Save to Del.icio.us
Silje Nes
Silje Nes is a unique and wonderful Norwegian artist who so far has not made a name for herself neither in her native country nor abroad, but she will, believe me! In November this year, Silje will release her debut-album on one of Eardrums’ favourite labels, Fat Cat Records, home of bands like The Twilight Sad, Mice Parade, Panda Bear, Vetiver, Tom Brosseau and Múm to name a few. This is an artist that I think will fit well in on FatCat, and I’m waiting in excitement for her debut.
Silje is a songwriter who likes to experiment and find new ways to use sounds and instruments in her music. She has studied classical piano, played timpani in an Orchestra, played drums in a marching band and played in a traditional indie pop band, – but when she started recording her songs, she worked with her laptop and a lot of instruments she had no previous experience of playing. She plays around with instruments and sounds without conventions, and combined with her good songwriting, the result is stunningly beautiful.
I first became aware of the music of Silje Nes several years ago, in 2003, when she participated on a compilation called “Beate Samleplate”. The album was printed in very few copies, and distributed for free from friend to friend (not via shops). The song she played on the compilation was called “h1″ and it had this absolutely amazing atmosphere that gave me a wonderful musical experience. The compilation had several other good tracks on it, but Silje’s was my absolute favourite. I tried to find out more about my new favourite artist, but there was nothing to be found, nowhere. She has kept a low profile, and the only people who have heard her play until recently has been her family and her friends. After she signed to FatCat, she has had a successful live-appearance at the label’s festival in Belgium this year. My guess is that you will hear a lot more from her in the years to come.
Silje Nes – Ames Room
(Thanks a lot to Silje and FatCat Records!)
(…And please tell me what you think of the song! I am over-excited about it!)
You can read more and listen to Silje Nes’ music on her myspace pages.
Posted in Bandprofile, Nordic music | 8 Comments »
July 19th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
i live in norway but her name is still very new to us. and i tried her two tracks on myspace. it seems very nice, it’s light and kinda “fatcat” style in a way. and it also reminds me the norwegian singer Hanne Hukkelberg who has been living in berlin as well as Silje Nes. thanks so much!
July 19th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
..and then there were two overexcited Eardrummers..
July 19th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
Thanks for commenting! Littleoslo, I definitely agree on the Hanne Hukkelberg-comparison. They have much in common, both in the way they sound and their approach to musicmaking. And the Berlin-thing, of course…
July 21st, 2007 at 4:24 pm
i think i fall in love with her song. thanks.
August 30th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
[...] I love the small natural sounds, which probably wasn’t intended – but which adds so much atmosphere to the recording -, like the sound of the small movementsof a chair or the small clicks and noises you can hear in the background. At first, I thought "hmm, strange to have the piano in just one speaker", but after approx 3 seconds into the song, I thought "Wow, this is perfect!" Solvor Vermeer has a lot in common with artists like Hanne Hukkelberg, Stina Nordenstam or even some of the more quiet and less electronic works of Björk. I’m also reminded by another artists we’ve recently written about, – the Norwegian singer/composer Silje Nes. [...]
November 28th, 2007 at 12:32 am
[...] du no lytte til snuttar på halvanna minutt av alle låtane frå den komande plata. På nabobloggen Eardrums kan du og laste ned låta som har gjeve namn til [...]
January 9th, 2008 at 12:06 am
Yes! … I thought when I turned on the radio (NRK P2) this morning – Stina Nordenstam has a new CD out! But … something told me that this what something different … and Norwegian? Yes it was! And I loved it – fragile, minimalistic, carefully improvized – and I want to hear more! Hope to get lucky to listen to you live soon. Maybe at Lillehammer – why not at Dølajazz – the Lillehammer Jazz Festival in 2008?
January 9th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Knut Laasbye » Silje Nes’ new album is wonderful and definitely worth checking out. Very playful, and as you describe it “fragile, minimalistic, carefully improvized”. Silje has a page on myspace + an artist page at her label’s website (fatcat records), here: http://fat-cat.co.uk/ , where you’ll probably find out more about her live-plans (if she has any).