Interviu cu Laura Jansen: „Abia astept sa vizitez Bucurestiul”

S-au intalnit apoi in studio si au lucrat la trei piese. Una dintre ele este Sound Of The Drums, track pe care il regasim pe albumul Intense si implicit in spectacolul care pe 8 noiembrie va poposi la Romexpo. Ne-a dezvaluit o multime de lucruri Laura Jansen atat despre cariera sa, cat si despre viata sa personala. Va fi pentru prima oara in Romania si abia asteapta sa vada Bucurestiul. Interviul e lung, insa va garantam ca merita citit!

I describe my music as a blend of electronic and acoustic pop music that leans just a little bit left of center. It’s all very autobiographical. I write to understand what I\’m feeling and what I am observing around me. I like building a world where the songs fit.

I don\’t know if I can come up with a  non existent definition but its somewhere close to optimistic sad songs with just a hint of wizard. How’s that?

2. How old were you when you knew you had to be a musician? How did it all start?

I\’ve always been drawn to the piano. Even when I was a little child and could just reach above to touch the keyboard. I would always play the same melodies over and over until my mother decided I needed a piano of my own. I was fascinated by classical music and by Beethoven specifically. I would change the notes on the music papers so my hands could play chords that were too big for my tiny fingers. We always had records playing at my house so music was a natural way for me to express myself. We moved countries so many times but the piano always stood in the same corner of our house so it became an anchor and refuge for me in new environments.

3. If you could be a part of a legendary band, which one would you choose?

I would be one of Bob Marley’s backing singers.

4. You have been part of Hotel Cafè. What can you tell us about the story and atmosphere of this place we’ve only heard about?

The Hotel cafe was a place where some of my favorite songwriters were performing. The more I listened to new musicians the more I realized that this legendary cafe was the common thread. It’s the reason I moved to Los Angeles. I spent the first year there just sitting in a corner listening to live music every night. It’s where artists such as Katy Perry, John Mayer and Jason Mraz got their start. Recently Chris Martin of Coldplay did a mini show there to warm up for his upcoming tour. It’s a magical place. There’s an alley in Hollywood where you walk to the back and there’s the door. It’s a clubhouse for all the writers in Los Angeles and a wonderful place to be inspired. It’s small and cozy with lanterns on the ceiling and a very small stage. The audience comes there to listen, not talk. The musicians go there to play, not network. It’s a nice break from the hustle of Hollywood.

5. How does a person become a part of this community and how does the community help them with their career?

There’s no set way to become a member of the community. You make friends and learn and listen. You hope to get a show there. If you play, you hope to get asked to play again. The community’s strength is in the collaborative nature. No one does it alone. You play in each other’s bands, sing on each other’s records and support each other’s careers. The highlight for me was the Hotel Cafe Tour. We got on a bus with a whole gang of artists, one house band and toured the country to share the atmosphere of the club with the fans. It was a wonderful way to collaborate and show the strength of working together.

 

 

My favorite sound is a pack of coyotes at night howling at each other across the hills. Los Angeles is such a crazy big city but there are pockets of wild nature. Griffith Park is right behind the neighborhood where I live and there are packs of coyotes who hunt and howl all night long at the moon.

7. And which sound created by human do you find most inspiring?

I just got back from India and I did so many field recordings of sounds that I loved. My favorite was driving along the road and hearing the songs of religious pilgrims as they walked along the side of the road on their way to temple.

8. “Single Girls” is another one of your popular songs. Are you a single girl, too?

That’s a private question! So much of my personal life is in song already that I\’ve learned to keep the current state of my heart quite private. It will always show up in song at some point anyway so stay tuned!

9. What are the advantages of being a single girl?

Being single is a really great opportunity to learn who you are without the context of another human. You figure out what you love, what you don\’t. There isn\’t anyone whose permission you need to ask and you have a great deal of freedom to explore the world around you.

10. What would you decide if you had to choose between your music career and a very important relationship? What is most important for you?

Music is such an integral part of my life that it isn\’t separate from me. I think you may mean the touring? That certainly affects relationships I\’ve had in the past. I\’ll always write songs and make music and play piano because it’s such a big part of my personality. The right person in your life will never ask you to give up the most important thing in your soul. They will love you for it and it will fit. Compromise is always a part of a relationship and the right person for me would also mean I would work really hard to make space and time for them. I don\’t know if I\’ll always be touring as much as I am now, but in the meantime I am enjoying trying to have it all.

Elba is the name of the island that Napoleon was exiled to. When he was there he made the most of his time by building houses for his lovers, collecting taxes and designing a flag. He crowned himself the king of Elba. When I was writing this album I was going through massive changes in my personal life. Coming off of three years of touring nonstop created huge changes and dealing with those while having to write an album left me feeling as though I was in my own state of exile. I had been kicked out of my old life and was struggling to find balance and even sanity in my new one. The best way to turn that situation around was to claim that exile and make it into the world I wanted to live in. Using the island as my metaphor also allowed to be giving each song a purpose and place on the map.

 

Armin and I met after he made a remix of my cover of “Use Somebody”. He invited me to come into the studio to write with him over some simple tracks he already had made. We spent a day together and wrote over 3 songs. Writing with a DJ producer is a very different process. It allows you to let go of old forms and write in fragments. “Sound of the Drums” was originally a longer song with an extra verse but we decided for the album version to keep it very simple and direct. I really love the way it turned out and love playing it live. I wrote the melody and lyrics at the end of a painful breakup where communication had come to a complete standstill. I didn\’t know how to make myself heard anymore so the first line my heart is a beating drum is where I started.

 

 

I\’ve always been raised in between these two cultures so the combination is what works best for me. As soon as I spend too much time in one place I miss the other. It sounds restless but it’s all I know. I love the energy and ambition of the US and the history and culture of The Netherlands. Each one has given me the skills I need to navigate touring and the only negative is really the long flight in between.

14. Which countries have you visited to perform in? Which one gave you the most precious memories?

 I\’ve visited so very many countries in the past few years because of music. It’s a miracle. The Armin tour this year will take me all around the world as well to places I\’ve never been. My most favorite music memories so far are of my two tours in China. Two years ago we were able to go over there to tour around the country and play small club shows. Then we returned to play two big open air festivals a few months later. Playing there was such a unique experience and it proved that no matter how big the cultural difference and language barrier there is a magic that happens.
 

That’s hard to say. I\’ve been so moved by so many audiences. So far the audience in Mumbai really surprised me. They were so warm and so excited about the show and sent so much love to all of us. We could really feel it. And hear it!

 

 
16. Have you ever visited Romania before? What do you imagine and expect to find here, what have you heard about our country?

I\’ve never visited Romania and am very excited to be in a brand new country. I know that it might be cold in Bucharest but I\’m hoping to have a chance to walk around the city. My strategy in a new place is always to go look for a good cup of coffee, a market and a music store. If you find these three things you usually get a really good sense of a place in a very short amount of time. Markets showcase the food, the character of the neighborhood and the atmosphere of a city without sitting in a car. Finding a good coffee place and music store always leads to a few conversations that say a lot about a place. I can\’t wait to spend a little bit of time to soak it up.

 

Laura Jansen este unul dintre artistii pe care Armin van Buuren (interviul cu el aici) ii va aduce la Bucuresti pentru Armin Only: Intense. Spectacolul incepe la ora 20:00, iar cei care nu au tichet si-l pot procura din reteaua Eventim, la preturi incepand cu 150 lei/bucata.