It’s kinda easy to become a fan of someone who has delivered one of those peaktime secret weapons that never leave your record bag. It’s not that Even Brenden hasn’t done any other amazing ones, but „The Updated & Expanded Tenth Anniversary Edition“ (released on Relish in 2011) is still one of those weird, unique and funny good time disco movers that perfectly do the job of joy and whenever it hits the speakers I can count on someone who comes up asking. Mostly they end up writing down the name, cause… Chmmr? What’s Chmmr? We had to ask. For the name, some other things - and for a mix for our mix series.

Well, the name… „It's from a 1992 PC game called Star Control 2. I was really into it for a while in my early teens and when I started making music I took the name from one of the alien races in there. Thought it was cool that it didn't have any vowels. Today...I'm thinking that I could have used some, haha. It's pronounced "chi-murr", or "shimmer" or with whatever means you need to take to utter five consonants in a row.“

Then we had to ask about his hometown Bergen, the city of which we know has the lowest sunshine hour rate and the most rain of whole Europe. This kinda sounds depressing (apart from the nice countryside), but his music (and a lot of the norwegian disco) sounds optimistic and forward looking. The question would be how this fits together and if it’s some sort of escapism, leaving no room for depression. But then I found out I didn’t do my homework…
„Oh, I'm not from Bergen! (That's Telephones, Bjørn Torske and a lot of others) I'm from a small town outside of Oslo whose name translates to "Chicken Falls". It has a little more sunshine than Bergen. Actually a lot more, but the „Why do you make balearic-like music so close to the arctic circle"-question still holds. And I don't know. Escapism, sure, but a lot of this music has a theme or name that is also rooted in local stuff. I think Norwegians in general do have this optimistic and forward-looking spirit in them, a sense of wanting to build something together, at least from my stance. And if you pick up on it then naturally it reflects your music. Winter is a bitch, though, make no mistake.
From an outside view it seems like Norway splits up into a still strong Metal scene - the ones that more likely celebrate the darker (winter’s a bitch, yeah!) part - and the ones following the newer version of Disco… So why producing and spinning Disco, not Black Metal?
By coincidence, I think. I was into rap in my teens and that extended into DJ culture. And at that time you kind of had to choose, you know. At some point you realize that there is this nerdy and culty approach to both those musical scenes, and that is what gets you into either of them to begin with. In that respect they're not so different. So I have listened to black and death metal later rather than sooner.
I asked him about his connection with Telephones. I’m glad I did, as it made my other question about Bergen not look too embarrassing for me…
I met Henning, who is Telephones, when studying in Trondheim about ten years ago. We were skate buddies and both worked at the local college radio, figured out that we shared this passion for music, and then 10 years later we are still close friends. A couple of years ago at a cafe outside Hennings studio we were having this vintage gear pissing content and we started talking about how it would be fun to create a live set where we limited ourselves to using only outboard sound sources. So we started putting together some tracks and pitched the idea to an electronic music festival in Bergen called Ekko and made a deal with them that we would produce all new material for this particular gig. And it turned out pretty cool. We did the set three or four more times in Norway the following year and finally quit it when we got tired of it. Maybe we'll make some tracks out of it one day!
But then it happened: I asked him if he’s been in the buekorps…
That's Bergen again!
How could I? Bummer! Homework!
Let’s switch topics fast and ask a question that fits to all skandinavians: I imagine each Norwegian has something like a hideout, a cabin in the hills. Do you?
Ha, well, my parents do. And maybe it actually looks like you think it does. I should go there more often.
Now, ask him about the mix and never ever mention that city again!
To do a mix I need a sort of incentive, a track or two that really make me want to do a mix. That's enough to build something of. For instance, here, I've been meaning to do a mix with that Sandii track for years, and I'm really feeling that new Bullion too, so those set the ball rolling for this one. I had just finished a straight "this is how I play in the club" dancefloor mix for a radio show, which is OK, but not very challenging. So I wanted to do something else this time, so I restricted myself to only use mid-tempo tracks, around 100 BPMs all through the mix. It's more fun that way. Limitation is the mother of creation. Hope you'll like it!
Yes, we do, Even. Very much! Thanks for that one and we assume you, our readers, do also. Enjoy!

Playlist:
01 Crispo - 20 Spenn E Una Cola (Ambient Mix)
02 Sandii - Zoot Kook
03 Sade - Make Some Room
04 Byron - Too Much
05 Gang - K.K.K.
06 Daryl Hall & John Oates - Method Of Modern Love (Dub Version)
07 The Sa-Ra Creative Partners - Powder Bump
08 Bullion - Chant
09 Mark E - Smokescreen
10 Bell Towers - After Party At Jackson's House
11 Jeff Beck - The Pump (Chmmr Edit)
12 Chmmr - Media Vision
13 True Mathematics - After Dark
14 World's Famous Supreme Team - Hey DJ (Extended Instrumental Version)
15 Prince - Wouldn't You Love To Love Me

Chmmr has a cricket-laced house remix of an artist called Pelifics paired with a Fett Burger remix of the same track out now, a technoish cellar-sounding remix of an old Prins Thomas track called Stockholm Express on its way, and a new 12" with 3 new original tracks in the mix. All on Full Pupp, where pretty much everything he makes ends up these days.