Back in February of this year, I completed a round-up review based on artists from the Nordic countries. I’m a big fan of Scandinavian music, so I thought it was about time I revisited the series. There is a massive range of genres and styles contained on this list, but whatever you’re into, there should be something right for you!
Review by Jane Howkins
Picture by Ben Alexander
Ben Alexander – Something Powerful
Ben Alexander’s track Something Powerful is one for all you dance music aficionados. Despite the obvious EDM vibes the song has, it’s a little different from the norm, also lending itself well to the dream-pop genre. Little synth melodies bubble under the surface as the piano chords blast out the main sequence for the tune, with Ben’s dreamy vocals drifting across the music in a stylistic manner. The falsetto vocals are particularly astounding, showing an artist unafraid to do something different.
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Arn-Identified Flying Objects and Alien Friends – No Sweet Dreams
We’ve featured Arn-Identified Objects and Alien Friends before, so it’s great to welcome them back into the fold with their new song, No Sweet Dreams. It’s a folk-rock song that harks back to the glory days of the 60s and 70s rock movement – the whistling that opens the song up sounds amazing when mixed with the guitar melodies! The vocals are largely harmonised, making everything sound very distinctive. The strings in the background are absolutely lush, adding a unique flavour to this cool track.
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Secret Treehouse – Lovers In The Streets
Secret Treehouse is an indie rock band with a fantastically catchy sound, as displayed on their brand new song, Lovers In The Streets. The main guitar melody that opens the song up is amazing, as the rest of the track follows the main chord sequence and rhythm set out in the intro. The female vocals work really well here, displaying a great wealth of emotion as they weave in and out of the music. The dynamics change slightly as the track progresses, adding more variety to this amazing tune.
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Juli von Lou – Faith
Taking things in a completely different direction is Juli von Lou’s song Faith – the vocal effects are stunning, seeing the backing vocals layer themselves over Juli’s fantastic lead vocal lines in a lovely fashion. The song has quite a folky style, with some intriguing backing effects underpinning the music, although it’s still the vocals that are the real standouts here. It won’t be for everyone but give it some time and this amazing tune should become one of your favourites, despite the short nature of the song.
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Birds are Better – Marigold
Birds Are Better takes things in yet another direction on their beautiful track, Marigold. It’s got quite a frantic rhythm, with the different percussion elements mixing well with the piano chords and synths that make up this song. The vocals are deep, having a subtle quality to them, yet they truly work wonders with this track. The little motif that appears on the instrumental parts is stunningly beautiful, aligning well with the lyrics. It really is a beautiful piece of music!
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Electric High – Cyclone
Electric High are a band that we’ve featured several times before, so I’m pleased to be able to share more of their music with the world! Cyclone is the name of their latest release and what a wonder it is! It’s a rock song with garage rock vibes – the guitar riffs sound absolutely killer, with the energy kept raised throughout the tune. The higher vocals are a bit of a gamble, but the band pull it off perfectly, managing to make this song sound catchy, whilst also keeping its rock roots!
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Léon Rova – Forever and Ever
Forever and Ever contains elements of the EDM and mainstream pop movements, but it’s also distinctive enough to stand on its own two feet, as dreamy synths run through the piece. The synthy chords add a dream-pop quality to the music, with the steady beat only serving to accentuate the music even more. Léon Rova’s are soft and breathy, sounding very ethereal throughout. The bass is really funky, adding a cool groove to the piece. The backing vocals are unique, making the music sound very different from most of the EDM music out there at the moment!
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Sleeps Kicks – Neptune
Going in a completely different direction from the above tracks is Sleep Kicks with their 80s-infused tune Neptune. The track contains elements of both the original indie movement and the post-punk scene, taking a synth-laden approach to the genre. The keyboard melodies make this song sound infectiously catchy, as the main motif plays through the chorus and intro. The guitar lines are layered on the verses, pushing the song along to its satisfying conclusion.
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Filip Dahl – Walking Through Eternity
Filip Dahl is another artist that we’ve featured a few times – and for good reason! Walking Through Eternity is yet another instrumental guitar song, written in a proggy fashion. The piano in the background elevates Filip’s guitar playing to some lofty heights, helping to highlight it perfectly. He’s obviously very skilled in a technical sense, but the way Filip plays also exudes a great deal of emotion – something a lot of instrumental players struggle with. The guitar sounds truly amazing, making this tune seem very anthemic throughout!
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Koala Bar – Danger
Swedish band Koala Bar have created something amazing on their track Danger. The beat has quite a jazzy feel to it when the song opens up, although the guitars lend the music more to the alt-pop and indie-pop scenes. The main chord sequence is epic, sounding lush and beautiful from the very start. The soft vocals work wonders with the guitar lines, adding another sense of hidden beauty to the tune. It’s catchy, but there’s much more to this pop song than mainstream chart fluff, making the band well worth your time!
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Arstidir – Later On
Later On opens with a gorgeous flowing piano melody – something that sounds quite unique for a pop-rock song of this vein. The vocals soon arrive, having a lovely, subtle quality to them. The main chord sequence is quite spectacular, seeing an acoustic guitar following the piano in a stylistic way. The drums appear soon after, turning the song into more of a pop song, with a hauntingly beautiful string section elevating Arstidir’s music well above their peers. This is one of my favourite songs on this list, combining several different genres together.
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Matyascorvinus – Her Shadow In The Flame
We featured Matyascorvinus here quite a while ago, so it’s fantastic to be able to share another amazing song from such a fantastic artist. Her Shadow In The Flame opens quietly, before a pretty acoustic guitar melody arrives, bringing a lovely, classical quality to this list. The guitars break off every so often, before continuing the pretty pattern originally laid out, with several motifs crossing over each other in a beautiful way. It won’t be for everyone, but those into their folk or classical music should check this out!
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We Are To Blame – Breathe
The Scandinavian region is well known for producing some of the finest metal bands in the world, so it wouldn’t be a Nordic music list without such an act! We Are To Blame are a Swedish group – latest song Breathe features a wonderful selection of chugging riffs. The song also has some traditional folk instruments, reminding me very much of the symphonic metal genre – especially with the female vocals! The band manage to merge the melodic with the heavy in a perfect manner on this expansive tune.
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Olle Borelius – Body Of Mine
Body Of Mine is a really interesting song, as it combines together several different genres, appealing across the board. The percussion is rather busy, with the electronic beats in the background serving it well. Olle Borelius’ vocals use a lot of effects, which is something I normally dislike, but it really works here – this is a true testament to Olle’s songwriting skills. The chorus slows things down a little, before the beat kicks back in again. The chorus vocals are quite high at times, sounding extraordinary in their beauty.
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Ace Rosewall – Tattoo (Of Your Name)
Tattoo (Of Your Name) is a track for those into their mainstream pop, although it does have a bit of an 80s throwback to it, appealing to pop fans of all ages. Ace Rosewall has a great singing voice and flow as his fast vocals sift through this amazing pop tune, adding a real sense of character to it. The synths fit the upbeat movement of the piece, alongside the huge percussion. It’s an extremely catchy song, showing that modern pop music doesn’t have to be boring!
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Le Days – End Of Everything
Classical music is sadly much maligned nowadays, with many people perceiving it to be boring. Le Days is showing that this is not the case, as End Of Everything is an incredibly moving and beautiful song. The main instrumentation comes from a slow piano melody, which changes every so often to add a bit of variety to the piece. A double bass plays subtly in the background, although the attention stays firmly on the piano. It’s a slow track, but it sounds haunting throughout.
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Janne Porraskorpi – Welcome to Managrift City
It wouldn’t be right to close this list off with a slow song, so why not let the cool dance vibes of Welcome to Managrift City drift over you? It’s an EDM song with a difference, seeing differing synth melodies weave in and out of each other, against the fast-paced, electronic percussion. There’s so much going on here that you will need to listen to Janne Porraskorpi’s song more than once – see if you can listen to it without tapping your feet along! It’s really catchy, with different elements added over time to keep things constantly interesting on this robotic number.
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