Danish Soul duo Quadron talk new music and name origin
Quadron, a Danish soul group, currently has one of the best albums of the year right now, Avalanche, and critics can't stop praising it...
R&B has been fused with techno, EDM and other musical genres over the past few years with various levels of success.
Quadron, a Danish soul group, currently has one of the best albums of the year right now, Avalanche, and critics can’t stop praising it.
Lead singer Coco O’s voice is explosive as she sings over 70’s R&B coupled with new wave production provided by band mate Robin Hannibal.
Taking a moment before her Central Park Summer Stage performance, Coco sat down with theGrio to talk about the racial connotations behind their group’s name, her musical influences, and the power of international R&B.
TheGrio: In America the term ‘Quadron’ has positive and negative definitions revolving around race. What lead to Quadron becoming the name of your group?
Coco O of Quadron: The name ‘Quadron’ originates from the word ‘quadroon’ which means quarter Black. Robin and I realized after years of working together that we’re both actually a quarter Black. Robin is actually a quarter African American, and my great grandfather was from Tanzania. So it was something we had in common and we wanted to pay homage to our heritage.
TheGrio: A lot of international acts are performing traditional R&B music better than some that are stateside. Where do you think this trend comes from?
Quadron: I think some of the best soul music was from the ‘60’s or ‘70’s or even earlier in the United States, so I think that’s where it has come from. I think there a lot of duplicates acts that grew up on that sound in Europe. We listen to the legends. At the same time, I think music is universal; it doesn’t really come from any one country.
TheGrio: Can you describe the feeling of performing in New York City during the summer for your fans?
Quadron: I’m so happy to be a part of events like Summer Stage. I think living in a city where there are changing seasons, people really appreciate the summer time and I’m excited that NYC was willing to let me perform in Central Park for this event.
TheGrio: You only have one artist featured on Avalanche, which is rare now. How did you link up with Kendrick Lamar?
Quadron: When Kendrick was working on his album, he asked if me and Robin wanted to work on a song meant for his debut. We went to the studio and he just wanted to do whatever we were doing. So we made a song with him but we never finished it, and it ended with him not using it…but the connection was made. We played him some of our demos and he really liked one especially around the same time we were finishing the album. That one song needed something extra so we were like ‘Hmm Kendrick liked that one…”
TheGrio: He seems to have a great ear for melody.
Quadron: I think hip-hop was in a place where it was very beat driven and not about the hooks. I think for me, as a woman who listens to a lot of soul music, I think it’s really important to have a hook and a good song structure. I think that’s what he’s given hip hop music. His album is probably the one I’ve listened to the most this year, and I’m not even really into hip hop like that.
Buy Quadron’s latest, Avalanche, on iTunes here.
For the latest music news, follow Kyle Harvey on Twitter at @HarveyWins.
