Name: Orions Belte
Members: Øyvind Blomstrøm, Kim Åge Furuhaug, Chris Holm
Interviewee: Øyvind Blomstrøm

Nationality: Norwegian
Occupation: Singer, songwriter, musician
Current release: Orions Belte's 3xLP box set Chris Holm · Øyvind Blomstrøm · Kim Åge Furuhaug, comprising one complete solo album by each of its members, is out November 18th via Jansen Records.

If you enjoyed this interview with Orions Belte and would like to stay up to date with the band's music, visit them on Instagram, and Facebook.  



Where does the impulse to create something come from for you? What role do often-quoted sources of inspiration like dreams, other forms of art, personal relationships, politics etc play?

We write stuff all the time. We also live in three different cities, so the first stage of writing is often sending ideas and sketches between us. But when we get in the studio, we always tend to write some of the songs on the spot.

Our second studio album, Villa Amorini has a lot of those ideas. “Bean” was written while we were setting up and checking mics in the studio. It ended up being the first track on the album because it’s a nice view into that exact studio session.

When it comes to inspiration from other sources than music, this plays a great part in our writing. It could be a single thought, a movie, old sports clips, post cards found in the attic with pictures from another era. It’s definitely a big part of our way of making music. And the naming of the instrumental tracks.

For you to get started, do there need to be concrete ideas – or what some have called a 'visualisation' of the finished work? What does the balance between planning and chance look like for you?

Chance is a huge part of our sound. The whole band idea is based on all three of us getting to pitch in whatever idea comes to mind, and our willingness to try everything.

(Of course) one of us might have a vision of where a song should end up, but it might be something completely different in the end. That’s the beauty of it. It’s also beautiful when everyone in the band is able to let go of their own idea for the greater good, the finished song.

The song “how long is … cold pizza good for” was initially just a small riff that was the basic idea.



When we started to record we added a new riff in the middle that has a totally different feel, and in the post production Chris came up with some twisted vocals, Øyvind with some jazz piano chords and Kim added some 70s synth tom fills. And then it ends up being something completely different. That’s a great feeling!

Is there a preparation phase for your process? Do you require your tools to be laid out in a particular way, for example, do you need to do 'research' or create 'early versions'?

Not really. We have really good  chemistry when we meet up and play together, so a lot gets decided on the spot while we’re recording. We trust the coincidences.

We have recorded in a lot of different rooms - in proper studios, in cabins, in rehearsal spaces. With finished songs, with sketches, with small riffs or without any preparation. It’s more a matter of making every different situation work.

Do you have certain rituals to get you into the right mindset for creating? What role do certain foods or stimulants like coffee, lighting, scents, exercise or reading poetry play?

Nope. I don’t think any of us is dependent of a certain mood or time of day etc. to be able to write.

For my part, ideas come at any given time. Often inconvenient as well. While making dinner or putting the kids to bed. So then I have to run in to the bedroom with a guitar and record it on my phone. A lot of the voice memos have tons of noise from kids playing or other stuff happening.

“New Years Eve #2” from our first album was written right before we were having tons of people over for a big dinner party, so my wife was running around vacuuming and taking everything out of the oven while I recorded the idea real quick on my phone.



What do you start with? How difficult is that first line of text, the first note?

Nothing special, it could be two notes while noodling on the sofa. Or you could have a notion about a melody and it just pops out of you, which is also a strange feeling. But sometimes it’s even about just going to work and pick up an instrument just to see what comes out.

As a musician, going to work early in the morning and grinding stuff out is sometimes overlooked or under appreciated. There’s so much good music (and art in general) being made that way. But it’s rarely portrayed like that in interviews, movies or documentaries.

When do the lyrics enter the picture? Where do they come from? Do lyrics need to grow together with the music or can they emerge from a place of their own?

We play mostly instrumental music, so most of the time it’s a small hook with a few words there.

Sometimes the lyrics are made at the end after we recorded the whole thing, and they just reflect a feeling in the moment.

Once you've started, how does the work gradually emerge?

Once we start recording we try to stay intuitive and go with the flow. We find it to work really well for us. And it keeps things fresh. We have a pretty good chemistry so after some takes, we usually end up with a version that everybody likes.

On all of our songs you will hear us playing drums, guitar and bass at the same time as a basis for the track. Sometimes we remove or replace certain things, but it’s always recorded as a live song at first.

Many writers have claimed that as soon as they enter into the process, certain aspects of the narrative are out of their hands. Do you like to keep strict control over the process or is there a sense of following things where they lead you?

We try not to control anything. (laughs)

There is a huge amount of following things where they lead us in our music.

Often, while writing, new ideas and alternative roads will open themselves up, pulling and pushing the creator in a different direction. Does this happen to you, too, and how do you deal with it? What do you do with these ideas?

This happens all the time. We purposely follow these leads and alternative routes to challenge ourselves.

Also, we have three different personalities and very different reference points when it comes to music. So it is really healthy for us to let the others come in and push it into something completely different.

There are many descriptions of the creative state. How would you describe it for you personally? Is there an element of spirituality to what you do?

I think playing and making music is spiritual for everyone to a certain degree. It hits some nerves and makes you feel a certain way, and when it affects the human spirit and not just your body, I guess it’s spiritual.

When we get together and start working it’s not uncommon for us to be working 15-16 hours a day. Sometimes we have to because of limited time together. But a lot of times we go in to this state of mind and just record for hours and hours.

Especially in the digital age, the writing and production process tends towards the infinite. What marks the end of the process? How do you finish a work?

We try to limit the process to a studio session recording the basic tracks, leave it for a while and then meet up and do overdubs.

But also, today you have to finish a record a year ahead of its release because of logistics and vinyl printing. So the process might feel more floating or infinite in general.

Once a piece is finished, how important is it for you to let it lie and evaluate it later on? How much improvement and refinement do you personally allow until you're satisfied with a piece? What does this process look like in practise?

We have found it to work best when we record together, and also do a lot of the overdubs together. Event though it’s “dressing up” the songs with acoustic guitars or a tambourine, it’s still a creative process. And it’s definitely more creative doing this together, you arrange it and play it different than if you were to sit in your own room recording percussion.

Sometimes we do very little with the basic track, but sometimes we could take out a whole part and add vocals and synths instead. We don’t have any set rules for anything. It’s nice to leave it for a while and then start listening to it once it’s mixed.

We have worked a lot with mixing engineer Matias Tellez, and he is super creative and can do drastic things to a song, which is really fun and satisfying to listen to.

What's your take on the role and importance of production, including mixing and mastering for you personally? How involved do you get in this?

It’s all about who you work with. All the others involved in the process.

We try to work with recording, mixing and mastering engineers that we really like and respect. And if you let all of them do their work and be creative, most of the time you will have a better product than if you were to sit next to them and dictate everything.

Of course we have opinions and give them feedback, but trust is a major ingredient in making music together. The post production is a huge part of this as well.

After finishing a piece or album and releasing something into the world, there can be a sense of emptiness. Can you relate to this – and how do you return to the state of creativity after experiencing it?

You just don’t stop. There’s always new projects ahead. I personally don’t like to dwell too much on the past, and want to look ahead all the time.

After a record is released I don’t tend to listen to it too much. Maybe sometimes the same week just to get the feel of it walking around town. But with all the hours it takes to make an album, I’m kind of finished with it when it comes out. Then it’s everybody else’s product to enjoy.

Also the going-to-the-office-and-get-to-work aspect really helps the feeling of emptiness. New day, new music.

Creativity can reach many different corners of our lives. Do you personally feel as though writing 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?

Yes and no. I like to look at it both as a magical thing that pops out of thin air, and something I do for a living in the morning after I have dropped my kids off at school.

I see similarities in cooking, doing certain sports etc. where you have elements of skill and craft, but also your own creativity plays a big part of the result. I love talking to anybody that cares deeply for what they do, and that’s have I feel about making music. I really, genuinely care about making the best music possible and always search for the next idea. But I also love the craft side of it. Laying down basic tracks, strumming an acoustic guitar, singing backing vocals. It’s also deeply satisfying in its own way.

I also like to do stuff that I don’t find creative in the same way. Like chopping wood or painting walls. Where it’s about doing something practical that helps everyone around you, and it’s not your “brilliant, creative magic” that impresses everybody. It’s the shed that you built to keep your lawnmower dry.