Mattias Olsson started his career as a classical percussionist playing in orchestras and big bands on Ekerö outside of Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

. As a sideline to recording and producing bands Mattias Olsson writes articles (music related) for several Swedish Magazines.

Early life

He was born in Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 to Swedish

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 parents. In 1981 he moved to Stockholm. Starting as a drummer at eight years old he started off playing in big bands, pop and classical ensembles.

When he was 17 he joined progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

 band Änglagård

Änglagård

Änglagård is a Swedish progressive rock band, with influences including Cathedral, King Crimson, Genesis, Trettioåriga Kriget, Schicke Führs Fröhling, and Van der Graaf Generator. The band was established in 1991 by Tord Lindman and Johan Högberg , and broke up in 1994...

. Änglagård consisted of musicians from Ekerö as well as Waxholm. The band was heavily influenced by bands such as King Crimson, Yes and Genesis but also listened to less famous bands such as Shylock, Cathedral and Yezda Urfa. Änglagård quickly became known for their instrumentation skills and their dynamic range often reminiscent of classical music. When the band started the current trend in progressive rock was to use the newest digital equipment. Änglagård decided instead to use old classic prog equipment like the Rickenbacker

Rickenbacker

Rickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker, is an electric and bass guitar manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California...

 bass, Mini Moog and the Mellotron

Mellotron

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...

. Änglagård

Änglagård

Änglagård is a Swedish progressive rock band, with influences including Cathedral, King Crimson, Genesis, Trettioåriga Kriget, Schicke Führs Fröhling, and Van der Graaf Generator. The band was established in 1991 by Tord Lindman and Johan Högberg , and broke up in 1994...

 recorded two studio albums, Hybris

Hybris (album)

Hybris was the first studio album by the Swedish progressive rock group Änglagård.Released in late 1992, it would become one of the most influential albums of the new wave of progressive rock in the '90s...

 and Epilog

Epilog (album)

Epilog was the second and last studio album fromSwedish progressive rock group Änglagård. A darkerand completely instrumental work, it was supposed to be the finalchapter of Änglagård, hence the name. -Availability:...

. They also recorded a live album called Buried Alive. The title was a joke from Mattias, the worst title for a live album must be ...Buried Alive.

He also did some sessions with White Willow

White Willow (band)

White Willow is a Norwegian art rock band, mixing elements of orchestral pop, 70's progressive rock, jazz-rock and even electronic elements. They have released 5 albums so far: 1995's Ignis Fatuus, which features symphonic folk rock in the vein of early King Crimson and Genesis as well as Mellow...

 and Pär Lindh

Pär Lindh

Pär Lindh is a founding member of the Swedish symphonic prog group Pär Lindh Project.Before turning to working in a band Pär had several careers: church organist, as a touring classical pianist, as a solo harpsichordist, as drummer, as Hammond organist, as jazz & ragtime entertainer etc.During 1977...

.

After Änglagård, he joined Swedish pop band Pineforest Crunch

Pineforest Crunch

Pineforest Crunch is a Swedish pop music band based in Stockholm. They have released three albums and toured extensively internationally selling over 250 000 albums worldwide. Their music is highly textured and often features the use of unusual musical instruments to complement the overall sound...

 who have so far recorded three albums: Make Believe, Watergarden and Panamarenko. The bands influences ranged from R.E.M, American Music Club to King Crimson and the Sundays. Pineforest Crunch had a very strong D.I.Y ethos and recorded six demos before getting signed to Abbas old label Polar. The band had a hit from the first album, "Cup Noodle Song". The single was a hit in Sweden and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

and lead to intensive touring. The second album, Watergarden, was recorded in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 with Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

 producer Jim Warren. Watergarden mixed orchestral textures with mellotron

Mellotron

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...

s and experimental guitars. Parallel with Pineforest Crunch, he started playing drums and occasional keyboards with Reminder.

He has since then played in numerous projects and is now active as a record producer. He has recorded albums with Deadwood Forest, Devi, Clockwork, AK-momo

AK-momo

AK-Momo are a musical duo from Stockholm, Sweden. They met through mutual friends at a bar in central Stockholm. Olsson invited Malmborg to his studio for a visit. The group consists of Anna Karin von Malmborg and Mattias Olsson...

, Nanook of the North, Vijaya and others.

Theatre and film

Together with musician and composer Matti Bye Mattias Olsson has written music for both film and theatre. In 2009 they wrote music for productions at both Dramaten and Stadsteatern in Stockholm. They have also played together at silent movie festivals and showings both in Tromsö and Stockholm. They have written and played music for Berlin, Nanook of the North and Fritz Langs Metropolis.

Studio

Mattias Olsson runs his own studio outside of Stockholm called Roth Händle Studio. The studio started as a simple homestudio using a Akai Dps-12 and a handful microphones. There was no plan to become a producer but as bookings started to appear albums started getting recorded. The small home studio is where the Swedish popband Andreas & Jag started recording three albums. Andreas & Jag was Mattias Olsson and Andreas Morland. Other bands that recorded at the homestudio was Pineforest Crunch and Nanook of the North. The first real location was at Finnboda Varv just outside of Stockholm. At this studio location bands like Kit le fever and Clockwork recorded early EPs. The Studio has a collection of musical artifacts including clavioline

Clavioline

The clavioline is an electronic keyboard instrument, a forerunner to the analog synthesizer.It was invented by Constant Martin in 1947. It consists of a keyboard and a separate amplifier and speaker unit. The keyboard usually covered three octaves, and had a number of switches to alter the tone of...

s, pipe organs, Stylophones, Mellotron

Mellotron

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...

s, Orchestron

Orchestron

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc...

s and Talentmakers.

In 2010 the location in Sundbyberg closed and the studio went into storage for a brief while. The fifth location of the Roth Händle studio will be located in Vällingby.

Selected discography

Änglagård - Hybris

Änglagård - Epilog

Änglagård - Buried Alive

Änglagård - Ptolemaic Terrascope 7" Gånglåt från Knapptibble

White Willow -

Pär Lindh Project - Gothic Impressions

Pineforest Crunch - Make Believe

Pineforest Crunch - Cup Noodle Song (single)

Pineforest Crunch - Watergarden

Pineforest Crunch - Shangri-la (Japanese version of Watergarden with bonus tracks)

Reminder - Broken tone

Andreas & Jag - The Uri Geller Syndrome

Andreas & Jag - Everyone loves you

Andreas & Jag - Aretha Live in Pakistan

Geller - Judas (single)

Vijaya - Vijaya

Two times the Trauma - A little sign (single)

Two times the Trauma - I fell in love with an ocean

The Tarantula Waltz - The tarantula Waltz

Nanook of the North - The Täby tapes

Thieves Kitchen -

Ludvig Andersson - S.R.O

Blanc -

Brighteye Brison -

Brighteye Brison -

Mellodrama - OST

Vera Vinter -

Lennart Grabe -

Martin Ekman -

Devi -

The Opium Cartel -

Devi -

Clockwork -

Molesome - Songs for vowels & mammals

Molesome - Dial

AK-momo - Return to N.Y

Matti Bye & Mattias Olsson - Elephant & Castle

Saint She - Ska jag berätta en hemlighet -

Clockwork - Garden

Kit le fever - Soldier Blue

Kit le fever -

Krysztof Antkowiak - Antkowiak

Necromonkey - Necroplex

Sophie Rockwell -

Gösta Berlings saga - Detta har hänt

Gösta Berlings saga - Glue Works

Anima Morte - The Nightmare Becomes Reality

Rising Shadows - Finis Gloriae Mundi

Therion - Sitra Ahra

Rhys Marsh and the autumn ghost

Atlas -