Everything Ida, I do it for you

On entering the Barfly, VV Brown has been sent off to get something to eat and the tour manager tells me to sit down and enjoy the rehearsal. A few minutes later Ida Maria floats by and things start warming up. There is an upbeat, almost magical vibe that lingers on into what will become a very eventful evening.

Talking to VV Brown, who has been supporting Ida Maria on her current UK tour, was like a breath of fresh air. With a fifties inspired dress sense (she has a semi-permanent large quiff), a music style that she calls “doo wop indie” while making use of some cranky Nintendo game boy sounds, Brown tells me “it’s not about being boxed, it’s about celebrating everything”. This young woman has soul, funk, and rock ‘n’ roll on her side; not bad, especially when she keeps trying to tell me that these are “extremely early days”. She must be modest, especially when she has written songs for both the Pussycat Dolls and the Sugababes. “I have been in this business for a long time, I used to be in a funk band, I have seen the music business from an LA perspective, yet I have also seen the grittiest shittiest pub in Westham.” Well tonight, she is at the Birmingham Barfly and her set is phenomenal. Her debut single ‘Crying Blood’ brings to mind comparisons with Santogold while at the same time seeming like something from the Rocky Horror Show. To finish, she belts out a reggae version of ‘Crying Blood’ and it becomes clear that Browns diversity and her desire to protect her art will definitely be taking her places.

Whereas VV Brown is from London, Ida Maria Sivertsen is a 23 year old Norwegian singer and musician, and also one of the nicest people I have met in a very long time. The pop world may not know what has hit it yet but when it does, I can guarantee that everyone will want a piece of her. Ultimately Sivertsen is an artist that is hard to define and that’s just the way she likes it. She says that “the whole fame thing just isn’t real but the music is. I love going back to my little town in the north of Norway and getting away from it all. Being on tour, we haven’t been able to just jam and that’s one of best things”.

Her music is extremely honest and truthful. Even though some may regard ‘Better when you’re naked’ as just a catchy pop tune, the lyrics define all that Sivertsen is and what she does. The realness of getting naked and taking away all the layers of rubbish that comes with dating and the mind games that people play. The words are inspiring and empowering; “I only smoke when I’m with you” is typical. Her music prompts us to question why we do certain things to impress other people and why just being yourself is sometimes not enough? It’s the fact that Sivertsen exposes her weaknesses that makes her so real.

Having studied Classical History and Literature at University, the singer can connect to student life and the expectations that come with it. When I asked her about how all this happened she said “things just fell into place, whatever I did, I was always pulled back to the music and focused on my band”. Although she is intelligent, Sivertsen is not conventional and in some ways she defies conventions. She told me “it is hard to be true to yourself, yet it is the most important thing”. She doesn’t have a plan, she has a passion, and that is what is leading her life.

After touring for two years you may think that the well has run dry, performing the same songs over and over, yet Sivertsen is fresh, powerful and full of emotion. On renditions of ‘Stella’ and ‘Keep Me Warm’, the crowd go crazy and her energy consumes all corners of this old converted warehouse. ‘Fortress Round My Heart’ is her first album and journeys into the soul of this rebellious chic who for some comes across as innocent and vulnerable, despite first impressions.

Apparently Sivertsen suffers from synaesthesia, a sensory condition that allows her to experience sensations together rather than separately. For the artist this means that when she hears music she sees colours. As her life is immersed in music everything is more emotionally extreme and at times overwhelming to the extent that before her diagnosis she could not understand what was happening to her. Tonight Ida Maria’s music is best described as bold, bright and beautiful; the colour purple comes to mind although a flood of all primary colours together with some dark undertones seems more fitting. During ‘Oh My God’, she belts out the words “you think I’m in control?” and while the audience may assume that she definitely isn’t, it is clear to me that this young woman is bringing to the world a new way of viewing music.

As the show came to an end, we called her name and she gave us one more song. Yet I was feeling so high from the gig, it just couldn’t end there. The next thing I know we are back stage, lapping up the booze, the chocolates and more importantly the company. At this point I was fairly plastered, the amount of absolute nonsense that came out of my mouth was unbelievable but the band was being so friendly, Ida was incredible and it felt like we had all been mates for years. There were a few other people backstage and one girl happened to be a soprano, so with some encouragement she starts to belt out an opera tune while Ida becomes completely mesmerised and tells me “it’s the music, it’s the voice, God its just so important”.

A few more drinks and now we are in the back of the tour van which Sivertsen points out (much earlier on in the night) that it is not biodiesel, even though they are an eco-friendly band. Protecting the environment is something she feels strongly about telling me that “artists need to come together with issues like this”.

With a bottle of wine in one hand and some chocolate cake in the other we all felt like proper rock stars (NB. what seemed like delightfully tasty and innocent chocolate cake was actually a hash brownie that I carried on eating blissfully unaware). 10 minutes later, we are in the Marriott hotel and now this is the part where things go a bit sketchy; clothes swapping ensues and then Ida and I are getting our baps out, prancing around the bathroom, followed quickly by my old drunken self falling in the bath and bringing the shower rail down with me. Trying on Sivertsen’s sequined pink vintage dress was definitely a highlight but to be honest things just seemed a lot better naked!