(Thanks to Frauke for the picture)

The interview took place on Saturday night, just after a-ha concert at Koln Arena. Anne, Christele and I were waiting for Morten in a Koln bar at midnight. Sverre Flatby, Morten’s personnal manager kindly arranged everything that night. So Morten stayed with the girls and I at the bar for 1/2 hour.

Marie : Hello Morten.

Morten : Hi

Anne : First of all, you sang very well tonight.

Morten : Thank you.

Marie :  The band is about to release its 8^th studio album. How do you feel with that new opus? Can you talk about your collaboration with Paul and Magne on this album? What was the main energy in between you 3?

Morten : We work together in different ways, we are mostly 3 different people, 3 strong energies who work together.  That’s the way we work, the way we have always been. The energy into the band is beyond friendship. We are not only good friends that work together and we basically have never been good friends in private life. Don’t believe what you hear or see about the image of the band. You have to think beyond appearances. Most of people believe what they just collect from there or there of the image of the band.

I personally don’t think that way. I’m interested in why people say that or that. I’m not interested in words in their general meaning. The most important thing is why someone is telling that or that thing, what is beyond those words ; what stimulate this idea...

Marie : Morten can you talk about your solo album?

Morten : Yes of course. Which one?

Marie : The next one. Is it ready?

Morten : A lot of songs are ready. I’m not focused on that point for the moment.

Anne : So you don’t know? One year? 2 years?

Morten : No I don’t know. It’s a question of choice and energy. And I have a lot to do with a-ha now.

Anne : Do you think you could stop singing?

Morten : Oh yeah (Smiling)

Anne : what will you do? Fishing maybe?

Morten : Why not? Or just look at fish maybe…I used to look at fish. I had a lot of different species into my aquariums. I can stay hours looking at them, also in their wild environment.

Anne : So you like to be closed to nature and listen to silence…

(Morten is nodding with a smile)

Marie : Outside music, you keep on being involved in different economic or ecological projects such as East Timor or the reforesting of Amazon. You’ve recently been to Brazil for Hydro, right?  

Morten : Yes but I was just invited by Hydro.

Marie : Ok. And regarding East Timor, do you intend to go back there in a near future? You had already been involved in East Timor Economical issues in a Norwegian documentary in 2003.

Morten : No I don’t think I will go back there for now. Oil is the main source of revenue in East Timor and that helps the country to increase its social environment. It’s a small country who gets problems to export their resources. They still don’t have enough money to be competitive with Western countries as they need to open themselves.

Marie : Are you still in contact with Ramos Horta?

Morten : Yes, I sometimes talk to him on the phone but he’s getting old now.

Marie : But how could you make your contribution to East Timor situation as Morten Harket?

Morten : I can only give my own energy actually.

Anne : There are many countries with difficulties so why East Timor in particular?

Morten : Because I had been very touched by what happened there many years ago. I’ve got it under my skin…  

Marie : Yes in 94

Morten : 93

Marie : I suppose you’ve been musically influenced by a lot of artists for 30 years and a few artists can also be influenced today by a-ha music, as Keane for instance. I personally think that you could have used your voice for some Keane music. What do you think about it?

(Morten nodded when I said that Tom Chaplin has a similar voice)

Morten : I never listen to music so it’s hard to answer.

Marie : Paul and Mags have both an official website. I know that you don’t surf on internet but you do have an official website, haven’t you? (www.mortenharket.com)

Morten :  Oh really? I didn’t know about it. I never go on internet.

Marie : oh ok…next question (smiling)

Anne : Being on stage must give you strong emotions and many artists need time to go back to reality after a tour. How do you feel when you come back home?

Morten : Actually I bring everything with me no matter where I go. I don’t feel in a special mood after a concert, so I don’t need time to go back to reality. The thing is that my reality is everywhere and I travel with it. But I need to go back home very often to get new energy.

(At that moment, Sverre came back to us and wanted to stop the interview. Ok, time for the last question now …it was very late indeed)

Marie : My last question is a bit more personal.

Morten : Ok no problem. Go on.

Marie : In a previous interview, you had declared that women were giving you positive energy. What exactly moves you in women?

Morten : Women move me sexually and romantically. But both are totally different.

Anne : Anyway it’s a natural feeling between a man and a woman.

Morten : Yes it is.

(End of the interview. We kindly kissed to say goodbye).

Many many thanks to Sverre Flatby who has supported me for my personal project and thanks to Morten for his kindness and his indulgence.
Many thanks to Anne and Christele for their friendship and their support.

That interview has been written from what I remembered. The interview was not recorded as it was not really planned but has been made at the last minute thanks to Sverre's kindness.

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