Sas Plus/Sas Pussy

The EP was released on February 22, 2019, through Apen og Kjeften and distributed by Sony Music. The release differs from albums that were released earlier by Karpe, as this is one continuous track in 29 minutes and 47 second. Initially, it was not the plan to make their next release one long track. They got the idea halfway through the process when Chirag and Magdi realised that the transitions were related to the lyrics of the next song and the overall theme of the album. Karpe accuses their old record label Cosmos Music of making incorrect payouts, on the track "§ 393". The name of the track is in reference to a Norwegian law, straffeloven § 393, which regulates "Rough accounting transgression". The record label itself believes the dispute is about producer rights. == Recording ==

Recording for Sas Plus/Sas Pussy took place between 2018 and 2019, mostly on different hotel rooms in Europe. The production was handled by Aksel "Axxe" Carlson and Thomas Kongshavn. The former worked with the contemporary soundscape, while Kongshavn worked with the short documentary theatre that is between the music. == Composition ==

Sas Plus/Sas Pussy is a hip hop EP that mainly focuses on rap/urban expressions and alternative R&B, while also incorporating elements of Egyptian film music, 1990s bhangra pop like Bally Sagoo, and viral, hyper modern Auto-Tuned punjabi pop like Guru Randhawa. This can be found in the track "ZALIL" that consist of an "omnisphere" sound that is named "Mallet Ballet", with a guitar amp. The track is missing some frequencies and is built with side-chaining, reverberation, and compressions. The missing frequencies create space for other elements, including more distortion, which Aksel "Axxe" Carlson explained as being used for making an element unpredictable. That in the end gives the track a bhangra pop association. The album has a musically executed expression. It begins in the quiet corner before harder synth lines emerge after ten minutes. Just before the midpoint, a more complex sound image is introduced, with measured beats coming and going. Finally, the EP ends up back in the soft sounds where it started. The music is constantly interrupted by small documentary clips, which takes the listener out of the music and into the process behind it. The sonic journey Karpe have tried to make is a lot about details that encourage the listeners to get emerged in the making of Sas Plus/Sas Pussy. It is mostly clips of calls and various audio recordings. On the song "" there is usage of this method. The sound of the EP is mixed and edited with Apple's Logic Pro X. == Artwork ==

The cover photo for Sas Plus/Sas Pussy was taken by Michael Ray Vera Cruz Angeles, an Oslo-based photographer. The photo is of a male from behind, who has pearls around his neck. The bottom part of the cover shows a list of 17 tracks with a timestamp and logo for the release. On September 19, 2019, Karpe released an LP record of Sas Plus/Sas Pussy. It is a single record with eight tracks on each side. The album has the same cover art as the digital version, but on the back it has the alternative cover. The cover opens as a book; inside it is a full side with the lyrics for the release. On the other side, there are images of the recording process from studios and hotel rooms, and the liner notes at the bottom. == Release and promotion ==

In the fall of 2019, Karpe announced a tour in Norway with exclusively club concerts that sold out quickly. Days after the announcement, the duo started to post mysterious photos and videos with equally mysterious captions on their Instagram account. They used photos or videos of Princess Diana, Dodi Al-Fayed, Farouk Al-Kasim, Hussein of Jordan, Muna al-Hussein, Pakistani singers, map of Youngstorget and older pictures of SAS aircraft, among others. On September 19, 2019, the duo released an LP version of Sas Plus/Sas Pussy, which was distributed by Sony Music in Norway. == Critical reception ==

As of February 2020, Sas Plus/Sas Pussy is Karpe's most critically acclaimed release. Mathias Rødahl from Dagbladet gave the EP a top score, and summed up the listening experience by saying "at the center of it all is the class journey - both their own and their parents. From horse-drawn vehicle in rural India, to Audi A4 at Skedsmokorset. From young amateur rappers with a dream, to Norway's most popular and best paid superstars". Rødahl ended the review by praising Sas Plus/Sas Pussy as Karpe's best project, noting a lot of help from Axle "Axxe" Carlson and Thomas Kongshavn, as well as melodic assistance from Isah. On January 23, 2020, the nominees for the Spellemann Awards 2019 were presented, with Karpe being nominated in the categories Urban and Album of the Year for Sas Plus/Sas Pussy. The duo were also nominated in the category Songwriter of the Year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Oslo municipality prohibited all arrangement with above 500 people. Therefore, the awards show moved to be arranged over difference digital broadcasting options on March 28, 2020 organised by NRK. The duo won the category Album of the Year. Isah, that contributed to the EP, won in the categories Urban and Breakthrough of the Year & Gramo scholarship. == Track listing ==

Notes • All track titles are stylized in all caps. • "00:00 Sas Pussy" features vocals by Emilie Nicolas • "08:10 (5000 Inr)" features voices by Rashmikant I. Patel • "12:16 " features voices by Mohammed Abdelmaguid and Kristin Jess Rodin • "14:07 Syreangrep" features vocals by Isah • "17:52 Lock N' Load" features vocals by Isah • "20:50 Ramstadsletta" features additional voices by Michael Ray Angeles, Erik Kiil Saga, Isah, Anita Patel Jusnes, Oda Felicia Bardal Sigstad Abdelmaguid, Beyoumi Johan, Sofian Even and Jakob Mamdouh • "22:33 Blod, Homie" features vocals by Isah • "24:30 " features vocals by Isah • "25:35 Hesselbergs Gate 2, 3717 Skien" features additional voices by Michael Ray Angeles and Sebastian Ekeberg • "25:57 Dodi i En Hoodie" features vocals by Isah and Emilie Nicolas == Personnel ==

Musicians • Aksel "Axxe" Carlson – keyboards , bass • Thomas Kongshavn – keyboards , guitar , bass • Magdi Omar Ytreeide Abdelmaguid – theremin • Marius Bjørnson – keyboards • Eirik Kiil Saga – keyboards , piano • Madeleine Ossum – strings • Kaja Fjellberg Pettersen – strings Technical • Sören Von Malmoborg – mastering , mixing • Axxe – mixing , engineer , programming • Thomas Kongshavn – mixing , engineer , programming , sound design • Even Ormestad – engineer • Henning Svoren – engineer • Tobias "Astma" Jimson – programming • Peder Jørgensen – sound design Studio • Recording Studio: Basecamp Studios (Stockholm, Sweden), Albatross Recorders (Oslo, Norway), SPACE (Austin, Texas), Ocean Sound Recordings (Ålesund, Norway), and a number of hotel rooms • Mixing Studio: SPACE and Basecamp Studios • Mastering Studio: Cosmos Mastering == 2019 tour ==

On March 9, 2019, Karpe started on their tour, with 23 concerts in Norway and seven in other places around Europe on the program. This included four concerts at Rockefeller in Oslo, two at Studentersamfundet in Trondheim, and the latter amount at USF Verftet in Bergen, among others. Compared to the previous concert at Oslo Spektrum named "Heisann Spektrum" in 2017, the tour was set to be in an intimate setting. The setting was with a stage in the middle of the room and audiences on all sides, while the band and DJ were distributed on three platforms along the walls. Karpe performed a mix of Sas Plus/Sas Pussy and previously released music, such as "Rett i foret", "Hvite menn som pusher 50" and "Hus/hotell/slott brenner" from Heisann Montebello. Sofie Braseth from Dagbladet reviewed the concert at kroa i bø, grading it three stars out of five. Breaseth complemented the intimate setting, but said "the concert at Kroa perceives somehow underwhelming in light of past mega performances, but by all means: Karpe can undoubtedly create a party". She found the concert inconsistent. Karpe have played in the venue several times before. The first time in 2013 with one sold-out show, after the success of their fourth studio album Kors på halsen, ti kniver i hjertet, mor og far i døden (2012). Karpe's second time was in 2017 with three sold-out concerts in promotion of Heisann Montebello. ==Charts==