These Go to 11: Interviewing EardrumsPop

For our third interview, we move from musicians (after Astrid Wiezell, aka Northern Spies, and Vasco Batista, aka Big Summer) to the man who started EardrumsPop.Yes, a personal music hero. These Go to 11!

Knut, EardrumsPop

Knut, indiepop superhero

How many times EardrumsPop has been featured in this blog? Did you know I run a formal petition & campaign to make the label win the Nobel Prize for their contribution to mankind's well-being & good-taste? Any indiepop lover with ears knows that each time this label announces a new EPop release great music is awaiting us. Do you want to know who started the netlabel & still runs it today along Stefan, Tim and Silja? Coming from Norway, our own Batman, making justice for indiepop on the blogosphere, is Knut B. Lindbjør, and here are his answers.
 
1. First record that you bought (be honest)

The first record I bought was actually a cassette tape, and I got it when I bought my first cassette player. The tape has indeed been a very influential one for my taste in music. It was a compilation of new wave bands, and included several songs and bands I have much love for even today. My first vinyl record was probably something by Elvis or Beatles or Kiss. I can't remember it as well as that first cassette tape. My taste in music was as varied then as it is today! In 10 years time, will you be asking people about their first mp3 or the first song they streamed on Spotify? :-)

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)

I think my first concert was an outdoor one with A-Ha in my hometown of Tromsø, Norway. Me and my friends played in synthpop-bands at the time, and I think all of us only had our eyes on the synth gear of Magne Furuholmen throughout the concert. I remember we were impressed that he seemed to play everything live, and not much seemed to be on sequencers. The last concert was last week, actually. It was an acoustic concert with the Norwegian singer/songwriter Richard Holmsen in Drammen, Norway. A wonderful night! He's good.

Explanation needed Knut!

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

Not embarrassing at all! I have lots of guilty pleasures, and I am proud of them all. My daughter introduces me to all these boybands and hits of today, and I actually like One Direction. They do have some really catchy songs! I am also a part-time hiphop fan, especially when I am out walking. And Elvis is still cool. And Duran Duran and Bananarama and Bronski Beat. I could go on and on and on!

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
I am not a collector at all, but I think I must say the compilation "Shadow Factory" by Sarah Records, or the early Creation Records compilations "Doing it for the Kids" and "Doing God's Work". The reason is mainly because they had a huge influence on me at the time, and have shaped me musically.

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

I would have to say Kraftwerk's "Pocket Calculator" or any of Cocteau Twins' lyrics. :-)

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)
There are not many musicians that I find so interesting that I would like to meet them in person, but I think Kristin Hersh sounds like an interesting person, and maybe I would like to meet Martin Gore as well - but only if he would show me around his studio and let me watch when he makes music.

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
It's not easy to pick one. Impossible, I would say, but let's try. It will be "ONE OF my favourite artworks", not "THE favourite artwork". One of the artworks I have dreamt myself into the most, is probably Yo La Tengo's "And then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out". It's beautiful. I usually fall for illustration-kind of cover art, but this one is very special to me. From more modern bands, I really like the artworks on The Leisure Society's releases. The art on Golden Fable's releases are also outstanding.

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both)

Books. Rob Sheffield - "Love Is a Mixtape". 

9. Song (of yours) you are most proud of
I think it has to be the "Between Two Waves" compilation. It became much bigger - and much better - than we dared to hope for. It also means a lot to me, because it was the start of the label as a team-based project, and I started working with people who mean a lot to me today, - Stefan, Tim, Leena and later Silja.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)

I hate serious questions! The word indie does not mean much to me, and I think I mainly use it as a name for a very wide genre. A long time ago, it meant "independent from the major labels", but today, - I don't know. I don't like the mentality that often goes hand in hand with the word indie. "We're indie, and we're so much better than the major-label-shit-bands". I care about good music, not where it has been released. We at EardrumsPop are probably very indie, if you use the word as "independent", but mostly because we can do whatever we want. That has kind of become an internal slogan for us. It's a creative freedom that we really appreciate. We have no deals with anyone, we are not limited by money and we don't have to please anyone other than ourselves. We hope we make a lot of our listeners happy, though!

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I am myopic. I can't see that long.

Zillion thanks Knut!