1. Favourite knob or fader or switch on a piece of gear and why?
After giving this a lot of thought, I must admit it’s the power switch on almost any piece of gear. If not all gear. Being a Hammond organ player by heart, it’s always a bit of a cliffhanger, if the instrument will work or even turn on from one gig to the other – and with newer synths, the joy of seeing the lights flicker across the instrument when turning on, is pure bliss! The rest seems purely functional, but that first way of making contact with the instrument by turning it on does it for me. That almost sounds wrong.
2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?
What first comes to mind is my Holy Grail (old reverb pedal). It has one knob: reverb amount. There’s absolutely nothing I would change on it. If not that, it’s gotta be the Korg MS-10. Super simple and perfect for what it can do and does. If I could change anything, it might be another oscillator – or the possibility of hearing a polyphonic version of it. Oh, and midi.
3. What setup do you bring on holiday or tour or commute etc.?
Holidays and commutes is where I bring the outcome of other people’s gear and ideas: their music. Since most of my worklife is based around music, holidays are not really a thing. Other people’s holidays are my busiest times of the year, and… well, as musicians, we don’t really take time off, do we? There’s always some sort of music going on… and this question got me thinking: if there was a piece of gear, I could bring – and this is sort of a dream for me – it would be the Vongon Replay. I don’t own one, and unfortunately never tried one, but wow… just look at it!
4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?
I only use Ableton when it comes to software, but definitely wouldn’t wish all my hardware had turned to software overnight.
5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?
I bought an MS-20 and an MS-10 in 1998 and paid 2100 Danish kroner (about 300 dollars) for both of them. However, they seemed to be broken, ‘cause none of them produced more than one note at a time. Disappointed as I was, I sold them again for 2500 kr.
I did, however, buy an MS-10 a few years back, and love it to heaven and back.
6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?
The Hammond Organ. No doubt. The simplicity and it’s way of letting it sound like you can actually play, when all you do is just switch between a couple of keys and know your C7.
7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?
A band. Definitely. That has always been the main reason for playing music: hanging out, sharing stories and creating music. Dreaming.
8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?
The Roll’or’kari’s (dolly to haul the Hammond B-3 around). It’s heavy as hell, even by itself, and then you slap them on a 150 kg organ and carry them both. Hate it.
If it’s playable gear, it would be the Chase Bliss Mood. Not even the MKII. The first one ‘cause it’s such a beautiful piece of aesthetic wonder. Can make anything sound good and musical. Thing is, I still don’t really know exactly how it works or what it does and when it does it. Sort of like eating food when on vacation. You don’t really know what it is, how it tastes so good or what the consequences will be…
When it comes to annoying gear, that I wish I could sell, it’s the Chase Bliss CXM 1978. I wish I’d just sell it, but it just sounds so damn good. And those motorized faders… (getting chills just typing this)
9. Most surprising tip or trick or technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?
Ooooh, this is a great question! Nikolaj Svaneborg from Svaneborg Kardyb taught me this trick for the Juno-6 and 60’s:
Set the resonance at 7 or 8, set the ‘kybd’ knob to 10, turn off all three oscillators, set the filter to 10 and then slide the fader down until tones start to come out. You can tune it quite precisely, but you never get it to tune perfectly – that’s the charm:-)
This sound can be heard on the track ‘Balancen’ from their newest album.
Artist or Band name?
The Orgelheimers, Nairobi Auto Service, Me Llamo Speedos and Hippie Da DA
Genre?
Hammond stuff, Ethiojazz, souljazz, surf, electronica, calm stuff
Selfie?
Where are you from?
Copenhagen based
How did you get into music?
Wanted to hang out with the kids playing music in the small town I grew up in. It was an easy transition from skateboarding into music.
What still drives you to make music?
Good question. I’ve been low on drive for a while. The hassle of playing live, working with musicians (who run different notions of time and professionality) and a general “Why do we do this? Why do people need to hear this?”. And frankly, this is still a question for me. The key so far is sharing. Bringing music to people for whatever reason. As long as it means something. As long as it matters.
How do you most often start a new track?
By hearing a melody, beat or bassline in my head.
How do you know when a track is finished?
Usually doesn’t take long. when there are no more ideas that present themselves in relation to the piece I’m working on. Sometimes it’s as simple as others saying: “I think it’s great like this!”, then it’s done.
Show us your current studio
Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?
“No matter how much you practice, you can’t run away from who you really are”. Meaning: you are you, and you’ll sound like you. That’s who people go to see/listen to. They don’t listen to you to hear Bowie or Engelbert Humperdinck.
Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link.
Maybe this odd piece:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6hVgcTTGJg
Thanks for reading:-)
