Jäverling ◇ von Euler (Interview)
Today we’re listening to Jäverling ◇ von Euler, a Swedish electronic music duo. Rickard Jäverling and Henrik von Euler joined forces for this project in the 2010s, after previously collaborating on several ventures. This strikingly like-minded duo makes intimate, personal ambient music that miraculously achieves the effect that it’s a sonic confession from one person. Titularly, they acknowledge a debt to Eno, as they told us: “Our three albums… pay homage to Brian Eno as they are all called ‘Musik för...’ different things.” Musik för Vänskap, whose translation suggests the music is about friendship, just came out this past April. It’s a mellow, contemplative, connective record to put on over a good conversation. We’re also playing their 2020 LP, Musik För Trädgårdar, which is more Eno-ambient. A conversation with Rickard and Henrik follows the streaming links.
Musik för Vänskap - Jäverling ◇ von Euler (42m, no vocals)
Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Bandcamp / Tidal
Musik För Trädgårdar - Jäverling ◇ von Euler (34m, no vocals)
Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Bandcamp / Tidal
What's your earliest memory of music?
Rickard: My dad played in a touring band when I was a kid and that obviously made an impact. He was into Latin and Caribbean stuff, which was fun and different. A moment that stands out for me, though, is one time, me and dad were home alone, and he played Tubular Bells in its entirety on really loud volume on the stereo. It absolutely blew my mind, and I still love that record.
Henrik: I guess for me it was growing up with my dad always listening to the Swedish national radio P2 (a channel totally devoted to classical music). It was on 24/7 as I remember it, which means that as a grownup I really can't cope with silence at home. Trauma and bliss at the same time.
How did you two originally meet, and then start making music together?
R: We met through mutual friend Andreas Söderström when I moved to Årsta many years ago. Not that many people play this kind of music, so everything fell into place pretty naturally: We met at the pub a couple of times, then we started recording stuff together, and I sort of gradually moved into the studio alongside Henrik. We've made records ever since.
H: The first time I met Rickard, he had with him a small pike (the fish) in a plastic bag at the pub and checked with them if they could cook it. They couldn't. And that was good.
What is the significance of the diamond in your name?
R&H: It's basically a classic separator. The guy that made the design for our first album, Frans Carlqvist, is into classical typography and had to consult other experts to find a perfect separator, which were typographically correct since, well, it needed to be, and that looked the part. Hence the diamond.
What artists or albums most influenced your sound as Jäverling ◇ von Euler?
R&H: Our three albums (as Jäverling ◇ von Euler) pay homage to Brian Eno, as they are all called "Musik för..." different things. Eno is hugely important for us, and has been for many years, and it feels only fair to pay him some tribute. It's his musical philosophy and sort of "Let's see what happens when I do this" approach that has been so inspiring for us. We are very much into aiming for a thing and then just following along to see where the music takes us. Lee Perry is up there, too. They both started with, basically, pop music, but went on to tweaking around with it, got in deep with it, and introduced new ways of both producing and listening to music. A particular record that we both love is the one Eno made with Harmonia. That record is perfect for deep focused listening, with its many layers. Yet it's such a playful and lush session.
Tell us about your studio setup. What instruments/gear did you use to make Musik för vänskap?
Rickard: I play a '98 Fender Jaguar through a vintage Music Man amp. For guitar drones I use the EHX Freeze pedal, and I very rarely switch off my Memory Man delay pedal.
Henrik: My aunt's old classical school piano (with the felt dampener), Mellotron, Juno-6, Memory Man Hazarai delay and loop pedal. Since it all was recorded live we had to have a simple setup. Stereo mic pair for the piano and for the mellotron (the amp placed next to the piano so that the stereo pair could pick up both), one mic for Rickard's amp, and then the Juno on another amp also picked up by the stereo pair but placed farther away.
What artists/albums/playlists/DJs do you currently have on heavy rotation?
Rickard: For playlists I go to our friend Cabezon for leftfield contemporary stuff. Swedish radio show Kalejdoskop is great too – they play stuff from all over the globe, different stuff you wouldn't here anywhere else. A great guitarist I've been into for a couple of years is Ezra Feinberg – lovely textured sounds. Both me and Henrik listen to a lot of jazz as well: Miles, Pharaoe, Monk, Trane... how can you not love them all?
Henrik: Gilles Peterson on BBC 6, NTS radio for random access. All the jazz/ambient/electronic classics of course as Rickard say but also Finnish electro, Hurriganes, Bruce Springsteen's first 6 albums, early Status Quo, Prince, Alice Coltrane, Alf Robertsson, and on and on.
Name an underrated artist from the past 50 years.
Rickard: Tough to try and pick out specific artists. A genre I do miss, though, is the sort of down tempo/trip hop/post rock/jazz beats-styles that you heard a lot at clubs going out 25-30 years ago. I played some early Boards of Canada stuff for my kids recently and it hit me how great it still sounds. And it's perfect mellow music to hang out to. I don't dance much.
Henrik: Hurriganes.
What are you working on next?
R&H: We will probably start recording new material after the summer. Since this record was so improvised, it wouldn't surprise me if we turn out to make a more "written" album next time. But who knows.
