Though he's only 28 years old, Sondre Lerche has been releasing albums for a decade. During this time, the Norwegian singer/songwriter has melded a variety of his influences, including '80s Synth-Pop, Jazz and straightforward Rock, into his own sound. Lerche's current, self-titled album was released earlier this week and affirms his restless creative spirit is still underpinned by precise arrangements and a true sense of melody. On Sunday, June 12, Lerche will perform at Workplay with Nightlands and Kishi Bashi opening the 8 p.m. show. Recently, Lerche spoke to us by phone from his Brooklyn, N.Y. home.
BIrmingham Weekly: Sondre, thanks for your time. Brooklyn sounds like an exciting place for an artist to live these days.
Sondre Lerche: It really is - it's really exciting and you have more space than you have in Manhattan. It's a really great community.
BW: We are enjoying the new CD. Were these a batch of new songs, older songs, or a little of both?
SL: It's a mixture of things. Some of the songs I'd been working on for a while, but you're looking for some sort of direction when you're in the writing process, something that tells you there is a record here somewhere. So, I just kept writing and you reach a point where you have new songs that feel related to songs you've been working on for a while. All of the sudden, some sort of bigger picture emerges and that's when I start thinking about going into the studio.
BW: Do songs continue to evolve even after you take them into the studio?
SL: I do a lot of re-writes up until the very last moment. When you're in the studio, you start to see the song in a different way and that affects your choices - you may want to change a sentence or a word. Also, you're inspired by performing the songs with musicians so it changes your perception of a song and your idea of what it could be.
BW: How do you view the musical climate today? Is the era of home recording, iTunes and Youtube healthy or does it create clutter and over-saturation?
SL: I think it's true what you mentioned. In a way, it's the best thing and it's also a disadvantage because it's easy to lose sight of certain things. I think it's a matter of using technology when it makes sense. You have to be aware of the things you lose when you manipulate the music too much. I think it's great that it's become available to people because it used to be a problem because you needed an expensive studio. It's made the whole thing a bit more democratic, but there's so much output and some people lose sight of the essence of the music. I think it's a great time for music, really.
BW: How do you keep one of your songs fresh after you have played it hundreds of times?
SL: That's a good question. I approach every song differently at every show. The challenge for me, now that I'm going on a tour with a band for the first time in four or five years, is to keep the spontaneity. I rely on the musicians I play with to be on top of their games because I'll approach the song slightly differently every night. I take liberties with my own compositions and that's the way you keep it fresh.
Tickets to the all-ages show are $12 and can be purchased at www.workplay.com
BIrmingham Weekly: Sondre, thanks for your time. Brooklyn sounds like an exciting place for an artist to live these days.
Sondre Lerche: It really is - it's really exciting and you have more space than you have in Manhattan. It's a really great community.
BW: We are enjoying the new CD. Were these a batch of new songs, older songs, or a little of both?
SL: It's a mixture of things. Some of the songs I'd been working on for a while, but you're looking for some sort of direction when you're in the writing process, something that tells you there is a record here somewhere. So, I just kept writing and you reach a point where you have new songs that feel related to songs you've been working on for a while. All of the sudden, some sort of bigger picture emerges and that's when I start thinking about going into the studio.
BW: Do songs continue to evolve even after you take them into the studio?
SL: I do a lot of re-writes up until the very last moment. When you're in the studio, you start to see the song in a different way and that affects your choices - you may want to change a sentence or a word. Also, you're inspired by performing the songs with musicians so it changes your perception of a song and your idea of what it could be.
BW: How do you view the musical climate today? Is the era of home recording, iTunes and Youtube healthy or does it create clutter and over-saturation?
SL: I think it's true what you mentioned. In a way, it's the best thing and it's also a disadvantage because it's easy to lose sight of certain things. I think it's a matter of using technology when it makes sense. You have to be aware of the things you lose when you manipulate the music too much. I think it's great that it's become available to people because it used to be a problem because you needed an expensive studio. It's made the whole thing a bit more democratic, but there's so much output and some people lose sight of the essence of the music. I think it's a great time for music, really.
BW: How do you keep one of your songs fresh after you have played it hundreds of times?
SL: That's a good question. I approach every song differently at every show. The challenge for me, now that I'm going on a tour with a band for the first time in four or five years, is to keep the spontaneity. I rely on the musicians I play with to be on top of their games because I'll approach the song slightly differently every night. I take liberties with my own compositions and that's the way you keep it fresh.
Tickets to the all-ages show are $12 and can be purchased at www.workplay.com
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