HISTORY
Per Selör is from Skien, Norway and started out early as a guitarplayer in various rockbands. The most famous band of his, "The Tracemen", recorded two singles and an album, and did many conserts in Norway and Scandinavia. Besides being the composer and musician in Shine Dion, he also works as a sound engineer.
Janne Hansen grew up in Kongsberg, a part of Norway known for its beautiful woodland landscapes. She has written all the lyrics for the Shine Dion songs as well as being the singer and chorist.
The two met in 1990, and has since been happily creating music.
The duo started out by the name of "Rose Willow" and recorded a 4 tracks demo March 1992 Songs: "Elements", "White Dreams", "Lady of honour"and "Elegy", but in 1992 they changed their name to "Shine Dión". The name reffering to the moon godess Diana and the moon as a symbol for feelings.
In December 1993, the CD-EP "Berkana" was released on the Norwegian record company Colours. The CD with three songs received good reviews all over the world;
- "Trois perles de poisie" (Harmonie, France),
- "Fabolous stuff" (Chroinga Well, Belgium)
- "Three songs that weeds our appetites" (Dirty Linen, USA)
The CD was produced in 1500 ex and sold out shortly after the release. Colours decided to close down their record company, and the CD-EP was never reproduced.
In May 1996 Colours released a 7" vinyl singe with 2 songs from BERKANA. "Woods Eternal" and "Elegy" (long version). Only relased in 56 copies with autographs !
In 1998 the duo decided to record a full album and released the CD "Killandra" on their own record Company The Holly. "Killandra" had 11 songs, ranging from 3 to nearly 7 minutes. The music and lyrics were inspired by the scenery of the Norwegian landscape and fairy tales, and was a blend between Norwegian and Irish folk tunes, with hints of progressiv.
Among the instruments on Killandra were: violin (Mr Trond Villa from the legendary Norwegian folk-rock band Folque), flutes, saxophone, mandolin, percussions, accoustic/el.guitars and mellotron.
The "Killandra" CD was well received by various magazines:
- "This is a flawless, almost perfect psychedelic folk rock album, simply one of the best European releases of the past 10 years. Killandra will become a legend among pixies and trolls. (Crohinga Well, Belgium)
- "My favourite track is Dusk -a beautifully mystical piece pairing atmospheric keyboards, violin and sax with fabulous lyrical imagery" (Progression Magazine, USA)
- "If you like delicate moody songs, this album is for you" (Acid Dragon, France)
- "Mostly acoustic, with flute and violin, the songs float as mountain rivers, with the fantastic voice of Janne Hansen in the front" (Scream Magazine, Norway)
- "You get the picture: mystic, magical, enchanting music. All good reasons to give this record a try" (Delire Musical, Canada)
- "SHINE DIÓN a réussi un album rutilant de beauté mystique et naturiste,un élan du cæur d'où la sensation de pureté émane à chaque note. Une esquisse d'éternité sereine flotte sur les guitares de Selör et la voix de Hansen. Abreuvezvous à leur source, elle est d'une éternelle jouvence! (Harmonie Magazine, France)
Shine Dión's second CD was produced on license by Si-Wan Records in Korea. It was distributed by Black Widow Records in Italy and Musea in France. "Killandra" was also released on vinyl LP by Black Widow Records.
Shine Dión released their third CD in February 2002. The title was "WYN". The title is an old english name for a rune sign. The rune symbolizes joy and a new life unfolding. The CD consisted of 10 songs, all written and produced by Shine Dión. The CD was also produced on license by Si-Wan Records in Korea.
The "WYN" CD was reviewed by various magazines:
- "Anyone who enjoys prog-folk, folk-rock, or medieval-rock, with femme vocals will probably love this" (Exposé Magazine, USA)
- " The CD, which is almost a flawless masterpiece of traditional folk, closes with the seven-minute epic, "The Valley Song". It's a stunningly gorgeous piece that brings together all the best elements of Shine Dión" (Progression Magazine USA)
- "Not a hint of a weak moment on this record, all the songs are excellent. Highly recommended" (Proggnosis, Canada)
- "Production, execution and composition are of a very high quality, and the music is simply beautiful" (Sea Of Tranquility, USA)
- "This album contains all the qualities of their first album, and it's hard to pick one to favour, so why don't get them both! If you liked their first album, you'll sure gonna love this one as well!" (Mr Blues Train, Norway)
In April 2005, Shine Dión recorded a promotion single for the radio stations in Norway. The single consisted of 2 songs. "Secret Lullabye" was made and produced by Shine Dión. The second song was the first cover version ever done by Shine Dión, "Somewhere Along The Road" written by the Steeleye Span bassist Rick Kemp.
In 2012, Shine Dión contributed with the song The Well on the CD Musica Keltika Vol.1 released by Miroque, Histomedia. Among other artists on the CD were Loreena McKennitt, Nolween Leroy and Julie Fowlis.
The time suddenly felt right, and early in 2022 we in Shine Dion started to make music agian !
We have now released 5 new songs on singles. The last song "The Raven's Flight" was released the 5 th of August 2024.
We used the same recording studio as for our previous CDs, Klyve Lydstudio in Skien, Norway.
Per did the sound engineering and all songs written and produced by Shine Dion.
Exellent musicians from our county Telemark played an important part in making our new songs come alive.
Shine Dión can be downloaded at www.cdbaby.com and all digetal platforms.