Datarock - Lovin' Scandanavian Style

Fredrick, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist extraordinaire from the Norwegian band Datarock is in a good mood. But it’s not only because Datarock are preparing to head to Australia to promote their latest offering, the two CD remix of their self titled debut album plus a 5 song EP See what I care …it’s also because of the weather.

‘I’m in Bergen having a coffee…and it’s sunny!’ He seems almost surprised, and you can’t blame the man. For about 250 days of the year it rains in his little Norwegian hometown of Bergen. That’s a lot of rain. One may think that it could perhaps, ahem, dampen one’s mood but not so our hero, Fredrick. His infectious enthusiasm is an indication of what promises to be an exciting couple of months for the eclectic sounding duo.

‘We are playing at a Lithuanian festival in a couple of days and then we are playing at the Reading festival, and then we play the Leeds festival. The guitarist from the Happy Mondays is going to be playing onstage with us there. It’s really cool! He is a fan of our music….I think this will be about the third or fourth time he has played with us!’ he rattles off excitedly. We chat a bit about what the pair listen to on the road. ‘Oh, that’s tough….we listen to so much different stuff…Talking Heads. We love Talking Heads, obviously! Some Indie rock, um….and modern music. You know, like Klaxons, we like them, Daft Punk…we think they’re fantastic. Justice, New Young Pony Club, Shy Child, Prince…..’ Actually, Fredrick goes into a lot more detail at this point and his passion for all things music is obvious. But if you’ve heard the joy and humour in Datarock’s own music, this is no big surprise.

When quizzed about whether the pair prefers playing at festivals or doing their own club shows Fredrick is diplomatic. ‘Well, the thing with festivals is that you can actually see people not listening to you…like, there are a couple of thousand disinterested people in the crowd and you can see them. But then again, you get festivals, like when we played at the Meredith Music Festival and there were about 12 000 people….and they were all getting into it. That was excellent. Or even at Newcastle…there were only 200 people. But they were all getting into it and that’s fantastic. So, it’s not so much the venue as, um….
‘The vibe?’ I put forward.
‘Yeah, definitely. If the vibe is good, it doesn’t matter.’

So what can Australian audiences expect from the upcoming shows?

‘We’ll be playing all the songs from our new EP, some of the remixes from our album and, of course, ‘Computer Camp Love’. The overwhelming popularity of their run away ‘single’ ‘Computer Camp Love’ in Australia a year or so ago, is obviously still a surprise to Fredrick. ‘Did you know that song was number 12 in your ‘Hottest 100’? It was really surprising! That song was played so much on Australian radio that even some Norwegians thought we were an Australian band!’

Datarock’s affection for all things Australian starts to become apparent. ‘Australia is the best place to tour. You guys have a party culture there and everyone seems to know how to party. I don’t mean to sound like a suck….but its true! It was because of Australia that we were really persuaded to think that people might actually want to buy our records…so we decided to put all the money we earned back into the band….it is completely true when I say that may not have happened without Australia.’ So, is our so-called ‘party culture’ not apparent when they tour the US or UK? ‘Well, touring the US is not always the most positive experience for us. It can be really hard. Same with the UK too….it seems to be one of the toughest places to have success in. I don’t know….we have success there too….but it seems a bit harder.’ Having said that, Fredrick is quick to point out that Datarock have been getting some glowing reviews in the US lately, so hopefully conquering the hearts of the USA may not be too far off the radar.

When it’s suggested that it might have been weird for the tracksuit wearing duo to be more popular in Australia, a country so far removed from Norway and elsewhere in Europe, Fredrick quickly concurs. ‘Oh yeah…that is beyond weird….it’s bizarre! To be on the opposite side of the world and have such a positive experience….bizarre! It was great though.’

So much love, people, and with their latest release the love affair between Datarock and Australia seems set to continue for a long, long time. And, purely on a musical level, that is no bad thing. Considering how much Australia and Datarock seem enamoured by each other it seems a pity that Norway isn’t closer to us….say, in the place of New Zealand, perhaps? But Fredrick isn’t put off by the obscene distance.
‘Australia is such a beautiful country….we are really looking forward to coming down there again.’
You are not alone Fredrick. Bring the dance.

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