Fever Ray - Karin Dreijer Andersson - is one of my favourite musicians; her music pretty much incorporates everything I love about music and jumbled it all up in one big witchy cauldron and then gave birth to her self-titled album. I was lucky enough to catch a few minutes in heaven to interview her before her show at Shepherds Bush Empire.
If you haven't heard of her yet, you'll have heard of The Knife, her previous band with her brother, Olof. You'll soon hear her name mentioned on the airwaves however, as her self-titled debut solo album has already been nominated album of the year by N.P.R., even though it had only been released for 20 days when the nomination was announced. Beside from that, she's brilliant - think of the Knife at an african fire ritual crossed with a seance and you wouldn't be too far off. From the bottom of my little heart, I recommend her.
I saw you on the weekend at Loop Festival, you were brilliant! I loved your costumes
Oh really? Thank you. Yeah, they're fun. We had to get them washed a couple of days ago though, they were all horrible and stinky.
What are your 10 favourite songs at the moment?
Errrr I’m terrible at making lists… I don’t really listen to music much, a lot of the time I’m working. But I do really like Bat For Lashes, her new album is really good, I’ve listened to that a lot. I'm really looking forward to hopefully seeing her at Latitude. I also really like this other band called Journey To Ixtlan. they play metal, like, slow metal. Really slow and droney.
Who’s your favourite political figure, anyone from whenever in time…
Back in Sweden we have a feminist party. In English I think they’re name would be the Feminist Initiative, I really like their founder Gudrun Schyman.
Which format of releasing music do you prefer – analogue or digital?
I really like vinyl, but it’s good to be able to play stuff on your mp3 player so mp3’s are good, and it’s really hard to find a decent tape player nowadays. But I do really like the physical formats.
What was the last instrument you bought?
A guitar.
In your music you mix both electronical and traditional instruments – why?
I think it was mainly because of the tools – when I started using a computer. You have all that software and everything, all the drum machines, and then when you use traditional music too something happens, when the two start mixing and communicating, it creates a sort of dynamic… thing.
Yeah, I suppose it gives the music more depth.
Yeah, it's really interesting.
How did you first get into the whole mixing idea? Was it an accident, did you just think of it one day…
No, I started doing it when I first started on computers, back when the Knife started in ‘99.
A lot of your videos are quite dark, sort of like ‘witchcrafty’ I suppose, quite voodooish. Where does all the inspiration for this come from?
I’ve worked closely with this one director, Andreas Nilsson, for a long time and he does all my videos. I suppose we’ve worked together so long that we just have the same interests, we share the same fears. Today, in the world, there are barely any ritual habits around – Sweden isn’t a very religious country so we don’t really have any of that. I find it very interesting though, I think maybe the world is missing out on it. That's why a lot of the videos have a weird side to them, almost like folk.
What’s your favourite holiday destination?
Ooh, (laughs nervously) well most of the time I’m working so I don’t really have time for holidays… going home is my holiday. I travel a lot with work though. I think my favourite place to be is anywhere around the Mediterranean Sea.
What do you think about all this Swine Flu nonsense?
I haven’t really thought about it, but I think back in Sweden we’re all going to get that injection at the end of the summer so that’s good. I don't really want to catch it, maybe I'll just stay at home in one place for a while.
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