gnom was the second band started by norwegian childhood friends Janove Ottesen and Geir Zahl around 1996. Ottesen and Zahl composed many of the songs together, and both were vocalists in the band. The other members of the band were Rune Solheim on drums, Helge Risa on pump organ and piano, and Rolf Prestø on the bass. Like Ottesen and Zahl’s previous band Blod, Snått & Juling and their current band Kaizers Orchestra, their songs were written in their Norwegian Bryne-dialect.

They only released one album, Mys, which sold poorly, beneath 600 in its first year, of all the 1000 copies. After Rolf Prestø quit the band, and as interest faded away, the band dissolved in 1999. However, one song they wrote in gnom’s active period, Bastard, inspired them to start a whole new band, and in late 1999, Kaizers Orchestra rose from the ashes of gnom. In 2003, Ottesen, Zahl and the rest of the members of Kaizers Orchestra released a remastered version of mys, with some of the tracks of the original release switched around and some removed, also featuring Bastard.

Since the dissolution of gnom, Janove and Geir have at times played gnom songs on special occasions, such as during the promotion of their book about Kaizers Orchestra, Kontroll på Kontinentet.