Hans-Peter Lindstrøm is ready to be known for more than just space disco. After nearly four years of releasing 12” after 12” of critically adored body music, this tall, lanky Norwegian wants to take off his unofficial genre crown and have a look outside the castle. It’s not that he doesn’t enjoy creating and playing this kind of music. A quick glance at his wide grin after finishing a particularly triumphant live show in Chicago, or a few minutes spent talking with him about his music proves the opposite is true. But becoming something of a household name in dance circles has meant Lindstrøm must be ardently selective of the projects he takes on and the sounds he puts forth.

Lindstrøm didn’t start out making or even listening to dance music. Raised in the southwestern Norwegian city of Stavanger, Lindstrøm was brought up on country music. Growing up, he gigged in bands ranging in style from Elvis-inspired gospel to country, Deep Purple cover band to heavy metal. Eventually he became fed up with being at the mercy of band dynamics and briefly quit music in 1999. “I was getting tired of working with other people and disagreeing about ideas and the music and everything,” he says. Free to work by himself, Lindstrøm took an interest in the beat-driven sound for which he’s most famous. Without any concept of what dance music “should be” except for a few 12”s loaned to him by a friend for structural reference, he dove into the new genre with a fresh outlook and unabashed interest.

The style he developed along with frequent collaborator Prins Thomas was dubbed “space disco” by critics and fans for its expansive reverb, disco rhythms, star-strafing guitar work and arpeggiated basslines which recall the glory days of Italo disco. The term has become something of a catchall for Lindstrøm’s work, one which looks primarily to the aesthetic of his biggest hit, ‘I Feel Space’, but it’s not a term that he’s going to let box him in: “I’m not going to make another ‘I Feel Space’,” he insists, “Because that’s something I made unintentionally. I’d rather be versatile and do different kinds of genres [rather] than just keep on following what the writers have said.”

“I’m not going to make another ‘I Feel Space’ because that’s something I made unintentionally.”

One direction Lindstrøm looks eager to move toward is more artist albums, a feat which seems to evade many dance musicians. “I really like Todd Rundgren’s weird pop music, not the really smooth and polished and commercial stuff, but the really well-written tracks. I guess that’s my inspiration for doing that kind of pop music.”

Though a substantial portion of his reputation was built on releases with Prins Thomas, 2007 finds Lindstrøm branching out with a different set of collaborators. At present he’s producing for Norwegian rockers 120 Days, and his latest project is an album with Norwegian vocalist Isabelle, who provided the hazy and heavily affected vocals on ‘Music (In My Mind)’ from ‘It’s A Feedelity Affair’. “I really like working with vocals and working with proper songs,” he proclaims excitedly. “I need her vocals because that’s the only thing I can’t do myself.” The pair already have one track up on their MySpace page called ‘Mystery Dub’, a groovy tune which falls surprisingly close to the space disco palate he’s vowed to move past: Easygoing synth arpeggios stroll to a beat made of clattering kit percussion, joined occasionally by blissful guitar licks and Isabelle’s detached coos.

These days Thomas might be busier with his own originals and remixes, but the Lindstrøm/Prins Thomas double act is still going strong. The pair are hard at work on a follow-up to their 2005 full-length, and they’re booked in to perform their unique DJ/live laptop set up in Japan, Brazil and select locations in Europe. But Lindstrøm has also expressed interest in having others join him onstage when Thomas isn’t around to add an instrument or tweak the EQ. “I wish I had more hands so I could do more,” he sighs. “When I’m on stage I wish I had a band -- sometimes I feel a bit alone. Obviously, it’s much more fun to do it together with somebody, and when you’re finished you can shake hands. There’s nothing better than playing with other people.” Does that mean we can expect a Lindstrøm Big Band on the circuit soonish? “I don’t know; it’s too much hassle and too much work. Maybe sometime, but at the moment I don’t have enough time. I think I will continue doing laptop sets for at least one more year or so.”

“When I’m on stage I wish I had a band -- sometimes I feel a bit alone. It's much more fun to do it together with somebody. And when you’re finished, you can shake hands."

It seems Lindstrøm is moving away from the record label business too. His label Feedelity was founded out of necessity in 2003 after Lindstrøm discovered no other label would release his tunes, and although the complete control afforded by self-releasing worked well for early releases, his growing popularity and shrinking free time has meant he has outgrown his own creation. Recently he signed with Oslo label Smalltown Supersound, who put out his well-received singles collection, “It’s A Feedelity Affair”. “There have been people sending me some really, really good stuff, and I have to say, ‘Sorry, I’m not able to put it out,’ and I point them to some other labels,” he says with a shrug. Nevertheless, he does what he can. Lindstrøm guided Oakland musician and writer Dominique Leone (for whom Lindstrøm has already finished a forthcoming remix) to Smalltown Supersound, which will release his album this summer. “Lindstrøm is just now coming to a point where he has to carefully budget time, energy and commitment,” Leone points out, “I think two years ago, he wouldn't have even been in the position to think about releasing other peoples' records, so now that he wants to, it's a matter of balancing that with his own releases, remixes and gigs.”

Though Lindstrøm’s growing fame has stacked challenges high on his proverbial plate, he’s also been provided with a slew of opportunities to choose from – a task he seems to be taking in carefully considered stride. One way forward has been a modest push into America, with a recent tour of a scant three dates taking him through New York, Chicago (his first ever visit) and San Francisco before jetting back to Oslo. “I’m not touring full weeks,” he says, “It gives me a chance to make some more music.” With an established fan base and a highly supportive label, Lindstrøm is once again able to record whatever sound he sees fit, whether or not it’s space disco.