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Blue Foundation

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Blue Foundation
Background information
Genres
Years active2000–present
LabelsMoshi Moshi, Astralwerks, EMI, Virgin, DPC, KON Records
MembersTobias Wilner
Bo Rande
Past membersAnders Bertram
Tatsuki Oshima
Scott Martingell
Frederik Hantho
Daisuke Kiyasu
Kirstine Teglbjærg
Hans Landgreen
Mathias Hantho
Lasse Herbst
Sune Martin
Anders Wallin
Nikolaj Bundvig
Emil Bernild Ferslev
Websitebluefoundationofficial.com

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 Diaries.

Danish singer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Tobias Wilner founded the group in 2000, inspired by Mark E. Smith's approach to forming a band (the Fall), recruiting a rotating cast of traditional musicians throughout the band's history to inspire creativity. Since 2010 the core of the band has been Tobias Wilner and Bo Rande, based in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and Copenhagen, Denmark.[1]

Blue Foundation released their fifth album Blood Moon worldwide on 2 September 2016. The album featured appearances from Mark Kozelek (Sun Kil Moon / Red House Painters), Erika Spring (Au Revoir Simone / Nice As Fuck), Jonas Bjerre (Mew), Sonya Kitchell, Sara Savery (aka Drop the Gun) and Findlay Brown.

Blue Foundation lead singer Tobias Wilner under concert

Blue Foundation is known for being part of many other musical projects. Tobias Wilner is active recording and touring with his side project New York United,[2] an experimental band featuring Daniel Carter, Federico Ughi, and Djibril Toure. The dream pop electronic project Tachys, with the lead singer of Mew, Jonas Bjerre, is also noteworthy.[3] He has released music under the alias Bichi and with his shoegaze band Ghost Society. Additionally, he composes music for films and TV, both under his own name and as Blue Foundation. Bo Rande is active with projects like Mames Babegenush, Choir of Young Believers and CTM .

History

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Blue Foundation was founded in 2000 in Copenhagen and grew out of the musical collaboration between Tobias Wilner, aka Bichi, his brother Anders Mannov Bertram, and Kirstine Stubbe Teglbjærg. Tobias Wilner, the band's primary driving force and captain, came up with the name Blue Foundation in 1999.

The early sound was partially shaped around Tobias Wilner's sonic universe, compositions, and productions, as well as Kirstine Stubbe Teglbjærg's ethereal vocals and songwriting. From the beginning, Blue Foundation included members from various countries, including Denmark, Japan, England, Italy, Brazil, and the USA. MC Jabber, aka Scott Martingell, left his mark on Blue Foundation's first three albums with his cryptic and fragmented poetry.

Blue Foundation released their first 7" via Moshi Moshi Records,[4] and their first, self-titled, album was released shortly thereafter. Three years later, in 2003, the band signed with EMI/Warner Music releasing 2 critically acclaimed albums, released in the US through Astralwerks Records.

In 2007, Blue Foundation released their third studio album, Life of a Ghost. The album was recorded in Copenhagen, with Tobias Wilner as producer and engineer, and Bo Rande as co-producer. The album was released in 2007 on EMI Records in Denmark and on Astralwerks in the USA in 2009.

Life of a Ghost features the group's biggest hit, "Eyes on Fire," written by Tobias Wilner and Kirstine Stubbe Teglbjærg.

In 2008, Blue Foundation established their own imprint, Dead Peoples Choice, that so far has released two albums and one remix album. Today they release under the imprint KON Records. [5] Blue Foundation gained major recognition with a remix by Zeds Dead of their song "Eyes On Fire", reaching a no. 3 ranking on iTunes Electronic Music Chart (2014). Today "Eyes On Fire" has more than 35 million YouTube plays, while the "Zeds Dead"-remix has exceeded 170 million YouTube plays. During the years Blue Foundation have expanded their audience, embracing today both the underground and the alternative mainstream.

Blue Foundation founder and lead singer Tobias Wilner and Bo Rande. Photo By Jesse Ball

Blue Foundation has been featured in major films such as Twilight,[6] Miami Vice[7] and on TV shows including CSI: Miami and The Vampire Diaries. Their music is sampled by ex Lil Durk feat. French Montana on "Fly High", Young Thug on "She Noticed" and on Curren$y's "Hustler".

Blue Foundation have toured extensively around Europe, Asia and the US through the years, performing alongside bands like Efterklang, Faithless, Mew and DJ Krush.

Blue Foundation lead singer Tobias Wilner captured under a concert.

Bo Rande is an accomplished musician, songwriter and producer, as well as a trumpet-player known for his tone and style. His style encompasses jazz, world music, pop music and ambient. He is also a member of the Danish band The William Blakes (two-time winner of the Danish Music Awards) and the sought after klezmer orchestra Mames Babegenush. He has toured the world with Mames Babegenush,[8] playing both Carnegie Hall, Argentina and around Europe. Besides that he has been a sought after musician, playing with Mew, Apparatjik, Efterklang and many many others, both live and on recording.

In October 2005, Tobias Wilner released an album with his side project, Bichi. The title of the album is Notwithstanding, and is released by Thomas Knak on his label, Hobby Industries. Some of the Bichi work would later turn into Blue Foundation songs. The Blue Foundation song, This is Goodbye, from the movie Manslaughter, was originally the instrumental song Revolve In The Sun/My Footfalls Are Superfluous, from the album Notwithstanding.[9] Also, the Bichi song It Begins, featured in the movie Waking Madison, by Katherine Brooks, was re-recorded and later released as a Blue Foundation version.

Blue Foundation live in Copenhagen 2018. Photo by Jesse Ball

On 1 February 2009 Tobias Wilner established DPC Records, mainly to release Blue Foundation, Bichi and his band Ghost Society. Later that year Blue Foundation went double platinum in USA for the Twilight Soundtrack. The album was certified double platinum on 16 April 2009.[10] The Blue Foundation song Watch you Sleeping, with singer songwriter Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters, Sun Kil Moon), and former member Kirstine Stubbe Teglbjærg was released as a single on DPC.[11]

Blue Foundation contributed with two songs for the soundtrack of the award-winning documentary film Tankograd, by director Boris Benjamin Bertram.[12] One of the songs signals a change in female vocalists. The lead vocals are done by Sara Savery (Ghost Society and People Press Play). Blue Foundation also did the soundtrack for the short film Go All Day, featuring professional skateboarder Chaz Ortiz, Colin Kennedy. The score was later released as the Blue Foundation single Red Hook.

Tobias Wilner started the project Tachys with Mew's lead singer, Jonas Bjerre, in 2019. They released their debut album in 2023. [13]

In 2018, Bo Rande and Tobias Wilner recorded and produced the album "Silent Dream (Instrumentals and Beats)", which was released in 2019. The album features guest appearances by Sun Glitters, Federico Ughi, and Sara Savery, also known as Drop The Gun. "Silent Dream" was produced by Tobias Wilner and Bo Rande, mixed and recorded by Tobias Wilner, and mastered by Mark Bihler at Calyx in Berlin. Blue Foundation premiered "Silent Dream" at the Radar festival in Aarhus.

In 2022, Danish singer Helena Gao performed with Blue Foundation for the first time.

Tobias Wilner announced in an interview with the danish music magazine Gaffa, that the band is working on a new album in their Brooklyn studio. It is meant to be released in 2024. [14]

Influences

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When Blue Foundation started out they were influenced by bands like My Bloody Valentine, Stereolab, Broadcast, Faust, DJ Krush, Friction and Can.[15]

Discography

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Studio albums

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  • Blue Foundation (April Records 2001)
  • Sweep of Days (Virgin 2004)
  • Solid Origami collected, reworked and remixed (Pop Group 2006)
  • Life of a Ghost (EMI/Astralwerks 2007)
  • In My Mind I Am Free (Dead People's Choice 2012)
  • In My Mind I Am Free / Reconstructed (Dead People's Choice 2013)
  • Blood Moon (2016)
  • Silent Dream (2019)

EP

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  • Dead People's Choice (Dead People's Choice 2007)
  • Live In Zhangbei (Dead People's Choice 2015)
  • It Begins (Dead People's Choice 2016)
  • Live From Brooklyn (Dead People's Choice 2016)
  • Eyes On Fire (Re-Work, Remix & Instrumentals) (Dead People's Choice 2016)
  • Brother & Sister (Dead People's Choice 2018)

Singles

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  • Hollywood & Hide 7" (Moshi Moshi Records 2000)
  • Hollywood & Wiseguy 12" (April Records 2000)
  • As I Moved On 12" (Virgin 2003)
  • End of the Day (Virgin 2004)
  • This is Goodbye (Virgin 2005)
  • Embers 7" (Jack To Phono Records 2005)
  • Crosshair (Virgin 2006)
  • Enemy (EMI 2007)
  • Eyes on Fire (EMI 2009)
  • Watch you Sleeping feat. Mark Kozelek / Dream (3:11PM) (DPC Records 2009)
  • Heads on Fire (DPC Records 2011)
  • Red Hook (DPC Records 2011)
  • Lost (DPC Records 2012)
  • Eyes On Fire Re-Recorded (DPC Records 2015)
  • Så Længe Jeg Lever (DPC Records 2016)
  • Dreams On Fire (DPC Records 2016)
  • Lost Girl feat. Jonas Bjerre (DPC Records 2016)
  • Watch You Sleeping feat. Mark Kozelek (DPC Records 2016)
  • Stay For Christmas (DPC Records 2018)
  • Where The End Begins (KØN 2019)
  • Shadow (KØN 2019)
  • Shadow Sheild Remix (KØN 2019)

Remix work

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  • Klart Der! Jorden Kalder Blue Foundation & Mixologists Remix (2000)
  • Fauna Flash Mother Nature Blue Foundation Remix (Compost 2001)
  • Mew Symmetry Blue Foundation Remix (Evil Office 2001)
  • Zeds Dead "Eyes On Fire" Blue Foundation Remix (2007)
  • Jonas Bjerre Window Pane Blue Foundation Remix (PLUK 2011)
  • Ghost Society Under The Sun Blue Foundation Remix (DPC 2012)
  • Apparatjik Datascroller Blue Foundation Remix (DPC 2012)
  • Allies For Everyone Supernatural Blue Foundation Remix (KID Recordings 2013)
  • Ninety's Remix "Bonfires" Blue Foundation Remix (Trap City 2013)
  • Easy Easy Katana Blue Foundation Remix (Future Archive Recordins 2020)

Compilations

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  • Confusion (Compost Records 2003)
  • Benetton's Colors: A Nordic Compilation (Irma Records 2003)
  • Warp Factor (King Kladze Records/Time Warp 2003)
  • Who Shot Jacques Laverne? (Jack To Phono Records 2004)
  • We Got Monkeys: Five Years Of Moshi Moshi Records (Moshi Moshi Records 2005)
  • Paris mixed by Nick Warren (Global Underground 2007)
  • Sequential vol 2. mixed by Hernan Cattaneo (Renainnance 2007)
  • Director's Cut: Music from the Films of Michael Mann (Rhino 2007)
  • Sirenes (Spectacle Entertainment 2008)
  • Michael Moshi's Moshi Mixtape (Moshi Moshi Records 2010)
  • Compost Downbeat Selection, Vol. 1 (Compost 2010)
  • Sound of Dubstep 3 (Ministry of Sound 2011)
  • Together We Are Not Alone (THISTIME 2011)

Selected soundtracks

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  • Manslaughter (Zentropa/EMI) 26 August 2005
  • Nordkraft (Nimbus Film) 2005
  • Miami Vice (Atlantic Recording) 18 July 2006
  • Twilight (Chop Shop Records/Atlantic Recording) 4 November 2008
  • Normal (Bontonfilm) 26 March 2009
  • Tankograd (DPC Records) 16 May 2011

Selected TV shows

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  • The O.C. - Season 2, Episode 7: The Family Ties, feat. Save This Town by Blue Foundation (Warner Bros. Television/Fox Network) 6 January 2005
  • CSI: Miami - feat. End of the Day by Blue Foundation (CBS) 2008
  • Anna Pihl - feat. Crosshair by Blue Foundation (Cosmo Film/Danish National TV) 2008
  • So You Think You Can Dance - 1 episode, Top 14 Perform feat. Eyes On Fire by Blue Foundation (19 Television/20th Century Fox Television) 1 July 2009
  • The Cleveland Show - feat. Eyes On Fire by Blue Foundation (20th Century Fox) 30 October 2011
  • The Vampire Diaries - Season 4, Episode 8: Eyes On Fire by Blue Foundation 6 December 2012

Music for contemporary dance

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  • Overloadlady by Sara Gebran. Musical scores by Tobias Wilner (pre-Blue Foundation). Premiered August 1999[16]
  • Hurtdetail by Tim Feldmann. Musical scores by Tobias Wilner (Blue Foundation). Premiered at "Plovdiv Center of Contemporary Art" in Bulgaria, on 13 May 2000.[17]
  • Hendrix House by Tim Feldmann. Musical scores by Tobias Wilner (Blue Foundation) and David Linton. Premiered at Pakhus 11 April 22nd 2003
  • eXPLORnography by Tim Feldmann. Musical scores by Tobias Wilner (Blue Foundation). May 2005

Members

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Current members
Live
  • Federico Ughi - drums
  • Sonya Kitchell - vocals, guitars
  • Sara Savery - vocals
  • Helena Gao - vocals
Past members

Side projects

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Biography". AllMusic.
  2. ^ Article in The Wire Magazine.
  3. ^ Article in Under The Radar.
  4. ^ "Moshi Moshi Records | Releases: Hide/Hollywood". Moshimoshimusic.com. 2000-06-16. Archived from the original on 2012-06-30. Retrieved 2012-05-12.
  5. ^ From www.discogs.com
  6. ^ "'Twilight' Soundtrack Tracklisting Unveiled". SPIN. 8 October 2008.
  7. ^ "Moby, Goldfrapp on 'Miami Vice' Soundtrack". SPIN. 20 July 2006.
  8. ^ "Mames Babegenush - Home". Facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
  9. ^ "'Bichi-Notwithstanding". Discogs.
  10. ^ "Gold & Platinum - June 18, 2010". RIAA. Archived from the original on 2007-06-26. Retrieved 2010-06-19.
  11. ^ Leah Greenblatt (2009-06-06). "Twilight's Blue Foundation: Stream an exclusive new version of 'Watch You Sleeping'". Entertainment Weekly.
  12. ^ Kimberly O’Haver (2011-01-27). "Dancing in time to the Geiger counter". The Moscow News. Archived from the original on 2011-12-14.
  13. ^ Article in Brooklyn Vegan.
  14. ^ Interview with lead singer and founder Tobias Wilner from danish music magazine Gaffa.
  15. ^ Lucy Tonic (2010-05-03). "My Interview with Blue Foundation". Associated Content. Archived from the original on 2014-07-29.
  16. ^ "Overloadlady". Sara Gebran.
  17. ^ "Hendrix House". Tim Feldman. Archived from the original on 2012-10-30. Retrieved 2012-02-16.
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