Skotsk på Buddy

Preview of Leven's appearance at the “lyttekonserter” at Buddy Scene in Drammen, conducted by Johnny Andreassen (who had already done the Fremtiden interview in 1995). Leven raves (in his own account) that Drammen is “the holiday I always look forward to”, while many concerts around the world are thankless: the “wonderful Margrethe” (promoter Margrethe Berg), walks over the bridge from the hotel, a town with growing self-confidence and Buddy's unique soul. Berg had to close the door at his concerts every time and send latecomers home.

Leven tells how the album title Gothic Road came about: after a wild evening he woke up on all fours on his stone kitchen floor, on which he had written “Something Gothic” with a felt-tip pen; his wife was away, the word would not scrub off, and in the process he heard himself say the phrase that became the title. He also declares his support for Gordon Brown, who he says saved England from economic ruin; they went to school together, and he was present at the rugby game in which Brown lost the sight in one eye. A song about the Jarrow protest march is mentioned (“1938” in the paper). In Norway, Gothic Road received fives and sixes on the dice.