Swedish Singer-Songwriter Benjamin Gustafsson Previews Decca US Debut
The first single, out now, is the moving and contemplative ‘Sleeping.’
Swedish singer/songwriter Benjamin Gustafsson will release his first album for Decca Records US, The Nature Within, on September 8.
The first single, out now, is the moving and contemplative ”Sleeping?”, described as a “complex emotive composition” featuring Gustafsson’s soft-focus vocals and a musically rich backing. The self-composed song, which he produced with Wallentin Richardsson, arrives with a delicate and mesmerizing video.
“‘Sleeping?’ was written in the house in the woods I spent more than two years in by myself,” says the Malmö-based artist. “I remember I had woken up multiple times from very vivid dreams. Those milliseconds between being so immersed in a dream, to waking up into reality was really hard to just brush off. I started to think and read a lot about dreams, and this song kind of embodies that time.”
Gustafsson has spent much of his career to date writing and recording music without any particular expectations of what might happen to it. He emerged with Presomnal in 2017, the first of a series of albums for Verve. On the new record, the subtle touch of these often instrumental and classically-inclined compositions was informed by his intense listening to such artists as The Album Leaf, Ef, Ólafur Arnalds, and, perhaps more surprisingly, Coldplay.
The Nature Within centers on Gustafsson’s relationship with his mental health, and reflects the solace and therapy that he has been able to take from his music, turning dark moments into inspiration. It’s an album of hope that chooses to look forward, and one with a rich canvas of textures, atmosphere and splashes of technicolor. In addition to his original compositions, it also features an entirely appropriate rendition of Nick Drake’s “Which Will,” from his 1972 album Pink Moon.
The full The Nature Within album tracklisting is:
1. Home Again
2. Nature
3. Wake Me Up
4. Process
5. Moments Flow Upwards
6. Teddington
7. Which Will
8. Perzina
9. Waiting For The Sun
10. Sleeping?
11. Alone Again
