D/other is released on the 8th October, 2021 via Soliti. Concert Hall dates for November 2021.
D/other finds Astrid Swan writing about motherhood, dreaming and sleeping – realising her most complete and personal musical statement yet. Composed over the course of the last five years, the stories Swan tells over the 10 songs cover themes of dream-states, mothering, loss, creativity, digital vs analog, feminism and relationships. D/other was produced by Swan herself. Her long time collaborator Mikael Hakkarainen recorded and mixed the album. Along with Hakkarainen and Swan’s trusted musical partners Alina Toivanen, Veli Kauppinen and Johannes Salomaa, the Canadian visionary Owen Pallett performs and arranges the strings for D/other.
Listen to new single ‘Not Your Mom’
Swan comments on new single “Not Your Mom”; “Mothers sleep at night. In their sleep they cannot mother but they go away into dreams, just like the kids they tucked into bed in the evening. For that moment mothers are adrift in the world. In the morning mothers are back. Their secret dreams renew them and make them better in the day.”
“Not Your Mom” released on August 6th 2021 via Soliti.
INITIAL REACTION
“I didn’t think I’d see the release of the album myself” Soundi share the single
“Not Your Mom represents Swan’s addictive indiepop side in style, which has always concealed similar ingenuity as in the classics of Patti Smith, J. Karjalainen and Bruce Springsteen” Päivän Biisit
“…a subtle and expressive track which once again demonstrates this incredible ability that Astrid has to write powerful, emotive songs that are also really accessible and easy to listen to – and that’s not always easy to do” Nordic Watchlist
“Previewed by the bright and soaring new single ‘Not Your Mom’, ‘D/other’ is set to become yet another highly-praised collection in her growing catalogue to date” Music Crowns
“I really love the chorus here, with the perfect vocal accompaniment helping raise the melodic. This song’s got a very traditional pop structure, which leads us to believe that the whole of the album will be filled with more charm than we can handle” Austin Town Hall
“The song has an engaging bounce and bright tones. Quite frankly, we cannot think of a better song to kick off the first day of our work week.” WYMA
“Astrid has put together what may well be her final group of songs in what is a lullaby to her daughter to grow up with.” Beehive Candy
“delicious new single” Eat This Music
“Mixing a smooth and sweeping piano-led aesthetic with her rich and velvety voice, Finnish musician Astrid Swan’s fresh and vibrant new single showcases exactly the kind of passion we can expect on her next studio LP” Purple Revolver
ASTRID SWAN: D/OTHER (SOLITI 093) RELEASE DATE: 08/10/2021. VINYL, CD, DIGITAL.
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Astrid Swan D/other album sleeve.
Drift
Silvi’s Dream
Not Your Mom
True Love
Luxuries
Joking After the Apocalypse
In the Woods
Tragedy & Art
Rainbows
Daughter
Composition and lyrics: Astrid Swan
Vocals, bvs, piano, acoustic guitar – Astrid Swan
Guitars –Mikael Hakkarainen
Horns, keys – Johannes Salomaa
Drums – Alina Toivanen
Bass, bvs – Veli Kauppinen
Strings arranged and performed by Owen Pallett
Production: Astrid Swan
Recording: Mikael Hakkarainen
Additional recording: Astrid Swan
Mixing: Mikael Hakkarainen
Mastering: Philip Shaw Bova, Bova Lab Studio.
“I set out to write about mothering, being a daughter and a mother. I was informed by the simultaneous research process for my PhD which investigates maternal life writing in blogs and memoirs. The title D/other comes from this research. It is a mother/daughter in digital form, and as a trans-affirmative concept which argues that mothering is done by anyone who cares. In the music I wanted to explore sleeping and dreaming as states of unconsciousness which connect us to each other, to those who are dead and that which is in the future. I wanted to explore the logic of the liminal and intra-active, that which slides and transforms. In song writing I focused on clear, comforting and uplifting lines, kind of as always, trying to crystallize what I do melodically. In this case the lyrical depths are presented in comforting pop structures.” Astrid Swan 2021
UPCOMING SHOWS
18.08.2021 Aboagora – Between Arts and Sciences, Sibelius-Museo, Turku 7pm
Songs and discussion
11.11.2021 Tampere-talo, Tampere 19:30pm
17.11.2021 Sellosali, Espoo 7pm
25.11.2021 Malmitalo, Helsinki
Astrid Swan photo by Valreza Collective
In May, Astrid Swan released ‘Silvi’s Dream’ – the first taste from D/other
“It takes some personal inner-strength to compose songs in this manner and to be honest I’m in awe of her ability and resolve to do so.” Nordic Music Review
“The song takes on special meaning, personally, thinking of leaving your child with the perfect pop song as evidence of your love; I don’t think anyone could have penned a better one, so well played to Astrid here!” Austin Town Hall
“Finnish frontwoman keeps things bright and uplifting with this soaring new offering” Mystic Sons
“…releasing a stunningly beautiful but smoothly rolling new single, Silvi’s Dream” Päivän Biisi
“…a melodic indie-pop song about the relationship between mothers & their children. Enjoying her gorgeous vocals flowing over a warm pop production!” Caesar Live N Loud
OCTA Music Weekly “The Finnish highlight is the wonderful new Astrid Swan single Silvi’s Dream”
“Silvi’s Dream” is a song as poetic as it is harmonious, balancing the eared side of pop music with the charm and art of folk music. With a luminous energy, it is to listen, preferably at high volume, whenever we need a little brightness in our day.” Phonograph Me
ASTRID SWAN BIO
Astrid Swan is a songwriter, performer and a writer. Between 2005 and 2020 she has published six solo albums as well as a series of collaborative releases. Swan’s solo albums have been released in Finland, USA, England, Germany and Scandinavia. Over the years she has performed her music on many tours in Europe and the USA. Her sixth solo album From the Bed and Beyond won the prestigious Teosto Award in 2018. The album was shortlisted for the Nordic Music Prize and was also nominated at the Emma Awards (her second nomination for a Finnish Grammy.)
Swan’s songs draw from the American songbook of singer/songwriters, blending pop structures with a cold weather poetry of the North. Accompanying herself with piano she exists on the precipice of pop and art. Her lyrics combine to strive for emotional accuracy with poetic storytelling. The result is the feeling of being comforted through hell. Swan writes, produces, records and mixes her music. Over the years Swan has collaborated with a diverse group of artists and creatives: Jimi Tenor, Otto Donner, Emmi Kujanpää, Aamu Song, Nick Triani, Adel Abidin, Stina Koistinen, Owen Pallett, Koko Hubara, Timo Wright. Her latest release was the SWAN/KOISTINEN EP (Soliti) from 2019, a collaboration with singer Stina Koistinen (Color Dolor) and the Canadian violinist/composer Owen Pallett. In April 2019 Swan published a memoir Viimeinen kirjani. The Finnish language essay collection touches on her personal experiences of mothering, artistic development, chronic illness – analysing them in the context and structures of feminism, whiteness, Finnish and American cultural confluence.