- 2024-06-09
-
MUSIC
-
Dagny Releases New Mini-Album “ELLE”
Norwegian singer-songwriter Dagny released her new mini-album “ELLE” on June 7, 2024.
It is her first project in four years since the 2020 debut album “Strangers / Lovers”.
The first instalment in a trilogy of mini-albums Dagny is planning for release over the coming months.
The mini-album comprises a 8-track, produced by Oliver Lundström, Edvard Førre Erfjord, Tyler Spry, Simon Oscroft, Tommy King, Jason Gill, Oskar Widén, Kent Sundberg, Cato Sundberg, Nick Hahn, and Anton Engdahl.
Dagny said of the album, “I'd always been a bit nonchalant about the idea of a 'difficult second record', but I had to eat my words a little here. I didn't want to write the same album over again, but finding new things to inspire me musically and personally - turned out to be more challenging than first expected.”
She continued, “Having experimented with a variety of sounds, emotions and subjects, I had all these songs that meant something to me, but I needed to find a way to put them all together in an album. Not wanting to limit myself creatively or emotionally, I started playing around with the concept of different alter egos or amplified versions of myself, as ways of organising the songs. And so, I decided to call the project 'ELLE', meaning 'she' in French.”- She added, “Creating a character like ELLE first allowed me a creative outlet to share emotions and experiences without feeling like I was oversharing personally - It felt a little easier that way. Ironically though, I think some of these lyrics are my most honest. The album has the drama arc of a romantic comedy: you gotta go through all the emotions, and at the core of it, there's a hopeless romantic who wears her heart on her sleeve. To me, that's ELLE.”
She said, “While writing the album, I found myself drawn to the sonic influences that inspired me at different periods of my life. I dived back into the 90s (the decade I was born) and spent hours listening to some of my favourite indie bands, like the Cardigans, and it was their more organic, indie-soundscape that inspired me most during that time. These sounds, as well as songs from the big world of synth pop, give me a sense of escapism and continue to inspire me. They are part of me, and therefore ELLE too!” -
Dagny explained about some tracks for the mini-album.
“Heartbreak In The Making”
“I wrote 'Heartbreak In The Making' with Oliver Lundström & Maria Hazell and I abso-fuckin-lutely love this one. Heartbreak In The Making is essentially about diving into something, even though you have that gut feeling that it's never going to end well. It's a bit like the first tequila shot at a bar; you know where the night is headed, but you do it anyway.”
“Same Again (For Love)”
“Have you ever lost yourself in a relationship? Have you wished so desperately for it to work that you change things you like about yourself to fit the other person? Have you made compromises to the point where you completely lose sight of who you actually are and what you truly stand for? I have. And I won't do that again...”
“Ray-Bans”
“Inspired by the 90s melodic and melancholic pop; Ray-Bans offers a different mood and shows a slightly more vulnerable side than some of my previous music. I hope it can soundtrack the melancholia of the autumn, for those who might need it.”
“Strawberry Dream”
“If we were in a romantic comedy movie, then Strawberry Dream would soundtrack the scene where the main character realises 'their person' has been there, right under their nose, the entire time and now's the time for action. A bit like my personal favourite romcom character; Bridget Jones, and her Mark. They say something like 70 percent of people have met the love of their life before aged 21. Mindblowing facts to me, but who knows? The title is undoubtedly inspired by one of my favourite pick and mix candy bites, the Strawberry Dream.”
Photos by Torgeir Rørvik - source : Apple Music
