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RADIO NOVA - October 31st, 2007
Interview by Erik Strutz
We're on our way up the stairs in an old block of flats in the middle of central Oslo. Outside, I've met Magnus, Espen, Tommy and Christian - or Far From Tellus, as they call themselves collectively. We're heading all the way up to the attic, but there are many stairs on the way up. On the way, we first pass by the Blåkors café on the first floor. The second floor is home of the Norwegian-Somalian Union, and on the third floor we find a rather loud Christian sect, that already is in full flight excercising something as we pass them.
(sounds of people speaking in tongues)
Magnus: "Banishing demons."
But at the top of this somewhat multitudinous building there is a rehearsal space, with carpets on the floor, a slanting roof, and a large gathering of vintage equipment. A number of different guitar-amps, analogue synths, a drum-kit and a banjo meets the eye as you enter the room. This is the rehearsal room of one of the city's many underground bands, but this is most likely the only one of its kind. The band play amongst other things a mixture of folk, psychedelia and rock, and may therefore be regarded as one of the city's most distinctive psychedelic krautfolk-bands.
As most bands, they find it hard to place themselves in one particular box, but they have clear perceptions of what they are not.
Christian: "We hate purism, right! It's like... We say that Far From Tellus is like an inverted calculated band. The opposite of a calculated band. We're more concerned with what we don't want to be than what we want to be. I remember people going on about earlier that we had elements of bluegrass. Bluegrass is one of the most conservative forms of music ever. If we had showed up at a bluegrass... A place where they wanted a bluegrass orchestra... With a synth... We'd probably be..."
Magnus: "Beaten up, really."
Christian: "Yeah, it would have been..."
Tommy: "That's worse than when Dylan showed up with a band and an electric guitar at Newport!"
Christian: "Yes, actually."
The band have played under the name Far From Tellus since 2004, but several of the members have worked together earlier in other projects. When it was decided to release a four-track single with Far From Tellus that sums up some of the work they have done over the past years, there was no doubt about the format. It should be pressed on vinyl.
Christian: "You have all the ingredients with vinyl. You have the cover art, which vanished with the vinyl, although the vinyl never disappeared, but in some eyes it did. It has made a sort of comeback, without it being a comeback for us, as we have always been fond of vinyl. And you have the sound, you have... And that's another thing, we are a band with no boundaries, and then it can be healthy to have a format to deal with. In example, when we made our album, we had a time limit in accordance with that we didn't want it to be longer than what you can put on a vinyl. It's also quite interesting, because... Think about having a CD that lasts for 70 minutes. You lose your concentration after three quarters of an hour. That's just the way it is. So..."
Tommy: "Yeah, and on a vinyl you also get the natural breaks."
Christian: "Yeah."
Tommy: "You play through a side, and it stops, and if you want to do something else, you have a great opportunity to do that too."
Espen: "And you have to get up twice."
Christian: "And there ain't nothing to beat a seven inch! It just radiates power!"
Tommy: "Fuck, yeah. It's worth its weight in gold."
Far From Tellus have recorded and produced their coming single all by themselves. The album, on the other hand, is recorded in a professional studio, and this is what they could tell us about recording in the studio of former Motorpsycho-member Lars Lien:
Espen: "We didn't have the time to sit around and ponder over things and experiment too much. It was just nailing it all down. I was only there for three days with the banjo, so it was like a marathon race."
Magnus: "Ten songs..."
Christian: "We recorded ten backing tracks in three days. And we went in there with the goal that we were going to... That the record should be like being at a Far From Tellus-gig with good sound. To capture that energy. So, the basic tracks are live, and then we have added some extra stuff and redone some vocals. Apart from that, it's basically live."
Magnus: "A few revelations happened in the studio too. Things came into sight that had never been there in that particular way."
While we were talking, it became clear that the album has been planned and under production for quite some time. When I ask why the process has taken so long, I get the following reaction:
Magnus/Christian/Espen: "Things take time!"
Tommy: "Ahhh, things take so fucking long! It's like this... Involve any professionals in it, and they'll just go 'Yes, but let's use five years, then'. And that's how it has become. Almost. So..."
Christian: "And you can see how we're handling things. The single is totally Do It Yourself, and we've taken... It's a year since we recorded it."
Tommy: "Yeah, that's true, none of us have been working our asses off, either!"
Christian: "No, we haven't!"
(laughs)
Tommy: "It's Far From Stress! This band... That's our motto."
Christian: "But it's okay that it takes time. It should... It should happen in the right order. This is about the music, and that's what we put first. And that's the... The ambition that we have is to make the best music possible. The most honest music possible, that we can stand one hundred percent behind."
The band also hope that the coming record releases will lead to more gigs.
Christian: "We hope to play a lot of gigs."
Magnus: "That's what we're hoping the record can do for us. Help us get gigs, and travel around."
Christian: "It's good to have something to bring along to people. Good to have something to sell at the gigs too. Or give away, for that matter. Right at the moment we have nothing..."
Magnus: "We have nothing!"
Christian: "Not even a single."
Tommy: "Booking!"
(laughs)
Erik: "But that comes very soon, doesn't it?"
Magnus: "Yeah. It's a common theme when you're booking gigs and such that people are interested in bands that... Maybe have a name or a record out. And we don't have that, but people are very interested in music, and they often say 'Yeah, yeah, I've heard of them', but (laughs) you know that's not true. And with a record you have something to display, and maybe people hear it, or take notice and... If you get people to listen to the record, it's easier to get gigs and such. And that's what we find the most fun. To play live. It's really the best."
Towards the end I ask where the band picture themselves in a year.
Tommy: "Hopefully travelling around somewhere in Europe on our way to the next gig."
Erik: "It's a European tour that's the..."
Tommy: "Yeah, that is... The best. The best places to travel."
Magnus: "Even if it's only living rooms and small clubs we play."
Christian: "Germany?"
Magnus: "Yeah."
Tommy: "Germany..."
Espen: "Germany is nice."
Christian: "If you're south of Denmark, you're pretty much in Europe."
Tommy: "Yeah, I'd love to play Denmark too."
Christian: "Mmmm."
So let's just hope that Far From Tellus, one year from now are sitting in a band bus on autobahn, planning their next gig. Before I made my way back down to the earth again, they gave me a small taste of their coming album, and the song "New Tune".
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