Lárus is one of Oslo’s best-kept musical secrets. Something of a musical polymath, he’s best known for his skills as a musician, before he started carving out a name for himself as a DJ. Today he is a regular fixture in the city’s electronic music scene, especially on the diy fringes of the dance floor. With mixes that can go from 90’s IDM to Jazz he’s a truly eclectic spirit.
It’s that versatility he brought to the sauna a few weeks back as he tracks an individual path through this Jaeger mix. he brings it back to start of it all, where he had his first DJ appearance almost 7 years ago and a lot has changed since then, informing his tastes and developing his skills. From deep, dubbed out House to Nina Simone, Lárus folds in his extensive musical tastes.
What’s your earliest memory of music?
Must be something my parents played: The Beatles, Etta James, and Michael Jackson.
What got you into electronic music?
Having good friends that collect records in all kinds of genres was my entrance into both old and new electronic music. Listening to bands like Cluster, Manuel Gottsching, Terry Riley, and Kraftwerk and then getting to a club at a young age and instantly falling in love with 90s house/techno, felt like a natural process.
I’ve seen you play some keys and you DJ around. How did you go from making music to DJing and which came first?
For the most part, I produce music by myself in the studio. Started out playing live with drum machines and synthesizers and then later on with djing. My first DJ set ever was at Jaeger 7 years ago I think, and all these nice people would come up to me and give me advice on how to mix, “more or less boost in the low/mid/high… It was a really bad set but a fun experience. I think I started the mix with a Hailu Mergia tune and then just blasted away an electro tune without thinking about the transition… in the middle of the day. A lot of those people are close friends to this day.
How have your musical tastes and sets evolved since you started and where are you at now in terms of the music you play out?
It’s a constant forever changing thing, back and forth when it comes to musical taste. I think the sets are getting a bit more consistent, I prefer to mix it up not just strictly electronic or acoustic, but it depends on the vibe.
Tell us about the choices you made for this edition of the Jaeger Mix.
It’s a blend of all kinds of sounds, rhythms, and styles. Some tracks are a bit more minimal and others are playful with a lot of harmonies. I was mostly just thinking about what kind of tracks I would love to show people that are listening.
There’s some Nina Simone in there. Sitting side by side with some dub Techno and ethereal House. What underpins all this music for you?
I threw a Nina Simone in there because I tend to get bored playing just pure electronic tracks so I did it just for fun, the drums sound a bit jungle so I thought maybe it would be a good fit. Some of these tunes make me want to listen focusing on each element of the track, wondering how the hell did they make that and trying to figure it out, and others will make my head or feet move.
Was there an underlying foundation that you were trying to bring together?
No, I don’t think so.
What do you hope the listener gets out of it, especially considering it’s a mix made within a club context and experienced outside of it?
These are just tunes I love, Gabriel Patås, our label boss, asked me to show some more club-oriented tunes I play outside, so I tried to make the most out of it in that one-and-a-half hour.
And before we say farewell, what else is happening in the world of Lárus that the people should know about?
I have been enjoying collaborating with sound and music for filmmakers, that’s a process I enjoy a lot, trying to create their vision, so a few short films, commercials, and hopefully soon finishing an EP for Lek label and moving into a new studio.