Karin Elisabeth Dreijer (born 7 April 1975) is a Swedish singer-songwriter and record producer. Dreijer was one half of the

electronic music Electronic music is a Music genre, genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or electronics, circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromech ...

duo the Knife, formed with their brother Olof Dreijer. Dreijer released their debut solo album under the alias Fever Ray in January 2009. Their second studio album, ''

Plunge Plunge may refer to: *Plunge (American football), a play in American football *Plunge (geology), the inclination of a surface or axis of an anticline to the horizontal *The Plunge, a historic swim center in Richmond, California *Plunge Creek, a riv ...

'', under the same alias, was released in October 2017. Dreijer's vocal style is notable for both shrill and deep tones, and also the use of multitracked vocals, with different uses of pitch-shifting technology on each track, creating an intricate and mysterious effect. Visually, they employ the use of masks, face and body paint, intricate costumes, and other theatrical elements in photo shoots, videos and live performances, during which they often perform behind a gauze screen that partially obscures the audience's view.

Early life

Dreijer was born on 7 April 1975 in

Gothenburg, Sweden Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

. They started playing guitar at the age of ten, which led to the founding of the band Honey Is Cool. Before pursuing a career in music, Dreijer worked as a

web design Web design encompasses many different skills and disciplines in the production and maintenance of websites. The different areas of web design include web graphic design; user interface design (UI design); authoring, including standardised code a ...

er. In 1998, they moved to Stockholm.

Career

The Knife

Karin and their brother Olof Dreijer formed the electronic music duo the Knife in Gothenburg in 1999. The Knife released their eponymous debut album in 2001. The duo gained a wider international recognition following the release of " Heartbeats", the lead single of their second studio album, '' Deep Cuts'' (2003). The duo performed live for the first time in 2006, when they went on the

Silent Shout Tour The Silent Shout Tour was the debut concert tour by Swedish electronic music duo The Knife in support of their album ''Silent Shout''. The concert in Trädgår'n, Gothenburg, Sweden was recorded in 5.1 surround sound and released on DVD as '' ...

in support of their third album of the same name (2006). In 2009, the duo were commissioned alongside Mt. Sims and

Planningtorock Jam Rahuoja Rostron (born 25 January 1972), better known by their stage name Planningtorock, is an English electronic musician and record producer who lives in Tallinn, Estonia. Identity & Pronouns Rostron identifies as transgender and non-b ...

by the Danish performance group Hotel Pro Forma to compose an opera, titled '' Tomorrow, in a Year'', which is based on

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

's ''

On the Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life''),The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by Me ...

''. In 2013, the band released their fourth and final studio album, ''

Shaking the Habitual ''Shaking the Habitual'' is the fourth and final studio album by Swedish electronic music duo the Knife. It was released on 5 April 2013 by Rabid Records. The album was released as a double CD and triple LP, and as a digital download. The alb ...

''. The duo disbanded in November 2014, after completing the Shaking the Habitual Tour.

Solo work

While the Knife were on hiatus, Dreijer released, under the alias Fever Ray, their self-titled solo debut album. It was released digitally on 12 January 2009 and physically on 18 March 2009 through Rabid Records. The album was preceded by its lead single "

If I Had a Heart "If I Had a Heart" is a song performed, written, and produced by Swedish recording artist Fever Ray (Karin Dreijer). It was released as the lead single from their self-titled debut album, ''Fever Ray'' (2009), marking Ray's debut single as a sol ...

" (2008), which was used in numerous television series, including ''

Person of Interest "Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no le ...

'', ''

Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White ( Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited ...

'' and '' Wentworth'', as well as the opening theme song for the Canadian-Irish historical drama television series ''

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

''. In September 2009, Dreijer composed the soundtrack to '' Dirty Diaries'', a collection of feminist pornographic short films. In a review of the collection, Swedish newspaper ''

Smålandsposten ''Smålandsposten'' is a local morning newspaper published in Växjö, Southern Sweden. Founded in 1866 it is one of the earliest newspapers in the country. History and profile ''Smålandsposten'' was established in 1866. The paper is based in ...

'' described the soundtrack as appropriate for the film, though repetitive. Dreijer performed as Fever Ray at the 2010 Coachella Festival and received positive reviews. In September of the same year, they performed at

Electric Picnic Electric Picnic is an annual arts-and-music festival which has been staged since 2004 at Stradbally Hall in Stradbally, County Laois, Ireland. It is organised by Pod Concerts and Festival Republic, who purchased the majority shareholding i ...

in Ireland. Contrary to a statement from the film's director, Dreijer did not make a cameo appearance in the 2011 film '' Red Riding Hood''. However, the soundtrack features a new track performed by Dreijer as Fever Ray, "The Wolf", as well as "Keep the Streets Empty for Me" from their debut album. "The Wolf" was also featured in

Ubisoft Ubisoft Entertainment SA (; ; formerly Ubi Soft Entertainment SA) is a French video game publisher headquartered in Saint-Mandé with development studios across the world. Its video game franchises include ''Assassin's Creed'', '' Far Cry'', ...

's '' Far Cry Primal'' announcement trailer, as well as during the game's final mission. Dreijer wrote the music for the theatrical adaptation of

Ingmar Bergman Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film director, screenwriter, producer and playwright. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time, his films are known as "profoundly ...

's 1968 horror film ''

Hour of the Wolf ''Hour of the Wolf'' ( sv, Vargtimmen, lit=The Wolf Hour) is a 1968 Swedish psychological horror film directed by Ingmar Bergman and starring Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann. The story explores the disappearance of fictional painter Johan Borg ...

'', which premiered at Stockholm's

Royal Dramatic Theatre The Royal Dramatic Theatre ( sv, Kungliga Dramatiska Teatern, colloquially ''Dramaten'') is Sweden's national stage for "spoken drama", founded in 1788. Around one thousand shows are put on annually on the theatre's five running stages. The the ...

on 12 March 2011. One of these tracks, "No Face", appeared in demo form on the 2012 compilation album ''We Are the Works in Progress'', organised by

Blonde Redhead Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino (vocals, keys/rhythm guitar) and twin brothers Simone and Amedeo Pace (drums/keys and lead guitar/bass/keys/vocals, respectively) that formed in New York City in 1993 ...

to benefit victims of the 2011 Japanese tsunami. In February 2016, Dreijer announced they had written and produced music for a theater play called ''Vahák'' (English: ''Violence''), which plays on themes of colonial and homophobic violence. That same month, Dreijer revealed in an interview with ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...

'' that they were working on solo music, though they were unsure whether it will be under the Fever Ray moniker. On 20 October 2017, Dreijer released the single " To the Moon and Back" and its accompanying music video. It served as the lead single to their second studio album, ''

'', which was released on 27 October without prior announcement. The album received widespread acclaim from music critics upon release and appeared on numerous year-end lists. In support of the album, Dreijer embarked on an international tour throughout 2018, with the first leg of which was held in Europe and began in February, followed by a North American leg held in May. More European dates were later added from June until November. In the 2018

Swedish Grammys The Grammis are music awards presented annually to musicians and songwriters in Sweden. The oldest Swedish music awards, they were instituted as a local equivalent of the Grammy Awards given in the United States. The awards ceremony is generall ...

, Dreijer and the producers they collaborated with on ''Plunge'' won the award for "Producer of the Year". ''Plunge'' was also nominated for Best European Independent Album at the

IMPALA The impala or rooibok (''Aepyceros melampus'') is a medium-sized antelope found in eastern and southern Africa. The only extant member of the genus ''Aepyceros'' and tribe Aepycerotini, it was first described to European audiences by Ger ...

awards.

Collaborations

In 2005, Dreijer supplied vocals on the track " What Else Is There?" by

Röyksopp Röyksopp (), a Norwegian electronic music duo from Tromsø formed in 1998. The duo consists of Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland. Berge and Brundtland were introduced to each other through a mutual friend in Tromsø, Norway. They enjoye ...

on the album '' The Understanding''. The song charted highly, raising Dreijer's profile at an early stage of their career. They also appeared in the video for that single, but not as the vocalist, who was portrayed by the Norwegian model Marianne Schröder. In 2008, Dreijer provided vocals for the

Deus ''Deus'' (, ) is the Latin word for "god" or " deity". Latin ''deus'' and ''dīvus'' ("divine") are in turn descended from Proto-Indo-European *'' deiwos'', "celestial" or "shining", from the same root as '' *Dyēus'', the reconstructed chief ...

song "Slow" from the band's ''

Vantage Point Vantage Point (formerly Archway Tower) is a 195-foot (59m) 17-storey residential apartment building above Archway Underground station, designed by Grid Architects, and owned and operated by Essential Living. History Archway Tower was built ...

'' album. Dreijer was featured on the tracks "This Must Be It" and "Tricky Tricky" again by

, appearing on their 2009 album '' Junior''. On 6 September 2019, a collaborative EP between

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

, Dreijer (credited as Fever Ray), and the Knife titled '' Country Creatures'' was released. It contains remixes of Björk's song "Features Creatures" by Dreijer and by the Knife as well as a remix of Dreijer's "This Country" by Björk.

Influences

When producing and presenting a radioprogram for Swedish Sveriges Radio in June 2004 about the state of music and what it was like to be a musician in the 21st century, Dreijer chose a list of songs including, "I Don’t Give A" by Peaches, "Legs" by

PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined loca ...

, " We Don't Play Guitars" by

Chicks On Speed Chicks on Speed is a feminist music and fine art ensemble, formed in Munich in 1997, after members Australian Alex Murray-Leslie and American Melissa Logan met at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts. Though Chicks on Speed reached cult status th ...

, "Disconnect" by Plastikman, "I’m Dancing In The Show Tonight" by

Ween Ween is an American rock band from New Hope, Pennsylvania, formed in 1984 by Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo, better known by their respective stage names, Gene and Dean Ween. Generally categorized as an alternative rock band, the band a ...

, "

Running Up That Hill "Running Up That Hill", titled "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)" on some releases, is a song by the British singer and songwriter Kate Bush. It was released in the United Kingdom as the lead single from Bush's album '' Hounds of Love'' o ...

" by

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single " Wuthering Heights", becoming the first female ...

, "Meet Sue Be She" by

Miss Kittin Caroline Hervé (born 1973), known professionally as Miss Kittin, is a French electronic music producer, DJ, singer, and songwriter. Since rising to prominence in 1998 for her singles "1982" and " Frank Sinatra" with The Hacker, she has worked ...

, "Ensam Tempo" by Jenny Wilson, " Kiss Them for Me" by

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. Q (maga ...

, "Tha" by

Aphex Twin Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), best known as Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born British musician, composer and DJ. He is known for his idiosyncratic work in electronic styles such as techno, ambient, and jungle. Journalists from publication ...

, "Panty Lies" by

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of th ...

and "On Guard" by

Le Tigre Le Tigre (, ; French for "The Tiger") is an American electronic rock band formed by Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill), Johanna Fateman and Sadie Benning in 1998 in New York City. Benning left in 2000 and was replaced by JD Samson for the res ...

Personal life

Dreijer largely keeps their private life outside the headlines, but in 2017, they told ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' in an interview that they were previously married and had dropped Andersson from their name following a divorce. In the same interview, they described themself as "definitely a queer person, but ..very gender-fluid." Dreijer uses the pronouns '' they/them'' in English and ''hen'' in Swedish. They have two daughters.

Awards and nominations

{, class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" , - ! scope="col" , Award ! scope="col" , Year ! scope="col" , Category ! scope="col" , Nominee(s) ! scope="col" , Result ! scope="col" class="unsortable", , - ! scope="row", AIM Independent Music Awards , 2018 , Best Sophomore Release , ''

'' , , , - ! scope="row" rowspan=2, Antville Music Video Awards , rowspan=2, 2009 , rowspan=2, Best Cinematography , "

" , , rowspan=2, , - , " When I Grow Up" , , - ! scope="row", Berlin Music Video Awards , 2018 , Best Song , " To the Moon and Back" , , , - ! scope="row",

Camerimage The International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography Camerimage () is a festival dedicated to the celebration of cinematography and recognition of its creators, cinematographers. The first seven events (1993–1999) were held in Toruń, ...

, 2010 , Best Music Video , "Stranger Than Kindness" , , , - ! scope="row",

Musikförläggarnas Pris Musikförläggarnas pris is an annual award given to Swedish songwriters, producers and lyricists. The award was created in 2003 by the Musikförläggarna music organisation in Sweden and meants to highlight Swedish music and its creators. The awa ...

, 2018 , Composer of the Year , rowspan=10, Themself , , , - !scope="row" rowspan=4, P3 Guld Music Awards , rowspan=3, 2010 , Best New Artist , , rowspan=3, , - , Best Dance , , - , Best Pop , , - , 2019 , Guldmicken , , , - ! scope="row" rowspan=5, Rober Awards Music Prize , rowspan=3, 2009 , Best Female Artist , , , - , Best European Artist , , , - , rowspan=2, Best Electronica , , , - , rowspan=2, 2017 , , rowspan=2, , - , Best Female Artist , , - ! scope="row" rowspan=2,

UK Music Video Awards The UK Music Video Awards is an annual celebration of creativity, technical excellence and innovation in music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced fo ...

, rowspan=2, 2009 , rowspan=2, Best Indie/Alternative Video , "

" , , rowspan=2, , - , " When I Grow Up" ,

Discography

Studio albums

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" , - ! scope="col" style="width:10em;", Title ! scope="col" style="width:19em;", Details , - ! scope="row", '' Fever Ray'' , * Released: 12 January 2009 * Label: Rabid * Formats: CD, LP, digital download , - ! scope="row", ''

'' , * Released: 27 October 2017 * Label: Rabid * Formats: CD, LP, digital download , - ! scope="row", ''Radical Romantics'' , * Released: 10 March 2023 * Label: Rabid

Live albums

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col" style="width:8em;", Title ! scope="col" style="width:19em;", Details , - ! scope="row", ''Live in Luleå'' , * Released: 30 November 2012 * Label: Rabid * Format: Digital download , - ! scope="row", ''Live at Troxy'' , * Released: 2 August 2019 * Label: Rabid * Format: LP, digital download

Singles

As lead artist

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" , - ! scope="col", Title ! scope="col", Year ! scope="col", Album , - ! scope="row", "

" , 2008 , rowspan="4", ''Fever Ray'' , - ! scope="row", " When I Grow Up" , rowspan="3", 2009 , - ! scope="row", "

Triangle Walks "Triangle Walks" is the third single from Swedish recording artist Fever Ray's self-titled debut album, ''Fever Ray'' (2009). Music video The music video was directed by Mikel Cee Karlsson. In the video, Fever Ray is seen standing in a room in f ...

" , - ! scope="row", "

Seven 7 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 7 or seven may also refer to: * AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era * 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era * The month of July Music Artists * Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artist ...

" , - ! scope="row", " Mercy Street" , 2010 , , - ! scope="row", " To the Moon and Back" , 2017 , rowspan="3", ''Plunge'' , - ! scope="row", "

Wanna Sip "Wanna Sip" is a song by Fever Ray, an alias of Swedish musician Karin Dreijer. It was released on 23 January 2018 through Rabid Records as the second single from their second studio album, '' Plunge'' (2017), following the lead single " To the Mo ...

" , rowspan="2", 2018 , - ! scope="row", " IDK About You" , - ! scope="row", "What They Call Us" , rowspan="2", 2022 , rowspan="2", ''Radical Romantics'' , - ! scope="row", "Carbon Dioxide" , -

As featured artist

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" , - ! scope="col", Title ! scope="col", Year ! scope="col", Album , - ! scope="row", " What Else Is There?"
, 2005 , '' The Understanding'' , - ! scope="row", "

This Must Be It "This Must Be It" is the third single from the Norwegian duo Röyksopp's third album ''Junior''. It features the vocals of Karin Dreijer (Fever Ray, The Knife). The single was released on 2 November 2009 as a digital download and 12″ vinyl. "T ...

"
, rowspan="2", 2009 , rowspan="2", '' Junior'' , - ! scope="row", "Tricky Tricky"

Guest appearances

As Karin Dreijer

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" , - ! scope="col", Title ! scope="col", Year ! scope="col", Other artist(s) ! scope="col", Album , - ! scope="row", "Let It Come Down" , rowspan="2", 1996 , rowspan="2", Mazarine Street , rowspan="2", ''The Beast Of...'' , - ! scope="row", "Cat" , - ! scope="row", "Volksblues" , 1998 , The Bear Quartet , ''Personality Crisis'' , - ! scope="row", "Wasted" , 2000 , Robot , ''Fake or Real?'' , - ! scope="row", "Axe Man" , rowspan="2", 2001 , Silverbullit , ''Citizen Bird'' , - ! scope="row", "Lost in the City Nights" , Yvonne , ''Hit That City'' , - ! scope="row", "Slow" , rowspan="2", 2008 ,

, ''

'' , - ! scope="row", "The Jacket" ,

First Floor Power First Floor Power is an indie rock band from Sweden. FFP recorded and released their debut EP ''We Are the People'' in 2000 on the Swedish label Silence Records. In 2001 their debut album ''There is Hope'' was released. Swedish National TV produce ...

, , - ! scope="row", "No Face" , 2012 , , ''We Are the Works in Progress'' , - ! scope="row", "Discourse My New Romance" , 2014 , Shinedoe , ''Illogical Directions''

As Fever Ray

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" , - ! scope="col", Title ! scope="col", Year ! scope="col", Album , - ! scope="row", "The Wolf" , 2011 , '' Red Riding Hood: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack''

Music videos

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col", Title ! scope="col", Year ! scope="col", Director(s) , - ! scope="row", "If I Had a Heart" , rowspan="6", 2009 , Andreas Nilsson , - ! scope="row", "When I Grow Up" , Martin de Thurah , - ! scope="row", "Triangle Walks" ,

Mikel Cee Karlsson Mikel Cee Karlsson (born 15 August 1977) is a Swedish film director. He has directed three feature-length documentaries as well as numerous music videos for artists like Fever Ray and Junip. Mikel is known for his darkly absurd and often disturb ...

, - ! scope="row", "Seven" , Johan Renck , - ! scope="row", "Stranger Than Kindness" , Andreas Nilsson , - ! scope="row", "Keep the Streets Empty for Me" , Jens Klevje and Fabian Svensson , - ! scope="row", "To the Moon and Back" , 2017 , rowspan="3", Martin Falck , - ! scope="row", "Wanna Sip" , rowspan="2", 2018 , - ! scope="row", "IDK About You"

References

External links

*
Fever Ray discography at Discogs
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dreijer, Karin 1975 births 20th-century Swedish singers 21st-century Swedish singers Ambient musicians English-language singers from Sweden Feminist musicians Intelligent dance musicians LGBT singers from Sweden Living people Masked musicians Mute Records artists Queer musicians Singers from Gothenburg People from Nacka Municipality Swedish electronic musicians Swedish feminists Swedish record producers Swedish singer-songwriters Trip hop musicians Non-binary musicians