Unmistakably Nordic in flavor, Sofia Talvik somehow still conforms to American interpretations of her own original music, a North Sea siren blending sparkle and melancholy, creating a special niche of folk music.
In September I’m releasing my new album “Drivin’ & Dreaming LIVE” with live recordings we did in different venues on the US tour. It will be a full length CD with a mix of songs from all my albums, recorded with room mics and from the sound board to give you the ultimate live experience, just like you were at one of my concerts.
Many of you asked me about the Swedish folk song that I sang in my concerts. It will be featured on the album.
The album is up for pre-order now, and if you pre-order it before August 2nd you will get an exclusive download of “There’s A Man In A Smiling Bag” free of charge, directly to your inbox. The download is acoustic versions of all the songs from my latest album “The Owls Are Not What They Seem”, recorded outside in scenic locations around the US.
To pre-order go here! and scroll down to “pledge $25” in the menu on the right hand side. Click that box and follow the instructions.
The pre-order for the live album and the book will be open until August 2nd, but even if you order now you will not be charged until August 2nd when the pre-order closes. Note that pre-order is the ONLY way to get the book and it will only be printed in a limited edition. So after August 2nd, there will be no way and nowhere to get a copy unless you pre-ordered.
The order is made via Kickstarter and Amazon, so if you have shopped at Amazon before it will be easy as pie to just log in and order. (If you are unsure how to order, here’s a video that will guide you.
Everyone who places an order for the live album or the book will get a complimentary download of the acoustic version of my album “The Owls Are Not What They Seem” direct to your email.
Some info about the album and the book:
Drivin’ & Dreaming – One artist’s odyssey through America
I spent a year and a half from 2011 to 2013 traveling across America in an old RV, playing over 250 shows in 37 states. I named the tour “Drivin’ & Dreaming”. During the tour I met amazingly wonderful, weird and inspiring people, and I got to see and experience every corner of the US.
This book is the product of all the stories and pictures from the “Drivin’ & Dreaming” tour that I collected along the way. The book is in coffee table format with beautiful pictures and funny short stories. You will be able to open the book to any page and just start reading. It will be around 200 pages and you’ll get to experience the life on the road, breakdowns, the wonderful people that came to our rescue, weird gigs, breathtaking places and smiling faces. The book also contains a collection of my favorite recipes that we cooked in the RV.
Drivin’ & Dreaming LIVE – full length album (CD)
We recorded almost all of the 250+ shows on the tour and have chosen the best of the best to be featured on this live album. If you weren’t able to make it to any of the concerts, here’s your chance to experience it, just like you were there in the room with me. All the recordings on the live album were recorded with room microphones and direct sound from the board. The final product will be a high-quality live album mixed and mastered from these source recordings. Many of you asked about the Swedish folk song that I sang on the shows, this song will be featured on the album!
You can get the book + live album for $100 (including shipping in the US, +$5 for outside the US) or the live album alone for $25. There is also a possibility to get some other cool stuff, like your name in the thank you notes in the book. Check it out here!
When the pre-order closes on August 2nd the album and the book will be sent to the printers. You will have your copy approximately a month later.
Today I’m releasing my 5th album “The Owls Are Not What They Seem”. Thank you everyone who pre-ordered the CD and to all my fans who pledged for the four EPs in L.O.V.E that preceded this album. (To make it clear for those of you who haven’t heard the EPs – this is a totally different production.)
I’m shipping all of the pre-ordered signed albums today. You who have pre-ordered will also get your download codes today. And for you who missed out on the physical release here’s some links to where you can listen. You will still be able to listen and purchase a download in any format you prefer here: Sofia’s music store.
If you’d rather go through the middle man, you can listen and purchase a download here (and probably a bunch of other online stores too):
Here’s a live video of one of the songs from the album performed at Moonlight on the Mountain in Birmingham, AL on my Drivin’ & Dreaming tour that I’m currently doing in the US.
I’m so happy to announce that we met our goal in the pledge and thanks to all of you who pledged we will be able to release the last part of L.O.V.E next week. If you haven’t pledged you can still pre-order the physical CD, T-shirts and other goods up till November 1st. After that the EP will only be available as a digital download.
For this update I thought we’d grill the producer a little bit, so I tied him to his amplifier and made him answer all these questions…
Marcus Högquist recording some guitar
Marcus Högquist, you are the producer of “E – Part Four of L.O.V.E” and you are also the guitarist in Sofia’s band since many years, how do you think this recording was different than the others you’ve made with Sofia? More guitars 🙂 The previous recordings I´ve done with Sofia have all been different from each other. For example, the first one we recorded almost completely live with just two microphones. All of us sitting in the same room and playing together. And for that one we used mostly acoustic instruments. For the following records we have been doing more and more overdubs, recorded separetly and used more electronic sounds. This time I’ve tried to capture the essence of Sofia’s songs and let them guide me toward where I was going. Maybe in some cases I’ve put them in a slightly new context, soundwise.
What’s your favorite song on the EP and why? I like them all. But if I have to pick just one I’d say If I had a man. I’m really pleased with how it came out.
If you would describe this EP as the love child of two bands/artists, which would that be? John McEnroe and Mats Wilander 😉
If you would have had an unlimited budget, is there anything you would have done differently? I think I would have recorded the songs live with the band in a big fancy studio somewhere in the countryside. We would stay there for a few days and be totally focused on making the best record ever. For relaxation between the sessions some of us would play some tennis, Christian would go fishing in the lake just outside the studio and Sofia would probably get a nice massage.
How come you chose “Lower Case Letters” as your re-make song? Actually the new rhythm feel of that song came out of a mistake during a rehearsal that Sofia and I where doing for a promotion tour a few years ago. So for the following tour we decided to stick with that new rhythm arrangement and we did on our last US tour with the band as well. Then, when I was asked to pick an old song for this recording I just thougt it would be nice to record it that way.
Marcus and Sofia playing live. Photo: Jonny Andersson
What was your biggest challenge as a producer? Because I recorded a lot of the stuff myself, I’d say being the the producer and the musician at the same time.
Exactly how many guitar tracks can we expect on “E – Part Four of L.O.V.E” ? 😉 Billions!!!
What’s your best words of wisdom when producing an album? Keep an open mind. It might be good to have a plan for how you want the songs to sound. But be open for new ideas during the process and let them inspire you.
Thanks Marcus! We look forward to hearing your awesome creation!
“E – Part Four of L.O.V.E” is being released November 1st.
We’re down to the final week before “E – Part Four of L.O.V.E” is about to released, which means that this is you last chance to pre-order a CD, T-shirt or any of the other items on the pledge site.
All the items are hand made by me and are exclusive to this EP, meaning they will only be available for pre-order and can’t be purchased after the release. All the CDs have hand made covers and are signed as well. The posters are signed and numbered.
You’ve heard some previews of the songs and I hope you like them. Today I’m posting a little video blog from when we’re mixing the song Lower Case Letters. As you know my producers have each chosen one of my previously released songs to make a re-make of and Marcus chose Lower Case Letters from the album Jonestown.
As usual you’ll get to hear a preview of the finished song at the end of the video.
