagine my fury and indignation when I saw Jesper and JP ranked it almost at the bottom! 🤬🤬🤬😂😂😂
I can't believe the wait is over! I'm going to miss the anticipation 😆 I also can't believe you like Halfway Through The Tour more than this 🙄 🤣
@@elyssia7026 Yeah The anticipation is over... Like the last song of a great concert. You say to yourself "that was great" then the realisation that it's over sets in... However, I'm glad that Sofia got to air those views. My personal hell track ranks bellow the bottom of the list.