Ved is an instrumental solo project started with the intention of releasing music from my head, inspired by movie soundtracks, progressive rock and folk music, and distant memories of sound and music heard in childhood.
It started as a more or less pure drone/ambient project. The first liveshow was at Skane Social Forum in Lund in 2004, in collaboration with my brother Kristian, who did visuals. I was only using tape machines, sampler and contact microphones. In the audience was Björn Eriksson, a viola-player. He fell asleep, so I made him a member of the live-group.
After some time the recorded music started incorporating more and more rythm and melody, and sounded more like the sort of soundtrack-funk I had in the back of my head. I got obsessed with the Greek singer Demis Roussos, because of his haunting voice and the fact that my parents had his hit record “Forever and ever”, which led me to the scientific theory that I might have been made to this record. Why not go back to the roots?
I spent a lot of time in Greece as a child with my parents, going by boat to various obscure and not so obscure islands and hiking around in many distant mountains.
Lots of sounds, and lots of music heard from noisy radios and speakers were planted in my mind, and I try to access them now and make them a part of the soundtrack.
“Demis Roussos internal” was a 20-minute piece with different parts, both melodic and abstract, released on 3″ CDR by the Müssigganger label.
After this, the full lenght CDR “Taygetos” was released by Psychic Malmö.
The vinyl EP “Speleo” was recently released by Lugnet.
The LP “Gershwin’s pipe” is to be released in may by Psychic Malmö.
A full live band is now being put together, and there will be shows in spring and going round some summer festivals. North and South pole shows are yet to be confirmed.
I have also done some music for films and documentaries. “Sture external” (from the Speleo ep) and “Demis Roussos internal” were featured in “Mitt Hjärtas Malmö” a series of dvd-compilations of old documentary footage from Malmö. “Sture external” was made for a part about the “Gallery Cannabis”, an alternative gallery run by the radical artist Sture Johannesson in the sixties.
Some other filmwork:
I made an acoustic soundtrack to Felix and Pelle Holmgrens film “Bifocal Gaze”, which was filmed in Kathmandu.
I made some music for the short film “Puls” by Malmö based director Maciej Kalymon.
I did some music for “It takes a cult”, an American documentary on the The Israel Family (aka, The Love Family, Church of Armageddon).
I have music featured in a coming TV documentary film by Jan Eriksson-Tillberg.
I have also done work with music for modern dance, especially Japanese Butoh, and sound-effects and editing for theatre.
I am very interested in doing soundtrack work, sound installations, sound effects and such. Don’t hesitate to get in touch.
email: vedmattan@gmail.com
