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LOS
ANGELES, CA - One of the hottest bands to hit LA is CITRUS with their
music playing all over town. They can be found performing acoustically
at the Karma Coffeehouse in the heart of Hollywood and
currently every Monday on stage at the GIG. Their latest album
‘io’ are can accessed on iTunes, Cdbaby,
and Amazon.
On Monday May 9th, Citrus will be the featured artist on
the After Show, airing on MTV.com
following the ‘Real World Road Rules Challenge (Inferno
II)’ for their music participation ‘The Real World’ and ‘Road
Rules’. Maestro Arts & Reviews
correspondent Adrian Rennie snagged a few moments with Lead Vocalist
and Guitarist Jesper Andreasson to introduce CITRUS to the Maestro
Readers in our spotlight to showcase people who not only chase their
dreams, but make them a reality.
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Adrian
: Hey Jesper, thanks for taking
some time out. First things first, congrats on your win at the
Battle of Bands in San Diego. [4/13/05
- SDSU (San Diego State University) Montezuma Hall - Battle of the
Bands Event]
Jesper
: Thank you very much....
Adrian
: For the readers who aren't too
familiar, would you care to explain what that was and who was there?
Jesper
: It's
a thing going on at colleges around the country, where 5 bands compete
each time against a panel of people that travel around and judge them
all. The winner of each one goes on to the next level and so
on...we were the only out of town band so I don't think the crowd was
super pleased when they announced us as the winner. It was a
pleasant surprise to be honest.
Adrian
: Excellent!
And well deserved. So who are the members of CITRUS?Jesper
: CITRUS
is Thomas Hjorth (lead guitar), Mikkel Heimburger (bass) and
Norskov Kristensen (drums) and me on vocals and guitar.
Adrian
: How
did your group form?
Jesper
: We
met just over 5 years ago here in L.A. I had placed ads in
a few papers and was going through the excruciatingly painful
process of having through sift through people calling me on the
ad. It was like trying to find true love through a
classified ad but instead of finding one, I was trying to find
three...dear god. |
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One
day Thomas called me and he seemed like such a cool guy I didn't
really care at that point if he could even play. At that point I
was pretty much close to a nervous breakdown having to deal with
people who either couldn't play, were in it for all the wrong reasons
or more likely it was both. It was brutal. I went over to
meet Thomas and we were wearing the exact same pants, and beyond the
pants (that came out wrong) he was a really cool guy. I knew he
was the right guy before he even played me anything on the guitar...
Adrian
: And
is every member of your band originally from Denmark?
Jesper
: I'm
the lone Swede. The other three are from Denmark. Whenever
I feel outnumbered, I'm quick to mention it was Sweden who ended up
with more land after the Viking wars ended (laughs).
Adrian
: How
are the audiences here compared to audiences over the seas?
Jesper
: Europe
is more like the U.S. is once you get out of Los Angeles to play
shows; people go out to see music. And there are less bands so
it's a bit easier to get noticed, at least early on.
Adrian
: Where
can audiences find CITRUS performing, currently?
Jesper
: Through
the end of April [editor note: extended through May 9th] we have a
residency at The Gig in Hollywood. Then in May we're back doing
the acoustic thing at Karma Coffeehouse also in Hollywood. We've
also been doing little tours through Arizona, up through San
Francisco, and doing some colleges.
Adrian
: That’s
great! How do you compare the acoustic performing to the stage
performances?
Jesper
: The
acoustic thing is great because you can't hide behind anything, loud
amps or a cranked p.a. etc. All the mistakes are there for
everybody to see and you have to bring the same intensity as a stage
show but have to rely strictly on the music. The acoustic shows
always feel really pure. Sometimes it's a little hard to sit
still when the music takes over but it quickly makes you a much better
band.
Adrian
: So
what’s your favorite song to perform?
Jesper
: It
really changes from night to night. Right now my favorite is a
new song "Potential". I also always love playing
"What A Thought." It keeps getting more and more
amazing each time we play it.
Adrian
: What
is 'Potential' about ?
Jesper
: Hmmm
yes...I usually try to say as little as possible about the meanings of
songs, not for the sake of being cryptic but I find people are usually
able to personalize songs much more if they don't exactly know exact
meanings. But, if I may be awfully vague, I can say that it's
always looking at tomorrow to be better than today.
Adrian
: What
are your musical influences?
Jesper
: The
first thing I remember hearing music-wise as a kid was Abba. I think
it's Swedish Mandate that all kids must be exposed to a certain number
of hours of Abba before the age of 6 or the government comes and takes
your kid away (laughs). But seriously, I remember hearing the
Simon and Garfunkel song "El Condor" being played over a TV
documentary on South America when I was maybe 5 or 6. Hearing
that song being played over the footage of the horrific poverty and
starvation was absolutely devastating. Devastating in a good
way. It's the first time I remember feeling really sad...the song
opened something inside me and that was really the start of it all.
As far as influences, I love anything as long as it's honest.
Bob Marley is a god to me, U2, Elliott Smith, Getz/Gilberto, Sunny Day
Real Estate changed me...
Adrian
: How
did you decide that you wanted this career as a profession?
Jesper
: It's
all I've wanted to do since I started playing guitar. There has
never been an other option.
Adrian
: Where
do you see yourself & Citrus in 5 years?
Jesper
: Touring
the world playing shows. The live thing is an amazing thing.
A good show can set you up for a few days...it's incredibly addicting.
Adrian
: I
know. Trust me, I know. What
advice or words of wisdom could you offer our readers and others out
here pursuing their dreams?
Jesper
: Living
in Los Angeles, nothing makes me more sad than when I see talented
people, ones having great artistic gifts to offer the world, giving up
on it. But I guess those were never meant to keep pushing on
either. And nothing makes me happier than when I see people
keeping their talents pure and guarded at any cost. In this
town, honesty is priceless.
Adrian
: I
couldn't agree with you more. Jesper,
thanks again for taking time out. I wish you and the band Citrus all
the best.
Jesper
: Thanks
Adrian very much. Printable
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Website
to Explore
http://www.citrusmusic.net
http://www.myspace.com/citrus
http://www.liveatthegig.com/
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