Back to index of Nerve 12 - Summer 2008

Kirsten Jørgensen, frontwomen of Reism and Evig Natt, speaks to Nerve about city living, musical influences and angelic habits...

Kirsten Jørgensen

By Hana Leaper

Hi Kirsten, thanks for speaking with us, can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I come from a Norwegian island called Karmøy – which is the most populated island with about three thousand people in my town [Norway has a population of around 4 million people], I’m twenty-seven years old and have been living in Liverpool for five years.

What about your bands?
My Liverpool-based band is called Reism, which is a Norwegian word meaning ‘to look at something abstract’, for example if you could see feelings – it’s treating abstract concepts as if they were concrete. It’s difficult to describe what we sound like, but a close approximation would be ‘Industrial-surfer-goth-rock’ [she laughs], no scrap that – let’s go with ‘electronic metal with a feminine touch’...

Are there any artists from similar genres who inspire you creatively?
As a band we’re quite diverse! Personally I'm inspired by Nine Inch Nails [industrial style metal], a Norwegian band called Gåte who refashion old folk songs in a hard rock style, and old-school Nightwish [heavy metal with operatic vocals]. Their former singer Tarja Turunen is one of my heroes.

You’re the singer in both Reism and Evig Natt; do you play any instruments?
Yes, I am the primary singer for Reism; Evig Natt have joint vocalists. No, I don’t play any instruments; I don’t have the patience! Piano lessons have given me good posture, but that’s about it – I hate practicing if I’m no good straight off.

Can you tell us the story behind Reism’s formation?
I met the boys in a nightclub; they told me they were looking for a singer, so I told them they needed me! Then I didn’t hear from them for four whole months!! But when they finally tried me out they realised I was right in the first place. That was in 2004.

So four years on, what are Reism up to?
Playing as many gigs as possible, trying to perfect our performance – sometimes you can sound crap but if you put on a good show people will forgive anything. You can be the best singer in the world but it won’t matter if your show is no good.

You released your first album 'Lifestyle Product' in 2005, are there more plans for recordings?
We’re in the process of recording an EP at the moment. We've set up a studio in the flat I share with Thomas [Reism guitarist], and sorted out a distribution deal. You can listen to and buy our music at www.reism.com You can also see pictures of the band in action and find out more about the other members on the website.

So, what brought you to Liverpool in the first place?
Kirsten: I came here initially to study singing at LIPA [Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts]. It was a real shock at first – I was terrified by the size of the city, getting a bus was an ordeal! But I soon discovered it was easy to get around. Living in a student environment was quite sheltering – I’m seeing much more of the city now and finding there are good and bad points to that. I’m much more aware of the perils of city living. Compared to Norway the drunken, violent behaviour I sometimes see is an eye opener. On the other hand I enjoy the diversity Liverpool offers - having many options of where to go and what to do. I also find subcultures are much more accepted here.

Kirsten excuses herself, so Nerve takes the opportunity to grill Thomas for facts about her that she probably wouldn't offer to tell us herself!

According to Thomas, Kirsten…
…is extremely clean.
…is a fully competent majorette!
…is a big fan of a Norwegian dish called Komle, which consists of sausages surrounded by mashed oats. Leftovers can be refried for breakfast.
…is a bit of a domestic goddess and loves baking cakes (her speciality is cheesecake).
…has a tattoo on her side that she designed, but she’s not entirely happy with.

Many thanks Kirsten (and Thomas)! It's been a pleasure speaking with you and we wish you the best of luck!