Backstrom – The Journey (2023)
Blending elements of folk, country and rock into a harmonic twirl of moving music, Swedish musician Backstrom has you entranced from the first chord. A songwriter primarily, the solo project brings forthright brashness of one person but surrounds himself with others to add more to the music. A collective of session musicians, Backstrom has worked with Bart Topher (vocals), Fransisco Paz (drums and percussion), Luca Giannotti (guitar and bass), and Kimberly Faith (backing vocals) – all working together on Backstrom’s upcoming debut album The Carousel. The album isn’t yet available for our ears to peruse (actually, it’s being released this week); however, the debut single ‘The Journey’ is ready and waiting.
Hitting the ground running, Backstrom releases ‘The Journey’ as the first single of 2023, followed quickly by ‘It’s Too Late’, ‘Animal’ and a remastered version of ‘The Journey’. As with many of the tracks, ‘The Journey’ has a strong country vibe tinged with hints of folk-rock around the edges. Not as rugged as ‘Animal’, the debut single is lighter and airier and brings a laidback feeling to listeners. Interestingly, while the laidback calm exists it is a surface soothing hiding the tumultuous waves beneath.
From the moving guitars to inviting drums with soothing percussion interspersed throughout the song, ‘The Journey’ is a true journey of sound. Country at its core, the theme taps at life experiences which are distinctive of the country genre. Kenny Rogers gave life advice in ‘The Gambler’ telling us to know our limitations, and Backstrom tells us to hold on even in the darkest of times in ‘The Journey’. Bart Topher’s rugged vocals urge us to continue through the tough times with the instrumentation, particularly the guitar, adding a hopeful streak of optimism.
Remotely recorded, each musician contributed their instruments and vocals to ‘The Journey’ from home studios across the globe. So, it is ultimately a homemade track – just a lot of homes involved. I find this intriguing as there is no rawness or roughness in the song’s sophisticated production. In fact, one would imagine all musicians to be in a single studio harmonically blending their sounds with elegance.
Find out more about Backstrom on his Instagram and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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