Emmerald: How did the remix project, "Alternative Takes" come about? Did you choose the remixers? If so, what
attracted you to the artists that you chose to remix your album?
Koop: Waltz for Koop has lived a long life, and it has been sublicensed in many countries. During that time many remixes were made. Some of the remixes were chosen by record companies, some by ourselves ,and some were made by our friends without any particular reason. We chose the best ones for the album, and we like all of them. But of course the ones made by our friends are very special to us.
Emmerald: "Waltz for Koop" took two and a half years to make; that's kind of a long time. Why did the record take
that long?
Koop: We made "Waltz for Koop", "Soul for Sahib" and "In a Heartbeat" back in 1999, then we had a break for a year because of troubles with Universal whom we were signed to at that time. We didn't make any music for one year since we were so depressed about the situation and we realized that it may take years before our music was going to be released (if it
ever was going to be released). The rest of the album was finished in a quite short time but then we had to wait another 7 months to get released from Universal and sign to Compost. The only song that took really long time to produce was "Summer Sun" since it's a puzzle of zillions of samples.
Emmerald: How would you compare the sound on your first album "Sons of Koop" to "Waltz for Koop"?
Koop: Sons of Koop was more about exploring sounds with the sampler, and not so much about songwriting. Waltz for Koop is much more vocal-based, but there are some nice tracks on Sons of Koop like "Glömd" (which can be heard on our website www.k-o-o-p.com), "Absolute Space" and "Jellyfishes".
Emmerald: What is your next project? Will it be another full-length album?
Koop: Yes, we are turning down all remix offers and gigs, and have settled in a house outside Stockholm. It's our third album and we want it to be really good.
Emmerald: Where do you see your music going next few years? Will you do jazzier stuff or more electronic stuff, or
will you continue to straddle the line between the two?
Koop: We try not to think so much, just grab the things around us.
