Track of the week. Few songs have hit us with as much impact as Danish trio Farveblind’s latest release, ‘Crooks’.
This is a sound that is immediately gripping – thanks to its bold, fiery and energising mix of dark electronica and punk.
Alongside the track itself, the matching visuals (directed by Snorre Fuglsang Ruhe) are equally as impressive.
‘Crooks’ is lifted from Farveblind’s brand new EP, ‘All Clubs are Bastards’ (out now).
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Norway continues to deliver world-class pop artistry through rising singer and songwriter Natan Dagur.
Initially gaining prominence from an appearance on Norway’s edition of The Voice, Dagur has since accumulated a significant following that has resulted in over two million catalogue streams on Spotify alone.
New single ‘Holding On’ treats listeners to a perfected pop sound that feels understated yet emotive in tone, and serves as a promising introduction to this exciting newcomer.
It’s safe to say that 2022 has been a stellar year for 18-year old Danish newcomer Giift.
Following the release of her stunning debut EP ‘Archives‘ in the spring, this DIY R&B artist has gone on to acquire critical acclaim from across the world and garner more than 500k cumulative streams on Spotify alone.
Today sees Giift unveil her last single of the year, entitled ‘If You Leave’, of which she says:
“2022 has been very overwhelming to me. Letting go of ‘Archives’ was also about letting go of an emotionally chaotic period in my life and at the same time it became the ultimate high that collided with new love. ‘If You Leave’ is written right at that time – as a declaration of unlimited love and as the definite ending of a chapter one and the beginning of a new.”
Giift has become one of the most widely-praised Scandinavian R&B-soul artists of late, with support from the likes of PAPER, Flaunt, COLORS and Metal Magazine.
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Norwegian alt-pop talent Sval has graced our pages for a good few years now, and today’s release of ‘GRENADE’ continues to prove just how impressive this artist is.
Bold, intense and impactful in character, the song blends elements of indie-rock with pop – resulting in a sound that is raw and powerful yet still feels relatable to listeners.
“To me, ‘GRENADE’ is a self destructive and liberating song at the same time. It’s about embracing sadness and anger, and even though the song has a sad tone it’s something beautiful about owning those feelings completely Whenever I’m feeling sad, as long as I get to sit with those feelings for a while, I’m fine. The song has a certain kind of loneliness attached to it, thoughts of others not understanding your feelings. Hopefully people can release to that.”
Sval currently commands more than 84k monthly listeners on Spotify, and has racked up millions of streams since the release of her debut EP ‘Young Alien’ in 2019.
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One of the most impressive collaborations of the week comes courtesy of Danish creatives Lleoh and Soon.
Showcasing the best in Scandinavian melancholic pop, the song’s honest lyricism presents listeners with words of doomed love and broken relationships.
Yet while the vocals carry a sombre tone, the song’s production blends elements of stripped-back pop with R&B, creating a sound that is future-forward and fresh, but also warm and intimate.
The release of ‘Softly’ continues with Lleoh’s ethos of creating music that is not dictated by the mainstream scene, but rather what she herself truly believes in.
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Swedish one man-band The Sweet Serenades (aka singer and songwriter Martin Nordvall) unveils his new single today, entitled ‘Back in Your Arms’.
Created alongside producer Johannes Berglund (who has worked with the likes of Fever Ray and Shout Out Louds), the song presents listeners with a beautifully emotive and captivating fusion of indie, alternative pop and folk.
Fans based in Germany will be pleased to know that The Sweet Serenades will be touring the country from 29th Oct to 6th Nov 2022 – tickets can be found here.
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Mikaela Stenmo continues Sweden’s proud tradition as being the home of electro-pop with the release of new single, ‘Heart Attack’.
Unmistakably Scandinavian in character, the song’s melancholic essence contrasts beautifully against an uptempo electronic production, while the lyrics tell of the stresses that come with being in love.
“The lyrics explore how I realise that I am the culprit in a fight between my ex boyfriend and I and try anything and everything to get him back. The song highlights the stress one feels when desperately trying to get a hold of someone they love.”
The song was originally conceived in 2020 with the help of Wille Enblad and Lucas Albrektsson, and has undergone two years of revisions before its release today.
Not many talents can claim to have released a new single and EP while also launching their international acting debut at the same time. But that is most certainly the case for Swedish artist Janice.
Lifted from new EP ‘The Playlist’ (out now), ‘My Kind Of Woman’ expertly fuses nostalgic soul and alternative R&B with power-pop, ultimately creating a bold anthem for body acceptance:
“‘My Kind Of Woman’ is an anthem that celebrates women of all shapes and sizes. It’s about being the woman you want to be. Dare to throw yourself out there, flourish and believe in your own power. Don’t let anyone else define you.”
Janice also stars in Netflix drama series ‘The Playlist’, which was inspired by the origins of Spotify (streaming globally now).
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If there’s time for you to play only one song today, make it ‘Something Good’ by Norwegian artist Tuvaband (aka Tuva Hellum Marschhäuser).
Truly, this is a stunning piece of music that sums up humanity’s need for hope, and is a perfect track to play when times feel tough and you need a reminder that things can get better.
“I wanted to find more songs that I could like, filled with sentences like this. So I decided to write the song I wanted to listen to.”
As one of Norway’s most notable indie-rock projects, Tuvaband has garnered more than 40 million career streams to date and earned a nomination from the prestigious Norwegian Grammy Awards.
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Scandinavian starlet Kleo returns with a blissful slice of nostalgic synth-pop through the release of her new single ‘Beautiful Life’.
Inviting listeners in to a world where everything is as sweet and pleasant as can be, the track gives us all a welcome escape from the many obstacles we face in this day and age.
The song continues Kleo’s ethos of crafting pieces of music that enable us to see the bigger picture in relation to our lives, and encourages us to allow ourselves to evolve as humans.
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It’s been a short while, but Denmark has once again delivered an outstanding new pop prospect to the world.
As the collaborative project of singer & songwriter Line Gade and producer Sebastian Igens, ROYA create a sound that feels melancholic and emotive, while still maintaining some strong pop sensibilities.
Latest single ‘Kinda Sad’ looks into those moments when we are emotionally vulnerable following a break-up, and reminds us that even if we feel alone and sad, that it’s just a part of a process we have to go through.
“It’s written out of the embarrassment of finding yourself drunk and alone, longing for someone you know isn’t good for you anymore. Lyrically, we wanted to dive into those suppressed feelings to give them a life of their own. The song is a reminder to anyone in this messed up situation, that sometimes it’s more than okay to be by yourself and feel kinda sad.”
Two of Norway’s most promising emerging musical exports team up on one of the most beautiful pop ballads that you’ll likely come across this month.
‘Five Minutes’ was inspired by the need for two people to switch off from the daily stresses of life, just so that they can reconnect together.
“Can we just listen to Holocene, and shut out all the noise that’s been keeping us down lately? Cause lately it’s been too much.”
Oslo-based artists Aleks Grey and Iselin have both gained significant momentum recently. Grey’s work has to date been streamed well over a million times on Spotify, while Iselin’s vocals were featured on Alan Walker’s mega hits ‘Faded’ and ‘Sing Me to Sleep’.
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One of Sweden’s most promising pop starlets right now has to be singer and songwriter Namelle.
Having already amassed well over four million cumulative streams on Spotify to date (including a successful collaboration with Dutch producer Piece Wise), this rising talent has marked herself as a Scandi artist to watch.
Speaking on the lyrical meaning behind her newly-released single ‘Goodbye Boy’, Namelle says:
“‘Goodbye Boy’ says ‘Thanks, but no thanks,’ to all the Romeos out there who think you’re interested in them just because you’re being nice.”
Fans can look forward to Namelle’s forthcoming EP, ‘Salt’, which is scheduled for release later this year.
Not much is known about Stockholm-based artist Boko Yout (aka Paul Adamah), but the music pretty much speaks for itself.
This is a sound that pushes indie music to the extreme. Bold, experimental, invigorating and refreshingly unique in tone, songs like ‘ANXIETY’ are as captivating as they are intriguing.
There is no doubt in our minds that this emerging talent will become one of Sweden’s newest musical exports in the coming future.
It’s barely been a month since we last featured Stockholm duo Sötnos, but today marks their return with the release of new single, ‘Care About Nothing’.
With its eccentric mix of indie, pop and rock, the song delivers a sound that feels care-free, fun and uplifting – and further cements Sötnos as one of Sweden’s most exciting newcomers.
“This was the first song we ever made together. Recording this song, we jumped up and down and screamed as loud as we could. It was a total blast and it went fast and we hope it translates for you out there listening.”
The track shares its name with the duo’s debut album, which is also released today and can be heard here.
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Danish pop artist Gustaf continues to impress us with the unveiling of his latest single, entitled ‘stop’.
Through its nostalgia-tinged synth production, the song’s bittersweet lyrics tell of the emotional dilemmas that come with summer romances. Elaborating further on the track, Gustaf says:
“‘stop’ is a song about being in the early stages of your summer flirt, but suddenly it’s starting to get a little too serious and you’re not ready to commit! Mainly because you’re afraid of commitment but also because you want to keep that cloud nine feeling going on, you’re too afraid that you’ll make the wrong choice, and the daily trivial life kicks in! So let’s just stop before we fall in love!”
The song marks Gustaf’s sixth release to date. New fans of this promising Scandinavian talent can check out his past singles on Spotify here.
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Swedish singer, songwriter and producer Juliander unveils his latest single, entitled ‘We’.
With its refreshingly original approach to pop, the sound feels experimental and future-forward in tone, yet also carries a deeply emotive and meloncholic undertone which is truly captivating to experience.
Speaking on the single, Juliander says:
“‘We’ was born from a single sound and the lyrics came to me right away. It was written in a one take. Everything felt natural and it just flowed, the best feeling for a songwriter. I experimented a lot in the production and my favourite part is probably the instrumental after the second chorus, it just feels euphoric and I love it.”
Already an established artist in his native Sweden (with over 95k monthly listeners on Spotify alone), Juliander has released a string of successful hits and toured alongside the likes of Zara Larsson and Alan Walker.
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Danish musician eif is back today with a soulful fusion of R&B and mellow pop through the release of her new single ‘Grown’.
Inspired by the realisation of our true worth, the song looks at the power of personal growth and self-love.
eif is currently collaborating alongside acclaimed platinum-selling producer Rasmus Gregersen, and is due to release another new track next month. In the meantime, check out eif’s ‘Teal’ EP here.
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Another week, another impressive pop release from Norway. This time it’s the turn of newcomer JOP, who’s name initially came to prominence after going viral on TikTok, consequently accumulating over 15 million views on the platform.
With production from Aside and Hitimpulse, new single ‘What If’ is a beautifully emotive song that features an anthemic melody and powerful vocals.
Already becoming a noted name in his home nation, it seems imminent that JOP will hit the rest of Europe in a big way very soon.
Scandinavian pop starlet Bishat unveils a beautifully emotive new track today, entitled ‘PROBLEMS’.
Serving as the follow-up to her much-hyped previous single ‘MANNERS’, Bishat once again displays a finessed and well-constructed fusion of R&B and pop, while her candid and honest lyricism reminds lovers not to dwell on their partner’s negative traits.
“It might sound obvious but I think in reality, we’re not very good at it. I feel there are so many preconceived ideas of how a relationship should be and that sets us up to fail. I wrote it in the beginning of a relationship when we were trying to figure out how NOT to mess it up like we always had done before. We just sat there telling each other all our flaws and desires a few days later I wrote the song.”
Proving herself to be one of the Nordic region’s most promising talents, Bishat’s recent work has found her achieving a nomination for Rookie Artist of the Year at the prestigious Denniz Pop Awards.
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