Part of the post-
Cardigans trend in Scandinavian pop toward a more rocking, garagey sound, Oslo, Norway's
Cato Salsa Experience make a righteously sloppy clatter with a strong hint of psychedelia and just enough pop smarts to make it work. The group formed in 2000 when singer and guitarist Cato Thomassen, bassist Christian Engfelt, and drummer Jon Magne Riise held an informal jam session in Thomassen's kitchen. Adding keyboardist Nina Bjorndalen and taking their nonsensical name from a joke someone had scribbled on the aforementioned kitchen wall, the band started gigging around the local clubs and released a self-titled 10" EP. After
the Hives made the Scandinavian countries hot again, the American label Emperor Norton signed the
Cato Salsa Experience, releasing their debut album, A Good Tip for a Good Time, in the summer of 2002. ~ Stewart Mason