Firsties and Faves: Bjørn Torske

God bless Norway. I went through a phase in the early 2000s when all anyone had to say to me was, "Well they're from Bergen" and I'd be like, "GIMME." Annie, Röyksopp, Casiokids… one time I wrote about Ralph Myerz and the Jack Herren Band and my quote ended up on a poster. That was pretty sweet. Another time I followed around Erlend Øye from Kings of Convenience for a day and a night (for an article, I'm not mental) and he left me a voicemail on which he sung Laid Back's "White Horse." That was awesome.

Bjørn Torske is also a resident of Bergen so by the rational of drinking water from that area we can deduce that his music is also slamming. Genuinely though, Torske is goddamn brilliant, specializing in a louchely cool, hypnotic disco-tronica that influenced loads of people and sounds really great when you're high, but also quite nice when you're drinking cocktails with your parents and maybe having some fondue. He also has a song called "Sexy Disco" from back in 1999 and it's all about that bass… line. Seriously banging. Not to mention it includes a refrain that's just "I like sex" over and over.

This week Smalltown Supersound re-issued Nedi Myra and Trøbbel, two of Torske's seminal records from 1998 and 2001, respectively. To celebrate this we decided to track down the elusive electronicist and ask him his firsties and faves.

Favorite person called Bjørn:
Bjørn Sundquist—legendary Norwegian actor.

First mistake:
They are too numerous to remember what was the first… my last one however was to ask for an afternoon flight when I was supposed to play in Paris a few weeks back. The hurricane "Nina" put a stop to that, they had to close the airport for six hours. If I had flown in the morning I would have made it. Props anyway to the airline company
calling me personally and offering a new flight the next day. It didn't help me much, though.

Favorite activity:

Hunting mushrooms, especially Chanterelles and Porcini.

First fictional or celebrity crush:

I wish I could say like Robert Crumb that it was Bugs Bunny, but I honestly can't remember.

Favorite sound:

Stillness of nature. Fluttering leaves of Populus tremula in the afternoon breeze. Crickets, if they're present.

First act of defiance:

My first proper defiant act was to refuse serving the mandatory service in the Norwegian Army. Still violently pacifistic, for all it's worth.

Favorite description of your music:

I have no idea. Does it have to be positive?

First physical fight:

Never been in a physical fight. No ambitions to get into one, either.

Favorite movie character you wish you were a little more like:

Lonesome Jack of "The Bell Boys" in Vileness Fats

First triumph:

Perhaps not the first, but a good one was the first time I could walk into a record store and buy a record for myself, paying with my own money. Which one is unclear, but probably some silly Norwegian pop record.

Favorite drug:

Caffeine.

First record you put on when you're feeling shitty:

I usually go for a walk in the woods or the mountains if I feel shitty. If the weather is too hostile, I imagine "Chill Out" by KLF could work.

Kim Taylor Bennett likes music from other countries too. She's on Twitter.