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 diefenbach interview
 to access audio and video on collective you need real player.Soundscapes with tunes, fresh from Denmark. “The name Diefenbach comes from the movie Fargo,” says keyboard player, Lasse. “There’s a character called Reilly Diefenbach who keeps calling the main character up asking for these stupid insurance numbers.” And yet the Coen Brothers’ film noir tale of kidnapping and extortion in frozen Dakota couldn’t be further away from the dreamy Utopia inhabited by this promising five-piece. Their first long-player for Wall Of Sound, Run Trip Fall, is a kaleidoscopic head-rush of vocal harmonies, fizzing electronics and pop guitar. Here to discuss the album, Lasse and Allan (vocals/bass) are nervous, affable and relentlessly upbeat. As they sit in an open-plan office in BBC Radio London, team assistants gawp at the Danish popstars trying to make out if it’s Aqua or Junior Senior – the country’s previous pop exports. Lasse expands on the band’s sound. “I guess the thing with Diefenbach is there’s something old and something new. All the electronic elements make it sound contemporary, but the inspiration and the melodic sense is definitely influenced by the late 60s/early 70s.” Unlike those who fuse rock with electronics to create dreary soundscapes, Diefenbach crucially remember to bung a few tunes in. “We realized early on that we had a good melodic sense and that we’re really good with tunes and harmonies.”  Appropriately, they hold Simon & Garfunkel and The Byrds in high regard and feel at home next to label-mates The Bees and I Am Kloot. “Our manager gave a couple of tracks to Mark Jones who runs Wall Of Sound records. I got an email from him with just three words in it, ‘Who are you?’” Until then, Diefenbach had been self-releasing their records and furiously gigging around Copenhagen, before convincing Jones to attend a showcase. “We rented the best-sounding, best-looking venue in town after getting together all the money we had. Or all the money we didn’t have. We invited 200 of our closest friends and had a huge party in my apartment afterwards.” Since signing with the label, they’ve played a flurry of festivals and are now working on the next album. Asked to sum up, Lasse ponders for a moment, before beaming, “As they say at Wall Of Sound, it’s been love and good times!”
James Cowdery
Diefenbach - Run Trip Fall, released 01 November 04 on Wall Of Sound.
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