Here I Am (Marion Raven album)

Last updated
Here I Am
200px-MarionRavenHereIAm.jpg
Studio album by
Released Flag of Singapore.svg Flag of Malaysia.svg Flag of Thailand.svg Flag of Indonesia.svg Flag of the Philippines.svg June 6, 2005
Flag of Japan.svg Flag of Australia (converted).svg Flag of Mexico.svg Flag of New Zealand.svg June 8, 2005
Flag of Norway.svg Flag of Sweden.svg 10 August 2005
Recorded2004-05
Genre Pop rock
Modern rock
Post-grunge
Hard rock
Alternative rock
Length56:56
Label Atlantic
Producer Max Martin
Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald
Rami
Marion Ravn chronology
Here I Am
(2005)
Heads Will Roll EP
(2006)

Here I Am is the debut solo album by M2M member, Marion Ravn, released on June 6, 2005. Ravn co-wrote all but one of the songs with several well-known musicians. She played both acoustic and electric guitars as well as the piano and provided background vocals on a number of songs. The album showed her transition from her past M2M pop sound to a dark hard-rock sound. Her musical transition was well received by critics internationally.

Contents

The album debuted at No. 6 in her native Norway and at No. 13 in Japan [1] and was highly successful in countries such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Raven went on a tour of Southeast Asian countries to promote the album in late 2005. However, lack of promotion on Atlantic Records part and delays in releasing the album in the U.S. prompted Ravn to leave the music company.

The album was released in the United States in 2007, with a different track listing and title, Set Me Free , incorporating new and old songs, including an acoustic version of "Let Me Introduce Myself" and the re-recorded version of "Heads Will Roll," which preceded the album in October 2006, as part of the Heads Will Roll EP.

Raven talked about "13 Days" and other songs on Here I Am in an interview in 2005,

13 Days is about a Danish boy I met. He came and visited me in Norway, at my parents' house; before I got to know him well. He was there for thirteen days. It didn't go well. We had nothing to talk about. He was really boring and I felt as if I was trapped in my own house. And on the day he was going home he wrecked my car. My dad had to come and pick us up. Then he almost missed his flight and since then I haven't heard a word from him. No calls, no emails. I've written three songs about those thirteen days. Three songs about the same guy. I get really pissed when I sing them. I hope he buys my record.

Background and composition

Ravn rose to prominence as half of the musical duo M2M, alongside Marit Larsen. In 2002, M2M disbanded after the release of two albums and some international success. Following the break-up, M2M's American record label, Atlantic Records, approached Ravn with an offer for a solo record contract. [2] In later interviews, she explained that she would otherwise not have been able to work with others until at least 2005, as she had a pre-existing contract with the label. [3] Her debut album was reported to have a budget of NOK 7.3 million, or approximately one million US dollars at the time. [4]

In the autumn of 2002, Ravn began recording songs for her solo project with Norwegian producer Ole Evenrud at his studio in Halden; these songs were ultimately never released. [4] Ravn was introduced to Max Martin by her then-manager Thomas Erdtman. Martin believed that he had songs that could be suitable for Ravn, but soon they started collaborating on the album's music and lyrics. Songwriting and recording started in January 2003 at Metronome in Stockholm and the album was reported to be finished by early January 2004. [2] [5] In an interview to BON, Ravn stated that they "had no fixed date by which we had to be finished. We could hold on as long as we felt necessary." [2]

Several other songwriters joined the project, including Nikki Sixx from Mötley Crüe (whom Ravn met in June 2004 when his band Brides of Destruction performed in Norway), Art Alexakis from Everclear (who sings on "At The End Of The Day"), Jimmy Harry, as well as Canadian singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida from the band Our Lady Peace. [6]

Singles

Track listing

Japan and Scandinavia release track listing

Main track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Get Me Out of Here" Marion Raven, Greg Kurstin, Richie Andruska, John Deley, Jamie Siegel3:30
2."Break You" Max Martin, Dr. Luke 3:11
3."Crawl"Marion Raven, Danielle Brisebois, Jimmy Harry3:48
4."Here I Am"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub 3:49
5."Little by Little"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Peter Svensson 4:00
6."End of Me"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub4:29
7."13 Days"Marion Raven, Chantal Kreviazuk, Raine Maida 3:08
8."For You I'll Die"Marion Raven4:50
9."Let Me Introduce Myself"Marion Raven3:42
10."Heads Will Roll (EP)"Marion Raven, Nikki Sixx, James Michael3:16
11."At the End of the Day" (featuring Art Alexakis of Everclear)Marion Raven, Art Alexakis4:00
12."Six Feet Under"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub3:26
13."Gotta Be Kidding"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Camela Leivert3:47
14."In Spite of Me"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Alexandra Talomaa4:16
Bonus Tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Surfing the Sun"Marion Raven, Nikki Sixx, James Michael,3:51
16."There I Said It"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub3:46

The Japanese release also has a bonus DVD with 'Break You' and 'Here I Am' music videos.

Southeast Asia and Taiwan releases track listing

Main track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."End of Me" Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami 4:29
2."Here I Am"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub3:49
3."Break You"Max Martin, Dr. Luke 3:11
4."Crawl"Marion Raven, Danielle Brisebois, Jimmy Harry3:48
5."Little by Little"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Peter Svensson 4:00
6."Get Me Out of Here"Marion Raven, Greg Kurstin, Richie Andruska, John Deley, Jamie Siegel3:30
7."13 Days"Marion Raven, Chantal Kreviazuk, Raine Maida 3:08
8."For You I'll Die"Marion Raven4:50
9."Let Me Introduce Myself"Marion Raven3:42
10."Heads Will Roll (EP)"Marion Raven, Nikki Sixx, James Michael3:16
11."At the End of the Day" (featuring Art Alexakis of Everclear)Marion Raven, Art Alexakis4:00
12."Six Feet Under"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub3:26
13."Gotta Be Kidding"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Camela Leivert3:47
14."In Spite of Me"Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami Yacoub, Alexandra Talomaa4:16

Bonus tracks and B-Sides:

  1. "Surfing the Sun" (Marion Raven, Nikki Sixx, James Michael) 3:53 *Japanese Bonus Track
  2. "There I Said It" (Marion Raven, Max Martin, Rami) 3:48 *Single B-Side for Swedish "Break You" and Norwegian "Here I Am" singles

Tracks that did not make it into the final cut of the album were,"Forgot His Name", "Brand New Me", "Disconnected", "Have Mercy", "Bittersweet" and "Gutter". Little is known about these songs, but a track called 'Get Over Me' leaked to the web in 2006. [7]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
ABCNYHETER.noStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [8]
The New Paper onlineStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
Melodic.NetStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [10]
Play.com Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [11]

Chart performance

Charts

Chart (2005)Peak
position
Japanese Oricon Album Chart13 [1]
Singapore Album Chart3
Malaysia Album Chart4
Norway Top 40 Albums6

Credits

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References

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  8. ABCNYHETER.no review
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  10. Melodic.Net review
  11. Play.com review
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