Listening to the dreamy voice of Ragnhild Moan is like watching clouds form in slow-motion. Her grace, power, raw beauty, and tender emotions are professed expertly through her stunning clearwater timbre; the sort of beautiful only nature could imagine. A member of both the colorful indie-jazz-pop band ¡BangBang WaterGun! and the steely, sleek all--female electronica trio han gaiden, Ragnhild Moan is a woman of seemingly endless talents.
FP: When and where were you born?
RM: I was born 4 February 1997 in a hospital nearby my hometown, this small city called Folldal, in Norway.
FP: How were you introduced to music?
RM: I don't come from a very musical family. My parents love music but they're not active listeners. They don't really listen to new music. My mom mostly listens to the radio when she drives. There's a radio station in Norway called P4 that's music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s; popular music that everyone knows. That was the kind of music I listened to when I was younger. Also, my mom loved Phantom of the Opera and she's really into musicals so she listened to a lot of shows, like Chess. I remember when we drove for many hours to my family in Strømmen, in Akershus in Norway. It took four hours and for the last two hours my mom listened to Phantom of the Opera and she was singing. My dad played trumpet in a small corps band, so he introduced me to trumpet and I started to play when I was 10 or 11 years old. I started to play a lot of band music with my friends. I wasn't really interested in music till I was 12 or 13 years old. I remember I started to really listen to melodies. I started to hear other voices and tried to harmonize. I don't think my parents or family really introduced me to music, per se. I wanted to listen to it on my own. I became interested on my own.
FP: Which artists inspired you then/now?
RM: The first artist I remember loving is one I heard on the radio station P4 when I was 8 or 9 years old. My mom got me her CD. Her name was Anastasia. She was popular at the end of the 90s, I think, or the beginning of the 2000s. But the artist who really really inspired me was Lady Gaga, when I heard her in 2007/2008. I was 11 or 12, I think. She opened a lot of doors for me. I don't know what it is about her, but I love the melodies and how she sings and her style.
FP: How do you approach songwriting?
RM: I always start with Ableton and then I find some good sounds on a synth. Then I try to improvise and find small hooks and good melodies that I like. Then I add some drums. Then I sing some strange language and then I add the lyrics. That's how I've written songs for many years. Nowadays I'm trying to start with the lyrics and then add the melody, but it's hard to break that sort of habit after many years...I think it's hard not to write about things that don't come from my life. I really like to write about myself...I've been really thinking about that. Maybe it's boring, if I write two albums and every song is about that boy or that heartbreak. But I think it's really important that it's relatable for me, because I use music to get over things. Now that I'm home and have nothing to do (because of COVID-19), I listen to and look at a lot of ideas for songs that I have. The songs are often about heartbreak, because it feels best for me to write about it. I usually write the lyrics at the end of the process so I feel like any song that I write is like..."Oh this song or this melody reminds me of this thing that happened to me or what I'm feeling now." I don't feel that I"m the one deciding. I feel like the songs decide for me. It may be cliché but it's true.
FP: To what extent does your upbringing/hometown influence your artistry or writing?
RM: In some ways, maybe. I hid a lot of things when I was younger, like being artistic. It was something I didn't talk about with other people. I come from a very small place and I was singing in a band and playing music, but to write something on your own was not something many people did. I think it was a little bit scary to talk about. That's something that may still be affecting my ability to write songs. I think it's still very scary. I always want to finish everything before I show things to people.
FP: Has your time at the Norwegian Academy of Music (NMH) changed the way you approach music and music making?
RM: Definitely. I've learned so much, especially to show people things and ideas I have. It's much easier now because of NMH, because I've met people and everyone is always writing. Sharing is easier for me now. I remember during my first year I was trying to write something and the first time I sent it to someone and said, Hi, do you want to play this? it was so scary. Now, it's less scary. That has changed because of NMH and also because my music is much more complete and I've grown. You spend four years at NMH so you have to grow. I have because of the people I've met and the music they make.
FP: Tell us about your band ¡BangBang WaterGun!
RM: I love that band so much. It started with Erlend (Tredal), who had an exam during his second year. He just wanted to play his music with people that he liked. He'd never heard me sing or played with me, so he basically said Hey Ragnhild's cool, let's put her in the band. It was pretty random. We had a lot of fun when we practiced. Then we played the exam concert in May 2018 and after that, a lot of people said we should start a band so we did. It's me, David Paulsen (keys), Ask Vatn Strøm (guitar), Erlend Tredal (bass), and Sigmund Vestrheim (drums). It's mostly me and Erlend who write the songs. Erlend makes the demos and arrangements and I try to add vocals and then we write the lyrics together. He's the brain, really. We released our debut single, "disperse", in February 2020. It was like having a birthday and Christmas at the same time. I love playing with them. We play a sort of indie jazz pop music. Before COVID-19 we had some concerts lined up but we couldn't play them. We're planning on making an album next year...I love the band.
FP: Tell us about your band han gaiden.
RM: Han gaiden is a different setup. It's an electronica trio of me, Ingrid Skåland Lia, and Kristin Myhrvold. We started as really good friends who met at NMH. It was a really rough start studying music and we became close because we listened to the same music. We had a lot of the same guilty pleasures like Beyoncé and Lady Gaga...a lot of artists we thought were off--limits to like because we were studying jazz. We started to party together and listen to music together and then we started to play together. First, it was just me and Kristin on vocals and Ingrid on saxophone, but then we realized it was difficult to make a cohesive sound out of that arrangement. So we started to use Ableton and we did not know how to use it so we had to learn...(and) we've learned so much. Because of han gaiden, I really know my way around Ableton now. We're going to release out debut single in May 2020. We're really honest to each other, so we write songs about our own lives. I really appreciate that so much; the fact that we can write so honestly and that everyone knows what the meaning of each song is for each member.
FP: Tell us the story behind your upcoming single, "squad"
RM: A lot of songs in han gaiden begin with one of us bringing an idea to a practice/session. "Squad" is different because we were just talking about some people, "the squad", that we were annoyed by. We came up with a beat and I just started playing the bass line on a piano and then Ingrid and Kristin came in with the line "This squad cannot get into the club". Then they found out they wanted to sing it with dissonant tones in unison. It was basically a jam song. We took some recordings and made up lyrics. The lyrics are very harsh and different from other music we've made. It's really about having problems with other people, and I think it's something a lot of people can relate to, And yes, it's mean to talk about people like that, but there are times when you feel so much anger...I'm a big fan of the Kardashians...and I remembered an episode where Kim and Kourtney are fighting and...then...someone said something about someone being a lunatic. So one of the lyrics in "squad" is "How do you feel when you dance like a lunatic?" Then I remembered that it was Kim who said that Kourtney was a lunatic and then Khloe said "That's not okay to say". I found that clip and sampled it for the song, but then we realized E! Entertainment could sue us for using it. So I called my good friend from California and asked her to record the Kardashian dialogue for us so we could use it in the single. It's really really fun.
FP: Who produced/engineered it?
RM: It was Erlend Mokkelbost from Pekula, our label, who engineered it. He's really cool and made us sound really good.
FP: Where was it recorded?
RM: We recorded in his studio here in Oslo.
FP: Who plays on the record?
RM: It's all us three.
FP: Who is it for?
RM: The single is an old song for us...I think we made it over a year ago...For me, the song was good for me in the moment and where I was at that point in my life....but it's still so much fun to play...It's a good song to listen to if you're angry or if you want to party and just have a good time with your friends or alone. I hope that people listen to it and feel confident in themselves.
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fresh pressed five
FP: What is your favorite sound unrelated to music?
RM: The sound of the wind in the woods.
FP: What makes you swoon?
RM: When someone is really good at something and they know they are, whether it's quizzes or playing an instrument. Self--confidence, I think. Not bragging, but being self--assured.
FP: What is one thing on your bucket list?
RM: Sleep one night alone in a tent in the mountains during the summer. I'm afraid of the dark, so I need to do that so I can get over my fear.
FP: Which color makes you most emotional and why?
RM: I think maybe purple, because I don't know if it's happy or sad. It makes me unsure of what to feel.
FP: Where is your happy place?
RM: My hometown and my farm, where we have a lot of animals. In the summer, it's the best place to be. I appreciate it so much, especially now that I live in Oslo. I love the city but...being with my family at home is my happy place.
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¡BangBang WaterGun's! single "disperse" is out now across platforms. han gaiden's debut single "squad" is out 22 May 2020 across platforms.