Name: Silvurdrongur
Occupation: Rapper, spoken-word artist, producer, songwriter
Nationality: Faroese
Recent release: Silvurdrongur's new album nú æt eg eftir ánni is out via TUTL.  

If you enjoyed this Silvurdrongur interview and would like to stay up to date with his work, visit him on Facebook.  
 


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?

Interesting question. For me, it's not visual, but a feeling, a vibe, and literally a physical transformation of a place. The specific frequency of a song can change how a room looks like; and feels like to be in.

So, I guess music moves through me and determines how I experience the world.

How do listening with headphones and listening through a stereo system change your experience of sound and music?

As a writer, I spend most of my working days in public spaces with my Apple Airpod Max headphones on, listening to ambient music. That is what I'm doing right now. Brian Eno's Music For Airports (1978) is playing, and I am in my own little, private bubble of vibrations, while the rest of the room is in an entirely different space.



That gives me privacy, focus, and totally changes how I experience the space.

When you put an LP on through the sound system, it invites everyone in to a shared experience. The music isn't only in your head, it's in the room, the furniture, the walls, and that obviously affects the shape of the sounds, but it also changes how the music shapes the room;

it's more physical than metaphysical, if that makes sense.

Tell me about some of the albums or artists that you love specifically for their sound, please.

I love artists that create their own idiosyncratic universe of sound. Because if the need for narrative progression in most albums, I usually don't think that whole records are able to maintain a specific sound that I really love, it's typically a few songs per album that really nail a particular magic.

The song “Czech One” by King Krule is an example of a perfect sound in my opinion, just a song that I want to live in, it takes me to a certain place, and I feel like I'm a protagonist in a Wong-Kar Wai film.



“I Wrote This Song For The Girl Paris Hilton” by Vincent Gallo is another one like that, just a perfect space in sound and time to occupy.



“L'ile Neu” by Hikaru Hayashi is another one,



“Visit Croatia” by Alabaster DePlume,



“Dream Baby Dream” by Suicide,



“Flim” by Aphex Twin.



I could go on and on, you probably catch my drift. I like dreamy, melancholic vibes.

[Read our Alabaster DePlume interview]

Do you experience strong emotional responses towards certain sounds? If so, what kind of sounds are these and do you have an explanation about the reasons for these responses?

I'm getting more and more into flutes. It invokes a warmth in me, just makes me want to sit down and listen.

I'm going to Reykjavik and Berlin over the next weeks, looking to buy my first flutes there, really excited about it!

Are there everyday places, spaces, or devices which intrigue you by the way they sound? Which are these?

The rivers and birds in my local park are probably my favourite soundscape in my immediate environment. I can sit still and listen to them for hours.

I also like to practice meditation at home and listen to all the little every day sounds without attaching value or meaning to them. That makes them beautiful in a new way. The hum of a refrigerator can sing surprising harmonies with the shreeking kids that are playing outside.

What are among your favourite spaces to record and play your music?

Among friends.

Do music and sound feel “material” to you? Does working with sound feel like you're sculpting or shaping something?

Yes, absolutely. I like to sample things that give me a certain feeling.

My upcoming album uses extinct bird samples and goes through elements of water, air, earth, and fire, sometimes literally, other times in imitation.

Synth sounds are also very material to me; they can feel like clouds or concrete blocks or salvation.


Silvurdrongur Interview Image by Gwenael Akira Helmsdal

How important is sound for our overall well-being and in how far do you feel the "acoustic health" of a society or environment is reflective of its overall health?

Man, I can't stand to be in spaces with bad acoustics.

I am almost deaf in one ear, and I have a speech impediment which is exacerbated by chaotic loudness, so I mostly just stay away from unpurposefully noisy places. My girlfriend and me always assess the acoustics of a place when considering whether we want to be there or not.

In a more macro sense, loudness probably has a great significance for mental health, I'm sure all studies will show that.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds?

The ocean is amazing. The constant steady rhythm of the waves crashing can transport my mind completely, almost make me forget my physical body.

The Faroe Islands, my home, is great for that, as you are always surrounded by the sea and can take a short walk to it anytime. I feel attached to it, it is huge and scary and the biggest murderer of Faroese people. But it is also comforting, wise and beautiful.

Tinnitus and developing hyperacusis are very real risks for anyone working with sound. Do you take precautions in this regard and if you're suffering from these or similar issues – how do you cope with them?

I had a bycycle accident, no helmet, that blew out my left ear drum, so I am mostly deaf in that ear and suffer from constant, excruciating tinnitus. I mostly don't notice it, as I am quite good with compartmentalizing my attention, but it's always there, and it sucks.

So, I try to take extra good care of my one good ear, wear protection for concerts, and try to avoid loud noises in general.

We can surround us with sound every second of the day. The great pianist Glenn Gould even considered this the ultimate delight. How do you see that yourself and what importance does silence hold?

Silence is important to me. It allows my thoughts to form naturally and go the places they need to.

We tend to fill out all the voids, silences and lulls that appear because we are afraid of our own selves. I am guilty of that, as well, so I try to be mindful of it and just sit with silence as much as I can. That makes the music even sweeter when you turn it on.