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An Interview with /Mats by Brakka & dBunny


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***** The arellspencer interview didn't go as well as I had hoped, but as I did that I thought that It would be cool to ask questions of a long-time member. This time I asked the subject privately if he would be willing to be interviewed, then I conducted the interview through PM's and attempted to present a short magazine-style interview. This is not a "let's hear it for..." thread, just a look at a forum poster. Mats was asked to answer the questions seriously [i]or[/i] humorously, and was free to be as honest or dishonest as he liked. ***** ***** Mats_Olsson joined musicplayer in the summer of 2000 as Member # 3754. There aren't that many 3- & 4-digit members that post regularly, and Mats is one of the more visible old-schoolers at SSS. He has upped his post count considerably in the past year, with On-Topic replies and humorous asides- and the links! Threads like [url=http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=009504]"Surf\'s up!"[/url] and the fantastic [url=http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=010903#000002] "Friday fun" [/url] have dozens of great links- not a bunch of links with a few good ones, all winners. So let's get inside John Malkovich. I mean Mats_Olsson. ***** [b]Hello, Mats.[/b] Hi Brakka. [b]So, you live in Sweden. How's that working out for you?[/b] It's OK, but I would not mind living elsewhere could I find a good job. This town is large enough to provide mostly anything and it is only an hour to Stockholm so it makes sense to be here. [b]Is "Olsson" a common name in Sweden? I looked up "Mats Olsson" on Google and got 8,630 hits in .16 seconds.[/b] Olsson is a very common name, probably somewhere in the top 5. I believe that Johansson is most common. There are some other variations in the spelling: Ohlson, Olzon, Olson but Olsson is most common. Mats is also a common name. I know of at least 5 other Mats Olsson's, 2 of whom are very well known in music/entertainment. [b]Were you born in Sweden? [/b] Yes, Eskilstuna Sweden, September 1st 1960 [b]Where else have you lived?[/b] I grew up inhere and on a boat (my dad was a shipbuilder so I'm just as home at sea). In the 80's I was on the road a lot as a touring sound engineer/tour mgr, 85-88 I spent a considerable amount of time in Germany/Holland/Belgium/England/Austria and when I wasn't working I often stayed in Amsterdam, Brussels or Hamburg. A large part of 1988 (7 months) I toured all of Norway - a beatiful country (midnight sun for months on end and great fishing in the north are very fond memories BTW). In the second half of 1989 I tried my luck in New Orleans but went back "home", tired of travelling and wanting to settle down. After that this town has been where I'm at most of the time, studio work (engineering/management) and in 1992 I opened a mastering studio. [b]Are you a Viking?[/b] Most vikings were farmers/hunters/fishermen/craftsmen, only a few were explorers and/or warriors most vikings that went abroad were traders ("businessmen"). I don't know, viking stuff is fascinating and I like to sail but I guess that I'm really just a plain agnostic with some kind of humanistic/syndicalistic attitude. [b]If you were from Australia, I would have asked if you hunted crocs. Bad Joke. It really is an interesting part of world history. Do 21st Century Swedes think that the rest of the world assumes they're all vikings?[/b] No, I don't think so. Foreigners seem to always want to know a little about the viking culture and I guess that most Swedes are proud in regards to what the vikings accomplished. And those stones and rocks are everywhere in this part of the land, they are impossible to ignore. [b]Have you ever played Bandy?[/b] Only in school. Bandy is a tough & fast game only played outdoor because a bandy rink is almost as large as a soccer field. Bandy spectators are sick people, it is darn cold to stand still out there for so long. [b]Who were your early musical influences?[/b] My brother is 15 years older and had lots of singles and ep's so what he played I listened to, my first musical memory is Beatles "She loves you". I also remember liking Telstars (Joe Meeks famous productions), Spotnicks, Rolling Stones, Elvis, Kinks and so on. When I got a little older and got my own records I bought a lot of glam rock stuff (Bowie, T-Rex, Roxy Music, Mott the Hoople, Lou Reed) but also a lot of old blues and contemporary swedish prog music. [b]Oh wow... "contemporary swedish prog music"- I do remember reading that Stockholm was/is a major hub for Euro prog, but I can't name a single Swedish prog group. Are Camel from Sweden?[/b] Camel = not from around here Great Swedish Prog that I loved then and still enjoy immensely, all the names on the list are really good: * Träd, Gräs & Stenar (AKA International Harvester) - still going strong, better than ever! * Älgarnas Trädgård * Samla Mammas Manna * Gunder Hägg/Blå Tåget * Nationalteatern * Philemon Arthur & The Dung (very....different?) * Pugh Rogefeldt * Ulf Dageby (was also a member of Nationalteatern, today he composes for film) * Lars Hollmer (Member of Samla Mammas Manna) [b]What music have you been listening to lately?[/b] Last couple of weeks most listened to: Kent (a great swedish band and personal friends of mine since way back), Elvis (the 1956 album), Cardigans (new album about to be released), lots of Kurdish new & traditional music (I do a lot of mastering for a couple of Kurdish labels), Peter Gabriel, The Who (Live at Leeds, Who's Next), a strange cover compilation with Bowie songs (from Uncut magazine, march 2003 edition), Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story, new recording on Naxos - much better production than the old stale stuff). I like a lot of music. [b]What recording gear do you use?[/b] Whatever it takes to capture the music. If I need something we don't have I rent or borrow it. In our studio [img]http://www.rockfile.se/images/amb1.jpg[/img] (our=I do not own the recording studio, I am just taking care of business for the owner. Have had this gig for 13 years now and have developed this from a dump to a pretty decent facility, in this time I have done 2 major expansions) we've got a Soundtracs Solitaire 32ch inline console with dynamics on all channels, Radar II, Masterlink, MOTU 2408 mkII / G3-400 Mac, Westlake & HHB monitors, plenty of outboard - highligts (copy-and-paste list, not complete): Amek 9098 EQ/Pre, LA Audio Classic Channel (channel strip), Crane Song STC-8, Joemeek SC2 (early model, no output gain), TLA stereo compressor, 3X TC Triple-C, dbx 160x, Lexicon PCM70, Sony DSP V-55, TC M-One & D-Two, Korg SDD 2000 sampling delay, Electrix Mo-Fx & EQ Killer, Panasonic 3700, Fostex D5, Electrix Warp Factory, MOTU MTP AV. And lots of headphones & amps. Microphones (not complete): Coles 4038, Milab VIP-50, 2X KSM-32, Schoeps CMH, Akg C3000B, C2000B, Milab PZM, 6X Milab D-37, 2X ADK 51, 2X ADK C-1, 2X SM-81, 2X Calrec 1050C, 3X SM-57, 421, 2X Akg D112, D12E, D190, D330BT, 2X D125, 2X D90, AT ATM-25, Neumann KM-84, Akg C451, C452, 2X Akg CK-8 capsules for 451/452, Microtech Gefell UM70, various DI-boxes. Assorted acoustic & electric guitars & basses, Pod 2, Bass Pod, V-Amp 2, H&K Tubeman, Ampeg J12T, Peavey Classic 30, Carvin 200 Bass Combo, Mesa Boogie 212 slanted halfback speaker cabinet, old Peavey 400W Bass Head, small Crate combo, upright piano, synths & modules (M1, Wavestation A/D, Roland 2080 (expanded, 2 extra cards), Ensoniq sampler, Solina string ensemble, Juno 106, Polysix, Alesis D4, Roland TR-707), Roland Octapad, Roland percusion 4-zone trig pads; Tama Rockstar & classic Gretsch drums, large collection of cymbals (mostly Sabian, some old Ziljdjan's), accordeon, Sitar, large assortment of percussion including african & asian drums. [The studio has] accomodation for 6 people, tie lines to all rooms including lounge and sound lock. large control room, 2 tracking rooms, well equipped workshop for repair and maintenance, humidity and temperature controlled vault for media storage (in other location). In same building as studio: café with broadband internet access, match sized pool table. Lots of recreational facilities right outside of studio (4X soccer field, indoor skating rink, indoor racketsport courts, 18 hole golf course & putting range, miniature golf, parks & fields. Free parking 24/7. The Mastering studio (my own place) is mostly built around gear from Focusrite [url=http://www.focusrite.com/products/blue/](Blue Series mastering system)[/url] , there's also a mixed bag of old & new stuff. Of course I would love to have all of this and that from the top shelf but this is a mid level mastering facility and my clients are not prepared to pay premium fees and one has to make ends meet. Besides, the most important assets in this line of business are ears and experience. My clients keep coming back for more so I guess it's quite alright as it is. I also got CDR duplication equipment (MediaForm automated thing, Rimage thermal printer). [b]What instruments do you play? [/b] My earliest main instrument used to be harmonica, I was also fairly early as a (monophonic) synth player. I like to play Guitar (played a lot of synth guitar) and bass but I am really not very skilled at neither. Keyboards and vocals are what I'm modestly good at and enjoy the most. I also like to fool around with my trombone. [b]Do you own any exceptional instruments or some that are very special to you?[/b] Casio RapMan (really! it is a fun toy), Indian Snake Charmer's flute, a beautifully crafted african thumb piano. Not that any of them are really special but I do like them a lot. [b]Are there any good Swedish bands that the rest of the world doesn't know about yet?[/b] Kent. They are so good that it is almost embarrasing. There are other good one's but Kent is in a league of their own. Robyn is also very talented. And Stina Nordenstam. Nåid is good. [b]Do you have any favorite movies? [/b] Plenty, I love movies. Try to find [i]La Vie de la Boheme[/i] (A Finnish movie), Godard's [i]Breathless[/i] is fantastic, there are so many but I stop here (it's getting late over here) [b]What are some good movies from Sweden/Northern Europe that I should see? [/b] [i]Lilya Forever, Festen, Songs from the Second Floor, Show Me Love[/i] (a strong movie and I produced the opening track, a great song called "Drifter" with a band called Yvonne), [i]Breaking the Waves, The Seventh Seal.[/i] [b]I liked [i]My Life as a Dog[/i].[/b] Yes, a very warm and likeable film. Lasse Hallström is a talented film maker, too bad he doesn't get to do as good films in Hollywood. [b]I think he wrote his Swedish movies, not so over here [ in the U.S.]. I did like [i]What's Eating Gilbert Grape?[/i], and also [i]The Shipping News[/i]- although everyone I know hated that one. Is the problem that the American films he directs are based on dialogue? [/b] No, the problem spells "format thinking" and endless production times in combination with focus groups having more to say about the final product than the director (an unthinkable concept in music), I also believe that most european directors in Hollywood are more mercenarys than "auteurs" (a great French word to describe exactly what I mean). [b]If you could take a free vacation anywhere in the world, where would you go?[/b] Asia (North Thailand, India, Mongolia, Tibet, Japan), Kurdistan (I have many Kurdish friends), New Zealand, Scotland, Island, Greenland, parts of Africa, I'd also love to travel a lot more in north America. There are so many places that are intresting. I would also like to make a long sailing cruise. [b]Lastly, If you were a Muppet, which Muppet would you be?[/b] ahahaha... I would like be one of the 2 grumpy old men (whatever they are called). I would not be the swedish chef, thats for sure. (the guy that inspired Jim Henson to develop that character is still alive and well, I'll try to find a web site with his story - it is pretty funny). [b]Thanks, /Mats![/b] Thank you Brakka, it was fun! [img]http://www.horrorcards.org/images/outer_limits/outer_limits.jpg[/img]
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Brakka - sounds like you've got a cool series going. :thu:

RobT

 

Famous Musical Quotes: "I would rather play Chiquita Banana and have my swimming pool than play Bach and starve" - Xavier Cugat

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There are a lot of talented folks on this forum. I'd like to see more interviews like this one! :thu: Good work Guys! Is There Gas In The Car? :cool:
"Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent." - Victor Hugo
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Thanks everybody. Mats mentioned that he had some things to do today, but he'll be back to read this friday night. It was fun to do. I wish I had asked more about vikings. :) I expected a bit more humor- from both of us- but the questions I ended up asking sort of needed factual responses & opinion. I'm an amateur- I don't know much about interviewing someone, unless it's anything like talking to someone. ;) After posting it I was expecting at least a few "uh, what the hell..." responses, but maybe they're still to come.
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OK. I had a good conversation with Mats last week in one of the OT/Postaholism threads. He was being rather generous and informative with his answers, so I kept feeding him questions. I’ll excerpt some of the conversation here: [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Mats, do you live in the same town as Zap, [the city of] ESKILSTUNA?[/b][/quote]Oh yes, we all live in [url=http://www.eskilstuna.se/english/]Eskilstuna[/url] , except that I live in the centre and Zap's mansion is in the outskirts of some God-forgotten suburb. He likes to live out there with farms and stuff, probably a great place for his kids. I have to visit him soon, have been saying that for a couple of years now. Shame on me, there are no excuses for my behaviour. After all we know each other and he has visited me, as a friend and as a client. Ain't I bad? I used to live in the house on the right, had a great view over the river and a park: [img]http://www.trekshare.com/members/akeke/images/jimage4507.jpg[/img] But you can't see the river in this picture because of the snow. This area is old viking territory. Lots of rune stones and rock carvings here. It often amazes (sp?) visitors when they come here, rune stones here and there. The vikings wrote runes on both wood and stone, but it is mainly the stone carvings that remain today. The runes were both symbols and letters.The runes were also magic signs and their mening may be the opposite if they were turned upside down. [img]http://www.trekshare.com/members/akeke/images/jimage4581.jpg[/img] The house (palace) in the background is where our recording studio is located. There are also more than 100 bands rehearsing in the same building. It is a centre for talent development and and music production. Probably the largest place of it's kind, anywhere. I could tell you a lot more if you like to hear it. When I was at the post office I had to stay in line for several minutes, 5 at least. And the roads are very icy today, very slippery. Tonight I'm in some kind of jury for a talent contest at a fancy hotel/restaurant, it will be fun. Here is another (better) site with lots of cool info about my 'hood: [url=http://www.trekshare.com/index.cfm?p1=121&tripid=1705]web page[/url] So now you know what it's like to live here. Why don't you all come over here for a MP/SSS dinner? Did you actually know that "York" is a Viking word, the original word was "Jorvik", which means "The Horse Bay". The legend tells that Jorvik was founded by Ragnar Lodbrok's son Ivar Benlös (Ivar the Boneless). New York was however founded a bit later, but the origin of the name derives from the vikings... My full name is Mats Ivar Olsson. Not boneless though. [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Mats, I enjoyed your description and links for Eskilstuna. May I come visit sometime?[/b][/quote]dBunny, you are more than welcome! This part of Sweden is nice. How to get here? Least expensive is probably Ryan Air from London ($30-50 for a one way ticket, several flights each day). Summer is best time of the year. If you ask nicely I will post an old picture when I was shit-faced in Copenhagen & performing in the streets 25 years ago. [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Show us the picture, Mats. [img]http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/ubb/icons/icon14.gif[/img][/b][/quote][img]http://www.rockfile.se/gaabada/hmcopehagen.gif[/img] I'm the right guy. You want more dirty pics? [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Hell, yeah!!! Show 'em![/b][/quote]Only about 7 years back, a post-show pic. This is the meanest & grooviest band you ever heard.: [img]http://www.rockfile.se/gaabada/gabada.gif[/img] [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Hey, Mats, which one are you in the band picture? I can't figure it out. I need a new monitor.[/b][/quote]I'm the fat bastard with trombone in the front. Vocals is my main thing but I also insist on raising hell with my trombone. (Note: The picture was taken like 7 years ago.) This crazy band consist only of incredibly talented professional musicians + me and my long time buddy Hasse (back, far left). Hasse and I wrote all songs for this group wich was sort of a strange band that "all" good musicians in the area wanted to join - we even had a vaiting list (!) or the band would have been larger than Funcadelic/Parliament who's music reminds of ours. It has always been very easy to land gigs for this band, but we seldom take gigs nowadays - Hasse and I are too busy doing other stuff. Odd bonus trivia: The slim bastard to my left (Harri) sweeped the swedish grammy awards this year, his band ( [url=http://www.kent.nu]kent[/url] ) recieved no less than 7 Grammys (Best group pop/rock, Best Artist, Best song, Best lyricist, Best composer, Best Producer pop/rock, Album of the Year). This is the most Grammys a Swedish act has ever won at once. Only about 30 Grammys are awarded in the Sweden and Kent won all categories that they were nominated in. Their latest album was released 11 months ago and is still outselling all others here (4 X platinum in Sweden, platinum in Norway, 2 x gold in Finland). Lucky bastards. But I still believe that our band is better. [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Mats, can I hear some of your band's music? [img]http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/ubb/icons/icon14.gif[/img][/b][/quote]Sure, buy the record! Just kidding, I will try to find something to upload. You have to wait a while(I moved twice last year and some of the archived stuff is still in a kind of "where the *xbk#j* did I put that thing?" state). [quote]Originally posted by dBunny: [b]Hey… I'll buy the record if I can. Is it in stores? What is the name of the band?[/b][/quote]The record is out of print long ago. We released it in the eighties, after that it is only live - recording is too time consuming with a band like this. The name of the band is "Gå å Bada" wich is kind of a slang expression, it translates roughly to "Get out of here!" or "Go take a bath". The whole thing started as a joke, a spoof diversion from our "regular" band. We were just hacks (I still am a hack, but please don't tell anyone) back then but very soon it developed to a real mean live unit influenced from all sorts of current groovie music (Funkadelic/Zappa/Bowie/Talking Heads/Devo/Residents/Robert Fripp/Elvis/Wild Man Fisher and so on). [b]--------> Thanks, Mats!!![/b] :thu:
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Great idea Brakka, great result. Thanks to Bunny aswell for adding your bit in. Mats you said you'd love to visit Scotland, well you're very welcome here. I've never met a Swede I didnt like. Well I dont like Johan Mjallby but I'm a Rangers fan! John Scotsman
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Yeah! What an awesome concept! Interviewing people we know and love and sharing it. It's great :D I hope you find time to interview others on this forum. (inserts obligatory) "mee too! mee too!" :p

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WWND?

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Hi again, I've been occupied with hosting a conference for the last days but boy does it feel strange to come back here and see this "in print"..... I feel a little bit embarased (and flattered, of course). Anyways I just would like to say that you guys (that means [b][i]YOU![/b][/i]) are the best, thank you. /Mats PS Thanks for the invitation to Scotland, as I said, I really would love to explore it all.

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What do we want? Procrastination!

When do we want it? Later!

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Cool interview! I really enjoyed it! It was better than "Cats"! Hey Mats is it really true that Sweden is full of really hot blonde girls? Don't destroy any fantasies I already have going. I think you need to share with the rest of the world... :p :D
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