Bushmans´s Revenge Interview

 

BUSHMAN´S REVENGE - INTERVIEW – 2026

 

Hailing from Norway and with so many nuances in their music, Bushman´s Revenge takes their listeners on a journey into the depths of the soul of music. Even answered the questions for us, and here´s what he had to say:

                                             Photo Courtesy: Anna Niedermeier / Bushman´s Revenge

 

First of all, how are you doing in the very cold and snowy beginnings of early 2026?

 

Even: We're alright. It hasn't been too bad. Days are finally getting slightly longer, and we've been busy wrapping up our new record. We entered the studio in August, but have only just finished the mixing, mastering, cover etc. But it's been good.

 

 

For some unexplainable reason it took us almost 23 years until we discovered Bushman´s Revenge. Recently we got 3 superb live tapes from one of our Norwegian music colleagues. That really set the tone literally and we have been hooked into your fantastic music for the last two weeks or so. When you reflect over all these years and albums that you have made, what comes to your mind?

 

E: Where the hell did all that time go?!? Ha ha!

Gard and I both grew up in the same small town, we started playing together in in 1998, went to the same high school, same "folkehøgskole". We recorded our first album 20 years ago this year. It's been a minute, but we've had this band for over half our lives now, which seems absurd. And after all this time, the two of us are still like oil and water. We still have the same old arguments. He likes fast, I like slow. He likes Tony, I like Elvin and on and on. So older, not wiser, I would say. But it's all good, and luckily it's not just the two of us. Tor Egil, our bass player, to keeps us in line. Well, sort of.

 

 

There´s so many different nuances within your music. Is that usually a conscious decision or do you mostly jam and see whatever comes out at the specific moment in time?

 

E: I guess that just comes from doing it for so long. Your interests naturally change over time, and so we just try to keep it interesting for ourselves. It might start with a discussion, or we might try out some tunes, or sometimes we're just sick of playing loud, and naturally end up playing quiet. We basically just try to heed Gandalf's advice, and follow our noses. And also, we just happen to like a lot of different stuff to begin with - everything from Albert Ayler, to Black Sabbath, Stina Nordenstam, Bill Frisell, Bob Hund, Erik Satie, Supersilent, Pixies, and Entombed, and everything in between.

 

 

We are live music nerds. Sometimes we record bands live as well. Speaking about your live performances, when you play live what emotions does your music bring to you as musicians?

 

E: Frustration?!? Ha ha! No, music can encompass all emotions, and all of life. But I try to leave whatever else is going on at the door, as we're playing, and just to focus on the music itself. Sometimes you fail, as with the music, but then that's life. It keeps you humble. To me, music i a wonderful thing. It brings me joy. Playing music with my friends, even more so. It's like nothing else, and that's why I do it. Or try to, anyway!

 

 

What is the finest compliment you have gotten from the audience after a live concert?

 

E: Oh, wow! I don't know. There's been a few, luckily. And also, I'm not too good with compliments, unfortunately. I'm pretty notorious. I tend to mostly remember the bad ones. I've had people tell me all kinds of wonderful things, and I really do appreciate all of it, it's just a little too much for me to handle. But  remember that guy who said "this was the worst thing I've ever heard in my life!" really well!

 

 

Once we read a quote from a American musician who said something like this: "When you play live you should try to be even better than what you are on your recorded LP:s". Do you agree with this quote or is the studio recordings just as important to you as your live shows?

 

E: Well, I think both are important, just different. And I think you should try to play your best, all the time. I don't care if it's one guy in the audience, an album or what. You're not always going to succeed, but if you're not even trying, then why even bother? I would just add that, note to self, don't have too much fun at sound checks, save it for the show. Speaking from experience...

 

 

Speaking a bit more about your studio experiences. Which LP of yours has been the most challenging to record so far, and why so?

 

E: I think they're all hard to do, actually. In the beginning it's hard to reconcile your expectations with reality. You want to sum up your whole life up to that point, with that first album. But then you realise that it's just snapshot of what happened on that given day. Or maybe two or three days. And if it's a bad day, well then that's it, you're fucked. Just try to do better tomorrow. It can be quite humbling. And then later, it gets harder and harder not to repeat yourselves. So making albums can be fun, but it never gets easy, at least not for me.

For me, I would actually say that the hardest album we ever made, was a live album we did a while back. It was in a very familiar venue, with a couple of friends guesting, but there were just some serious weird acoustics, doppler things going on that night. Basically, I was hearing half the band one semitone below for the whole 2.5 hours of the show. A fun night none the less, but not quite ideal!

 

 

When you started out the band, internet and downloading of mp3:s and such were quite common. These days many bands tend to release both digital versions of their albums as well as CD:s or LP:s. When you reflect on all of this, what comes to your mind?

 

E: Well, we do all three. Whatever rocks your boat, it's all good to me. But I grew up in the 80's and 90's, and I certainly miss the days before streaming, social media and all of that. But those days are gone. Like James says: "For whom the bell tolls, time marches on". It's progress, I guess, but you win some, and loose some.

 

 

Speaking about digital downloads versus LP:s and CD:s, what do your prefer yourselves when you listen back to your favourite band or artist? Also do you think that the cover of the LP or CD is as important as the actual music being performed?

 

E: Again, whatever rocks your boat. Good music is good music. A Love Supreme and Chaos AD are  just as great, whatever the format. The tactile experience of a great album on vinyl, with a great pressing, great cover and a great stereo is hard to beat, but it's just not practical on the train or on the buss. And I still love my wobbly, old kassetts and my CDs, but all that stuff takes up space. So I would say that there's a place for all of it, for me at least. I just don't do streaming. I'm not knocking it, it's just that having too many options, leaves me paralyzed. And since I'm an old fart and a weirdo, I prefer to invest my time and money, and to actually own it.

 

We would like to thank you so much for the interview and we wish you all the best for 2026. What plans do you have for this year? Do you have many concerts booked so far and will you pay a visit to Sweden down the road?

 

E: Thank you! Well, we have a new album coming out at the end of May, our 12th. It's called Ah, Les Vaches!, and we're going to be doing a few shows and festivals around that, but mainly in Norway to begin with. But maybe next year? It's been a while, so hopefully soon. I'm half Swedish myself, and also we have the very excellent, mr. Johan Lindström guesting on the album, so who knows, maybe it'll be sooner rather than later?!