Per Gessle

Interview with Åsa Gessle in Hallandsposten

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asa_gessle_in_hallandspostenThere is a long and very nice interview with Åsa Gessle in Hallandsposten today, both in printed format and on their website. You will also find some cool pics of Fru Nordin in there. Interview is done by Christian Albinsson, pics by Anders Andersson.

Åsa talks mainly about Hotel Tylösand, her role in the hotel’s life, her designer career, her relationship to Per, as well as her love towards Halmstad, life around Roxette and her filming on tours.

The article mentions Åsa and Per acquired Hotel Tylösand relatively cheaply in 1995 together with businessman Björn Nordstrand. Åsa says they re-invest a lot into the hotel each year. She finds it fun that the hotel is constantly growing and renewed, because she always had a dream to run a hotel, although she thought that it would rather be a small boutique hotel in the countryside than a large conference center.

Regarding Per, Åsa says he is more interested in the art hanging on the hotel’s walls and what kind of wines are served at the restaurants, design ideas, appearance etc. are more Åsa’s thing.

In the Hallandsposten interview she mentions there are plans to create a sun terrace on the roof top of the spa building. Mrs. Gessle says many of her favorite hotels abroad have such a sun terrace with a bar. She is very proud of her babies, Leif’s Bar & Grill and Bettans Bar and says she feels herself at home there.

She talks about how she ended up in Halmstad 33 years ago, in 1982, when she moved to there to open a clothes shop with her then-boyfriend. Their relationship came to an end and she was introduced to Per by a common friend of theirs, Lars Nordin.

I already knew who Per was, but Gyllene Tider were not exactly my idols, so to speak. I had also lived a few years abroad and had not really kept track of Per’s career.

As Åsa tells Hallandsposten, love came approximately a month later, when Per sent her a letter written in tongue-in-cheek style, which truly characterizes Per. He wrote about her dog and if she could kindly leave the dog at home if he had a chance to invite Åsa for dinner. Since then they are a couple. By the way, Fru Nordin says Per still likes writing handwritten letters.

As written in the Hallandsposten article, Åsa planned everything around the Roxette trips. She and Per were travelling together since 1989, stayed at many hotels and in the beginning they could see less of the cities they stayed in, but nowadays it’s quieter and they have time to stop and collect impressions.

Besides organizing the travelling and gathering inspiration from different hotels, Åsa has always had a camera with herself. The Jonas Åkerlund film (Roxette Diaries) we already wrote about will soon be completed, however, it’s still not decided where to broadcast it.

Hallandsposten writes about Halmstad life being perfect for Åsa, she loves living there, while Stockholm suits Per more. He has more social life in the Swedish capital.

I also like to go out and dance to dance bands, last time about a week ago in Västerhagen. I still have sore muscles. Dancing to dance bands is not something I do with Per. 🙂

We’re going home to Halmstad to gather strength. I love to go to Prince Bertil’s path, which I do almost every day. It’s awesome that new things are happening there all the time and the landscape changes along the way. My favorite spot is Tylöbäck where there is a kind of magical atmosphere, although I think one should clean up a little of all the old trees…

Another favorite spot is the garden where Åsa and Per like just to sit and enjoy peace, and to have breakfast in the special breakfast corner.

It’s nice to have a little routine. Per always drinks filter coffee at certain times, like an old lady, ha ha.

In the interview Åsa talks about her designer career. It started in 2007 when there was a housing exhibition in Halmstad and Lars Nordin asked her if she would decorate one of the apartments. First she said no, because they were in the middle of a tour, but she now mentions the real reason was that she thought it was a little scary. She accepted the challenge in the end and she used By Rydéns lamps in that apartment, so she got in good contact with them. Now she is designing lamps for them. The theme is love and peace and the peace mark is a central element of the design. There are 1 or 2 lamps each season designed by Åsa, who has learned it step by step that it is important to believe in and challenge yourself.

For Åsa, it is obvious that love makes us better people, and her message is that we should be kinder to each other and be happy for each other’s success.

Per Gessle’s ”12 Peaks of Now” on Nordic Rox

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Pic by Patrícia Peres

When we heard about the Twelve Peaks show on Nordic Rox, we thought there would be at least one Twelve Peaks bonanza per month. The essence of the show is that Per Gessle chooses 12 songs according to the actual topic and he and Sven Lindström are discussing them. The first 2 shows were shared by Sven in February 2014. More than a year later, now he was kind enough to share a third program, this time via Sandra Knospe. Huge thanks for that!

At the very beginning of the 3-hour-long show (you can download it by clicking HERE), as well as at 00:34:00 and at 00:51:10 Sven is announcing his guest, Per Gessle and tells we will listen to the 12 peaks list of contemporary music that Mr. G grooves to right now. Per joins in at 00:59:20 and is on until 02:15:32.

Sven says he gave Per the choice to pick his 12 New Wave favourites, but in order to be hip and appear groovy, he chose contemporary songs instead. They named this part as ”Twelve Peaks of Now” since Sven couldn’t come up with a better title. Per jokes the title could have been ”12 peaks of what’s in my lunch box”.

At the time of recording the show (early March 2015) Sven said Per was in the middle of picking up ideas for the new Roxette album.

Per’s reaction to that was:

Most of the songs are already done, but I can change my mind.

Regarding how songs are influencing him he said:

I try to listen to lots of things, lots of different things. I mean I didn’t invent the wheel, I let myself be influenced by certain sounds or certain ideas or certain structures in songs.

They are also talking about the upcoming Roxette album. Remember, the show was recorded early March. PG says:

I started writing the new Roxette album half a year ago. Then of course we went on tour. We started touring in October in Russia and the Baltic countries and we just came back from Australia. In early May we start our big European tour over the summer with almost 40 shows in Europe. So this recording, this new album, we’re doing it when we’re at home. Which is like good and bad. The bad thing is that it’s very easy to lose focus, because you’re in the studio for a couple of weeks than you go on tour for like 2 months. Then you have to go back. I would prefer to be in the studio until it’s done and then do the tour. But we can’t do that at this point. But it’s going great, you know. We have a great material and it feels really cool, the new stuff. It’s a mix of classic Roxette combined with new ideas. … It’s a much stronger compilation of material than the last 2 albums. And also I think since we started touring again in 2010 Roxette has become this sort of working machine that I like to have. I think that really pays off when you’re making new songs for the band.

Sven who heard songs off the new album thinks it’s impressive and promising, quite a step forward compared to the last 2 albums.

Sven asked Per where he gets his music tips from for finding new music. Per replied:

Most of the time you just share playlists with your friends who know what I like and vice versa. … It’s easy to get lost, it’s also easy to get bored, because you listen to so many songs that you don’t like and you sort of give it up and start watching Breaking Bad instead. You have to find a way to filter all this. But I have a few friends and we sort of share ideas all the time. You should find friends, Sven! It’s a good thing.

They are talking about the great reception of The Per Gessle Archives and demos in general. They have a deep discussion about the question if mooses are elks and vice versa. You can also hear SMS messages coming in during the conversation. It’s always so cool listening to them. They are sharing jokes, kidding each other and their conversation about music is one of the most enjoyable things in life.

Sven and Per are also talking about 1975 and Mr. L asked Mr. G where he was in ’75. Per replied:

I was still in school. I hadn’t formed my first band yet. I was struggling with songwriting. I wrote lyrics and made up melodies in my head, but I couldn’t really play anything. But then in ’76 my mother – I think it was ’76 – my mother bought me a guitar. And I started to play this sort of fingerpicking style, you know, Leonard Cohen songs and Gordon Lightfoot songs.

Then came the New Wave and he had to form his own band. He was influenced by Blondie, Patti Smith, Tom Petty etc. He always thought each Tom Petty song could have been a single.

The main thing in the show, however, is that list of 12 songs Mr. G likes right now. They are talking about the artists on the list, as well as about the songs, why Per thinks they are good or even brilliant tracks.

 

  1. Say Lou Lou – Julian
  2. Tove Lo – My Gun
  3. Bo-Dogs – She’s Got To Go
  4. Jungle – Busy Earnin’
  5. Feist – I Feel It All
  6. Röyksopp feat. Robyn – Monument
  7. Amason – Älgen
  8. London Grammar – Hey Now
  9. The 1975 – Chocolate
  10. Banks – Beggin For Thread
  11. Karin Park – Out Of The Cage
  12. Lana Del Rey – Cruel World

 

We have no idea how many Twelve Peaks have been recorded so far, but hopefully, a next part can be shared soon.

New Per Gessle interview from Hungary

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During the past months many interviews with Per popped up in several countries. Anyone in for a little Hungarian this time? Piece of cake. OK, if you’d like to skip the lesson, just read the summary in English below.

Lángoló Gitárok is a well-known Hungarian music blog. Ádám Magyar, one of the LG bloggers did a quite nice interview with Mr G, having some interesting questions to him. There is nothing really new for a hardcore Roxer in it, but still, I’m always happy to read anything Rox-related in Hungarian newspapers or on websites. And yeah, I could read about / listen to Per’s thoughts and views on music 24/7. I know there are many more out there sharing this feeling. 😉

rox_int_langolo_gitarokIn the interview, to the question what motivates him being constantly on stage Per replied he’s not constantly on stage, but is constantly working. He writes, re-writes and re-re-writes songs, planning or he’s just in the studio. Touring is another part of the creative work, but he really likes it, because it feels wonderful to stand on stage in front of tons of people who love what they’re doing.

To the question what inspires him when writing songs he replied writing songs is just natural for him, since he started writing already as a teenager. He could not live without writing, it’s an important part of his personality. Per is writing constantly, but it doesn’t mean he finishes all the songs or that the audience will get to hear all of his songs.

Per says today’s mainstream pop music is very one-sided and he blames it on the major record companies and radio stations. He thinks it’s much easier to follow in the footsteps of an already successful production than to do something fresh and innovative. His favorite songwriters are those who still try to move out of the ordinary frames, while writing great melodies and doing interesting albums. He says he loves well-written songs.

Of current music trends Per says sometimes things don’t come through, because he thinks those songs don’t speak to him. But that’s just the way it should be. Pop music should always reflect the actual era and so it does.

To Lángoló Gitárok‘s question, if he ever recognized the impact of Roxette on today’s music Per replied he is not used to think about it at all. Music works like you hear something, you find inspiration in it and then write something new.

Lángoló Gitárok asked Per what kind of music he is listening to nowadays. He says he is listening to different kinds of music. He returns to Joni Mitchell or 70’s pop songs quite often, but he also likes new stuff, such as Lana Del Rey, Röyksopp, José González, Nine Inch Nails and Daft Punk. He finds French bands usually very good. But according to Per, there are good songs of Katy Perry, Tove Lo or Ellie Goulding, too.

To the question what he thinks of the future of music Per replied pop and rock music have changed a lot in his life. When he was a child, music played a huge role in their daily lives, but today there is much more competition in the entertainment business. There is the internet, the fantastic computer games, etc.

The point is that the possibilities are endless and this is a huge difference compared to earlier times. Sometimes I feel that the role of music in everyday life in today’s society is not as dominant as it was decades ago. On the other hand, more people listen to music today than ever before, and it‘s amazing how much easier it is to access music. Of course, pop and rock music will live on, but who knows what role they will play in the future.

Per talks about his great memories from the tours. He says they are very lucky and grateful that they could attract so many people to their shows all around the world over the years.

To the question when he thinks he will retire from music he replied:

There are no such plans, as it has just started for me.

When asked about his free time, Per mentions he likes car sports, especially F1. He talks about his hotel being also an entertaining thing to deal with. He tells he’s interested in architecture and art in general.

But actually, I’m an incredibly boring person. I spend 99% of my time with my family and music.

Regarding travelling Per says he loves Europe and when he’s travelling he feels really European. Australia is a very good place, especially Melbourne. Brazil and Argentina are also super. His favorite cities are probably New York and London, he has a lot of his friends living there.

Lángoló Gitárok asked Per whether Chris plays local songs also in other countries or it was only Hungary where he played a local tune (Tavaszi szél) in 2011. Per explains Christoffer plays some local tunes every night. He says Chris is a great musician and learns extremely fast. He’d never be able to do what Professor Lundquist is doing.

Per mentions he was in Budapest only a couple of times so far and they only came to play here, but he saw that Budapest is a beautiful city and of course, he is excited to be there again.

Regarding the new album Per says it will be out in autumn and that they plan to make a classic Roxette album, but at the same time they want it to sound fresh.

Regarding further plans for the future Per says he will follow his gut feeling.

Thanx a lot for this interview, Lángoló Gitárok!

Roxette plays in Budapest 19th May. Tickets are selling very well, but there are still some available HERE.

PLECtionary update – the latest Gessle picks AIR HAIR!

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The last time the PLECtionary got updated was eXXXactly 3 months ago today. Let’s celebrate it with adding some more picks to it!

Since the 2014 picks weren’t really used (check in the PLECtionary, why), it was evident Per needed new plectrums for the New Zealand – Australia leg of the tour. He shared a photo of his new guitar picks one day before the Auckland show. We could all agree on these were fitting NZ-Oz quite much and that they are hilarious with the funny texts on them.

Sandra Knospe decided to see the band live in Australia in February and during the concerts she attended she could collect all the latest Per Gessle plecs, as well as one Christoffer pick and one Micke N-S plectrum. After getting back home, she found the time to take the pics of all the beauties and tell the trivia she knows about them, so 8 plectrums are added this time to her already stunning collection. Check out the PLECtionary and look for the guitar picks No. 92-99!

There are plenty of the picks produced for NZ-Oz, so maybe there are enough left for at least the European leg of the tour. The designs are fitting Australia more, but of course we’re happy to catch them in Europe, too. 😉 (Update on 28th March: Per says there will be new picks for Europe.) 7 weeks left until the tour goes on! Woohoo!

Huge thanx for the updates, Sandra! We’re eXXXtremely happy that your collection is growing and growing!

 

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Photo by Sandra Knospe

 

Per is talking about the plecs and more in this interview.

If you are interested in reading some more about Sandra’s collection, check out the interview with her.

 

Per Gessle in the Autoropa Racing Days video

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You might remember Per sharing pictures of himself at a Racing Day at Ring Knutstorp, Sweden last September (pic 1, pic 2). Mr G mentioned back then:

Racing yesterday at Ring Knutstorp. Well, I actually didn’t race. Just a few laps on the track. I’m a coward.

So, the car was driven by someone else on the track and we were also joking a lot about him wearing that helmet or not in the end. I bet many would have been happy to be there and check Per’s LALALA LaFerrari from the inside. It seems some were lucky enough to sit in it for a little time.

Besides providing the visitors with the possibility to see tons of posh cars, there was a charity race for Childhood Cancer Foundation and 300000 SEK was collected for them. On a side note, Hugh Grant was also present and he was racing.

6 months after the event, Autoropa, the organizer of the racing days shared a short VIDEO summary of what happened at Ring Knutstorp that September day. They talked to Per, so he also appears in the video. Check him at 0:36 and 4:40. As you can see, the mystery is solved. Mr G did wear that helmet, even if it was maybe only for some seconds or minutes. Per says in the video that Åsa (who was btw driving the LaFerrari to and from Ring Knutstorp) drives a little faster on the roads than Per. Who would have thought? 😉

PG_racing_day_02        PG_racing_day_01

Stills are from the Autoropa Racing Days video

 

Photos from the event:

Autoropa FB page (photos)
Autoropa website (photos)
rignellskansljuvahem.blogspot.se (photos)
flickr.com (isakhuynh) photos 1; 2;
Aftonbladet (article and photos)