Christian Fennesz Quotes

I grew up in a small village close to a big lake. There are heavy winds there, and they always sound different. I like these sounds best.

For me, noise is not something I use to shock, or because it's funny, or weird, or whatever. I use it because I find it beautiful.

For me, there is a strong hypnotic power in noise-music, and that's something I don't want to leave out of my music anymore.

I started playing guitar at the age of 8 or 9 years. Very early, and I was like already into pop music and was just trying to copy what I heard on the radio. And at a very early age I started experimenting with old tape recorders from my parents. I was 11 or 12 at that time and then when I was like 14 or 15 I had a punk band. I made all the classic rock musician's evolutions and then in the early nineties I bought my first sampler and that is how I got into electronic music, because I was able to produce it on my own. That was quite a relief.

It's amazing. It's actually build from old Siemens Telefunken transistors from the 60ties. There is like 10 in there. It's the most powerful distortion you can have. It does not only do distortion, it does so many weird things. You can't control it, it's sound different all the time. But it's an endless source for fantastic sounds. For example the track "Transit" is entirely made with this box. You have to put the guitar sound in. It's like a pedal.

I don't release many records just as "Fennesz," so when I do, I want to plan everything in detail. It's not that I want to really lead the listener somewhere; it's more about me being satisfied with a project.

No more "band psycho" stuff for me. I'm fine without it.

I was really a big fan of Loveless. At [the time it came out], I made music that was not too far away from [what they were doing], but we were stuck in Austria. There was no way to get attention from the outside world. Maybe it's a generational thing.

I hate the idea of repeating myself. I need new perspectives and challenges for each project, and I'm very happy that many people are able to follow me without any problem.

I really don't want to become a "member" of a band anymore. I really enjoy having total control over my music and productions.

I studied ethnomusicology for a while, but I don't think that really influenced my music.

It's true that laptop performances can be boring for the audience. The problem is, the organizers of events are still putting us on the classic "rock stage," instead of trying to find new ways to present the music.

In my case, I am improvising with existing sound files. I use an MSP patch that a friend of mine made, and you have to improvise when you use this patch. I don't use a guitar in performance anymore.

I grew up with rock and pop music from the 70s and 80s. I had to play guitar in school - it was a music college and we had to take instrument classes there - so I think guitar playing and guitar sounds have always been an influence.