Takykardia really gained momentum after playing SPOT last year. To great acclaim. Now we are happy to announce that the band is in this year’s line-up too, and that they are going present brand new material. At the same time, they have their eyes set on the international market and on the coming shows where singer Luna Matz is determined to draw their audience into her own and the band’s universe. We talked to Luna about these things and much more….
You played at SPOT last year – and got really good response from the critics. What has happened to Takykardia since then?
“First of all I just wanna admit that to me receiving praise for something I am really proud of simply feels great! I feel humble when having the chance to present something that I have been working extremely hard to make and that I’m really proud of. Since Spot Festival 2019 the attention grew remarkably. We got the booking agent of our dreams (Freja Becker from LUGER DK), started a collab with Prxjects by Mercedes Benz and played an extravagant headliner show designed especially for Cecil AM in Copenhagen.
The past year we have been focusing on making our debut album and we can’t wait to present only new songs from our album at Spot Festival 2020.”
How did the three of you start working together – what is your background?
“We’ve actually never answered this unavoidable question before. David Nedergaard (Keys) and Troels Dankert (drums) were playing in a hip-hop collective. I was a dancer and performance artist in Amsterdam, but when I was home in Copenhagen I lived with Troels, who was my boyfriend at the time. One day I walked right into a huge McDonalds sign at IKEA’s parking lot and got myself a heavy concussion and a minor whiplash, meaning that I couldn’t dance for ten months. Forced to stay at home, I was extremely bored and sad, and one day when Troels was away on holiday I opened his latest Logic session which contained an instrumental improvisation with David. When Troels got home, I had written and recorded Navigate. Takykardia was founded and I have never felt more in the right place. So much has happened since then and it’s such a blessing that the three of us have each other to lean on while navigating through our 20s.”
The word ‘tachycardia’ is normally used as the definition of a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate (Over 100 beats per minute) – which isn’t at all healthy in the long run. What does your Takykardia refer to?
“Takykardia refers to the thrill of feeling alive. I mainly feel that kind of rush when pushing my boundaries and when giving and receiving love! I think that it is extremely healthy to experience some tachycardia once in a while.”
You really focus a lot on the visual side when doing concerts: lights, clothing etc. – and you yourself are also described as a performance artist. Where do you want to take your audience – to a certain place, a special feeling or something along those lines?
“Hence my background as a performance artist and my quite flamboyant personality I just find it extremely natural to build a visual universe around me. It simply feels deeply honest and personal. It makes me feel at home on stage. I hope that at first the audience will feel that they are being introduced to a visual extension of my imagination and subsequently feel included in that universe.”
You have said that you like to play with the distance between you and the audience – both mentally and physically. How do you do that and how does the audience respond?
“Yeah, I really love to do that! It creates a wonderful tension. The best thing about it is that the audience always reacts differently and therefore my response to their reaction will never be the same. I think it keeps both the audience and me attentive and in the present moment. On this summer tour I am going to work a lot with taking the audience from the feeling of being spectators to the feeling of being included in our universe. I would love for them to feel that they’ve been part of something special when they leave the concert.”
What are your own favorite music artists?
“I think I’ll never stop being extremely moved by the sound of Radiohead, Björk, Lowly and Portishead. Lyrically I’ve recently been very moved by artists like: SZA, Fraads, Connie Constance, Hans Philip and Billie Eilish. They are all very literal and honest in their way of using the language.”
You are about to release your debut album this year. How was it made and what may we expect?
“Can’t wait for it to drop!
It has been made over the past year together with our extremely talented producer Anders Boll (who just won “Producer if the Year” at the Critics’ Awards “Steppeulven”). We always bring guitarist Rasmus Oppenhagen Krogh and bassist Janus Bagh with us live and in the studio. Furthermore, we have invited some of our talented musician friends to feature on the album on instruments such as flute, flugel horn, harp etc. The album is an explosion of immensely honest lyrics and references to most genres – from trip hop to trance. The time frame of the album is a love relationship from the very start till the very end. Inside this frame you’ll find themes like: anxiety, feeling down after masturbating, zodiacs, phones, skin picking, Tinder etc…”
What is your international ambitions regarding playing at SPOT Festival this year?
“Our ambition is definitely to hit the international market – starting with the UK. We are hoping to play at JAJAJA London and The Great Escape in 2021 plus strengthen our relations with British radio (where we have fortunately already got some airplay on BBC Radio 1 Xtra). We are very inspired by the UK music scene and would love to be part of it. Furthermore, we’ll of course also love to play at international showcase festivals like Reeperbahn, by:Larm and Eurosonic.
Our concert at Spot Festival 2020 is going to be a Taky-rave!”
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Photo top, Takykardia: Anders Berg
Photo, Luna Matz: Tue Blichfeldt
