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Minor Flaw
Genres: Rock, Pop Punk
Hometown: Odense
Country: Denmark
Formed: 2002
Label: Unsigned
Featured: Jan 3, 2008
 
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| Minor Flaw |
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Bio
03 - 04: The Beginning
Playing music as a trio, you depend on each other to the extremes and this dependency is the same thing you feed on. Knowing all the time exactly what the others should be doing is what creates the intense atmosphere there is when you play together...
Everyone always perform their best, but also knowing that it could all end in a split-second - that the whole pyramide could fall down if just one person makes a mistake. That is what makes you enjoy every second of playing a song.. This is the story of Minor Flaw
"Yeah, I remember like it was yesterday" says drummer and vocalist Søren W. Hansen. "We just wanted to play some music and that's still exactly what's on our minds". Søren says
In the summer of 2002 guitarist and vocalist Rune V. Wagner put up notice seeking other musicians to play music with and in stepped Søren. Eager to play, the 2 of them set up a rehearsal room in the basement of Rune's parents
"We really needed a place to rehearse and my parents didn't really use their basement anyway so it was perfect. I still to this day wonder why my parents never complained... we weren't that great in the beginning. Maybe they didn't complain because we eventually moved to Søren's bedroom. Anyway, I'm thankful for them putting up with us" says Rune
As time passed and as they quickly learned to play a lot of songs the thirst for more grew which quickly led the newly formed musicianship to begin recording a demo with cover songs
"We could play all these songs so we kindda wanted people to be just a little jealous of us and then of course to learn about the process of recording. We always saw this process as being something a little magical. You never quite understand how you get from A to B, you just know when you've arrived" Søren explains
The experience proved to be invaluable on the road to come, but the demo was never distributed.
"It wasn't really us. We were just recording what others had written so we knew that we hadn't really defined the band yet. It wasn't that we didn't like what we had recorded. At the time it was mind-blowing to us. We couldn't believe that it was really us when we replayed the recordings, but we just became greedy. We wanted to write our own songs, songs that could only be played by us." Rune says barely able to hide the hint of a smile
Work began on what would later end up as Minor Flaws first EP "Greatest Hits", tracklisting the bands first self written 3 songs. From the bands ambition to outdo themselves came the idea of recording in a real studio. Knowing one of the technicians at a studio in their hometown, Rune convinced him to do it for free.
"Well, he must have seen some potential in us and that's all I need from people for me to be able to work with them. It's really counter-productive for the recording process if you feel that you have to prove something to the guy behind the mixer" Rune says
Having recorded the songs over the period of one weekend, everyone was ecstatic about the result. A milestone had been set in the life of Minor Flaw. The band was finally ready to take on the road, but one thing was still missing. The classic line up of rock music has always been guitar, bass and drums so a bass was what it would take for them to play live.
"We needed someone to play bass for the band somehow... in the beginning I was supposed to be the bass player in Minor Flaw after we had found a drummer, but most of the guys we auditioned weren't good enough and if they did have the talent we didn't have the right chemistry with them. It was also kind of bittersweet to look for a drummer cause I really wanted to play live, but I didn't want to leave my drums. I have been playing drums as far back as I remember so it also felt kindda right for me to keep playing them" Søren says
Help came unexpectedly from Nicolaj, an employee in the supermarket where Søren also worked. The two of them developed a friendship which inevitably led to Nicolaj wanting to play with the Rune and Søren. New to the whole idea of playing music, Nicolaj grabbed the bass and started to learn mentored by Søren. With no experience whatsoever, no schooling in any instrument and no equipment, Nicolaj became the bass player of Minor Flaw
"Damn, I sucked in the beginning, but I just wanted to play so bad. Music didn't choose me.. It was me who chose music. I still remember biking over to Sørens house after school.. we would spend the whole day in his messy room just practising and eating pizza. That was my summer of '69…" a nostalgic Nicolaj explains
"Nico, really became a stabile bass player in no time.. I went on holiday with my parents that summer and when I left he could barely follow any tempo, but when I came back we were suddenly able to play all these songs, the three of us" Rune says
Finally being able to perform live, the band landed their first gig at a local school.
"I really felt it.. the thing all my favourite bands always talked about. When you know that what you're doing is what you're supposed to do. Man, it was such rush to play up on that stage and it still is. I go to med school and I remember that I had my first year exam the day after that show. That exam is a kind of stop test, which means that I wouldn't be allowed to continue studying if I failed, but that night I didn't care. Now I'm nearly finished with med school and music is still what I wanna do" Rune ways
And so Minor Flaw was founded…
05-06: Developing the concept
With their live act really coming together the band needed to develop their sound and make it their own. Recordings for their second EP "Danish collection" began, a title that has somewhat of an ironic touch to it just like the "Greatest Hits" EP.
Trying to progress from the previous EP and with the wish to challenge themselves, the band set up a home studio at the same place where they rehearsed. A place they would spent several months arranging, rearranging and finally recording songs.
"It sure as hell wasn't the easiest way to do it, but we were hungry to learn about the magic of recording. We had much better equipment this time around compared to the first recordings Rune and I made and with these recordings we also wanted to fit Nico into the mix. It's so important to master this aspect of a band. A band is never better than what it can put on tape" Søren explains
As time passed and more songs where recorded and a certain pattern emerged. All members of Minor Flaw became vocalists. Something that just emphasises Minor Flaw being a collaborative effort and the comradery in the band.
"We all went in an did different vocal parts and it fitted our style well. Our voices all have different charistics to them and that makes our music much more interesting. This idea of not having a lead singer also really appealed to us. A lead singer's personality often become synonymous with the band, but Minor Flaw was never about just one person. Also, because everyone of us sing, it enabled us to sing all our vocal harmonies live as well.. something we love to dazzle people with" Nicolaj says with a smile on his face
The "Danish Collection" EP launched a series of live shows which all culminated in the band entering the international renowned live-completion Global Battle of the Bands and coming in second in the national final.
"It was really a pad on the back for us.. we knew we could write some good songs, but sometimes the way the songs are delivered is just as interesting. So when the judges come up and shake my hand after the show and say that we had delivered one of the best live-shows just told me that our wrapping was a perfect fit" Rune says
With eyes fixed on the prize and determined to musically surpass themselves again the rock trio began recording of their next EP "Nothing to Lose" in early '06. This Ep was recorded at the small and relatively unknown studio Baandkraft in Copenhagen, though it has hosted famous bands such as Franz Ferdinand
With the extremely talented Danish sound technichian Peter Lehmann behind the mixer the band created a sound you easily mistaken for that of a million dollar production, spending very little time and money
"I guess it was just an absurd amount of well-planned luck in setting up microphones and lots and lots of hard work. We just did everything right with Peter during that period of recording, 'cause I had never been part of anything of that magnitude. The end result blew my mind. This EP really propelled us to a professional level" Søren says
The title of the EP seemed to perfectly fit the time after the EP was released. With the interest in their music growing the band took their own advise and threw everything unnecessary overboard to pursue their dreams of living life as musicians. Søren quit his job at the local supermarket and life started revolving around the band for all of them.
"It's like that line from the movie "Fight Club".. once you become a member of fight club everything else just seems to get the volume turned down. It's the same for me with Minor Flaw" Rune eagerly explains
In October of '06 the leading magazine for upcoming bands in Denmark took an interest in the band and made "Nothing to Lose", "Demo of the month" with a 5-star review, also launching a national tour where one of the gigs was credited 5-stars by the same magazine.
The overwhelming attention to the band eventually paved the way for them to get booked for one of the biggest festivals in Denmark, The Skanderborg Festival '07 (www.smukfest.dk). A gig that has yet to be played
"What can I say.. I never imagined something like this. I'm so glad that people are receiving us this well and I'm extremely looking forward to playing especially that gig. It will surely take our live act to a whole new level" Nicolaj says
Everything led the band to sign a managing deal with Iceberg Records A/S in late '06. A label starting out with the hit artist Scatman John and later getting well-known for creating success around bands, such as The Blue Van, Natural born hippies, Pinboys and Dúné.
"I know that music is art… but managing a band and creating opportunities for a band to break through has become strictly business and no band can do that on their own. What I like about Iceberg is that these guys are in it for the long run just as we are" Rune explains
2007: Writing the future
In early 2007 Minor Flaw got one of a huge break and received a lot of national attention in a most peculiar way. The band was hired to write and record a Danish advertisement song for the fishing community "BlivFisker.nu". A song that was meant to recruit fishermen.
The song received airplay at close to every single radio station in the country and was received well by the public even with it's edgy and experimenting sound. The band even got attention from one of the biggest radioprograms on the most listened to station in Denmark and the band was primetime interviewed about the experience.
"It was a great experience for us as a band to write that song.. We received a phone call from a friend of ours who work at a major advertisement company in our hometown and he told us that the fishing community "BlivFisker.nu" wanted us to do the song, but the catch was that we had to write it the same day and record it the next. So we did and the song was played in all the radios the following monday.. I don't think anything else has ever happened this fast in the music industry" Søren says, explaining how the song came to life
At this very moment Minor Flaw is writing their future – literally. Back where it all started, in the rehearsal room they have buried themselves in the long process of preparing for their debut album.
What will happen with this album and the band only time will tell..
"Everyone in the band is really looking forward to recording this album. This time we have taken ourselves the time to really challenge our perception of the band and what kind of songs we can play and then to push the limit. What will be different with this album compared to our last EP is that we will take the time we need to get everything perfect and our song-writing has off course gotten way better. Just the stuff that we have demoed so far is unbelievable. I only dreamed that we could take the band this far. I'm so stoked about what's to come.. I have this gut feeling that something big is gonna happen… very soon" Nicolaj says leaving most of 2007 unwritten |
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