Danny Rasmussen A little Q&A with guitarist Danny Rasmussen. Leicester Bangs: Tell us a little about yourself, and your band. Danny: Hmmm tricky (laughs)... well I’m a singer-songwriter from the Faroe Islands - see Google maps. I'm 29 years old, and I have a girlfriend, son and a cat named Frida. Been playing various gigs with my good friend, and drummer on the EP, Rúni (or Rulio as he prefers). And it's mainly the two of us playing gigs, along with keyboardist Finnur and bass player Bjarka. LB: How did you start out making music? Danny: I started writing my own stuff when I was about 14 or 15 years old. But it didn't really take off until I was about 20 or so... LB: Who did you grow up listening to and how do they influence what you’re doing now? Danny: I'm a child of the ‘80s, so I can clearly remember hearing my mom listening to a lot of Billy Joel, etc., so it was the Beatles, Elton John, Billy Joel as a young boy, but when getting into my own, it was Jamie Walters, Goo Goo Dolls, Tracy Chapman, Tom Petty, Duncan Sheik, Matt Nathanson... a hell of a lot of music. LB: Tell us about your latest release. Danny: My debut release is an EP called Luna. It was released September 24th 2009. The EP contains 4 tracks. The first track of the EP, “Longing” was put out to radio first. It's singer-songwriter pop-rock music. All the songs except “Longing”, are about past relationships, experiences, etc., so I really get my inspiration from everyday life and my past. We started planning back in December 2008, and started recording in January 2009. Along the way we got new ideas, and were fortunate enough to get Matt Nathanson's guitar player, Aaron Tap, to become involved on the project. He was psyched about that by the way (laughs). LB: Do you get out and play your music live, and if so, what can an audience expect at one of your shows? Danny: I haven't been playing as much as I would like because, after the release, which took tremendous amount of my time. I've had different priorities. My girlfriend was pregnant, and I’m also attending school. So I decided that, after the release party and 3 or 4 gigs, I would focus on my newborn son and school. But 2010 will hopefully be more rockin'! LB: What aspects of playing and recording music do you most enjoy? Danny: The writing process is the one I enjoy the most. Where ideas come to you and, you know, various feelings go through your body. You’re in a "trance-like" mood. Hate to admit it, but I really hate recording. It's a painfully tiresome process that I really don't enjoy all that much (laughs). LB: Where can people find (and buy) your music? Danny: Well if you guys are interested, you can buy my music on Itunes, www.digstation.com, CD Baby, Amazon.com, Indierhythm.com, www.gogoyoko.com and of course in stores in the Faroes. But check out my site: www.dannyrasmussen.com www.myspace.com/dannyrasmussen www.cdbaby.com/cd/DannyRasmussen Hope you drop by and give it a chance.