What inspired you to first start making music? And how did you come to be in your current incarnation? Or if you prefer, a brief bio about you.
Secret Treehouse is a Bergen(Norway)-based pop orchestra, set out on an everlasting quest to find the perfect melody. This search is set in a realm where guitar-driven rock meets energetic
electronic pop. It is all about cultivating the resistance and opposites in the soundscapes, painting audible pictures for the listener.
Secret Treehouse is about a form of escapism. The place you retreat to when you need some distance and escape from reality. We like to describe ourselves in contrasts, the dark versus the light, the urban and dead versus the green nature. We like to think that there is a green creative hope in the midst of all the darkness. We find creativity in these dichotomies. Sveinung (guitar), Tormod (bass) and Anja (vocals) started making music together some years back and then we became Secret Treehouse with Marius (drums) and Trond Espen (keys) in 2015.
Provide us with some info about your latest release…
“Wrong Hands” is due for release May 30th and has an amazing animated video. The video illustrates exactly what the chorus is saying; that the world is in the wrong hands right now, with leaders who prioritize their own egos and fight for power, instead of fighting for the people and our planet. The song is a dynamic song, juggling soft vocals and electronic beats with a big guitar- and synth driven sound.
Which ones would you consider your main influences both music-wise & non-music-wise?
I think we all have very different inspirations, but to name a few I think we can all agree on David Bowie, Radiohead, Røyksopp, Robyn, Susanne Sundfør. Radiohead’s and Sundfør’s way of being uncompromising about their music is very inspiring and liberating.
Our musical backgrounds is quite diverse I would say; my (Sveinung’s) first real obsession when it comes to bands was Radiohead, and they still make much of the soundtrack of my life. I know Anja loves them too. Anja also loved U2 from her early days, and grew up with Alanis Morissette and Genesis. Marius really loves the world of drums from the 80s, he is pretty much the one in the band who loves commercial pop the most.
In what way does your sound differ from the rest genre-related artists/bands and why should we listen to your music? In other words, how would you describe your sound?
We play indie-pop with electronic elements and warm organis sounds.We try to create a grand sound, a wall of sound, but at the same time hold on to the organic feeling. We do not want to sound cold, or aim for “machine driven” sound of pop. We always have Sveinung’s guitar in there giving it warmth. We always focus on the melody and what it needs, not the other way around, meaning we do not find a great sound first and then adapt a melody to it. It is all about cultivating a great melody and telling it with passion and contrasts that gives the listener a feeling of closeness to us.
Please name your 3 desert islands albums, movies & books…
Albums: Radiohead – “The Bends and “In Rainbows”, Wilco – “Sky Blue Sky”,
Movies: “Lost in Translation”, “Babel”, “Anchorman”
Do you prefer studio or performing live and why?
As a band we have been working mostly in the studio together the last couple of years,but we are now getting more focused on live. We enjoy it a lot, working in the studio, especially with our brilliant producer Stamos Koliousis. However, there is no comparison to the energy and feeling of the music that you get from a live performance. Studio and live are so different things. In the studio you repeat and repeat your craft until you’re content, and it becomes very technical. In the live setting it is more about feeling it and acting it out. It is also about the technicality of it of course, but you only get one shot at it, so you better make it work. Another magical thing is to work on new songs and be in the creative mode. When we play a new great idea together, that feels promising, it really is a unique feeling.
We are currently doing concerts now here at home and next up is London May 30th. There is nothing like creating that special energy and moment between you and the audience!
Is there any funny-unique story you would like to share with us, always in relation to your music ‘career’?
One of our great experiences was a trip we had to a studio in Poland to record parts of our new album. It was just a unique experience, because it was January and really cold, in the middle of the Polish countryside, in a really small village. The air was always grey and smoggy due to people burning trash and whatnot, to stay warm. If you imagine a very Eastern European village with worn down buildings, this is what you would imagine. In this village the most unique residential studio was located in a 700 year old mill. It was modernized with top equipment and a piano worth 200 000 $. Beautiful, amazing and very inspiring.
Which track of your own would you point out as the most unique and why?
We think we gave the song “Kind of Special” (single number 2) a unique twist. The riff in the song is a mix of trumpet and guitar effects. Also, on our title track “The Big Rewind” we were very uncompromising in the way we arranged and built the song. The whole song is built on a one-time chorus and thy dynamic around it. It worked!
Would you like to share with our readers your future plans?
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Free question!!! (Ask yourself a question) you wish to answer and haven’t been given the opportunity…
Hmm…well, the first thing that comes to mind is how much syrup, flour, egg and tomatoes does it take to break down a person by throwing it on her?
Well, not that much if you see our video The Big Rewind. Add stepping in dog poo, getting pushed around and a cold Bergen winter to it all, there was no need for Anja to fake a depressed state of mind in the video – it came naturally!
Photo credits: Troll Toftenes
Curated by: Christos Doukakis
Recommended listening:
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