By:Larm Edges Toward Sellout

It will be a close call as to whether Norway’s By:Larm will match last year by selling out two weeks in advance, but all 1,500 tickets will likely be gone before it opens Feb. 26.

Last year the capacity was 1,000 but it’s been raised by the addition of By:Larm Interactive, a venue that aims to become the leading meeting place in digital technology, inspired by SXSW Interactive.

By:Larm communications chief Pia Biermann reports that sales are growing on a daily basis and it’s hard to imagine the Oslo showcase conference won’t be full.

One-to-one interviews are becoming an increasingly popular feature of European conferences and By:Larm’s interviewees include Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale, major German promoter Folkert Koopmans, LCD Soundsystem head honcho James Murphy, and British synthpop wizard Vince Clarke, a former member of Depeche Mode, Yazoo, The Assembly and Erasure.

More than 100 (mainly Nordic) acts will play the evening showcases. By:Larm is in Oslo Feb. 26 to March 1.