Annie

WHO is Annie?

Well… Annie or Anne Lilia Berge Strand as she was christened, twenty five years ago in Norway, is what we old fashioned pundits would call an entity…A dynamic new presence in the world of music…An artist not afraid to cross boundaries, but destined to push them down with a sweet smile and a electro fuelled kiss.
Annie’s highly anticipated debut album ‘Anniemal’ is a magnificent combination of alternative pop, applied with suss and style - easy enough in theory, almost impossible to pull off in practice. Until now that is…'Anniemal' is as commercial as a blockbuster, as smart as a whip and as irresistible as gravity.

Since releasing 'Chewing Gum,' (For many the first taste of the Annie sound - Anniemal’s first UK Single release and debut chart hit) a 24-carat pop masterpiece in its own right already dubbed as one of the singles of last year, Annie has released her debut album in her native Scandinavia and has quickly been heralded as a superstar in the making. The album debuting at #1 in Norway with massive press, TV and radio support plus 3 nominations (the highest of any act) at the Alarm awards (the equivalent of our Brit Awards) and a Norwegian Grammy nomination in February.

Her blend of spiky-pop and electro has quickly made Annie one of the most hotly tipped new artists across the globe. Annie has already been embraced by many as a new tour de force in electro-disco, championed across the board by the likes of Mylo, DFA & LCD Soundsystem, Rob Da Bank and Scissor Sisters (who came onstage every night to an Annie track on their last tour).

Another artist to come out of the musical melting pot that is Bergen (her close-knit hometown in Norway, which she shares with the likes of Royksopp, Kings Of Convenience, Magnet and Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band), Annie has quickly forged her own reputation for revitalising the dancefloor with impeccably poised club classics.

The first fruits of her musical output was 'The Greatest Hit’, an inspired dance pop song that became an underground cult classic based on a loop from Madonna's 'Everybody', recorded with the late Tore E. Kroknes (aka DJ Erot) her musical partner/boyfriend. “I think Tore would have wanted me to stay happy, and making this album was my destiny. I needed to do it for me.”

‘Anniemal’ was recorded and produced in Bergen, Helsinki & London with Royksopp, Richard X and Timothy Kaukolampi of cult Finnish electro marauders OP:L Bastards/And The Lefthanded and takes you on a modern musical journey; from the breathtaking eight-minute disco 'Come Together' to the Missy Elliott-esque R&B rumble of 'Always Too Late'.

Standouts include forthcoming single 'Heartbeat', an incredible, Motown-tinged stomper produced by million selling friends and neighbours Royksopp (who had previously turned down working with the likes of Britney Spears) which contains no synthesizers at all, which despite no release was recently voted #1 single of the year for ‘04 by massively influential American music website Pitchfork; another is the Shakatak-sampling breeze-pop soft-soul classic 'No Easy Love', and of course the still-mighty pop stylings of 'The Greatest Hit’.

Together with Richard X she completed the final pieces of the jigsaw, recording both 'Chewing Gum', and the perilously addictive ‘Me Plus One’ in London earlier this year. “Working with Richard was so much fun, he understands what I’m trying to do exactly.” The overall result is 'Anniemal', an album that has been embraced from the NME to the dancefloor at Fabric and everywhere in between.

This is mainly due to her unique own sound which has as much in common with Kylie (to whom she has been compared) as label-mates The Futureheads. “I think it’s time for something new, I hope I can be that thing,” she says with a sparkle in her eye. Few people could combine the modern dance aesthetic of Richard X with the classic sound of artists/groups like Tom Tom Club, Talking Heads or Grace Jones, topped off with her trademark seductive vocal-style.

Annie herself is a well respected DJ in her own right. She has played sets as wide-a-field as highly influential music expo Sonar, In London’s uber-cool Trash club or at an after party for the Nordic music awards attended by the likes of Robbie Williams and Christina Aguilara. The recipe for an Annie party is the same the world over,“ When I play, I just wanna make sure everyone is having fun and dancing.”

She’s currently rehearsing with her new band that she has assembled to bring ‘Anniemal’ live and direct to a club/venue near you which will debut in the UK in February. Once the Anniemal is unleashed worldwide there'll be no stopping her.

Annie loves her cat Joey (named after Joey Ramone), making music, buying new records, The Stooges, playing Playstation, shoes, watching bad TV, exercising, Topshop and hanging out with her friends.