At the end of 2020, shortly after turning 40, songwriter Remi Thomsen realised that something was missing from his life.

He had continued writing songs during a decade away from band life, but recording demos alone was no longer enough. He missed the energy, unpredictability and sense of purpose that come from creating music with other people.

Remi contacted drummer and long-time friend Kenneth Gøtsche, guitarist Jens V. Jakobsen and bassist Kim Scheutz. In January 2021, the four musicians rehearsed together for the first time.

That was the beginning of Mr. Conroy.

The songs begin with Remi, but they become Mr. Conroy when the four musicians play them together. Piano and synths meet guitar, bass and drums in melodic pop-rock shaped by Scandinavian melancholy, and a stubborn belief that melody must always come first.

Every song has to pass the campfire test: if it still works with nothing but a voice and a few chords, it is worth keeping.

Mr. Conroy released the debut album “Ignite the Light” in 2022 and the follow-up album “Left Behind” in 2023. “As You Were”, “Replica” and “A Change Would Do You Good” were nominated for KVF’s Radio Hit of the Year in three consecutive years.

The new single “Black Days” will be released on 21 August 2026.

Mr. Conroy is a Faroese-Danish band built around songs written and produced by Remi Thomsen.

The songs begin with Remi, but they become Mr. Conroy when the four musicians play them together. Piano and synths meet guitar, bass and drums in melodic pop-rock shaped by Scandinavian melancholy and a belief that melody must always come first.

Starting again efter a decade away

At the end of 2020, shortly after turning 40, songwriter Remi Thomsen realised that something was missing from his life.

His former band Claiborne had gone on hiatus in 2010. Remi had continued writing songs and recording demos throughout the following decade, but mainly on his own. He had never stopped writing songs. What he had stopped doing was playing them with other people.

A conversation with a business coach helped him put that difference into words. Recording demos alone was no longer enough. He missed the energy, unpredictability and sense of purpose that come from developing music with a band.

The first person he contacted was drummer and long-time friend Kenneth Gøtsche. The two had known each other since 1993 and had played together in Claiborne from 1994 until 2010.

Remi also contacted guitarist Jens V. Jakobsen, a close friend since 1994. Remi and Jens had previously played together in the band Jeremus from 1996 to 1997.

Kenneth suggested Kim Scheutz for bass. Kenneth and Kim already knew each other from the Korn tribute band Kornjam. Remi also knew Kim through Juno Bell, which had opened for Claiborne at the release concert for the album Sustainin 2009.

The four musicians rehearsed together for the first time in January 2021.

That was the beginning of Mr. Conroy.

Hundreds of names - and one that stayed

The band did not have a name when the four musicians first began rehearsing.

The original idea was to call the project “Remi and the…” followed by something clever in the tradition of Jerry and the Pacemakers or Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

Hundreds of possibilities were considered. “Remi and the Safe Words” survived longer than most but was eventually rejected for being slightly too controversial and not entirely compatible with the seriousness of some of the songs.

Kim then suggested using “Mr.” followed by a name. Remi came across the surname Conroy and an interpretation of it as “wise adviser”. The meaning appealed to him because many of the songs deal with life, relationships and the difficulties of existing in the modern world.

Mr. Conroy is therefore not the name of a fictional character with a detailed backstory. It is the name of the band and, by extension, of the four-piece band.

Whether Mr. Conroy is Remi or all four musicians remains a question with a deliberately uncomplicated answer:

Yes.

Four musicians, four different instincts

Remi — songwriting, piano, synths, guitars and vocals

Remi Thomsen is Faroese and grew up in Tórshavn before moving to Denmark in 1993.

He began writing songs before the age of ten and considers himself, first and foremost, a songwriter. Although he does not really think of himself as either a singer or a producer, he has sung, produced and arranged every song released by Mr. Conroy. He also plays piano and synths and serves as the bandleader.

Before forming Mr. Conroy, Remi played with Jens V. Jakobsen in Jeremus and spent 16 years in Claiborne with Kenneth Gøtsche. He continued writing extensively after Claiborne went on hiatus in 2010, gradually building the large catalogue from which the first Mr. Conroy albums would later be selected.

His songwriting is built around melody. Piano, classically influenced harmonies and eighties-inspired synths are combined with the energy of a rock band. Every song has to pass the campfire test: if it still works with nothing but a voice and a few chords, it is worth keeping.

As producer and bandleader, Remi sets the overall direction of the recordings, while the other musicians challenge the songs and bring their own instincts to the arrangements. The songs may begin with Remi, but the finished music is shaped by all four members.

Outside music, Remi is trained in business economics and has spent most of his professional career in leadership roles, including as a CFO.

Gøtsche — drums

Kenneth Gøtsche is from Amager and still lives there. He is a trained metalworker and works as a technical services manager at a music school.

Kenneth has known Remi since 1993 and played drums throughout Claiborne’s active years. When Remi decided to form a new band at the end of 2020, Kenneth was the natural first call.

Alongside Mr. Conroy, Kenneth plays drums in the Copenhagen metal band Psy, which has released several albums.

In Mr. Conroy, the drum parts usually originate in Remi’s songwriting and production, while Kenneth turns them into performances that give the songs their timing, energy and stability.

Kenneth has also played an important part in selecting material and deciding which songs deserve to make it out of Remi’s catalogue and into the rehearsal room.

Within Mr. Conroy, Kenneth is the social glue. He brings people together, keeps the atmosphere light and is almost always ready with a quick remark when discussions threaten to become too serious.

If Remi is Mr. Conroy, Kenneth has occasionally been referred to as Miss Conroy — not because of his role behind the drums, but because he is the person most likely to keep the band together.

Outside music, Kenneth owns a boat and is a capable skipper. Whether at sea or in the rehearsal room, he has a particular talent for keeping everyone on board.

Goyms — bass

Kim Scheutz lives on Amager and is a trained educator.

Before joining Mr. Conroy, Kim had played with Kenneth in Kornjam. He is also the bassist in the Copenhagen rock trio Juno Bell.

Juno Bell released the ten-track album Give and Takein 2013. The band later released “Manmade Earthquake” in 2017, “Stay or Go” in 2018, “Somnambulant” in 2023, “Rocket Launch” in 2024 and “King Boasting” in 2025.

Kim brings a melodic, independent and sometimes adventurous approach to the bass. He does not always regard it as an instrument that should remain quietly in the background.

This has given rise to the concept of “solo bass” in Mr. Conroy. The standing joke is that Remi occasionally has to cover the actual bass line on the piano while Kim concentrates on fills, flourishes and other forms of musical decoration.

The joke contains enough truth to have survived. Kim’s playing gives the arrangements movement and personality and often introduces ideas that would not have emerged from the piano alone.

Jenner — guitars

Jens V. Jakobsen is Faroese and lives in Copenhagen. He is a qualified lawyer and works with intellectual property rights, including music rights.

Jens and Remi have known each other since 1994 and played together in Jeremus during the 1990s. Jens later became a guitarist in the Faroese band The Reverends and contributed to their country album When You’re Done.

Within the Mr. Conroy camp, When You’re Done is regarded — with only limited exaggeration — as one of the finest country albums ever made.

Jens is the musical counterweight to Remi’s classically influenced pop instincts. He approaches the songs from a blues and rock perspective and challenges chords, structures and arrangements that might otherwise have remained more conventionally polished.

He also plays an important technical role in Mr. Conroy. Jens has recorded the band’s vocals and a considerable part of the guitar work at Imert Basement Studios.

The blues, rock and occasional funk elements in Mr. Conroy’s music often emerge from the musical conversation between Jens and Remi. Neither perspective replaces the other. The finished sound lies somewhere between them.

Ignite the light: A new beginning

The songs for Mr. Conroy’s debut album were selected from a large catalogue that Remi had built over many years.

Twelve songs were originally selected in close dialogue with Kenneth. Eleven appeared on the finished album.

The title Ignite the Lightcomes from a line in the song “Endless War”. It reflected the circumstances in which Mr. Conroy had been formed: a return to playing music with other people and the beginning of something new after a decade away from band life.