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Compiled by: Jack Foley
EXTRACTS from a Q&A with Norwegian singer/songwriter, Lene
Marlin, which was conducted with The-Raft.com (click on the link,
opposite, to read the full interview).
Q: Your last album Playing My Game came out in 2000. What
have you been up to in between and were you worried that taking
a break you might lose the momentum you built up?
A: Ahh, what have I been up to? I slept for a while [laughs].
No, I just went through many changes in my life and so I needed
to relax and do other stuff and not to go to all these hotels
in different countries. I just needed to relax and not think about
anything else.
They always say when you take so much time from your first till
the next album you might lose some fans or whatever but I think
I just needed to use that time both personally and musically.
Because if I released an album two years ago, that wouldn't have
been good. So now I'm very proud of the album and I know that
this is the right time.
Q: What can fans expect from your second album?
A: I'm older now. The last time I was 17 and now I'm nearly
23 so I think my songs have changed, naturally, it's just a natural
development. I don't really know what to say, I guess people will
have to give it a chance and have a listen.
Q: When you sat down and started writing Another Day, did
you have a very clear direction you wanted the album to take?
Or did you just go into it with an open mind?
A: It was a bit strange because I wrote half the album in
the studio because it was so inspiring. I sort of knew the songs
I had before wouldn't be on the album, because I hoped I would
be able to write some new songs.
Then I started working with Mike Hedges and his team of people
and everything went so well and it was so inspiring so I wrote
so many new songs. It didn't really turn out the way I thought
it would, it was so inspiring.
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Q: What is your favourite song on the album?
A: Oh, I should have prepared for this question! [laughs]
My favourite song is a bit difficult to say because I'm so attached
to all of them, because I wrote them and I know what all the songs
are about. I can't really say that I have on favourite; sometimes
I listen to Sorry or My Love... it all depends.
It changes.
Q: Is the single You Were There written about anyone in particular?
A: Ah, yeah [laughs]. I can't tell you! Not even my friends
know what the songs are about and the reason why is because it's
so personal. Some of the songs are about me, some are not but
I don't want people to know which ones! And also I want people
to make up their own stories to the songs.
Q: Where did you shoot the video for the song?
A: That was shot in Stockholm in Sweden. We spent two days
there. It was so hot. It was in June sometime.
Q: You have worked on this album with Mike Hedges, who has
produced albums for people like U2, Travis or The Cure. How did
the collaboration come about?
A: I wanted the right producer to take my songs and push them
a bit further and a friend of mine said 'you should check out
Mike Hedges'. So I thought I should get in touch with him and
the record company started to speak to him.
I met Mike in London just for one day just to say hi and he was
just this great guy. He had this big smile on his face and he
said all the right things. And I thought hopefully it will work
out musically as well. And so I went back to do a couple of songs
and we found something special, we had the band coming in and
I think instead of doing two songs we did like five. It was really
a good vibe.
Q: As you said earlier you took a few years off, do you feel
under pressure with the release of your second album considering
the success of your first album, especially because Sitting
Down Here was such a huge hit all over the world?
A: The thing was everything was so overwhelming and I didn't
expect the album to do that well so when I had my little break
I needed to sit down and absorb everything and think about all
the good things that had been happening.
I think yeah, of course, there's some kind of pressure, but what
I tell myself is that I'm older, time has changed this is not
when the first album came out. Some of the fans have moved on
to listen to other stuff and hopefully I still have some left.
All I know is that I feel that I've made the best album that I
was able to make right now. I probably wouldn't make the same
album if I was going to make it next year or whatever, it all
depends.
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