Kasper Bjørke talks experience, ‘Fool’ and collaborations
- By Julija Kaselyte -
- Jun 26, 2012
This April Denmark’s prominent DJ and producer, Kasper Bjørke, came out with his third solo studio album ‘Fool’. We recently caught up with the young artist to chat about his latest release, his connection with music, the differences between his three records and how he stopped worrying about topping the charts...
Red Room: If you look back in time, what was your first experience with music?
Kasper: I started buying vinyl when I was around 10 years old. I had this thing for movie soundtracks. I really liked listening to the scores and the theme songs. Like Axel F by Harold Faltenmeyer from Beverly Hills Cop, or Tina Turner’s Thunderdome from Mad Max 3.
Red Room: How did you get involved in the type of music you create now?
Kasper: I was dating this girl who was sharing an apartment with her cousin. He just bought a sampler and an old Atari computer so we started having weekly music nights where we made House beats inspired by the soulful and disco house scenes. That time I was really into it. We became friends and started the band Filur. Later he (Tomas Barfod) joined WhoMadeWho band as the drummer and I started my solo career.
Red Room: How has your vision of the music evolved over time?
Kasper: I am thinking a lot less about trying to make something special or unique that people will like or respect now. I just sit down and do what I do when I’m inspired to make music and hope that it will turn out good. If not, I trash it quite fast and start over. But I rarely worry if a song will have hit potential or not. I just think if it’s good enough for me to play it out as a DJ or listen to at home.
Red Room: What were you influenced by while creating your most recent album ‘Fool’?
Kasper: I wanted to be even more specific about the dualism in the music that I produce. I have affection for pop and disco – but also for a very quirky and darker and psychedelic vibe. So that’s also why I decided to split up the two sides on the album and leave the vocal / radio friendly tracks on the first half and then the instrumental and experimental tracks on the remaining half.
Red Room: How did you come up with its title?
Kasper: I like the word as it can mean to have fun and let loose, which is very important in any creative process. Also its sort of a look in the mirror (hence the album design). I think it’s a very iconic word that graphically looks great. The artwork designer (Trevor Jackson / Playgroup) has made something really nice out of it, I think.
Red Room: Which of your three solo albums are you most proud of? Describe all of them in one sentence each.
Kasper: I am proud of them all in different ways, but I don’t think I am better than my last album. I’m already thinking about the next one.
‘Gumbo’ (2007) was a bit of a mess style wise, because I wanted to show that I could master any genre of electronic music in one album.
‘Standing on top of Utopia’ (2010) - I was more focused on the disco sound and starting to follow the “less is more” rule in production.
In ‘Fool’ (2012) I have tried to refine my production skills even more based on what I learnt from my last album and I think I succeeded.
Red Room: Name your favourite track from ‘Fool’.
Kasper: Bohemian Soul. The collaboration with Laid Back was a very pleasant experience and I have been a fan of these guys for many years. Plus it’s one of those tracks that just works really well on the dance floor in its original form. I normally never play out the vocal songs in their original version - only in remixed versions by other artists. But not this one. It has a really strong output and the sound is quite unique.
Red Room: What was the biggest challenge for Kasper?
Kasper: Trying to simplify and not overproduce my music. I can work on a track for months. That’s not always a good idea, so I’m trying to Fool around as much as possible and go with my intuition and instincts.
Red Room: What are your up-to-date performance plans?
Kasper: I am playing some gigs over the summer. I am also trying to cut down on all this touring to have some time for vacation and also use more hours in the studio to work on remixes (Rebolledo, Wareika, Jori Hulkonnen) – and my next album, maybe.
By Julija Kaselyte. Tweets at @julijaka
