Inspector Norse — Todd Terje
One ARP 2600 synthesizer, a Norwegian producer named after Todd Terry and Mixmag’s top tune of 2012: the story of “Inspector Norse”.
- Made by Norwegian producer Terje Olsen, alias Todd Terje, using only an ARP 2600 synthesizer.
- From the It’s the Arps EP (Olsen Records, January 2012); single release in June 2012.
- Mixmag’s top tune of 2012 and No. 2 in Resident Advisor’s tracks of the year.
“Inspector Norse” is Todd Terje’s best-known track. Recorded in 2011 on a single synthesizer and released in 2012, it topped Mixmag’s list of the year’s best tunes and came second in Resident Advisor’s. Two years later it closed his debut album.
Todd Terje before the hit
Todd Terje is Terje Olsen, born in May 1981 in Mjøndalen, Norway. His stage name is a homage to the New York house producer Todd Terry. From the mid-2000s he made his name with remixes and re-edits, and with EPs such as Mjøndalen Diskoklubb and Eurodans (both 2005, on Full Pupp) and Ragysh (2011, on Running Back).
One synth, one EP
The It’s the Arps EP came out on his own label, Olsen Records, on 9 January 2012. As the title hints, Terje recorded it, “Inspector Norse” included, using only an ARP 2600 synthesizer. The track runs 6:40 in its original form, with a 3:47 radio edit; it is usually filed under nu-disco or space disco.
On 19 June 2012 “Inspector Norse” was pushed as a single, with a worldwide digital release through Smalltown Supersound. The video went up the same day on Pitchfork’s YouTube channel: an excerpt from the short film Whateverest about Marius Solem Johansen, the “Inspector Norse” of the title, and his love of music and dancing.
The year-end lists
The track was never a big chart hit; it reached No. 9 on Belgium’s Flemish Ultratip list and No. 88 in the Netherlands. Its reputation came from the year-end lists. Mixmag named it the top tune of 2012, and Resident Advisor ranked it second in its top 50 tracks of the year.
It’s Album Time and after
When Terje released his debut album, It’s Album Time, on Olsen on 8 April 2014, “Inspector Norse” was its twelfth and final track, in a 6:59 version. The album reached No. 2 in Norway, No. 23 in the UK and No. 4 on the US dance albums chart. Remixes by Justin Van Der Volgen and Pépé Bradock followed in 2015.
The album also carried a cover of “Johnny and Mary” with Bryan Ferry. Around it, Terje recorded “Lanzarote” with Lindstrøm (2013), co-produced two tracks on Franz Ferdinand’s Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action and co-wrote Robbie Williams’ UK No. 1 “Candy”. His 2015 single “Alfonso Muskedunder” later turned up in the third season of Better Call Saul.
In a set it works as a slow-building peak for disco-leaning house. For more disco-minded records, read about Tensnake and the filtered disco of Fred Falke.
FAQ
What synth is used on Inspector Norse?
Only an ARP 2600. Todd Terje recorded the track, and the whole It’s the Arps EP, with that single synthesizer.
Where does the name Todd Terje come from?
Terje Olsen chose it as a homage to the New York house producer Todd Terry.
Which album is Inspector Norse on?
It first appeared on the It’s the Arps EP in 2012, then closed Todd Terje’s debut album, It’s Album Time, in 2014.
