MP3: The Skull Defekts - The secret
Saturdays in 2008 are devoted to the music of Göteborg. This week's guest: Joachim Nordwall aka The Idealist, head of iDEAL Recordings, also a member of The Skull Defekts. When I think about the new sound of Gbg, iDEAL Recordings and their contemporaries such as Kning Disk are exactly what come to mind. This is where art and music intersect to create something bold and innovative, something that hasn't been done before.
So how long have you lived in Gbg?
I've had Gothenburg as my base since 1996, but lived in London for a while in 1998 and traveled a lot.
Where did you move from and why?
I had lived in Paris and Umeå in the north of Sweden. Paris was great and I still see it as home when I go there and Umeå was kind of a disaster, so after one year of studies up there I needed to go south again and somehow ended up here. I didn't intend to stay for long, but accidentaly got stuck. It's quite easy to fall in love with Gothenburg.
Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound or feeling? How would you describe it?
Yeah sure. Gbg is friendly, rough sometimes and very democratic. It's a harbour town which and the second biggest in Sweden, similar in size to Oslo I guess.
What advantages does living in Gbg offer artists? Disadvantages?
The music scene has always been pretty good here, especially punk and rock, but also experimental stuff and dance. There's clubs to play, plenty of rehearsal space and we fool ourselves that we are close to Europe since we're only a few hours north from Copenhagen. Berlin is close too, you can drive there in ten hours if you're fast and sober. Disadvantages are that Gbg is small, not much new blood is coming in and the art scene sucks. We have very few good galleries here even though some known international visual artists live here. But then again, there's plenty of bars and illegal techno parties going down. Good ways to get loaded.
I know you work with a lot of scene veterans, but who do you think are the up-and-coming talents in Gbg right now?
Sure - there are a few of course. I like Pistol Disco - a duo doing Suicide-like dark electronic crack pop. The Extended Head seems to be doing some great stuff, his latest demo was a killer old skool dance punk thing. Other than that, some of my fav acts are from here. Like Studio, José González, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words and Contemporary Punk Unit.
Lastly, how has the city inspired you? Are there are any particular pieces from The Skull Defekts/The Idealist/iDEAL that provide a good sonic reflection of the city?
I am finding inspiration in loads of places. I live here, but travel a lot so my inspiration is honestly coming more from other places. Home is where I rest and work. I rarely lift my head to actually enjoy the view if you know what I mean. Gbg is a good place to be left alone and I leave it alone too hahaha. The Skull Defekts are recording and rehearsing in a hidden part of the hospital here which is of course extremely inspirational. We're there at night time only and it's a rather weird atmosphere up there. It's hard to name something but if I would choose one GBG anthem on iDEAL I'd probably name Henrik Rylander's "Traditional arrangements of feedback" but maybe more that Henrik is very Gothenburg to me than an actual sound to the damn thing.
Unfortunately, you'll have to go elsewhere to hear that Rylander piece, as Joachim specifically requested that The Skull Defekts accompany this post. And really, who am I to argue? Especially when the selected track is so good.
The Skull Defekts - The secret