Norway's “Todd” Terje Olsen is gliding away from space disco – and seeking fresh challenges beyond his hallowed re-edits and remixes. And he's being assisted by big pop identities.
This year the restless DJ/producer enjoyed an epic club hit with Inspector Norse, off the It's The Arps EP, the flagship release for his Olsen label, but he also scored himself a UK number one – sorta. Robbie Williams' Jacknife Lee-helmed Candy is modelled on his 2004 'Nor-Wave' classic Eurodans. Olsen took a call to clear the track and secured a writing credit alongside Williams and fellow Take That stalwart Gary Barlow. It was, the DJ quips, “the laziest production session ever for me.” While Olsen admits that Candy has brought him “a lot of attention”, he's not yet been inundated with opportunities to produce pop stars, Guetta-style. Nevertheless, there are other pay-offs. “My 11-year-old nephew still thinks that me and Robbie are best pals, so I'll be forever cool in his eyes.”
Olsen has been more actively involved with another icon, Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry. Ferry's son Isaac, into underground dance music, has introduced him to such DJ collaborators as Hell. Olsen, too, is indebted to Isaac's nous. He remixed Ferry's Alphaville (and created a dub of Roxy's vintage Love Is The Drug). More excitingly, recent film footage online shows the pair jamming in a London studio. Asked if original material is forthcoming, Olsen responds with a coy “maybe”. Regardless, he's relished his exchanges with Ferry. ”He's obviously a hero to a lot of musicians – including me – so he could've James Browned all of us in the studio. But instead he was relaxed, listened to what everyone was saying, and added a lot to the sessions.”
Olsen grew up in Mjøndalen, playing piano. He studied music at tertiary level at the University of Oslo but switched to (astro)physics after finding his original choice uninspiring. Olsen first endeavoured to make dance – or breakbeat – at 13. He was subsequently exposed to disco (and house), digging Bjørn Torske's Sexy Disco. Olsen met Prins Thomas, then working at an Oslo record store. Together with Thomas and Lindstrøm, whose Another Station he remixed, Olsen spearheaded the cosmic disco revival. Yet Olsen, who assumed the 'Todd' moniker in homage to Todd Terry, betrayed his wide-ranging sensibilities with idiosyncratic edits (one of Guns N' Roses). Soon he was expressing disquiet about formulaic 'nu-disco'.
In 2010 Olsen presented Remaster Of The Universe, showcasing his remix skills (listen to the recasting of M's Pop Muzik). The set was meant to represent the end of an era, Olsen to focus more on originals – and presumably an oft-canvassed 'artist' album. Now? ”Well, Remaster... was just a remix anthology, nothing fancy. [It] wouldn't be hard to top that, to be honest, so a debut album is definitely on top of my to-do-list. Working with other bands and artists is also fun, but so far I feel I've just extended what I've already been doing, which is mixing for [a] dancefloor format. I play a lot of different instruments, but it all seems to end up as dancefloor fodder. The radio format interests me, however, as normal dancefloor rules like tempo don't apply.” Moreover, Olsen is developing a live show with Lindstrøm for next summer. He imagines it will be like “an extended production session”.
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Before that, though, Olsen, who initially toured Australia in 2008, will return to our shores to DJ. On what will be in his crate, Olsen enlightens, “The trancey, melodic Ibiza Cadenza stuff like Luciano's Rise Of Angel, Robag Wrühme's Donnerkuppel or Michel Cleis' Mir A Nero always gives me goosebumps – and I'll always be playing those tunes.”
Todd Terje Olsen will be playing the following shows:
Saturday 1 Decembre - Harbourlife, Mrs Macquarie's Point, Sydney NSW
Sunday 2 December - Scarborough Beach Ampitheatre, Perth WA
Friday 7 December - The Liberty Social, Melbourne VIC
Saturday 8 December - Civic Underground, Sydney NSW
