Icelandic pianist and composer Eydís Evensen released her second album, The Light.
Evensen cites two underlying themes in The Light: it is both a deep reflection on the rough landscapes of Iceland and how they have shaped her personality, as it is an expression of deepest emotions.
&#8220;To me, The Light is a sense of hope and a sense of lighter times as we all experience quite challenging times in the last couple of years. I composed this album inspired by a personal experience and a resolution to that experience, so it sort of gave me a sense of closure, and the sense of relief and I hope that the listener is able to go through this journey with me throughout the album,&#8221; explains Evensen.
Evensen also extended her artistry and composed the first choir piece, The Light II.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve been writing poetry for quite some years, and I&#8217;ve always been fascinated by the world of choirs, especially here in Iceland. We have some really fantastic choir pieces. One of my favorites is Heyr himna simiðr, and I was especially inspired by that piece, and it had been a dream of mine to compose a choir piece.&#8221;
The continuation of The Light II is the piece Dreaming of Light, one of the last on the album, which is out today with a <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpiQK5cxMrQ">music video</a>. Evensen&#8217;s singing voice can be heard in this track, for which she also penned the lyrics.
Stream The Light <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://eydisevensen.lnk.to/thelightLW">here</a>.

Eydís Evensen releases new album The Light

The Manchester trio GoGo Penguin released their anticipated new album: Everything Is Going to Be OK. The music video for the title track accompanies the release, and you can watch it <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://youtu.be/DolDqHG6FSI">here</a>.
A 13-track project was born during a time of turbulence and loss, recorded in a personally difficult period for the band. The album studio time offered the band a sanctuary from real life. The resulting project draws its strength from a shared understanding and empathy with a vibrant and hopeful sonic.
Speaking on the title track Everything Is Going To Be OK, the band state:
&#8220;[Nick] A few years ago our monitor engineer put a sticker on my bass amplifier that said the phrase Everything Is Going to Be OK. Every time I go to switch it on, I see this message. When we were writing this track, we recorded a quick demo and Chris asked me what we should call it. I just instinctively said Everything Is Going to Be OK. As time went on and we grew into the band&#8217;s new chapter, the title became more resonant and meaningful.
[Chris] When Nick and I were chatting about the title we realised we were both considering it from different angles: it brings both a sense of comfort and futility. The reality is that things won&#8217;t always be OK, there will always be ups and downs in life and that&#8217;s ok. But when someone says to you Everything Is Going to Be OK those words come from a place of love and respect, it&#8217;s a reminder that they care for you and are there for you. It&#8217;s been a tough few years for us all and it&#8217;s a beautiful thing to be reminded that we are there for each other and will be no matter what life throws at us.&#8221;
Stream the album in full <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://gogopenguin.lnk.to/EIGTBOKLW">here</a>.

GoGo Penguin’s new album Everything Is Going to Be OK out now

&#8220;Néo-Romance is more about imagining things and telling stories. To lose yourself whilst listening.&#8221; — Alexandra Stréliski
French-Canadian pianist and composer Alexandra Stréliski released her XXIM debut album, Néo-Romance.
This project marks a departure for Stréliski in several ways, not just in terms of subject matter. Composing and recording in Europe for the first time, she also worked with several new musicians and collaborators &#8211; including a string trio; members from the Karski Quartet &#8211; and explored her family&#8217;s past. The songs were written mainly in Rotterdam, where Stréliski moved to be with her partner. And in doing so, she discovered some surprising – and prescient – facts about her family history, their Polish Jewish origins, and her ancestors&#8217; penchant for art and creativity.
Long associated with the neo-classical movement, Stréliski also wanted to distance herself from a tag that doesn&#8217;t accurately reflect her work. Inspired by the idea of encapsulating and expressing emotions through art, and the Romantics&#8217; love of individual expression over the restraints of tradition, she set out to follow her instinct. &#8220;I&#8217;m much more of a romantic in the sense that I express my own inner world to make sense of the wider world. So, the thread I&#8217;m pulling on here is the idea of neo-romance, in a musical way but also as a form of contemplation.&#8221;
Besides, says Stréliski, Romanticism has long been a part of her musical life. &#8220;I was raised playing Chopin, so it&#8217;s deep in my core. I&#8217;m a romantic composer. And with a new love leading me back to Europe, to my roots and these discoveries, it just all came together. It made perfect sense.&#8221;
The release accompanies a music video for the album track, The Breach. &#8220;The Breach is about deconfining yourself, with the febrility and the strength that is needed to reopen your heart after a hard time,&#8221; she explains. Watch <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://youtu.be/Uw5gzTvgW_I">here</a>.
Stream Néo-Romance <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://alexandrastreliski.lnk.to/neo-romanceLW">here</a>.

Alexandra Stréliski releases new album Néo-Romance

Just in for the weekend, Olivia Belli presents her new EP, Of Time.
&#8220;With these 2 new pieces begins a series of my reinterpretations, recompositions, variations on works by J.S Bach but also a personal reflection on the perception of time: how it flows inexorably while remaining unchanged; how differently it is perceived by people &#8211; too slow for those who wait, too fast for those who are afraid, too long for those who suffer, too short for those who love -.
Time does not mark its passage, there is no sign at the beginning of a new month or a new year or even a new century: time is an idea, it is a dimension of the soul.
In terms of &#8220;compositional structure&#8221; I have tried to express this concept by overlapping two or more melodic lines written at different times,&#8221; explains the Italian pianist and composer. Listen <a href="https://OliviaBelli.lnk.to/oftimeLW">here</a>.
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GoGo Penguin continue teasing their forthcoming album, Everything Is Going to Be OK, with a new single &amp; music video, Parasite. Stream &amp; watch <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://gogopenguin.lnk.to/EIGTBOKLW">here</a>.
&#8220;This is a great example of the classic GGP ethos of taking inspiration from the electronic music world and using that on acoustic instruments. The new electronic elements which we&#8217;ve incorporated into our setup never felt like they were struggling for space or feeling like they needed to be included on a track just for the sake of it. When we did include them, they naturally found their place between the piano, bass and drums but sometimes, as in the case of this track, they were just a means to an end, a useful tool when writing and a way of reaching ideas we wouldn’t have found if we hadn&#8217;t experimented with them in the first place.&#8221; — Chris Illingworth
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Finally, out today is the rework of Hugar&#8217;s track fall done by the Polish composer, pianist &amp; singer Hania Rani.
&#8220;Hania&#8217;s interpretation takes the song to another dimension and we couldn&#8217;t be happier with the outcome. Hania was instrumental in the beginning of our touring career, inviting us on our first tour to Poland, which will always have a special place in our hearts. Takk Hania!&#8221;
Add it to your playlist <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://Hugar.lnk.to/fall_ReworkLW">here</a>.

Friday with Olivia Belli, GoGo Penguin, Hugar & Hania Rani

Icelandic pianist and composer will release her second album, The Light on, May 26. Following on her album debut Bylur and EP Frost, The Light further expands on Evensen&#8217;s expression, presenting her not only as a pianist, arranger, and lyricist but also for the first time as a vocalist.
Evensen cites two underlying themes to The Light: it is a deep reflection on the rough and rugged landscapes of Iceland and how they have shaped her personality, as it is a personal expression of a sense of hope and brighter times following hardship. Both are represented by the theme of light – the inner light that guides us and the natural light, so rare in the dark Icelandic winters. Written from personal experience at a time of relief and closure in her own life, Evensen is passing on here a message of both personal and collective hope and resilience to her listeners that better must come. Having dealt with personal challenges in the very best way she knows how – at the piano, making music, this cathartic experience of intense composition and performance has culminated in this project.
The title of the first single, Tephra Horizon &#8211; released today to announce the new album &#8211; refers to the imprint left on a landscape by volcanic ash from a single eruption. Her inspiration behind this track is her witnessing the Fagradalsfjall volcanic eruption of 2021 with its potentially destructive power and dramatic outcome. In the accompanying video directed by Einar Egilsson, we see Evensen returning to a site near the eruption, dancing on the tephra layer as if claiming the territory as her own.
Evensen also announced her first European tour, to take off in June this year. Get tickets <a style="color: #000000;" href="http://eydis-evensen.com/concerts">here</a>.
Stream &amp; watch Tephra Horizon  <a href="https://eydisevensen.lnk.to/thelightLW">here</a>.

Eydís Evensen announces her sophomore album The Light

Dutch pianist and composer ABBOTT teamed up with Hamburg-based Canea Quartett to create their collaborative EP Elv.
The release includes adaptations of ABBOTT&#8217;s tracks and more pieces written for and performed by Canea Quartett.
The themes on the record are very personal &#8211; from love, self-reflection, and relationship with a father. However, pieces vary from feeling intimate to a more grand, cinematic sound.
All tracks come with performance videos whose filming took place in the middle of the Elbe river on an MS Bleichen ship.
Stream &amp; watch <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://Abbott.lnk.to/elvLW">here</a>.

ABBOTT and Canea Quartett release EP Elv

GoGo Penguin return with the announcement of their forthcoming album, Everything Is Going to Be OK &#8211; set for release on April 14.
With the optimism of new beginnings &#8211; a new drummer, a new record label, and a subtly updated and developed sound, the trio from Manchester is entering their more sonically liberated journey. The first glimpse of the upcoming era is the new single, Glimmerings.
&#8220;Glimmerings was one of the first tunes that we began to work on when preparing ideas for a new album. The word glimmerings stood out when I was reading a book by Anil Seth called &#8216;Being You.&#8217; The book is about the science of consciousness and in the Prologue, he talks about how &#8216;glimmerings of ideas began to emerge.&#8217; It felt like the perfect way to describe the process of thought and creativity. Glimmerings started from a small kernel on the synth and over time we added more and more layers until it became something a lot more complex. The idea behind the title is the very beginning, where there is only an idea and an intent to start with, but you have an aim and an idea for where it&#8217;s going to take you and you have to trust in the process and yourself to see where that process will lead you,&#8221; explains Nick Blacka.
Everything Is Going to Be OK was created during a time of turbulence and loss. Recorded in a personally difficult period for the band, which included loss and mourning, the album studio time offered the band a sanctuary from real life. The resulting project draws its strength from a shared understanding and empathy, with a vibrant and hopeful sonic.
Stream Glimmerings  <a style="color: #000000;" href="https://gogopenguin.lnk.to/EIGTBOKLW">here</a>.

GoGo Penguin kick off their new album era

XXIM:EXPO is our exploratory series for outstanding young talents from across the whole spectrum of progressive instrumental music. Each instalment is given to one artist to curate his or her own ideal EP, sharing their own unique musical vision. With XXIM:EXPO we want to give young artists a platform, while mapping out all areas and developments of our wide area of music. 

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