Getting to Know You: Jenny Hval can quote all 7 seasons of Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Experimental Norwegian artist Hval fills in our GTKY questionnaire
The best piece of advice you’ve been given
Produce it yourself.
Your favourite word
‘Myrull’ (Norwegian for cottongrass).
Your pet-hate
Being cold.
If you could only eat one food forever, it would be…
Sriracha.
The worst job you’ve had
I got a job once in telemarketing selling rare coins. I was hired by a man who said the customers were older men and liked young women’s voices. He had no front teeth. I never even showed up.
The film or TV show you can quote the most of
Buffy the Vampire Slayer. All 7 seasons.
Your favourite place in the world
Arizona, for its little fluffy clouds.
Your style icon
Jordan, from 1978 cult film Jubilee, directed by Derek Jarman.
The one song you wished you’d written
‘Hearts and Bones’ by Paul Simon. But I never could.
The most famous person you’ve met
I stood next to Björk. I didn’t say anything because I’m too shy, but all the pores of my skin were leaning towards her.
The thing you’d rescue from a burning building
Books.
The worst date you’ve been on
The ones I didn’t know were dates until I realised I had to run away.
Your guilty pleasure
FlightRadar24. GRWM videos on YouTube.
Your first big extravagance
I bought a really expensive guitar once, then panicked and had to return it, which was horrible. Afterwards I stood outside the shop and cried. But eventually I found a much cheaper and much better sounding guitar.
The worst present you’ve received
Various bathrobes.
The characteristic you most like about yourself
My speed.
Your hidden talent
Dreaming.
Your favourite item of clothing
Things that are not mine.
Your biggest disappointment
The Internet.
The celebrity that pissed you off the most even though you’ve never met them
Lars Ulrich. I feel like he is in every single music documentary I see, haunting me like an annoying ghost with a Danish accent. Always saying the same stupid things (there seems to be only 3 people appearing in music documentaries. Lars Ulrich, David Fricke, and Dave Grohl).
Your biggest fear
I can’t decide between [1914 horror film] It Follows and neoliberalism.
The best book in the world
I LOVE DICK.
People’s biggest misconception about yourself
That my hair has something to do with it.
Who would play you in a film of your life?
The bigger and much more interesting question is who would direct it?
What is success to you?
Making people cry.
What talent do you wish you had?
Slayer strength.
How would you choose to die?
Happy.
What is the most overrated thing in the world?
The trickle-down theory.
What, if anything, would you change about your physical appearance?
My hair.
What’s your biggest turn-off?
[The Rebecca Solnit essay] Men Explain Things To Me.
What would you tell your 15-year-old self?
It’s not just you, those guitar solos ARE stupid.
Your best piece of advice for others
Value your doubts. Also: Never ever listen to the dude in the music shop.
