SPOT is an annual
music festival
A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...
in the city of
Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
, showcasing up-and-coming Danish and
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
n talent. Close to two hundred artists and bands from most genres of contemporary popular music - such as
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
,
hip hop and
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
- play various stages across town, centered around the
Academy of Music and concert halls of
Musikhuset
''Musikhuset Aarhus'' (Aarhus Concert Hall) is a large concert hall complex in Aarhus, Denmark. Located in the city centre, Musikhuset is Aarhus' main venue for music and with seating for more than 3,600 people in total, it is the largest concert ...
. Around 8,000 people attend the 100-200 concerts, including 1,500 from the music business, with close to a quarter of these from companies abroad.
Speakers also participate in panel discussions and give lectures on various
music industry
The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, ...
topics. For example, they answer musicians' questions on "How to make it in the US" and participate in debates on topics including
file sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic books. Common methods of storage, transmission and dispersion include r ...
and the future of the
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
.
While the audience is mainly local, the most quoted of its stated aims
[ is to promote Danish and Scandinavian music to the international music business, from record companies and concert organisers to agents and the music press.] Trying to please both camps, a curious, local music audience and an international music business crowd, is occasionally a source of friction.
History
Started in 1994 as a local initiative, SPOT festival has been organized by ROSA
Rosa or De Rosa may refer to:
People
*Rosa (given name)
* Rosa (surname)
*Santa Rosa (female given name from Latin-a latinized variant of Rose)
Places
*223 Rosa, an asteroid
*Rosa, Alabama, a town, United States
* Rosa, Germany, in Thuringia, G ...
("''Dansk Rock Samråd''", or Danish Rock Council in English), an umbrella organization representing various Danish musicians' unions, from 1995 onwards. In 2002, David Fricke
David Fricke is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 years. I ...
of ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' spotted the Raveonettes
The Raveonettes are a Danish indie rock duo, consisting of Sune Rose Wagner on guitar, instruments and vocals, and Sharin Foo on bass, guitar and vocals. Their music is characterized by close two-part vocal harmonies inspired by The Everly Bro ...
at the festival
and his subsequent endorsement was considered instrumental in landing them a contract with Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
. This incident greatly increased interest in the festival among musicians as a 'place to be seen', prompting among others Sort Sol
300px, A formation of starlings in the marshlands near Tønder, Denmark">Tønder.html" ;"title="starlings in the marshlands near Tønder">starlings in the marshlands near Tønder, Denmark.
image:Fugle,_%C3%B8rns%C3%B8_073.jpg, 300px, Blick of so ...
, a staple of the Danish music scene since 1977, to appear the following year in the hope of garnering international interest in their back catalogue.
Highlights
Among the bands who have taken baby steps at SPOT are
* 1997 (SPOT04): Kashmir
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
(Denmark), moi Caprice
moi Caprice is an indie rock band from Denmark. Current members are Michael Møller, David Brunsgaard, Casper Henning Hansen, Jacob Funch and Fridolin Nordsø. The band, formed as early as 1993 as Concrete Puppet Frog, rose to visibility in 1997 ...
(Denmark)
* 1998 (SPOT05): Under Byen
were a Danish band founded in 1995 mainly by Katrine Stochholm and Henriette Sennenvaldt.
(Danish for "Below the City") were known for producing their own unorthodox interpretation of rock. They rarely use guitars. Instead their soundscape is ...
(Denmark), Superheroes
A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...
(Denmark)
* 1999 (SPOT06): Sigur Rós
Sigur Rós () is an Icelandic post-rock band from Reykjavík, active since 1994. The band comprises singer and guitarist Jón Þór "Jónsi" Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm, and keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson. Known for their ethereal sound, fron ...
(Iceland)
* 2000 (SPOT07): Outlandish
Outlandish is a hip-hop music group based in Denmark. Formed in 1997, it consisted of Isam Bachiri (born in Denmark and of Berber background), (born in Denmark and of Pakistani background), and (born in Honduras and of Cuban and Honduran desc ...
(Denmark)
* 2002 (SPOT08): The Raveonettes
The Raveonettes are a Danish indie rock duo, consisting of Sune Rose Wagner on guitar, instruments and vocals, and Sharin Foo on bass, guitar and vocals. Their music is characterized by close two-part vocal harmonies inspired by The Everly Bro ...
, Junior Senior
Junior Senior were a Danish pop duo. The duo consisted of Jesper "Junior" Mortensen (vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass guitar, drums, percussion) (born 7 February 1977) and Jeppe "Senior" Laursen (vocals, programming) (born 25 December 1975). T ...
(Denmark)
* 2003 (SPOT09): Kaizer's Orchestra
Kaizers Orchestra is a Norwegian alternative rock band formed on 1 January 2000. They are notable for being among the first non-black metal Norwegian artists singing in their native language to become popular beyond Scandinavia.
In 2012, the gr ...
(Norway), The Blue Van
The Blue Van is a blues rock band from Denmark consisting of ''Steffen Westmark'' (vocals and guitar), ''Søren Christensen'' (keyboard, vocals and guitar), ''Allan Villadsen'' (bass), and ''Per Jørgensen'' (drums and vocals).
History
The Blue ...
(Denmark)
* 2004 (SPOT10): Múm
Múm (stylized in lowercase) () is an Icelandic indietronica band whose music is characterized by soft vocals, electronic glitch beats and effects, and a variety of traditional and unconventional instruments.
History
The band was formed in 1 ...
(Iceland)
* 2005 (SPOT11): Blue Foundation
Blue Foundation is a Danish band. Their cinematic dream pop, shoegaze and electronics inspired compositions are known for being featured in films such as ''Twilight'', ''Miami Vice'' and on TV shows including ''CSI: Miami'' and ''The Vampire Dia ...
(Denmark), Mew (Denmark)
* 2006 (SPOT12): Oh No Ono
Oh No Ono was a musical quintet from Aalborg, Denmark. The band was formed in 2003 by Kristoffer Rom (drums), Kristian Olsen (keyboards, etc.), Malthe Fischer (vocals, guitar and samples) and Aske Zidore (guitar, vocals, samples).
History
Oh No O ...
(Denmark), Figurines
A figurine is a small statuette that represents a human, deity or animal.
Figurine or Figurines may also refer to:
*Figurine (band), American electronica band
*Figurines (band), Danish indie rock band
*''The Figurine
''The Figurine: Araromire' ...
(Denmark)
* 2007 (SPOT13): Spleen United
Spleen United is a Danish electronic rock band consisting of the brothers Bjarke (Vocals/Guitar) and Gaute Niemann (Bass/ Synth), Kasper Nørlund (Synth/Backing vocals), Rune Wehner (Synth) and Janus Nevel Ringsted (Drums). It was formed in Århu ...
(Denmark), Shout Out Louds
Shout Out Louds is a Swedish indie pop band from Stockholm.
History
Formed in Stockholm by childhood friends Adam Olenius (vocals), Ted Malmros (bass), and Carl von Arbin (guitars), Shout Out Louds found an international audience during the e ...
(Sweden), Eivør Pálsdóttir
Eivor, Eivør or Øyvor is a female given name in the Nordic countries. In Sweden, 4,922 people bear the name. The average age is 78.
The name perhaps originated from either the Proto-Norse word ''auja'', which is thought to mean "good luck", o ...
(Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
)
A complete list can be found at th
MySpace profile
Growth and changing profile
In the 2000s, the festival saw an increase in the number of bands and venues as well as public attention - a transformation that has not escaped criticism. In 2005, the festival included 107 acts featured on 10 stages across town, a number that led the festival manager, to call for a scaleback. Critical voices have focused more on the choice of venues and artists, claiming that venues have been spread too far out and the choice of musicians has gotten safer and less varied. Political interest in the festival has grown with the commercial successes of acts such as Mew, The Raveonettes
The Raveonettes are a Danish indie rock duo, consisting of Sune Rose Wagner on guitar, instruments and vocals, and Sharin Foo on bass, guitar and vocals. Their music is characterized by close two-part vocal harmonies inspired by The Everly Bro ...
and Junior Senior
Junior Senior were a Danish pop duo. The duo consisted of Jesper "Junior" Mortensen (vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass guitar, drums, percussion) (born 7 February 1977) and Jeppe "Senior" Laursen (vocals, programming) (born 25 December 1975). T ...
. In 2005, the minister for culture, Brian Mikkelsen
Brian Arthur Mikkelsen (born 31 January 1966) is CEO of The Danish Chamber of Commerce. He is former Minister and former member of the Conservative People's Party, and was in The Danish Parliament (Folketinget) from 21 September 1994 to 21 June ...
, proclaimed it "the most important musical event in Denmark" due to its potential as a vehicle for "networking and musical export". However, this attention has prompted questions about the relative weights given to artistic merit and marketability as criteria for band selection and claims that the new focus on big business has alienated the local music scene. The inclusion of by now well-established names (or at least names that were felt to have had their chance of international recognition) such as Saybia
Saybia is a Danish rock band formed in Nyborg in 1993.
History
From 1998 to 2000 they privately recorded three EPs (which they sold at their concerts) before signing to EMI in the spring of 2001. In the summer EMI released the 6 track EP "Saybi ...
and Outlandish
Outlandish is a hip-hop music group based in Denmark. Formed in 1997, it consisted of Isam Bachiri (born in Denmark and of Berber background), (born in Denmark and of Pakistani background), and (born in Honduras and of Cuban and Honduran desc ...
was greeted with muted enthusiasm in the music press and occasional hostility from audiences.
In 2017, SPOT Festival was expanded to last three days with more than 200 events and was held in early May. As part of the expansion, several smaller festivals within the larger festival was arranged, including Roots & Hybrid focussing on world music and ethnic styles primarily from the Middle East, Aarhus Volume with local hip-hop talents, Mono goes Metal with local acts from the metal underground, and Spot on Greenland with up and coming bands from Greenland. Film and fashion also became part of SPOT, with two small festivals featuring local fashion companies and film talents.
The 2018 festival was expanded to last five days. The Roots & Hybrid festival continued.
SPOT Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2019. The festival reversed to a three-day event, but now with many small music events throughout the year. The Roots & Hybrids festival within the festival continued.
See also
* A Switch Box Tale
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes' ...
, part of 2008 event.
References
External links
Official homepage
(English language version)
SPOT's MySpace profile
ROSA Official homepage
(English language version)
{{FestivalsDenmark
Events in Aarhus
Music festivals in Denmark
Electronic music festivals in Denmark
Music festivals established in 1994
Spring (season) events in Denmark