an interview with mugison - 5/19/2008 |
In a dark corner of the offices of publicists Tell All Your Friends, in downtown Manhattan, I sat down with Icelandic singer/songwriter and anything but conventional artist Mugison. His accent was just barely audible, and charming, and his beard was awesome. Dressed like he just got home from barhopping in the East Village, I was pretty engrossed in what he had to say about his career, music, and connecting with fans.
Though not many Americans, especially when you go inland of the coasts, will even have heard the name Mugison, the guy is a superstar in Iceland. Which based on his picture is not surprising. Not many rock-stars have press pictures of them screaming on the shores of a lake, looking like some sort of fishing demi-god. In Iceland he might as well be, in 2004 his album Mugimama Is This Monkey Music? got the best album nod, and one of its tracks, "Murr Murr," got best song.
This doesnt mean Mugison is representative of anything resembling popular Icelandic music. Is there such a thing? In Iceland, you need to be different. In a country with only 300,000 people, there is little to no room for artistic imitation. "In America you can have one band in Seattle, and another in New York doing the same thing." In Iceland, if anyone tried to copy Mugisons sound and release a record, hed probably run into them within two weeks. Its a totally different vibe.
But its an amazing vibe for new veins of creativity. Mugison himself has evolved from a one-man electronica band to a new-age classic rock legend, kind of channeling indie-blues and riff-rock while keeping it fresh. "I was getting kind of sick of myself" he said of his previous works, so he "got a jam together, and its basically how this album came about." And the new sound? Basically every band I can think of with "black" in it would love this guy (The Black Keys, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Black Sabbath, Jack Black, etc.).
Mugisons latest album Mugiboogie, is not only something completely new, it exudes cool. The opening riff sounds like a freight train, and Mugisons energy is undeniable when he roars and comes in with the opening lines; the album has a ton of soul. And it doesnt come in a traditional jewel case. Instead, its wrapped a hand-made leather slip with a booklet created from recycled Bible paper. "Theyre not selling well," he said, but he has certainly found a good use for them. This was after telling me how many they hand-made: around 30,000. Creating these covers is a repeat of the last albums artwork, which Mugison also worked on himself. He spent two months and enlisted the help of his entire hometown making the record cover, about 13,000 of them, all hand-stiched. And this one is no different (apart from the fact that its more folding). It is more than likely that Mugison himself has touched every single record that goes out to fans. Thats some crazy artist-fan connection.
The first thing he did was to share with me one of his infamous stories of his youth, of course involving his very eccentric father (who has always been a big influence on him). After all, his nickname "Mugison," means "son of Muggi" (his fathers name). "We were always good friends," he recounts "when he was drunk. Yeah, we got along when he was drunk at least." Mugisons father taught people around the world in impoverished countries how to use fishing equipment, which led to him having "been everywhere." There was a time when Mugison was living in Africa with his father, when he was about seven or eight. And he remembered a particular day where his father gave him a monkey, which he had earned (I forgot to ask how anyone could "earn" a monkey). Anyway, he had just finished playing some football, and he wanted a coke (not an easy thing to find in those days in the locality). His father took him to several bars, saying "Ill have drinks, you have coke." They then began what many might refer to as a pub crawl. When his father ran out of cash, he began to pay with the clothes off his back. There was Mugison, sitting in a pub, with a monkey and his football, drinking cokes, with his father wearing next to nothing.
 So how did this lead to music? Mugisons father gave him more than monkeys and wild experiences; he gave him his first guitar at fourteen. But his father just laid the foundation, the catalyst was the usual story: "I had just met this girl at this fish factory I worked at
I wanted to impress her." So, he did what any fourteen year old kid should do: sought the guidance of someone he thought was ten times cooler. This came in the form of his fellow coworker, a twenty-one year old that looked a little "like Robert Plant. He had the curliest hair, big. He was a poet." He told Mugison to come to his place three times a week, to learn "how to become an artist." His buddy would put on some Frank Zappa, teach him "the right thing to say to ladies, how to drink whiskey, [and] how to smoke cigarettes;" the real fundamentals of artistic integrity. He even grew out "some Kurt Cobain hair." Interests and favorites include everything from Memphis blues, to Hendrix and even The Beach Boys. Mugison said he probably spent "more time with Tom Waits on [his] headphones than with most of his relatives." Influences are important to him.
And the building blocks are still present in his work today. Mugison puts all the booze, women and pure, unadulterated cool into his lyrics. And whats really cool is that he isnt trying to play to one particular crowd. "The crowds are so different everywhere" he told me, its like "different worlds." This means in the end, Mugison really has to just go with whatever he feels like. Sometimes its women, sometimes its Jesus, which according to the album is "a good name to moan."
So what is the future for Mugison? "I never know what I am going to do next," he told me, as a preface to any new works. "I might not do another rock and roll album... The next album could be cartoon music, it could be thrash metal, I dont know." Its whatever mood he is in. Currently, apart from promoting Mugiboogie, Mugison is working on a side-project (of himself). Its still a Mugison album, hypothetically, but more commercial in nature; he wants to write what could be considered more or less "background music" for small cafes and clubs. Consider it a personal interest.
"Were quite fortunate to be doing this now" he says, about the internet culture we live in. Its certainly made the transition to the American scene easier, allowing the entire country to access his music with one or two click. Mugisons website is a great place to check out free videos and clips of the album, as well as purchasing the CD and handmade cases from Mugison himself. "We make more money that way," he says, "and either me or my father are the ones to ship it out. Its nice to hold the CD and have it in your home, and you know, people can be sure Ive at least touched it fifty times." Its a very personal connection between artist and fan, and a style that many American recording artists might want to imitate.
At the end of the interview, Mugison pulled a copy of Mugiboogie out for me to take home and listen to. Aside form the seriously cool cover, and the beautifully illustrated booklet of artwork and lyrics, the music is awesome. Its been stuck in my head all weekend. Plus, I can be sure he at least touched my copy fifty-one times. - joe puglisi
Mugiboogie is out now, so visit the site to get your own piece of the Mugison lore.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mugison Online
|  | Permalink Share To:       |
|
|
Articles:
a conversation with alan palomo of neon indian and chaz bundick of toro y moi
a natural belief
an interview with 88 keys
an interview with barry hogan of atp
an interview with beach house
an interview with bruno dallesandro
an interview with ebbot lundberg of soundtrack of our lives
an interview with fredrik saroea of datarock
an interview with jessica lea mayfield
an interview with josh epstein of the silent years
an interview with luke crowther of the rifles
an interview with nate ruess of fun
an interview with ross jarman of the cribs
an interview with the twilight sad
Arcade Fire @ Randall's Island
baeble goes to bonnaroo
Baeble Goes To Lollapalooza
baeble's best albums of '08
behind the lens: simon taffe
best of cmj
Black Lips
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
BoB '09: Best Album
BoB '09: Best Concert/Guest Apartment
BoB '09: Best Feature
BoB '09: Best Video
Cake's Vince DiFiore
cmj '08 top ten
cmj panel feature
cmj-must-see-list
cmj-wish-list
Daft Punk @ Coney Island
David Arquette
dinner with vandaveer
Drug Rug
Ellen Campesinos! of Los Campesinos!
exclusive interview: los campesinos!
exclusive interview: noah and the whale
favorite beatles songs
Five OClock Heroes
for the love of mongolian blue cheese
Fujiya & Miyagi
gettingdownwiththao
Gordon Anderson of The Aliens
hello 2010!
Illinois
intern warz
is kesha a parody of herself?
Jihae
laugh track: aziz ansari wants to spend the night
Marissa Nadler
matt and kim save brooklyn
metric, on their own terms
mugison feature
neo folks latest luminary, phosphorescent
pitchfork preview
radio city dreaming
rap battle: julian casablancas vs. bradford cox
Reine Fiske of Dungen
remember the lucksmiths: sunlight in a jar
Shiny Toy Guns
shout out louds: the work goes on
Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities
snow day: shovel this, clouds
sobering up when the hype is gone
Sufjan Stevens' BQE
sxsw 2010 free parties
t.g.i mixtape: top 10 edition
t.g.i mixtape: top 20 edition
t.g.i mixtape: volume 41
t.g.i mixtape: volume 46
t.g.i. mixtape 44
t.g.i. mixtape 45
t.g.i. mixtape 47
t.g.i. mixtape 48
t.g.i. mixtape 49
t.g.i. mixtape 50
t.g.i. mixtape 51
t.g.i. mixtape sxsw edition
t.g.i. mixtape: vol.39
t.g.i. mixtape: volume 38
t.g.i. mixtape: volume 40
t.g.i. mixtape: volume 42
t.g.i. mixtape: volume 43
t.g.i.mixtape: best songs of the summer
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 19
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 20
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 21
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 22
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 23
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 24
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 25
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 26
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 27
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 29
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 31
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 32
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 33
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 34
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 35
t.g.i.mixtape: volume 36
t.g.i.mixtape: y.b.p. edition
taylor kirk's mysterious timbre
tgi-mixtape:volume-37
the 52nd annual grammy awards
the bad plus - for all he cares
the guide to fall festivals
the horrors of indie rock advertising
The Kin - Interview
the many faces of michael jackson
the mythology of joanna newsom
the obligatory grammy post 2010
the-worst-record-of-all-time
these united states' jesse elliott
ticket to ride: why we should care about live nation
Tim Green of the Fucking Champs
top 5: exotic dance songs
top 5: summer collaborations
Top five songs featuring incessant perfect handclaps
top five summer shows
top five summer videos
top5songsforalonelybroken heart
topfivefakefeudsoftheweek
we are scientists interview
wish list snl bands
worst record 2
worst record 3
worst record 4: there is no hope
years in the making
You Say Party! We Say Die!
Young Galaxy
Archives:
March, 2010
February, 2010
January, 2010
December, 2009
November, 2009
October, 2009
September, 2009
August, 2009
July, 2009
June, 2009
March, 2009
February, 2009
January, 2009
December, 2008
November, 2008
October, 2008
July, 2008
June, 2008
May, 2008
March, 2008
January, 2008
October, 2007
September, 2007
August, 2007
July, 2007
June, 2007
May, 2007
April, 2007
March, 2007
|
