Today, we sat down with Solnedgang to talk inspiration to write music, advice for musicians, and much more! Be sure to check out the music from Solnedgang on Spotify below after the interview.
Interview:
What is your inspiration to write your music? Is it your
surroundings?
Surroundings play a big part, for sure. I’m from Norway originally, but I’ve been based in London since 2009, and the contrast between where I grew up (in a city, but close to nature) and London, which is obviously extremely busy probably play a bigger part, subconsciously, than I know. Other than that, I’m really interested in mythology and religion so that shapes my music.
Most of the time I’ll just sit down and start playing, and it’s usually the first thing I play when I pick up the guitar that will end up in a new song. In fact, if the first thing I play doesn’t sound good I’ll almost certainly not write anything new that day, and will have to work on something else. Usually, it starts with a very simple riff, or just a few notes, which I’ll then build on.
What type of music did you listen to growing up?
All kinds really. My parents were into all kinds of music so there was always something playing in the house, and of course I was influenced by friends as well. I got really into hip-hop when I was a teenager, then got into rock and more of the type of music my dad was playing. I remember he had a Led Zeppelin album he never played so I borrowed that from him. He never got it back. He was really into the Shadows and Hank Marvin as well, so that’s probably where my love of instrumental music started.
Is there someone you looked up as a hero?
Loads, it would change very often. When I was around 18 I got really into the Cure, and even though I don’t really have any ‘heroes’ that I look up to anymore, Robert Smith is one who I still admire and almost certainly the most formative in terms of my guitar playing. I still love the Cure, and I went to see them at Wembley last year. They were as good as ever – I hope the new album comes out soon!
If you weren’t a musician, would you be doing today?
I’m a full-time graphic designer, so certainly something creative. If I wasn’t creating music in my spare time, I’d probably just play more video games as that’s something I don’t have much time for at the moment.
What advice do you have for our fans out there that want to create
music?
Just do it – record, finesse and record again. Playing along with records is a great way to learn guitar, but make sure you develop your own style and don’t copy others, or play in a certain way because that’s the ‘right’ way. Everyone is different, so try to let your individuality come out. There is no wrong way to play the guitar, or make music in general, as long as it sounds good to you.
Music:
