The Norwegian synthpop band, a-ha, has announced that the group will split at the end of a "farewell tour" culminating in their final shows in Oslo in December 2009. The group has been together for 25 years.
A report on a web site in UK (where the group has had 15 top 10 singles) reported:
Announcing their split today, the band's Morten Harket, Magne Furuholmen and Paul Waaktaar-Savoy said bowing out would give them a chance to pursue "other meaningful aspects of life".
In a statement they said: "We've literally lived the ultimate boy's adventure tale, through a longer, more rewarding career than anyone could hope for.
"Doing this now will give us a chance to get more involved in other meaningful aspects of life, be it humanitarian work, politics, or whatever else – and of course through new constellations in the field of art and music.
"We are retiring as a band, not as individuals. Change is always difficult and it is easy to get set in one's ways. Now it is time to move on."
Most folks of a certain age in the USA remember a-ha primarily for their 1985 number on hit, "Take On Me". The video of the tune was considered cutting edge at the time because of its use of the pencil-sketch animation/live-action combination called rotoscoping. The video was nominated for eight 1986 MTV Video Music awards — and won six.
Adjø, a-ha!
