Heyerdahl
Catching up with Heyerdahl; photographed by Line Slotnæs.
Heyerdahl, comprised of Kenneth Ishak, Tore Løchstøer Hauge, Knut Frøysnes, Snasen, Faye Houston of The Resonators, Jay Thorton from Man Ray Sky, drums from Ryan McPhun of the Ruby Suns, Phosphorescent’s David Torch, Torkelsen, Skadedyr’s Torstein Lavik Larsen, Kaba Orchestra’s Kristoffer Kompen & more just released their album A Su Can Panther via SellOut! Music that shines some summer sun upon winter frozen hearts. The Norwegian collective has wowed audiences worldwide by enamoring & enchanting with contributions from some of the esteemed & prolific artists of the independent Scandinavian creative sectors. Heyerdahl provide you with the feelings of all those holidays that you never wanted to end, those carefree moments with cherished friends, family & loved ones that become crystallized in that eternity of the mind’s memory bank to be replayed for as long as those feelings can be recalled.
Presenting us with the following premiere listen—Heyerdahl’s A Su Panther opens with the ascending vision bird of “Ashes” that rises like an electric phoenix seeking celestial grounds & atmospheric branches. Supergroup style flash & pop pizazz dazzles like the best in the business on “Desert Boy” that offers up further romantic feelings on “Acid Rain” that observes corrosive down pours with some of the sweetest & smoothest melodies you will ever hear. “Colossus” keeps the sensibility strong & titanic, followed through with the reckoning of “What it was”, while “Kin” keeps the family bond fervent & fresh. Rhythms are displayed according to a funky arrangement on “Wild Life” where every note operates according to it’s own natural niche. The finale of “Skjærgarden” sends up the surrealness & serenity found all throughout A Su Can Panther up to the heavenly dimensions for the angels to decipher & enjoy in the luxury of their own secret garden in the sky. After the jump, read our interview with Heyerdahl’s own Kenneth Ishak.
Give us highlights of what you all have been up to between your debut Øen to A Su Can Panther.
After the we finished all of our engagements for the last record we all took a break from each other.
Tore recorded and released a solo ep ( that I produced ), I recorded, released and toured a bunch with my old band Beezewax, I also did an album with writer Bård Torgersen, a project called Universet- and i have produced and played on a bunch of other records.
From working with Snasen to the collaborative & eclectic approach that includes Faye Houston from The Resonators and Jay Thorton from Man Ray Sky. Percussion from Ryan McPhun of the Ruby Suns and David Torch from Phosphorescent, keyboards from Torkelsen, horns supplied by Skadedyr’s Torstein Lavik Larsen & Kaba Orchestra’s Kristoffer Kompen; how did these collaborations impact the full realization of the second Heyerdahl album?
Being the sort of project leader, meaning I have to keep things moving if there is gonna be a finished record- it is a huge help when tracks start to feel old, to go to another studio, another city and let people you admire have a swing at the song.
I have to say that was my favourite part of the process. I think once you are open to let other people add something new to your song, something you might not have had in mind- you will get something beyond you, something better…
Heyerdahl is a totally ego less project- even if it’s a collective of solo artists.
Can you describe further how it is that you all from such disparate come together as one cohesive vision in the Heyerdahl family/collective/commune?
Well, when we arrived at that desolate lighthouse where we recorded the first album—we re-wrote all the lyrics, because that place was so insane weather wise, the light house basically sits on top of a big rock leaning over the ocean on the most western spot in Norway.
We were there alone for two weeks writing and recording and for some reason we started writing about these characters that are in the process of leaving their lives for a future in a vast and lonely place. So, we basically had to keep telling those stories.
With that foundation and my studio at hand I started working on tracks, and just inviting all of the others in after a while. I have worked with everyone before, Ryan has recorded some of his stuff at my studio, Robin Snasen I played some stuff on his record and we mixed it together, David is one of my best friends and we have toured and played together many times before, Faye—I was just a fan—she is based in Brighton with Jay of Man Ray Sky—I am good friends with that whole gang.
I actually stayed in Brighton, at Brighton house for a week to finish the lyrics for the album.
What is everyone in the collective listening to a lot of right now at this moment in time?
The new Quest record, Pandreas (whom we just did a live colab with at Ekko festival ) Ryan is probably listening to Pet sounds as me and him just saw Brian Wilson perform it the other day. I just heard a new ep by Verdensrommet, probably my favorite Norwegian band- so good, its not out yet.
Snasen is probably listening to his big modular synth!
What other collaborations is everyone working in the Heyerdahl family?
We did a new song with Pandreas- a long piece of music for the Ekko festival- we will record that and release that after A Su Can has been out a for a while.
2017 hopes & dreams?
Play some fun shows abroad and maybe start to think about some new music.
