Music isn’t necessarily the first thing I’m thinking of when I hear Denmark. To be honest, I think of the red Pølser sausages, followed by Hans Christian Andersen and holiday homes. But I’m always ready to be taught otherwise and that’s why I took the chance to visit Danish band Veto at their gig in Hamburg. The soundcheck was still ongoing when I arrived at the venue and Troels, David, Mark, Jens and Mads were discussing a few last details of their setlist. Later on singer Troels and drummer Mads tell me that their bassist Jens is sick with the flu and they don’t know whether he will get through the evening. The gig in Hamburg is a special occasion for Veto for two reasons: it’s the first gig of their German tour and the first time the band is going to play the songs from their new album “Sinus Point Break”. And as the band enters the stage of the crowded venue two and a half hours later, one thing is clear: this show’s running like a well-oiled machine and it’s a successful premiere for the new album.

I was watching you earlier during your soundcheck and it’s obvious that there’s no spokesman in your band. Are you a democratic band and is that reason you’re called Veto?
Well, we discuss a lot of things and we’re together in all decisions. So, I guess you could say we’re a democratic band, but I hope most bands are. The main reason for the name was, that we needed a name back in 2004. We had our first gig so we needed a name.

How did you actually meet each other?
The other guys (David, Mark, Jens and Mads) were playing in another band. Their old lead singer decided to quit the band. I knew Jens from way back and I had produced some demos for them. We sat down and talked about how we could come together. I had a lot of material and the guys had a lot of material. So we decided to start over again as a new band. The rest is history.

When I was listening to your music, I had to think of Danish bands like Efterklang and Whomadewho. Is it somehow a Danish tradition not to be bound to a particular genre, but rather combining different styles?
As a band we listen to all kinds of music like electronic, indie rock or metal, we have diverse musical influences. In general we don’t look at genres that much in Denmark. There’s always been a strong focus on the diversity of music and I think you can hear that in the way people are creating music. We all had very engaged music teachers and music always played a prominent role in school and out-of-school. Mads for instance worked as a music teacher in a youth club. There’s also the fact that Danish musicians don’t feel alienated from each other, because we have a tiny music scene. You are forced to do your own thing, but you’re also forced to work together.

And you do your own thing in the truest sense of the word: you have your own label.
Right from the start, we had a very independent approach and wanted to do everything ourselves. At that time social communities like myspace were useful, because we could build our fan-base and publish music without having a record deal. I think the way we did it, is how most musicians are doing it now. Normally the label takes care of paying for the recordings and therefore they own the masters. We figured that we could record the music ourselves, since we had always recorded and mixed. It was the obvious thing to do. Most of our back catalogue is controlled by us and that’s a nice freedom. But we needed someone to help us distribute the music and do the press work. We could have possibly done it ourselves as well, but than we wouldn’t have had time to write music.

You are pretty successful in Denmark. How does it feel to tour abroad and play in smaller clubs?
It’s actually nice to go on tour, because we’re still the underdog and we can surprise people. We have a lot of hardcore fans in Denmark and they certainly have higher expectations. It is sometimes hard to surprise them. But, it’s funny, because what you consider a smaller venue or a smaller audience is actually a bigger audience for us. The market in Denmark is really saturated right now. There are a lot of bands and a lot of venues and there are a lot of festivals. I think the market in Denmark has reached a point where people can’t afford to pay 30 or 40€ for a concert every month. We’re only 5 million people in Denmark, so it’s a pretty small market.

Talking about other Danish bands. Who should we keep an eye on?
Rangleklods and Broken Twin. We went on tour with Rangleklods, he’s a very talented guy, doing some sort of dark-electro-pop. And Broken Twin did a rework of one of our songs. Her music is very minimalistic and intense. Just her, the piano and a violin.

How do you work as a band? Is someone responsible for the songwriting?
Well, at least there is someone who will be held responsible…no seriously, we’re together in the songwriting process. We usually start with a beat, a synthesiser, a sound or a guitar, could be anything. We try to visualise  the song before it actually becomes a song. These sounds and ideas evolve and become and arrangement. Most of our songs are a complete arrangement and could work as an instrumental as well. The lyrics are done as the very last part.

Finally, I will name a few bands that came into my mind, while I was listening to your music. I’m curious what your comments are.
Bloc Party
When we first started to play together, we listened very intensely to Bloc Party. We loved the new punk vibe they had and it was something we could relate to. The mix of electronics and punk and the energetic clean guitars. They brought a fresh perspective on Britpop.
The Cure
Troels: I listened to a lot of The Cure, it’s one of my root songwriting influences. Obviously it’s reflected in the band’s music.
Friendly Fires
Troels: I don’t know the music.
Mads: I listened to their last album, because someone already wrote that some of our material sounds like them.
Sizarr
We don’t know them
Depeche Mode
Troels: I know the hits, but I haven’t listened to them that much. I have listened a lot to Violator, but who hasn’t. We don’t feel related to them.

 

Buy the album “Sinus Point Break” right here .

You also have the chance to see the band live, Veto are still touring Europe.

02-21-2013 Borgerforeningen, Svendborg, DK
02-22-2013 Værket, Randers, DK
02-23-2013 Det Musiske Hus, Frederikshavn, DK
02-28-2013 Bygningen, Vejle, DK
03-01-2013 Gimle, Roskilde, DK
03-02-2013 Bygningen, Køge, DK
03-08-2013 Templet, Lyngby, DK
03-09-2013 Vershuset, Næstved, DK
03-14-2013 Sønderborghus, Sønderborg, DK
03-15-2013 Voxhall, Aarhus, DK
03-16-2013 Pumpehuset, København, DK
03-20-2013 Volksbad, Flensburg, DE
03-22-2013 Case A Chocs, Neuchatel, CH
03-23-2013 M4Music Festival, Zurich, CH
03-25-2013 Strøm, Munich, DE
03-26-2013 Schocken, Stuttgart, DE
03-27-2013 Café Central, Weinheim, DE
03-28-2013 Cafe Charlatan, Ghent, BE
03-29-2013 AB, Brussels, BE
03-30-2013 Paradiso, Amsterdam, NL
04-12-2013 Copernico, Madrid, ES
04-13-2013 Music Hall, Barcelona, ES
08-22-2013 Wonderfestiwall, Bornholm, DK

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