I welcome you Alice at SANGKRIT, please tell our netizens about yourself.
I started out doing experimental theatre, but soon realized my true passion is in music. I have always been involved music, since I was a child, my mother and grandfather were musicians, so it runs in the family, The choice to do music was a natural one, I had to try out a lot to find out that I wanted to do. It still changes as I grow interested in new things and new directions.
How long have you been working on this Album for?
The oldest song on the album is from 2005, but the main work was in 2009 and 2010. I finished it in 2010, but the original label decided not to release the record, and I didn’t have another label for the album. It took a while to find Manual Music, and it eventually happened through the other project I do, Tiger Rose, which is techno and house music.
Tell us something about the songs which you have already recorded and which song are you most excited for people to hear from your new album?
I have done a few albums so far. “Tales of Sailing” from 2006 is a more electronica oriented album, my “Mora with the Golden Gun” album from 2007 is a road trip albm, good to travel in a car with. I did two experimental albums so far, 21 Days and 21 Days 2011. Both are free and quite imperfect to listen to. I think some of my best tracks are on there, actually, but it is not for everybody, definitely not main stream music.
I have a connection with all the songs from ‘each is a DREAM’, my new album, and am excited about all. It took a long time to choose which tracks to finally put on the record . I think ‘Teardrops’ is really strong, I could totally hear it as a sample in a hip-hop track. Also ‘Shadow Princess’ is haunting and dark. I think ‘Riot’ has the potential to become an indie hit song, a little bit like ‘Creep’, by Radiohead, has a dark and raw energy, and the duet with John Parish is very unique, he has a great voice and my friend Paul did good work on the lyrics. The absolute summer hit song of the album, is ‘Into My Heart’, which I wrote with Gabriel Ananda, it was originally inspired by a Red Hot Chilli Peppers bootleg Gabriel had made. We turned it into our own little pearl.
Tell us about the easy and hard parts of singing ? What is your best experience as an artist ?
Well, singing is all about transporting emotions, I think that it is easy to sound shallow – the challenge is to really connect with your own emotions and that way you can touch other people’s emotion with your voice, it has a lot to do with intuition and being in tune with yourself and the emotion you are transporting. Difficult to explain. The technical issues are secondary. My best experience as an artist? I have no idea… Lot’s of good ones. Maybe my most intense gig so far was this year in June, in a small coffee shop in Cologne, about 45 people in the audience. My friend Lisa on the piano, the atmosphere was magical and fantastic, everybody had tears in their eyes at one point or the other, it was beautiful.
Who were your biggest musical influences ?
It varies. As a child I was greatly influenced by classical and soundtrack music, I sang in the church choir and learned to play the violin. Also the whole Eurovision song contest, a really cheesy show, was a big part of my childhood. My sister and I were recording and performing our own songs, imagining we were in the contest. The 80s had a rich pop music life that was very inspiring for children. Later I was more into punk and indie music. I also listened to a lot of my dad’s records, Beatles and Pink Floyd. I admire Barbara Hendricks as a singer, Beth Gibbons has intense emotional message, and Björk is of course epic, lot’s of good singers and musicians out there.
What is something you learned recently about singing, and what are you learning about right now?
There is always more to learn and more to explore.
Do you try giving messages in your songs?
Well, guess lot of the songs have a message, some intentional, others more intuitive. A lot has to do with dealing with challenges and disappointments in life and rising again, after a break up, f.ex..Listen to the songs and you will know.
Do you have any new plans for an international tour on your horizon?
I wish. At the moment I am looking for a booking agent.
What makes your endeavors unique ?
I think the way i perform with my viola and my voice.
What’s next for you? What can we expect from you this year ?
My album is coming out in the fall on Manual Music. In November. We are launching the single in the end of August. So I will be really busy with that. My longterm goal is to make a good living off my music, I just wanna do as much as I can to spread good vibes and music in the world. I would like to play great gigs and record more records with good people. I just want to work on exciting music. Sing, perform,record.
What you feel is your strength as a singer and how would you like to be remembered ?
My strength as a singer is that I am very versatile and sing with emotional depth. I just care about making beautiful music, not really thinking about how to be remembered.
What does success mean to you?
True success is to be able to align your life according to your values. Being able to do what I love in my life is a privilege. On a commercial level I would like to be able to make music a full time profession, still working on that.
What is your ultimate message for netizens ?
Do what is true to you, Concentrate on YOUR music.