Artist Of The Week #105 - Alice Boman
This week’s Artist of the Week is Swedish songwriter Alice Boman, who has just released her debut album ‘Dream On’ via new label Play It Again Sam. She took a moment to talk to us about the release.
How isolated were the recording sessions for Dream On and why did you choose that location?
They were not that isolated. We started the recording in a studio in London actually. But it was not in the centre of it all, and we lived at a flat just on top of the studio - and didn’t do much else - so it became like a bubble anyway. Also because I was not at home.
The studio was a part of my publishers office and the studio technician Fabian Prynn had no other projects planned, so we could just be there and record and explore without a deadline.
Then I met producer Patrik Berger in his studio in Stockholm and we started working on some things that had nothing to do with the album. But it was so inspiring and fun to work with him, so we ended up finishing the album in his studio, just ten minutes from where I live.
Did you intend to make an album at that point in time, or was it an attempt at making new music which blossomed into something more?
When we started recording I knew I wanted to make an album, but during the writing process it was important for me not to think to much about what it was gonna be. To not have any frames. Back then I just wanted to write a lot, to write freely, not feeling too much pressure.
And after some time I had a bunch of like 40 sketches (sometimes just a verse or an rough idea) from which we chose what songs to focus on.
At that point I started to think more about the songs as part of an album.
The songs flow in such a harmonious way. How did you go about choosing the track listing?
I’m happy to hear that. It was hard to decide on the track listing actually, we worked a lot on it, trying out different ones, listening, discussing. At that point I had heard the songs so many times so it was a bit hard to get a good sense of it all. I always knew I wanted the last song to be Mississippi, an old demo recording. It ends with a hopeful line, which felt good.
The rest was just about switching songs around, finding a good flow.
What instruments and effects were used to create such a thick yet delicate sense of atmosphere?
We used a lot of synth sounds. Layering things. I love layers, it makes everything feels so much deeper I think. And reverbs!
And Patrik Berger, the produced, had such a way of twitching the sounds and making things sound really special, using different effects that I don’t know the names of.
Also we didn’t want the vocal to disappear too much so we worked a lot on that balance, keeping the vocal quite dry and close on a lot of the songs, as a contrast to a bigger sound.
There is an immense feel of loss explored in many different ways throughout the album. Can you give us an insight to your mind at the time of writing?
A lot of my writing is about expressing a certain feeling I’ve had. For myself to understand it, get closer to it, examine it. And maybe to let it go. And so I just write about things that I have felt or been through, or that has s been on my mind, getting deep into those uncomfortable feelings.
Are there any songs that didn't make it onto the album? If so, why?
Yes, I had a lot of sketches and more finished songs that we cut out early in the process, some that I might get back to. But there was only one song that we took out right at the end, after mastering. A song that we recorded and wrote really quick on one of the last days in the studio. I really liked it, but in the end it didn’t really fit in with the others. I’ll keep it for later.
It has been mentioned that you find yourself being inspired by film. If this album could be the soundtrack to any film, which one would it be.
Maybe to In The Mood For Love..
Or Paris, Texas. It has such a beautiful melancholy to it.
It already has a wonderful soundtrack though.
Were there any artists or films that you had in mind whilst in the studio?
I really like how the album Skeleton Tree by Nick Cave sounds. And we listened some to Beach House, as well as some classic older songs like Elvis Presleys version of Blue Moon. Another inspiration was Portishead, mainly the dryness and closeness of the vocal.
When it comes to movies I don’t know if I had any in mind when recording.. Like you said, that’s more and inspiration when I write. I often feel such an urge to write or sing after having had an emotional movie experience. Maybe that transfers into the recording process too, but it’s not something I think about.
There is a timelessness that transpires throughout the album. Throughout your musical journey, what would be one moment you've experienced that you would like to freeze in time?
Oh.. there are many moments like that.
One of them is when me and Tom Malmros went to a big house in the countryside in Sweden and brought all of our instruments and just played and wrote all day long for a couple of days. Being away like that, just nature and quiet all around, focusing on nothing but the music, drinking red wine, taking long walks. I remember feeling so much, feeling really close to my emotions. Some of the songs on this record was born there. And I was so happy to be there, to be doing this. And when we where sitting in the car back home at night, listening to the demos we had recorded, I remember feeling like we had captured something special.
Feature by Tyler Damara Kelly
Alice also tours the UK/EU in February, returning to London to headline the Union Chapel on 25th Feb:
17 Jan - Groningen, NL - Eurosonic @ Plato Record Store
17 Jan - Groningen, NL - Eurosonic @ Forum
14 Feb - Malmö, SE - Babel
15 Feb – Copenhagen, DK – Hotel Cecil
18 Feb – Berlin, DE – Kantine am Berghain
19 Feb – Amsterdam, NL – Paradiso
20 Feb – Paris, FR – Le Pop-Up du Label
21 Feb – Brussels, BE – Witloof Bar
23 Feb - Brighton, UK - The Latest Music Bar
24 Feb - Manchester, UK - Gullivers
25 Feb – London, UK – Union Chapel
3 Apr - Göteborg, SE - Pustervik
5 Apr - Stockholm, SE – Dramaten *sold out*
Tickets available at https://www.aliceboman.com/tourdates