Remastered Poverina will re-release in 2025, unseen video for “They Need You If They Think You Love Them” out today
Astrid Swan returns to live performance with two shows celebrating the 20th anniversary of her debut album Poverina, originally released in 2005 in Finland. Swan will perform the album at G LiveLab Tampere and G LiveLab Helsinki. At both shows Astrid will be joined by KO:MI.
17th Sept. G Livelab Tampere + KO:MI
19th Sept. G Livelab Helsinki + KO:MI
Joining Swan on stage for these shows will be her long standing band: Mikael Hakkarainen, Veli Kauppinen, Alina Toivanen and Johannes Salomaa. Hakkarainen can be heard on the original recording of Poverina. The rest of the band have played with Swan for over a decade at this point.
Poverina 20th Anniversary Edition will be out in September 2025 as a limited edition CD – with a reinterpretation of the US album artwork by Varpu Eronen. The remaster will feature one unreleased track from the Poverina sessions – “Special One’s” – a song Swan revisited years later on the Teosto-palkinto winning album From The Bed and Beyond. The reissued album features a deep new remaster by Tuomas Salmela.
Original Poverina promo shot by Riitta Supperi
Today, Swan releases a video for Poverina’s opening track “They Need You If They Think You Love Them”. This music video has never been released until now. The video was shot in 2006 in Helsinki and directed by Miika Saksi. For various reasons it never saw the light of day, until now. 20 years on it becomes a visual time capsule of the early 2000s.
Watch “They Need You If They Think You Love Them”
The makers of the music video were:
Director – Miika Saksi
Cinematographer – Jukka Rouhuvirta
Dancers – Gruppen Fyra (Lotta Wichmann, Jenni Nikolajeff, Tommi Haapaniemi)
Make-up and hair – ?
Styling – ?
Producer – Paulus Puusaari
NB: If we have not remembered your name, please contact us and we’ll add your information to the video credits.
“I really hope this song and video get some traction here in the UK, where we need a culture fix, urgently.” Nordic Music Central
Astrid Swan tells about Poverina and the music video
Original Poverina promo shot by Riitta Supperi
“In 2005 I was 23-years old. It felt like realising my dream had taken a long time and I was now too old to be releasing my debut album in the spring. It was a big production, the most expensive album I have thus far made. I had a producer (Nick Triani), engineer (Jyrki Tuovinen, Triani), musicians (names given later) and an arranger for the orchestral parts (Jimi Tenor). There was a combination of home spinning and a nice load of studio time in some of the best studios in the country. I benefited from the timing: just before the absolute take-over of home studios and the decision of record companies to reduce budgets to smaller and then to none.
I had been writing songs since I was 13, but most of the Poverina pieces came relatively freshly, closer to the process of recording. The name of the album [italian, pronounced po-ve-ree-na] is an example of the certainty and playfulness I possessed: my boyfriend’s Italian mother used to call me ‘poverina’ when ever we met or spoke on the phone and I liked the pity and the reference to poverty –– of having nothing and being nothing in feminine form –– Poor girl, tyttörukka. These were the connotations I was evoking. Of course it was a difficult title, often pronounced erroneously as ‘power-ina’ and interpreted as some kind of a feminist statement of empowerment. But my artistry was already constructing its forms both more seriously and more playfully than I was given credit for.
As we recorded, I had the sense that my songwriting was getting better just then and so the atmosphere of studios and my ability to be quite spontaneous allowed for some very new tracks to end up on the album. On the other hand, writing songs for ten years before the first official release is a long time (I am discounting demos here). I had time to imagine and visualize how Astrid Swan would sound like. My vision was vast, I did not want to limit myself. It wasn’t enough to just have a group of musicians to realize one sound, I wanted orchestral sweeps, electronic minimalism and rock as well as jazz band capabilities. Luckily, I got it all. Jimi Tenor agreed to arrange the horns, strings and percussion as well as playing on some songs himself. In the bass department, I got to have both electric (Janne Lehtinen) and double bass (Tapani Varis) on the album. On other tracks you can hear Ninni Poijärvi on violin and my childhood and school friend Juulia Niiniranta on viola. There was Mongo Aaltonen on percussion and on some other tracks Abdis Assefa, Tuomas Toivonen and Arttu Tolonen – the Giant Robots – brought their city cool minimalism. There was the steadiness of Heikki Tikka on drums and the promise of Jukka Eskola’s trumpet playing… So many great musicians were willing to gift their time and sound to the album. If Poverina was a film or a series of TV episodes, it would have been rich in characters and plot twists, but I trusted that everything was united by my storytelling songs, voice and piano. That has been a recipe I have followed ever since, sometimes to more distant nooks and other times I have been almost easy to follow.
Poverina was enthusiastically received in Finland. Though I remember answering questions about my songwriting a lot. Did I really write it all myself? Was I really playing? I was often met with polite disbelief. Was I real? Was I late, early, a copy or an original?
Later I learned that my debut album was especially meaningful to a host of young women and LGBTQIA+ community members, some of whom have become artists of their own. I have no yearning to claim to be the first of anything, but there was a sense of newness attached to me and to Poverina. The fact that I wrote and sang in English was not a problem then. I was perceived as a pragmatist: she must be reaching beyond this land.
Poster for the USA release of Poverina in 2007 (Image by Kaapo Kamu)
In 2007 Poverina was published by Minty Fresh in the USA. Another dream-come-true. There was no music video for the Finnish release in 2005, but in 2006 we made a video for “They Need You If They Think You Love Them”. I remember it was aimed for the US release of Poverina, which had been agreed after a solo showcase at SXSW, Austin in 2006. I wore the copper dress that then featured on the album cover and the music video. In artistic co-operation you can never be certain of the outcome, it is always something resembling a dream and constructing something else from it. The video for “They Need You…” had some elements that I wished for: choreographed dancing, a kind of narrative that builds from the song, but it had others that I felt uncomfortable with. Was I turning into the princess of other people’s dreams that I was warning against on my first ever single? Was I selling or being sold? Ultimately, due to artistic differences and managerial issues, the video was shelved and became something of a mystical memory. I did not see it for 19 years. Now I can watch it and think what if. What if I had traveled to the US with the video accompanying my music? What if I had set aside my hesitation and my searching?”
To read more on the times, here is a link to Swan’s 2024 essay “Fiction at the Root of My Existence” on the early 2000s and what it was like to attempt to forge a career in music as a solo woman on the road.
Original Poverina promo shot by Riitta Supperi
What Chat GPT says about Poverina and its reception
Poverina by Astrid Swan was generally well-received in the 2000s, particularly in Finland, where the album was lauded for its introspective lyrics and unique blend of genres. Critics highlighted the album’s lush, atmospheric arrangements and Swan’s distinctive vocal style. The album was praised for its emotional depth and for incorporating diverse musical influences, such as piano pop, orchestral elements, and even some rock influences.
However, Poverina didn’t achieve massive commercial success on an international scale during its initial release. It garnered a loyal following, especially in Finland and among fans of more indie, singer-songwriter-driven music, with comparisons to other strong female vocalists like Tori Amos and Kate Bush.
In Finland, the album helped Astrid Swan establish herself as a noteworthy solo artist. It was considered a bold and personal debut, and many reviewers appreciated the vulnerability and strength present in the lyrics. The album’s exploration of themes such as love, identity, and emotional struggles resonated with listeners who appreciated the intimate nature of the record.
Overall, while Poverina wasn’t a mainstream hit, it earned significant critical acclaim for its originality and sincerity, and it set the stage for Astrid Swan’s continued career in music.
Historical press quotes for Poverina
“An entire album full of a young singer-songwriter’s own songs is not exactly an everyday occurrence in Finnish pop music…Poverina is an astonishing album, of which the creative team should be proud.” Soundi
“…the best part of Poverina is that the album also knows how to utilize lightness and beauty is not only revealed under storm clouds, but also knows how to love a light summer day. Although the ingredients of the concoction have certainly been mixed up in many ways, Astrid Swan’s vision works really well for us.” Desibeli
“What is clear, however, is that Poverinaa can be quite safely recommended to any pop music lover. If you want to be good to yourself and relax at the end of a hard day, go buy this album instead of a bottle of wine.” Noise
“Helsinki-based Astrid Swan’s debut is a beautifully orchestrated pop that is both cool and dramatic at the same time.” HS
“as getting-away-from-the-norm, escapist fare, this certainly works.” Pop Matters
“Swan is a charismatic performer; one is compelled to follow her, and she makes it easy to do so. And it’s ultimately this charisma that makes Poverina a compelling debut. These are conscientiously made songs; they’re intelligent, whimsical, and entertaining to boot. But they wouldn’t be anything without Swan’s skill as an actor and interpreter.” All Music
Astrid Swan – Poverina (20th Anniversary edition)
Released on Limited edition CD/digital, 5th Sept. 2025
Poverina album cover by Varpu Eronen
They Need You If They Think You Love Them
Poverina
Rock’n’Roll Blonde
Ten Degrees / To the North
Good Girl
Life In a Container
Old-Fashioned Couple
War
Dad Said
The Kinda Tea You Like to Cry In
Second Chance
Daddies
The Day I Got My Pony
Special One’s (OV) (unreleased track)
All songs by Astrid Swan.
Produced by Astrid Swan and Nick Triani
Recorded by Jyrki Tuovinen and Nick Triani
Mixed by Jyrki Tuovinen
Original Master by Svante Forsbäck
20 Anniversary Remaster by Tuomas Salmela @Phonogenic Audio
Artwork by Varpu Eronen
Original promo photography by Riitta Supperi
Vocals, Keyboards, Piano, Guitar, Clarinet – Astrid Swan
Strings & Brass Arranged by Jimi Tenor
Flute, Saxophone by Jimi Tenor
Drums by Hannu Risku and Heikki Tikka
Bass by Janne Lehtinen
Double Bass by Tapani Varis
Guitar, Banjo by Mikael Hakkarainen
Guitar, Acoustic Guitar by Michael McDonald
Guitar, Tambourine – Nick Triani
Baritone guitar – Artu Tolonen
Drum Programming, Electronic Drums and ambient sounds by Tuomas Toivonen
Percussion by Abdis Assefa and Mongo Aaltonen
Cello by Riikka Lampinen
Viola by Jussi Tuhkanen and Juulia Niiniranta
Violin by Ninni Poijärvi
French Horn by Tero Toivonen
Trombone by Jay Kortehisto and Markku Veijonsuo
Trumpet, Flugelhorn by Jukka Eskola
Astrid Swan bio
Astrid Swan is a songwriter, performer, writer and researcher. Since her debut in 2005 she has published six solo albums as well as a series of collaborative releases. Swan’s solo records have been released in Finland, USA, England, Germany and Scandinavia. Over the years she has performed on multiple tours in Europe and the USA. Swan’s sixth solo album From the Bed and Beyond won the prestigious Finnish music award, Teosto-palkinto, in 2018. The album, which describes the experience of becoming seriously ill and encountering the figure of death, was shortlisted for the Nordic Music Prize and nominated at the Emma Awards (her second nomination for a Finnish Grammy.) In 2021 Swan released her latest solo album D/other, which is an accomplished amalgamation of her thematic songwriting over her career, sonic production and her work with the long-term accompanying musicians in her band. In 2019 Swan co-composed, co-produced, recorded and mixed the SWAN/KOISTINEN EP (Soliti), a collaboration with singer/songwriter Stina Koistinen (Color Dolor) and the Canadian musician Owen Pallett.
Swan’s creative expansiveness has resulted in intersecting careers in music, literature and research. At this point, Swan considers it her method to continue to work in all three areas, often inspecting thematic conglomerates in both artistic and research methods at the same time. During her 20-year career in music, Swan has become an award-winning Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil 2021, from University of Helsinki, gender studies) and a practicing researcher as well as an author. She is currently a visiting scholar at Oxford Centre for Life-Writing, University of Oxford 2024-2025, where she works on the Finnish Research Council funded project Counter-Narrative of Cancer. In 2019 Swan published a Finnish-language memoir Viimeinen kirjani: kirjoituksia elämästä (Nemo), which constructed a narrative of the different strands of her life experience from a child who grew up in an unsafe home to a woman who wrote her own songs in the early 2000s to falling ill with incurable cancer in her early 30s. In 2024 Swan published her first novel, Noitarakastaja (S&S Kustannus) which she describes as an experiment on literary form and an elegy to mother-daughter love in the grips of generational violence.
Swan writes, produces, records and mixes her music. Her songwriting has drawn from the American songbook of the 20th century, the nursery rhymes and folk songs of Finno-Scandinavia and the classical and contemporary music traditions of the last centuries. The result is a blend of pop structuralism, art music sensibilities, and the cold weather poetry of the dream escape from the North. Accompanying herself with piano, Swan is a storyteller striving for emotional accuracy in the poetics of popular music. Sometimes this might sound like being comforted in hell, other times like residing in a sonic bloom.
As a composer Swan is currently working on two projects: a) she is recording pop songs to express the insecurity, unpredictability and melancholia of grief and b) she is composing her path toward ancestry by using the recordings of violinist Kerttu Wanne (1905-1963) and pianist Astrid Joutseno (1899-1962) to co-create with them.