Tim Christensen

Tim Christensen, a Danish singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, first rose to prominence through the alternative rock band Dizzy Mizz Lizzy during the 1990s and later sustained a strong solo presence with a blend of melodic power pop and alt-pop balladry. Albums such as the chart-topping Honeyburst from 2003 and Superior in 2008 maintained his visibility, while partnerships with Mads Langer, Gemma Hayes, and Mike Viola added further reach. Backed by the Damn Crystals, he issued a fourth studio album and captured a live Paul McCartney tribute under the title Pure McCartney. In the mid-2010s Christensen rejoined Dizzy Mizz Lizzy for renewed touring and two well-received studio albums, Forward in Reverse in 2016 and the prog rock-influenced Alter Echo in 2020.

Born on July 2, 1974, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Christensen began playing guitar at the age of seven. He co-founded Dizzy Mizz Lizzy in 1988 as a trio alongside Martin Nielsen on bass and Søren Friis on drums, with Christensen handling vocals and guitar. After claiming victory at the Danish Rock Championship in 1993, the group applied the winnings toward a four-track demo CD that earned rotation on Danish rock radio and led to a major-label deal with EMI. Under producer Nick Foss, the band released its self-titled debut album, Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, which achieved remarkable success through a string of hit singles including “Barbedwired Baby’s Dream,” “Love Is a Loser’s Game,” “Waterline,” “Silverflame,” and “Glory.” The record secured four Danish Grammys, among them Best Danish Group, and attained five-times platinum status. Its follow-up, Rotator from 1996, proved less dominant yet still yielded singles such as “Rotator,” “11:07 PM,” and “When the River Runs Dry,” earned additional Grammys, and reached two-times platinum before the band disbanded in 1998.

Christensen then launched his solo career, issuing Secrets on Parade in 2000 through EMI; the album reached the Top Ten on the Danish albums chart. Honeyburst followed in 2003 and topped the Danish pop chart, driven in part by the breakout ballad “Right Next to the Right One.” After concluding the accompanying tour with a performance at London’s Abbey Road Studios, he documented the event on the concert album and film Live at Abbey Road Studios 2004. Signing with Sony Music, he delivered Superior in 2008, which peaked at number two in Denmark and featured its title track, co-written with American musician and producer Mike Viola, as a Top Five hit.

Dizzy Mizz Lizzy reconvened in 2010 for an extensive tour spanning Denmark and Japan without producing new material at the time. Christensen instead recorded with his longtime solo backing band, releasing the project as Tim Christensen & the Damn Crystals in 2011. The following year he and the Damn Crystals joined Mike Viola and Tracy Bonham for a Paul McCartney tribute concert in Copenhagen that later appeared as the live album Pure McCartney. In 2015 the band reunited once more, this time entering the studio for fresh recordings. Following a Danish Grammys appearance where Christensen received the Ærespris Award, Dizzy Mizz Lizzy issued Forward in Reverse in 2016. Arriving twenty years after their prior album, it topped the Danish charts and sparked renewed activity that encompassed multiple tours and the 2020 release Alter Echo. The support tour for that album, originally scheduled amid the early stages of the global pandemic, was postponed until 2022.