Photography // Favor by Kia Hartelius
Words // Josh Abraham
Danish artist, Favor, has released his debut album “Crush”, and Peachy Magazine had the pleasure of talking with him about the process of writing the album. When suddenly suffering from tinnitus, Jeppe Gade, aka. Favor had to rethink his ways of working as an artist. The album “Crush” is the end result of the desire to tell the important stories when the future is uncertain.
What is it about touring that you like so much?
Touring is why I make music. I know artists have different points of departure when it comes to why they make the music that they do. Mine is without a doubt to go and perform it in front of an audience. My dad used to play a lot when I was a kid.
When I got a little older, he took me with him to do some shows and got a taste for seeing people move to music really early on. That has influenced me tremendously. Everytime we start a new song in the studio; I picture how it’s gonna translate into the live set.
Listen to “Crush” while reading the interview:
Gigs or festivals?
They both have something to offer. Gigs are great because they’re usually more intimate and you get the chance to create a confined space where (if you nail it) you can make a bubble in people’s everyday life where they can forget about what they did before they came to the show and what they’re going to do after the show. Festivals are kind of like an open house where people can stop by and see what’s going on. That can be quite fulfilling when you see people who are “discovering” you for the first time. Also, festivals have that unique quality of already having a party going on that you’re tapping into, which is always bloody good fun.
How do you unwind from music?
Audiobooks! Get into it, man. Making a profession out of your favourite part of life is a tedious thing. Suddenly, listening to music kind of becomes work in some sense. That was really hard for me, actually. I rarely ever listen to music on the go now and started getting hooked on audiobooks instead.
PHOTOGRAPHY // FAVOR BY KIA HARTELIUS
You used to live in Australia, right? What was that like?
When I left to live in Australia, I sold all my stuff, and I honestly never thought I would live anywhere else. The time I spent there shaped me a lot, cause I had to build up an entire new musical network and in the beginning that meant playing a lot of solo shows. Alone with a guitar. That means you become really good at engaging with a crowd and making the best out of every chance you get to play. On a more personal level, Australia still feels like my home in some sense and I would love to go and do some shows there.
What was the process of making the album like? I’ve been told it’s an interesting story.
About a year ago, I finished recording my second EP, and we went out and did some shows to support the release. The day after the last show I woke up and I had this ringing in my right ear, and I couldn’t really hear anything on my left ear. I’ve always played a lot of live shows, and frankly, something messing up my hearing has always been the biggest fear of my life. And here it was. The worst thing that could happen, it happened. I was in complete disarray. I felt like my musical path was crushed.
PHOTOGRAPHY // FAVOR BY KIA HARTELIUS
After consulting doctors for a month and realizing that there isn’t really anything you can do about tinnitus, I found myself back in the studio. The recording of what later on became my album was prescheduled, but honestly I was a complete mess and I was sure this would be the last time I would ever find myself in a recording studio. I told my producer, Morten “Masasolo” Søgaard, about what was going on. We talked. We talked a lot. I was really afraid that this was going to get even worse and in the end I wouldn’t be able to hear anything. I wouldn’t be able to make music, tell stories.
Every song is written about someone or something that I have to make sure know how I feel about them or that. The interesting thing is that in the end, it really is only good things you need to say.”
– Favor on “Crush”.
Then Morten said something that really turned it around. He said, “if you’re afraid of getting worse, then make sure you say everything you need to say now.” I hadn’t really thought about it that way. But that became the starting point of my album “Crush.” Every song is written about someone or something that I have to make sure know how I feel about them or that. The interesting thing is that in the end, it really is only good things you need to say. It’s an album about not being able to stop doing what you do, loving who you love.
