Watch Oslo Eight-Piece Fieh Hit Their Own Groove With ’25’

Fieh, the eight-piece from Oslo in Norway whose self-described “groovy nu-soul” has made them a priority signing to Decca, have released the track 25 and its accompanying video, which you can see here.

The song was named as one of Sunday Times Culture’s “hottest tracks” earlier in March, and atmospherically mixes Sofie Tollefsbøl’s lead vocals with the band’s instinctive and customised soul-funk mix, with inflections of jazz. Fieh (pronounced “fee-ah”) have been crafting their sound since they were 16 years old.

The group was founded by 22-year-old singer and multi-instrumentalist Tollefsbøl, who was first joined by classmates Ola Øverby on drums and Andreas Rukan on bass. That originak trio were joined by Jørgen Kasbo on guitar, Edvard Synnes on keyboards, Lyder Øvreås Røed (horns/trumpet), Thea Arnesdotter Lien on backing vocals and Solveig Wang (backing vocals and moog).

“In my eyes, we’ve been a band since the first gig,” says Tollefsbøl. “The words are by me, but because I know these musicians well — they’re my friends and I know what they are capable of musically — I want them to bring as much of their personality and taste into this project as possible.”

Last year, Fieh played at such festivals as Reeperbahn, Øya and North Sea Jazz, and have won the early support of Elton John, who has played them on his Beats 1 Rocket Hour radio show for Apple Music.

Their sound has been further praised in such outlets as Fader, who called it “an explosion of summer energy”; NME (“Fieh carry themselves with wisdom beyond their years in a class above their peers”); Clash, who called ’25’ “a sharp-edged piece of future soul” and DIY, who said “Fieh have been honing their sound for the last five years, and this toil comes bursting out beautifully in ’25.’” Fieh also delivered an impressive short set when they showcased, among other new signings, at Decca Records’ recent 90th birthday party in London.

Format: UK English