Name: Tormóður Petursson Djurhuus aka Tormodur
Nationality: Faroese
Occupation: Singer, songwriter
Current release: Tormodur's new single "Green, Yellow and Red (Can't Figure You Out)" is out via TUTL.
Recommendations: The first thing that I'll recommend everyone to take a look at and into, is 'Det Syke Barn'/'The Sick Child', a series of paintings and other works, by Edvard Munch. I'd also recommend reading about it, to truly understand the depth of the pieces.
My second recommendation is the album Poetry & Airplanes by Teitur Lassen, artist name Teitur. An extremely talented Faroese musician and songwriter, whom I think many of you will enjoy.

If you enjoyed this Tormodur interview and would like to know more about his music, visit him on Instagram.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

When I listen to music that really hits me, it affects my whole body and mind. Sometimes in the form of electricity and serotonin, other times in the form of an almost coma like experience, where I lose track of everything around me and just blend into the music.

It all depends on the music and my own state of mind at the time.  

I recorded some (to me) incredible pieces of music when I had almost no idea what I was doing. What were your very first steps in music like - and how do you rate gains made through experience versus the naiveté of those first steps?

I started writing lyrics and creating rhythms for them, when I was six or seven years old. Back then, I would often write hip-hop verses and songs which I would then perform at family gatherings.
 The first steps were extremely fun and exciting. I would sit for hours trying to find the perfect combinations of words, that would suit the rhythm and melody, as well as the story that I wanted to tell. It's great to get started and get yourself out there at a young age, you really learn a lot.

The gains that have come through experience and many hours have definitely raised the quality of what I'm creating, but at the same time they would never have been made possible, if it wasn't for the imperfection and just trying something to see how it works, of those first steps.


I sometimes catch myself being very critical, too critical, when I'm starting on something new, disregarding a thought, an idea or a melody without giving it a fair chance. That's something I miss about the naiveté that's there when you start out, no matter how absurd it may sound or seem, I always just tried it out too see where it'd take me.

Some of my, in my opinion, greatest creations, have come through a combination of experience and naiveté. Songs that I've started working on when I was just trying out everything that I could think of, and then I found them again years later, and "perfected" them, or at least raised the quality and filled the gaps that are there, when you don't really know what you're doing.

It is generally believed that we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between 13-16. Tell me what music meant to you at that age, please – and how its impact has changed since then.  

That period of your life is filled with questions, deep and strong emotions and of course, some degree of insecurity. In other words, it’s one big whirlwind going on in your mind. I always found that music helped me find my feet, when everything felt like pure chaos.

I used music a lot in those years, especially when I was feeling down or frustrated. It was also in that period that I started to really use writing lyrics and making melodies, as a form of self-treatment, to clear my mind out and to get to know myself on a deeper level.

I still use music in the same way that I did back then, just not as much. With age I feel like I’ve found a stable ground and by doing so, everything isn’t as chaotic as it used to be. I don’t feel that I need it as much as I used to.

I still use the creative part to clear my mind and get to know myself, and if I’m down I’ll also put some records on, that reflect my emotions, but it’s not as intense as it used to be.

Over the course of your development, what have been your most important instruments and tools - and how do you think has working with them shaped your perspective on music?

My most important tools have definitely been my voice and my pen, from the beginning till now and everywhere in between.

I think that this has given me a different perspective on music than most musicians, who have grown through instruments. The lyrics play a very important role in my music, and I’ll go quite far to make sure that the story I’m telling isn’t in some ways getting lost in the music.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

My life and experiences, that's more or less the answer to both.
 My ideas almost exclusively come from my own life and experiences, especially the less fun parts of it. I often find it challenging to create something out of the happy sides of life, or at least create something that I feel satisfied with.

For example, my newest release has been heavily influenced by my life and surroundings, both regarding the issue of the song and the way that the issue is painted. I've worked as a roadworker, working a lot with road signs and such, and those images are very strongly represented in the song.

Regarding the motivational part, I get motivated by having something on my mind or heart, that I feel should be turned into something other than just a burden or a thought, something that I feel like I should address and work with.

Paul Simon has been quoted as claiming that “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

I agree with him to some extent, regarding my own experiences. My first impression is of the overall sound as well as the rhythm and the way the lyrics come across. But it’s a given that in any song the sound is one of the most important factors, if not the most important.

I don´t truly feel that I’ve found my own sound yet. I’m still at a place where I’m exploring and trying different things and sounds, and I’m really happy to be at this exact place. I’m able to try out different genres and styles, and do more or less whatever I’m feeling like, without defying anyone's expectations.

That’s a great liberty of being new in the world of music.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to forces of nature. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Many of my most moving experiences regarding the sound of nature, have been on Faroese mountains.

When you are on a hike, and you have come far away from everything and everyone and you just listen, then you realize how much amazing sound is around you. Birds, the ocean, the wind, a couple of sheep and just everything.

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of music in nature is definitely birds, but everything from wind to water has some musical elements to it. I've always had a stream flowing right outside of my bedroom window, and when it's not windy, and I just lie in silence and hear the stream flowing, it has a very calming and satisfying effect on me, an effect that I would say is quite similar to what calming music gives me.

It depends on where you draw the line whether something is directly musical or not. I certainly find that nature has endless musical elements to it and effects that resemble the effects that music can give.

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

It would have to be simplicity and complexity, and it's most in terms of listening, not creating.
When someone finds the most simple compositions and combinations that just go together, and I can just sit back and enjoy the beauty in it, without having to give it too much thought, that's something I find very relaxing and giving.

When it comes to complexity, it's on the entirely different end of the scale, also in terms of what draws me to it.
There is something really exciting and wonderful about a piece that you have to listen to over and over again, for the layers to open one by one.

It is also incredibly satisfying to sense that you understand more with every listen, and that you're able to dig deeper and deeper into the work and the mind that's behind it.

From symphonies and traditional verse/chorus-songs to linear techno tracks and free jazz, there are myriads of ways to structure a piece of music. Which approaches work best for you – and why?

I have a quite traditional way of structuring my songs, with verses, choruses and bridges. I don't think too much of the structure of a song to begin with, I just find that the traditional way is what generally suits my songs the best.

In the music that I've released so far, the order of the different parts has varied more or less in between every song. But I've still yet to try anything that's completely out of the ordinary. Still, it is not something that I am not open to in the future.

Science and art have certain overlaps and similarities. Do you think "objectivity" has a place in art and do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

I would like to say no, I don't truly feel you can be objective about art. You can't really help it if it does something to you, and on the other hand, you can't help it either, it doesn't make you feel anything. That's the beautiful thing about art. you can't even always really tell why something moves you the way that it does.

I do realise that certain chord patterns and mixtures of sounds go really well together, and that these combinations again and again make it onto the hit lists, especially in pop music. So there is an argument to be made for objectivity.

I feel that every song is an experiment in some way, so yes I'd say that I experiment a whole lot. But in terms of the scientific part, that's not something that I've used when making music.

Seeing, smelling, touching, tasting – which of these sense impressions have the strongest points of contact with your hearing/listening experience?

I would say that the visual aspect gives me the most. Some music videos have really changed the way that I hear certain songs, and the visual experience of standing at a great concert and seeing the music be created in front of you is truly special.

With that being said, I also think there is something special about eating (smelling and tasting) while listening to music. I have some very fond memories from my family's visits to Italy, where we would go to different restaurants and they would serve amazing food, while beautiful music would play in the background.

This is a couple of years ago, so my memories may very well be romanticised, but as I picture and remember it in my head, it was a beautiful symphony of sound, smell and taste, surrounded by comforting walls that were full of soul and history.

Does the way you make music reflect on the way you live your life? And vice versa, can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

To some extinct, yes. I would say that my music reflects what is going on in my life and where I'm at, rather than how I live it. My music is in most cases a direct mirroring of me at an exact moment.


And yes a hundred per cent! There's nothing I've learned more from, than sitting deep in thought with my music, about life and myself. 
For some reason I find it easier to be transparent and honest to a piece of paper, than to be honest to myself. So often after writing some lyrics, I read them back and then I really understand what's been going on in my mind.

It can often be somewhat hitting, but at the same time extremely comforting and easing.
There's no end to what we can learn, by really digging deep into music.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

For me personally there is a big difference between creating music and e.g. making a great cup of coffee, but I expect that many people experience the same things and reliefs when making a great cup of coffee, as I get from writing or performing a song. 
That goes for more or less anything that you put real thought into, to each their own.

I expresses me, my fears, my hopes and dreams, my questions, my sorrows and everything in between. I get to know and understand myself, while I write and create. 
I don't feel that I get to do that, while occupying myself with more mundane tasks.

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Conversely, many popular love songs leave me cold. Do you have similar paradoxical examples - and why, do you think, is the same piece of music capable of conjuring such vastly different responses in different listeners?

The first thing that came to mind when I was reading this question was Michel Teló’s "Ai Se Eu Te Pego".



Although I to this day still have no idea what the words he sings mean, it has always had a strong effect on me. On the other hand, like you mention in the question, many popular love songs (where I even understand the lyrics) don’t have any effect on me. I think that a part of what I love about this particular song, is that I don’t understand the lyrics. It makes it somewhat magical and exciting, that the lyrics can mean whatever I want them to mean.

It can hit differently from person to person because we’re all different, we have different stories and different backgrounds, different relationships to certain sounds and genres, and that’s amazing. Where we come from and what we’ve been through, heavily affects our relationship to certain music, and it’s good that we have such a broad variety of music in this world, cause there’s a sound or song for everyone.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

I've always listened a lot to pop, and it's of course also the primary thing that gets fed through the radio, social media and so on. I would love for a new wave of pop music, for someone to come in and just shake the scene.


I feel like a lot of the music that gets released resembles one another, and in some way, it just feels like the pop landscape has gone a bit stale.
 I mean, there is also newly released music that I really like, but I'd also love for something new, different and exciting to shake things up.