07/04/2009 16.50.53
Morgan Ågren interview

After some years we have the opportunity to interview again Morgan Ågren...
Here you find the new stories about his great musical life.

the old interview on Agartha:
http://www.agarthaprog.com/default.asp?pag=news&id=204

Ciao Morgan, Could you please tell us which are your main influences as a drummer and composer?

For drummers Tony Williams, Narada Michael Walden, Christian Vander, Terry Bozzio etc. Some of these are good composers as well

In which direction did your music evolve during the years?

More beat and grove to it, and in a few ways more electronic..

At the moment are you working with Mats?

I am mixing Mats/Morgan re-releases for Cuneiform Records. Writing new material (for the first time in a long while...) Very happy about that!

do you have new projects togheter?

New Mats/Morgan studio album. And the re-releases will have lot's on unreleased material, that is what I am mixing now.
And I have been collecting some weird but nice instruments that I will use from composition purposes.
Stuff like this!
Note that the left side of the regular keys, has accordion knob section...

We have a few gigs coming up, but the time in the studio appeals most to me at the moment.
I going to do some drum clinics in Chile at the end of 09 as well

Recently you collaborated with a Belgian band called Finnegas Wake and with Simon Steensland (both released by AltrOck productions ndr), a Swedish composer, tell us something about this projects...

Well, I am friend with Guy Segers (x Univers Zero). He just suggested I should play on a song or two. That's about it.
And for Simon, he is just a best friend of mine, which music I love a lot. In fact, when me and Mats played at the Montreal Drumfest 2008, I played a drumsolo
on top of one of Simons compositions called "Lost In The Ark". Beautiful music! And by the way, his new CD "Fat Again" is great!!!

What do you know about R.I.O/art rock oriented musical scene? tell us what do you think about this kind of progressive music, more elaborate but also less "user-friendly" compared to symphonic works, that were always considered the main progressive scene...

I can't answer exactly. I just know that I have enjoyed some of the so called "RIO bands" but I can't say which ones are suppose to be or not to be RIO..
I am not so much about for title musical styles, to me it is just good or bad

Another great drummer, Mr. Dave Kerman, some years ago told us that, considering the art-rock scene, the last really innovative record was made in 1978... do you agree?

Hm.. well there you go again, what is "art-rock"? I just know that there is many good cd's released after 1978 (in many different genres I mean)

do you think that to be "innovative" is an indispensable condition for good art rock works? Do you think that this kind of progressive music will have something to say in the future?

I think as long as you do things from the heart, no matter what the music is called, it will last longer.

Everyone knows that you and Mats are FZ fans, why do you think that FZ music is "special"?

Oh.. that's an own book.. The combination of him being the composer that he was, the guitarist, the overall guy that he was (involved in politics etc etc etc)
Makes him unique. I don't worship all his albums, but I must still agree with this statement that someone said "There isn't, there has never been, and there will never be someone like FZ again.."

Which kind of music are you listening now?

Music very unlike the music I play myself.. Indian music, some radio head, most of it is quite.. When we play we make a lot of noise so it is nice to
listen to different stuff when you not play yourself

Are there new bands that you really appreciate?

There are so many different band that gave you different vibes and different energy.
The ones in the past is the most important, cause they where the ones that made me wanna play music.
I like pop stuff as well, I love XTC for instance, their Apple Venus CD I have played many hundred times..!

Do you want to add something?

Yes, good luck with Simons FAT AGAIN CD.
And peace and health to the planet as well, off course.