Julian Berntzen Interview: SXSW 2010

Posted on Feb 15th 2010 6:36PM by Carl Atiya Swanson
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With three solo albums and a number of collaborations under his belt, sweet-voiced Norwegian multi-instrumentalist Julian Berntzen certainly has range. Already a hit in his homeland, winner of the "Best New Act" Norwegian Grammy in 2004 and penning songs for Eurovision contestants, he is bringing his classically-inflected pop stateside for his first trip to SXSW this March. We caught up with Berntzen to talk about his influences, why he works theatrically and why he dresses so well.

Describe your sound .

I do a lot of different things in music. I am a songwriter and I am jazz violinist and a piano player and I do arrangements for other artists and I am writing a musical now.

How did you start in music?

I started off as a studio musician and I played on many different recordings, such as Sondre Lerche, who is a good friend of mine. Then I suddenly got the opportunity to record my own stuff with a producer. We started off [on 2002's 'Waffy Town'] and I played almost all the instruments myself, the string arrangements and the harmony backing vocals. That's the way I got into songwriting myself.

You perform under your own name, but your very first band was called Swang. What was that band like?

I played jazz violin with my father in those days, and we played in clubs I was not allowed into because of my age. So we faked me as an older man and then I was able to play music for people. I was still in school during the day. That was not my own music, that was Hot Club string swing, like Django Reinhardt.

Your records, 'Waffy Town,' 2003's 'Pictures In the House Where She Lives' and 2008's 'Rocket Ship Love,' are all concept albums. Why do you write in that style?

I was a bit of a shy person, so I wanted to write music to something -- like a musical or theater play -- to put the focus away from my own person. I was also very tired of making up different characters and situations [for each song]. So 'Waffy Town' was the people in a little town I was singing about. That was fine way for me to write songs then.

In your videos and press you are always well-dressed. Who do you look to for style inspiration?

I style myself or my wife styles me. The man in the suit is actually the character Johnny from 'Rocket Ship Love,' inspired by '50s cartoons and Clark Kent.

Are you working on anything new?

I am writing a new musical that will be set up in one of the biggest theaters in Norway, and I am working on an acoustic record where I am going to use more violin and mandolin. It's a bit of a country album -- I am [also] very fond of that kind of music.

This is going to be your first SXSW. Are you looking forward to getting a break from Norwegian winter?

Yes, of course I am looking forward to that. We have an extremely cold winter up north now. It's about minus 17 degrees Celsius [1 degree Fahrenheit] now in Bergen, Norway. It's going to be really nice to go out to the warmth.

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