Project Description

Interview with
BRUDINI

Interviewer – Dave Bruce

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Photo: Brudini in Clerkenwell, London by Anne-Line Nygaard

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“Radiant Man is the story of a person fighting against a tidal wave. In the midst of a crisis, I find there is something about the enduring human spirit that emerges and brings us closer. Radiant Man is an homage to this human radiance, echoed today in streets everywhere from Wuhan and New York to Sao Paolo and Milan.” – Brudini

‘An absolute triumph’ Louder Than War Magazine

‘Remarkable, and very beautiful’ Danny Fields (Jim Morrison, Iggy Pop, Ramones)

‘Exciting, scary, violent, beautiful, and refreshingly distinctive’ NuSound

‘File besides the much missed Scott Walker’ RawRamp Magazine

‘A cinematic soundscape that is utterly refreshing’ Colorising 

‘One of the most interesting acts you’ll see this year’ Blogtoberfest London

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Have you always wanted to be a musician? When did you get the song writing bug?
In some ways yes. But adult life made me take a long detour before rediscovering it. I always composed songs and played in bands from my late teens into my twenties. I remember I was very inspired by Radiohead, Smashing Pumpkins and Sigur Ros at the time. This was followed by a ten year hiatus until my early thirties. When I started writing music again, my voice had changed and my sound was much more that of a grown man.

How would you describe your sound? Why do you think people resonate with your music?
Soulful, playful and organic. I love analogue instruments and the idea of not ironing out all imperfections. Imperfections are the fabric of real life. So there´s no autotune on my vocals, my piano may not be perfectly in tune. For the rhythm section, I borrow more from jazz than rock, and I have had the privilege of working with some fantastic jazz musicians for a very long time, Casper Hoedemaekers on double bass and Derin Bayhan and Livio Polisano on drums. Finally, vocals are big and upfront, inspired a bit by the old crooners, giving a lot of emphasis to the lyrics.

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Which artist’s music and/or performance, past or present, inspires you today? 
It´s so many. But I would say my inspirations often go back in time a bit, and in terms of genre they are all over the place. Chopin and Debussy, Gainsbourg, Scott Walker and Jaques Brel, CAN, Bowie, Suicide, AIR, Autechre, Radiohead, Nick Cave.

Your debut album is about to be released! Describe its origin and evolution.
From Darkness, Light took five years to create, a period where many things in my life changed as well. Its evolution was as much about writing the actual songs, as it was about finding my voice and expression as an artist, and realizing this is what I wanted to do. So the album concept of an emotional, transitional journey very much mirrors my own personal journey over those years.

What are the signature pieces on the album, and which is your favorite track?
Hmm. If pushed to it, the signature piece is probably Radiant Man. In some ways, it´s a self-dialogue of compassion and recognition from a newborn, forward-looking you, to the part of you which is struggling and fighting on in the present.
I love the track Ariel, which is one of Chip Martins sonnets. Its beauty strikes me every time.

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Any tours or events coming up soon? What are you looking forward to, and what can the fans expect?
I love playing live and the connection you sometimes can achieve with other people. But I guess there will be less of that now because of COVID. I have a homestudio setup, so I will be doing streaming gigs.

If you could perform with any music artist, Alive or Dead, who would you choose? And why? 
A duet with Ella Fitzgerald. She´s amazing. And so strong.

Do you have any long-term aspirations as a music artist? 
I have a long timeframe on this. I just want to keep renewing myself at what I do, always explore and be curious, experiment with different artforms or collaborations. And hopefully put out a lot of work as part of that process, which finds some form of emotional relevance to the people who stumble across it.

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Photo – KK Perales

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What is the best thing about performing to a live audience? What’s been the career highlight so far?
It´s the connection you sometimes can achieve, the moments where you feel everyone in the room is living and experiencing that same moment. It can almost be a bit meditative or trance-like, and doesn’t happen every time of course. My last show in London was like that, a collaboration with butoh artist Thierry Alexandre, percussionist Siemy Di and Casper Hoedemaekers on double bass. We would play a stripped down set as Thierry would move through the space in his otherworldly costume creations. The venue was an old abandoned firestation. Not that many people came, maybe there was an audience around us of 20 ppl at most. But the whole experience was magic.

Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVOURITE:
Album – Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins made me pick up a guitar
Artist – Scott Walker
Movie – Paris, Texas
Place to visit – Paris.
Venue to play – The George Tavern in East-London
Food –  really into oven baked cod at the moment ..
Drink – Boulevardier
Person in History –  Greta Thunberg. She finally made us care.
Tattoo – (If you don’t have one, what would you get?) Don´t want one!

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Photo – KK Perales

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Check out BRUDINI below
Website | Facebook  | Instagram  | Twitter 

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“Fighting against a tidal wave.”

New Single
RADIANT MAN 
Released April 10th
Debut album on May 15th

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About RADIANT MAN

Having become a fan favourite at his live shows, Brudini’s new single Radiant Man unfolds like a Greek tragedy. A protagonist with good intentions, fighting on, crushed against a tidal wave of forces beyond his control.

Recorded in a basement studio in Stoke Newington without any use of a click-track and on analogue instruments only, Radiant Man has a timeless, soothing feel, and features jazz drummer Derin Bayhan (Istanbul) and Casper Hoedemaekers (Netherlands)  on double bass. It was mixed and mastered at legendary NYC analogue boutique studio Sear Sound (John Lennon, Lou Reed, Ryan Adams ++) by Grammy-winning engineer Jeremy Loucas and Brudini.

Radiant Man is the 4th single from forthcoming debut album From Darkness, Light which is finally due for release on May 15th. It follows the critically acclaimed singles Reflections (which is currently is getting solid support on BBC6), Emotional Outlaw and Pale Gold.

Music
Written, recorded and produced by Brudini
All instruments by Brudini except
Drums Derin Bayhan
Double bass Casper Hoedemaekers
Mixing Jeremy Loucas and Brudini at Sear Sound, NYC
Mastered by Jeremy Loucas on 1/2” tape at Sear Sound, NYC

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About BRUDINI and 
Debut Album FROM DARKNESS, LIGHT

«The album is a journey, emotionally and spiritually. During the five years of its creation, I became a father, the Society Club prospered and went bankrupt, my long term relationship ended, and I abandoned my career. For a musician, I guess my story is unusual. But it also shaped my artistic voice.» Brudini

After hanging up his gloves from a career in finance and as co-owner of The Society Club in London, Norwegian born Erik Brudvik’s debut album as Brudini speaks of a life spent journeying and of a man who has traversed seemingly contradictory worlds before finding his creative voice. 

Coined by Louder Than War as “an indescribable talent”, Brudini has drawn praise from NYC punk legend Danny Fields (Iggy Pop, Jim Morrison, The Ramones) and received continued radio support from BBC6, RadioX, and been featured on Radio 2’s Frank Skinner. His live performances include collaborations with Lulu Gainsbourg, appearances at Tate Britain and a sold-out Soho alt-cabaret with LGBTQ-pioneer Lanah P and Erasure´s Andy Bell.

Soul searching and profound, Brudini’s conceptual LP debut From Darkness, Light weaves an abstract, wandering tale through feelings of loss and longing, anger, lust and despair, towards cosmic consolation. The beatific qualities of his songwriting and lyrics fuse seamlessly with poems by Californian writer Chip Martin, at two generations his senior. The narrative comes alive through a visceral soundscape of creaky pianos, analogue synths, syncopated jazz rhythms and the occasional jarring distorted guitar. 

Self-recorded and self-produced, Brudini’s debut is an invitation to slow listening, providing a bare and unusual perspective of the blood and guts of a grown-age transition.

TRACK LISTING

1. Roselight (w Chip Martin)
2. Nightcrawler
3. Hunger (w Chip Martin)
4. Reflections
5. Female Rimbaud (w Chip Martin)
6. Emotional Outlaw
7. Pale Gold
8. God Unknown (w Chip Martin)
9. Radiant Man
10. Ariel (w Chip Martin)
11. Everything is Movement
12. Boulevards

Written by Amélie Burchell. Photo by KK Perales.

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AMNPLIFY – DB