Photography // KLARA – press
Peachy Magazine caught up with Swedish artist, KLARA, to talk about her newly released album “Blossom” and to hear more about what the future awaits for the rising artist.
What was the process like to make this album?
I wrote the songs over a few years in London and on several writing trips to Sweden, Gambia, LA & Wisconsin. I worked out the arrangements in my writing room at Church Studios in North London and then recorded my album with a great team of musicians at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios. It’s such a beautiful studio set in the countryside outside Bath in the UK. We stayed there for the whole recording process as it’s one of the few residential studios left in the country & that makes the whole creative journey so much better.
Listen to Blossom while reading the interview:
Is there a song or more songs on the album that stands out to you looking back at the process of writing them? If yes, what or which song(s) and why?
‘Where Do We Begin’ was a fun song to write as it was one of the few writing collaborations I did for the album & somehow, when you are a team of writers in the room, the energy goes up, and it felt so easy to write. I co-wrote the song with Oli Jacobs, who also engineered the recordings and also with Erland Cooper, who co-produced the record with me.
Another song that stands out to me is ‘Breathe’ as it was the first time I wrote something with a vocoder that automatically gives you loads of harmonies in real-time as you sing, which is really inspiring. Although I sometimes perform it live with the vocoder, we chose a much more sparse arrangement for the record with just my two backing vocalists Jess Belgrave & Karina Ramage. It starts off with us singing a 3 part harmony acapella, and halfway through the song, we add a drone & my electric guitar.
Photography // KLARA – press
What are some of your influences?
Most of my influences are folk/pop like Bon Iver, The Staves, First Aid Kit, Ben Howard, Feist & Regina Spektor. I also like artists with a slightly darker sound like Daughter, London Grammar & Sharon Van Etten, who really inspire me as they still have a very organic sound at the root of their music, which I love.
What do you wish for the listeners to get from listening to your album ’Blossom’?
I hope they enjoy listening to it & that it will make them feel inspired and hopeful but also comforted that I don’t shy away from analysing my darker & more troubled thoughts as that is also a part of our lives.
What are some of your aspirations for the near future, in terms of growing as an artist?
I absolutely loved making this record as I enjoyed collaborating with a great creative team, so I have already started writing new songs and formed a few new collaborations that I am sure will inspire me into new directions. I also look forward to hearing people’s reactions to a new podcast called ‘The Magnificent Singer’ where I chat about my songwriting trips, collaborations, making the record, and playing live.
We are also releasing a music documentary called about the journey of recording the album. Another thing I am exploring is Patreon, where I am starting an online community around my music to showcase my work more from behind the scenes. I can’t wait to share more of this with my audience. Check it out at http://www.patreon.com/KLARAfromSweden
