Sofia Talvik’s Xmas Calendar 2012 #18

Sofia Talvik's Xmas Calendar, window 18
Sofia Talvik's Xmas Calendar, window 18
Sofia Talvik’s Xmas Calendar, window 18

I knew I couldn’t be the only Swedish artist to tour the US in an old van! So today’s window is a Christmas card from another Swedish band who also like to do that. Folk-Rock band Secret Circus who are kindly sharing their song “Waves” as a free download with all the followers of my Xmas Calendar!

Secret Circus was started by twins Klas and Joel Åhman in 2008 in Stockholm, Sweden. The maiden voyage sent the brothers bumming around Europe, playing their way from town to town. They immediately discovered that music was their calling and decided to give music their all. They quit their jobs and spent the following year writing and recording their debut album “This is Secret Circus“.

Every year they flee the cold winter of Sweden and spend the season in their studio in Roswell, NM where they’ve recorded most of their material. And on January 18th I’ll be joining them for a concert in Roswell, NM (aliens anyone?) so don’t miss out on that if you’re in the neighborhood. Go to https://sofiatalvik.com/gigs for details.

Go here to download “Waves” by Secret Circus, choose your own price or get it totally free!

Merry Christmas from us all!

Merry Christmas from Secret Circus
Merry Christmas from Secret Circus

Did you miss a day in the calendar? See all the windows in the Xmas Calendar here: https://sofiatalvik.com/julkalendern

Sofia Talvik’s Xmas Calendar 2012 #15

Gustaf and Jens are two guys who just happen to love beer. Well tell me about a guy who doesn’t you might think, but seriously, these guys love beer so much they actually brew their own harvest beer once a year, and it’s so popular it sells out instantly in Sweden.

in 2011 Gustaf and Jens invited me to play at their outdoors pop up restaurant at Öland’s Harvest Festival, so now I figured I’d ask them if they would be a part of my Christmas Calendar. In this window Jens will show you how to make a Swedish Christmas drink with beer called “Mumma”. They will also give you a short history lesson, how about that!

You can find information about Gustaf an Jens and their yearly harvest beer here! If you go to their website you will also find the recipes of some of the delicious food they serve with their craft beer. I’ve typed up the recipe for Mumma for you below. I hear it especially tasty if you listen to my new Christmas single while you drink it! Enjoy!

Gustaf och Jens Mumma recipe!

11 oz lager beer
11 oz dark beer; stout or similar
8 oz sparkling water/mineral water (you can add some sugar to it to sweeten it up)
3 oz sherry
Stir and serve!

Jens and Gustaf
Jens and Gustaf

Gustaf Waesterberg: Chef with a special love for organic food turned photographer.
Jens Skrubbe: Beer sommelier and bar manager at Pressklubben in Stockholm.

Did you miss a day in the calendar? See all the windows in the Xmas Calendar here: https://sofiatalvik.com/julkalendern

Sofia Talvik’s Xmas Calendar 2012 #8

Sofia Talvik's Xmas Calendar, window 8
Sofia Talvik's Xmas Calendar, window 8
Sofia Talvik’s Xmas Calendar, window 8

A couple of years ago I wrote a soundtrack to a Swedish short film called “Vit som snö” or “White as snow” in English. Neither the movie or the song is made for Christmas, but the lead motive could actualy pass for one of my Christmas songs, so I decided to share a download with you, as well as the short film (which unfortunately doesn’t have any English subtitles). Click the player below to listen or download here: http://soundcloud.com/makakimusic/vit-som-sn

Click here to listen to/ download the song
Click here to listen to/ download the song

The movie is about 12-year-old David whos grandfather is terminally ill. David decides that he needs to save him and embarks on a quest to find a way to save him from death. On his quest he meets the mysterious Viggo who takes him around to different rooms and people in the hospital to find an answer he probably already knows. Can you talk to death?

The movie is made by Carolina Rung and Anna Eliasson graduates at the Stockholm Film School in 2008.

Did you miss a day in the calendar? See all the windows in the Xmas Calendar here: https://sofiatalvik.com/julkalendern

Daytrotter session coming up!

Daytrotter
Daytrotter
Daytrotter

I’m really excited to announce that I will be doing a Daytrotter session in early August. Daytrotter is one of today’s most interesting music formats, inviting artists to play their songs acoustically in their studio in Rock Island, IL making them available to listen to for anyone in the world. Or as Daytrotter themselves describe it:

These fine people – as they’re traveling through America’s heartland – take two hours out of their travels between shows to stop in for a Daytrotter Session at The Horseshack in downtown Rock Island, Ill. The name of the city is not ironic. They use borrowed instruments, play with their touring mates, utilize an often unkempt toilet, eat some food and then cram back into their vans for the last half of the drive. What they leave behind is a pile of ashes, sometimes a forgotten stocking hat and four absolutely collectible songs that often impart on whomever listens to them the true intensity that these musicians put into their art, sometimes with more clarity than they do when they have months to tinker with overdubs and experiments. These songs are them as they are on that particular day, on that particular tour – dirty and alive. We want you to make this your new home as it is ours. We promise that you will love it here.

Stay tuned for updates on when YOU can listen to my Daytrotter session.

Ny grym recension för TOANWTS

The Owls Are Not What They Seem

Innan jag börjar gotta mig i den nya fina recensionen min skiva The Owls Are Not What They Seem har fått så vill jag gärna pålysa lite tråkiga nyheter om den svenska media- och musikbranschen. Eller jag nyheter är det väl inte direkt, i alla fall inte för oss independent-artister som kör vårt eget race med egna skivbolag.

Mitt bolag Makaki Music som jag drivit sedan 2006 är givetvis med i SOM – Svenska Oberoende Musiker. Och idag fick jag den här hemska statistiken från dem i ett mail:
“Under vinterns arbete i SOM kring sammanslagningen EMI/Universal har statistik framkommit som visat på en ännu mer massiv dominans inom media än vi tidigare trott (90-95 % majorreleaser på Europeisk nivå) och då främst på radio.”

Det är tufft som det är för oss DIY-artister. Men att svenska media är så jävla köpta (ursäkta kraftuttrycket) får mig att må smått illa. Jag släpper skiva ungefär med 1,5-2 års mellanrum och TOANWTS är min 5e(!) skiva. Varje gång kämpar jag hårt med inspelning och sedan minst lika hårt med promotion. Men vad hjälper det när man är borträknad direkt för att man inte ligger på ett storbolag?

I November förra året tog jag mitt pick och pack och drog till USA för att turnéra på obestämd tid framåt (vi siktar på 2 år). Idag känner jag att det var det enda rätta, för jag har ju ändå ingen chans att få in mina låtar på rotation på svensk radio – även om 7 Miles Wide från min nya skiva blev framröstad av både jury OCH svenska folket som veckans överlägsna vinnare i p4 radio stockholm för ett tag sedan. Vad svenska folket gillar bryr sig nämligen inte radio och tidningar om. Låter jag bitter? Well kanske lite, men kan ni klandra mig när statistiken är som den är?

Nåväl, på grund av detta blev jag extra glad idag när Uppsala Nya Tidning gav TOANWTS en GRYM recension! Just därför tänker jag ta och publicera hela här och nu!

[quote]SINGER/SONGWRITER.

På sitt femte album låter förra Uppsalabon Sofia Talvik sin akustiska musik bli än mer avskalad men samtidigt också än mer mångbottnad. Den spröda, sårbara sången och de skimrande vackra refrängerna skapar drömska stämningslägen, där en känsla av skymning och ett ödsligt, vidsträckt nattlandskap kommer allt närmare ju mer man lyssnar.

Trots ett synbart vänt anslag målar musiken fram bilder av ett annalkande mörker där oanade faror lurpassar. Kontrasterna mellan det sköra och det hotfulla gör att skivan känns allt annat än förutsägbar och helheten är synnerligen fängslande.[/quote]
Av: Stefan Warnqvist