Dagny Interviews The Wombats About Their “Turn” Remix (And Vice Versa!)
The Wombats caught lightning in a bottle with “Turn,” the lead single from their amazingly-titled 4th LP, Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life. The sing-along indie-pop/rock anthem, which boasts memorable lyrics about drunken nights and Drake listening sessions, made serious waves at alternative radio and has racked up more than 22 million streams on Spotify since its 2017 release. The track is now enjoying a second wind thanks to a remix featuring Norwegian pop sensation, Dagny.
In an Idolator exclusive, she interviews Wombats frontman Matthew Murphy) about the collaboration and he then returns the favor by asking her a few probing questions. Check out the Q&As below.
Part 1: Dagny Probes The Wombats
Why did you want a female feature on “Turn,” and what brought you to me in particular?
Ever since hearing “Love You Like That,” I was hypnotized by your Scandic tones. I always wanted to have a female vocal on one of our songs, as there have always been a few songs on each album that have lent themselves to that. But maybe none so much as “Turn.”
What did you think of the way it came together? To your ears, what does the duet aspect add to the song?
Duets always add a new dimension to a song, and it definitely helps me sound less creepy. The most enjoyable part of the session was when we left you alone and you found those extra melodies to comprise the back end of the song. I thought that was really special.
How do you think the process is different for a new artist today, compared to when you started out over a decade ago?
It seems to be a fairly brutal landscape out there for new artists, but now more than ever, the better the song the better the reaction to it. It seems labels, money & investment are less important than an artist’s individuality or the strength of the song.
Being a solo artist, I mostly run on my own schedule. How do you manage coordinating between all three of you when it comes to songwriting, deciding on things like album art, even what restaurants you choose on tour?
It can be a nightmare at times, considering we all live in different countries, but where there’s a will, there’s a way. Restaurant decisions take up almost 90 percent of our touring life, and that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
You’re on tour now – what’s the average day like?
90 percent deciding what to eat, 8 percent male nudity and 2 percent show related.
Who is your dream artist or band to tour with? You can’t say Weezer or The Pixies, since you’re on tour with them now!
I know I can’t say it but it would be really cool to work with The Pixies… that aside, to tour with a band like Blur or Pulp would be a real treat as they had such a huge impact on me when I was younger. Also want to get Kendrick Lamar to do a middle 8 at some point on the next album. So far, no joy!
Part 2: The Wombats interview Dagny
Do you remember what you were doing and where you were when you got asked to be featured on our track?
It was a pretty long time ago! I think it was back in December, I was in London. And I’d been getting a lot of emails with these electronic/dance tracks, asking if I wanted to feature, then suddenly there was a phone call from my manager “There’s this track ‘Turn’ with The Wombats,” and I was like, “YES.” To me it was such a breath of fresh air — and something I immediately knew I wanted to be part of.
Did anything surprise you about the collaboration experience?
I was actually surprised when I walked into the studio in Oslo to lay down some extra vocals, and the whole band was there! At first it made me a little bit nervous, but it was such a nice vibe and I was super stoked to meet everyone. It’s just been such a fun experience, and I love the song and your music in general! It’s fun to get to be part of someone else’s project, especially when it’s something different from what I normally do. It pushed me experiment with different ways of singing, and different ranges in my voice.
Dagny — that’s such a cool name. Is there a story behind it?
Haha, it’s actually a really old Norwegian name. I don’t really know of any other Dagnys under the age of 80 years old. My mum had thought about the name Stella, but Dagny seemed to fit me better. It means “New Day”, and I really like that.
Where do you hope to be as an artist in 10 years? Still touring? Do you like touring?
Touring is my all time favorite thing! I could tour for 50 weeks a year and probably be super happy. So hopefully I’m still going strong in 10 years. But I would also love to write music for other bands and artists. And maybe make an awesome clothing line or start a little vintage shop! Time will show.
Tord and you are both from Norway. Why is it so expensive there!? What did you love about growing up there? Nature? Culture? The country’s music scene?
It’s insane! I’ve brought British musicians over to Norway a few times and they’ve all been shocked about the beer prices, saying that they’re ruined after one night out in Norway. But I do love it here; both the nature and the culture. I grew up spending a lot of time outdoors and go into the music scene quite late. Back in my teens I was mainly into rock, country and all sorts of indie bands. Compared to the Sweden, we’ve always been a bit behind on commercial pop music, but it’s really caught on over the last few years which is exciting.
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