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SYME DOESN'T KNOW what performing in Limbo feels like, but the Norwegian quintet may experience an earthly version of it on Monday night at DC9.

The District's nightlife creatures often hibernate on the first day of the work week, possibly leaving this completely unknown group of electro-pop space-rockers to perform to a room filled with, well, no one.

That potential doesn't faze Syme singer Ketil Endresen:

"We just wanted to play as much as possible while we're here because it's so expensive to bring over all our equipment and stuff," he said in his first-ever English-language interview.

People who do venture out to see Syme, however, will be rewarded with fantastic head-trip — and perhaps get the first glimpse of a potential "next big thing."

The reason Syme is slogging through the eastern part of North America on a 14-concert tour, despite having zero name recognition, is because a few U.S. record labels are buzzing about the band's debut CD, 2005's "Swing Swing," and its follow-up EP, 2006's "Modern Love," which features remixes, new songs and a cover of the David Bowie title track.

Syme's D.C. stop comes near the end of the tour but directly before three days of showcase events at the CMJ Music Marathon. Perhaps there is where this Bergen band — the same town that's given us indie and electronica darlings Annie, Royksopp and Sondre Lerche — might hammer out a label deal.

"I can't mention any names, but we've had a couple of record companies who have contacted us," Endresen confirmed. "We have some interest already; we just have to follow it up. It looks promising; they're some good labels."

Syme conjures virtually all the bands it lists under "Influences" on its MySpace page, but particularly Radiohead, Sigur Ros and The Postal Service. It's the sort of musical trifecta that can make indie-rock fans lightheaded and causes labels and promotional companies — such as The MuseBox Marketing, which brought the group to the U.S. — to fall all over themselves.

Endresen has a tremulous tenor that sometimes recalls Thom Yorke at his most vulnerable, and the band is capable of playing the sort of billowing ambient rock of its Icelandic peers. But Syme incorporates more electronics into its music than Sigur Ros, and the programmed beats and synths have become more prominent during the group's five-year existence.

Syme recently had a chance to more fully explore the use of electronics in its music when the group collaborated with fellow Norsk artist Bjorn Torske at the recent NuMusic throwdown in Stavanger, Norway.

"We had this project on the festival where he remixed us live," Endresen said. "He took the guitars, vocals and beats through his own mixer and added some effects and stuff. And we improvised over more electronic versions of our songs. So, in every way we're leaning toward electronic stuff."

While playing the critically acclaimed NuMusic festival is special, Norway isn't where Syme wants to end up.

"In Norway there aren't more than, approximately, 3,000 or 4,000 people that are really interested in music," Endresen said, before admitting that's probably an underestimation.

Still, the audience for Syme's brand of exploding head music in Norway (pop. 4.6 million) is going to be relegated to the hard-core music specials.

"Obviously, we'd like to have not just musical nerds as fans," Endresen said with a laugh.

» DC9, 1940 9th St. NW; with White Denim and The Binges, Mon., 8 p.m., $8; 202-483-5000. (U St.-Cardozo)

Photos courtesy The Muse Box and Syme

Posted by Christopher Porter at 12:01 AM on October 15, 2007
Tagged in Entertainment , Music , The District , Top Stories , U Street-Cardozo