The Men They Couldn’t Shave saw the day of light autumn 2000, when Mr. Mo Larsen met the transcendent Mr. Roy Botten at Roy’s legendary studio Hard Rain. Roy decided to record some of Mo Larsen’s songs – tunes he’d made in the desert of New Mexico during his time in the loneliness and the wilderness outside Albuquerque. 

You need a band to record songs, and this is really the point where the band The Men They Couldn’t Shave was born. Mo Larsen and his friend and warrior Dag Peeters asked Jan Henri Peeters if he could join in and arrange the songs about to be recorded. Jan said yes, sharpened his guitars and got auditioned a bass-player and a drummer for the weekend of recording. Two days of rehearsals and the band entered the legendary studio Hard Rain, where Mr. Botten was ready and eager behind the desk with thousands of buttons. Three nights and three days ended up in the demo-EP “Ray Ban’s for the Nightingales”, six songs by Mo Larsen, but arranged by the entire band. The transcendent Mr. Botten saw something the band had not yet discovered - at least that’s what the story tells – because he joined in on harmonica and has been a creative and critical force in the band from this day on. Musicians and music-lovers labelled the demo “a great start with a snappy coctail of songs”. The few reviews the EP got were optimistic – they were yet to be even more optimistic. The Men didn’t do much talkin’ anyway the first six months of 2001. Mo Larsen did his things and wrote lyrics and tunes for the next project – soon to be named “Passports Won’t Dance” – another EP with six songs.

Mr. Botten and Mo Larsen recorded five of these songs in the middle of Christmas 2001 at Mr. Bottens new studio in the middle of nowhere. Just the two of them, an acoustic guitar and a harmonica. The session even got a name to itself – “Acoustic Absinthe”. Why, only the two of them know – and they won’t tell…. The two warriors who respond to the name Peeters gathered their companions on bass and drums. A new drummer – Mr. Raymond Wennerstrøm – joined the band and added spice and creativity to the sound of the band.  Four days of rehearsals and the band once again entered the gates of the upcoming legendary Botten Studios. All in all it took the band seven days to finish the six songs on “Passports Won’t Dance” – a demo showing that the band is on its way to its own sound and attitude and groove. This demo is significant to the band’s course for several reasons: Something is crystallizing in the sound and attitude in the music, and Jan’s melody on the song “Beneath the Ashes” is a firecracker and a sign that he’s the one to write the melodies in the future. And the last but very important sign: The band show that they hear similar sounds and are able to spot the same oasis in the horizon for the band. The Men They Couldn’t Shave are about to give birth to their own sound – the sound of the desert and the sound of honesty. And that’s the crossroads the band is standing at. 

12 new songs have been chosen to be on the new album “Ragin’ Butterflies”.  One rehearsal has been recorded – and those who’ve listened to it are extremely optimistic. A more defined The Men They Couldn’t Shave are eager to once again enter Botten Studios  to get to work on what will become another proud statement in the band’s history – so far. 

“Ragin’ Butterflies” became the proud statement we all hoped it would be. Raving reviews all over the place, and the tribe from the desert got confirmed that what they heard in their heads were sounds other people longed to hear. The Men They Couldn’t Shave helped them out as the record sold well since its release June 6th 2003.

A hell of a release party at Jessheim made the floors move and the few gigs the band managed to fit into a busy schedule, proves that the more they play together, the better they sound – and appear.

In between rehearsals and gigs, Jan and Mo Larsen worked on new songs. The chemistry between the two is still developing and they are bound to give birth to a great musical flower on the next one. The entire band is contributing on the arrangements – of course.

But when Jan decided to record 10 acoustics seeds late summer, there was easy to see that something is happening here, Mr. Jones. Great melodies, sharp lyrics – a more distinct and confident batch of songs are now born. What these acoustic beauties will end up as, noone can tell. But expectations are already higher than we thought they would ever be. Where will this journey end?

Join the tribe roaming the desert and find out for yourself. Jan and Mr. Mo Larsen has right now named the upcoming project “Been on this land too long”. And they assure you that there’s nothing defensive about that. And there is nothing depressive about it either. The Men They Couldn’t Shave refuse to stand still. They are moving on. They have been on this land too long. Where they end up the next time they come around, remains to be seen. 

It is strange how time passes slowly and yet so fast. The work with the upcoming project just seemed to explode in the faces of the drifters in the ragged commune. What was meant to be one record, just expanded into two albums – one with sounds from the urban prairie and one good ol’ country-album with songs that made the band weep dust instead of tears.

Mr. Raymond Wennerstrøm left the band, and the drums were left empty. Raymond moved to London to pursue his search for God the almighty. He found a beautiful girl and went to Australia to get married. All is well and he is living and breathing spiritual air. He still has got the scriptures in his pocket.

What now? A band with no drummer is no band at all…

In from the plains came this tall man with rhythm in his veins. Mr. Hans Petter Kværner became somewhat a savior with a beat. He sat down at his first rehearsal and beat that snare drum so hard that the paint fell from the walls. He was the man to keep the beat going.

Rehearsals kicked off and the band headed down the trail to start recording the two albums. Looking at the timeline, we are facing fall of 2005 at this point.

During the winter of 2005, the songs fell into place and the albums were taking shape. The boys were on to something, and the road was no longer as steep and narrow as it had seemed at times. Then our bassplayer decided to pursue his quest elsewhere. And the projects came to a quick stop. Not for long, though.

The Men They Couldn’t Shave managed to get a hold of a mighty unshaved bassplayer carrying the name of Mr. Brian Tierney – a man with both feet in the blues, and with a bass guitar – an original Fender jazz from 1962 – that the mighty Jimi Hendrix has played on. Mr. Brian filled the room with groovy gracefulness and the train was rolling again.

The album “42nd Street Electric Fox” was shipped to the rock capitol of Norway, Halden. And Mr. Kai Andersen mixed the songs before Mr. Audun Strype mastered the horsethieves’ songs. The record was off to the print shop.

Well, hunting down the electric fox on 42nd street didn't take too long. The unshaved posse looked at the horizon and decided to chase another prey, some other place. And Mr. J. H. Peeters and his compadre Mr. Mo Larsen discussed the next move with their gang. All agreed, and The Men They Couldn't Shave left the big city with its hotels and neon lights and hardship and broken dreams - another dream was about to be scared shitless as the trancendent Bad Boy Botten locked himself inside his vintage studio and decided to disappear for a couple of months.
 
And as the warm strokes and kisses of springtime hummed in the pines and chased chill from the bones of the entire unshaved commune, Mr. Bad Boy Botten unlocked the door and stepped out of his solitude.
 
- Listen up, boys, the transcendent Bad Boy Botten said to his friends.
 
- It's time for us to move on. We have to leave, we got a record to release.
 
And the birth of the country album "Stories From Cactus Motel" was slipped out of one of Mr. Botten's cowboy boots. A country album that got a lot of praise from the reviewers out there - it even sold internationally (Italy, Spain, Belgium, Denmark and the U.S of A). Lucky Strike?
 
Two sold out gigs was a hell of a release of the album and the entire commune found themselves in another unfamiliar position. A small cult was beginning to surround them, and along with great recognition from their two favorite bands - Jane Doe and the youngsters in what is to become the legendary Bedrock Bluesband - tipped tilted their hats in approval. The three bands even founded what is hopefully becoming a tradition in their hometown - a Christmas-gig that is sold out!
 
Anyways, time just keeps on ticking and with the restless guitarslinger J.H. Peeters on fire, The Men They Couldn't Shave didn't stand still for long. New projects are about to come to life. And Mo Larsen and Mr. Peeters packed a car and headed down to the cabin "Call of the West" in the southern part of Norway. The two of 'em returned with the saddlebags filled with new songs for the boys in the band to dig into - which the boys did. Man, did they dig...!
 
And that's where we are when springtime 2008 is approaching - lots of new songs and a few gigs lined up in near future. This band is still moving and this band is still chasing that oldest song of 'em all. And Mr. Old Henri P is still the man behind the wheel - that angry sailorman is still throwing that whip of a tongue at us. And he is successful doing so. He has even contributed with some lyrics for the new album.
 
Let's see what happens in the future. This worn down and unshaved greyhound is still running for the border. It's just restlessness/that keeps us riding/it's just restlessness/and a sense of sliding.