ON THE VERGE | Oh Land
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WHO: Nanna Øland Fabricius
WHERE: Brooklyn, NY (via Denmark)
SOUNDS LIKE: The futuristic swirls and crunchy beats of a ghost from another planet.
CLAIM TO FAME: SXSW 2009, where she caught the eye of Epic Records
FOR FANS OF: Roison Murphy, Little Dragon, Florence + the Machine
LISTEN TO: “Wolf & I,” “Rainbow”
[MP3]: Oh Land – “Sun of a Gun” (right-click, save as)
There is a sense of assuredness in the way that Oh Land sings that I can’t quite put my finger on–like she knows some sort of secret no one else knows–and you can’t help but follow her into her futuristic sonic landscapes. Maybe it’s the way she sings with a barely audible accent (that sometimes slips out on particular words) that makes her so intriguing; or maybe it’s the fact that was a dancer at the Danish Royal Ballet Academy; or maybe it’s the way she describes her music in new ways; or maybe it’s a combination of all three.
But with an opera singer for a mother and a theatre organist for a father, it was only a matter of time before Fabricius found herself experimenting in the music scene. A recent Brooklyn transplant (by way of Copenhagen, Denmark), she was scouted and snatched up by Epic Records at last year’s SXSW festival. With the release of her self-titled EP (her US and major label debut) this past October, plans are in effect for the full-length to be out sometime in 2011.
Although she has only recently had her US debut, Oh Land already has a full-length record to her name. Fauna was released exclusively in her native Denmark via Fake Diamond Records in 2008, thought it can now be downloaded on iTunes worldwide.
“Son of a Gun,” a catchy pop tune and the first single of the EP, is a little introduction to the talented sonic crafter, but it certainly isn’t the best she has to offer–only a taste of what she is fully capable of; “Wolf & I” and “Rainbow” are even catchier. Plus, her music translates surprisingly well in a live setting. (Watch her stripped down version of “Rainbow” below!)
“My goal is to sound like I’m from 2050, but still feel really classic, like the music is an old friend.”
This is clearly just the beginning for this young artist who cites Björk as one of her major influences, and it’s going to be very exciting to see what she does on her full-length next year.
[MP3]: Oh Land – “Sun of a Gun” (Savage Skulls Remix) [right-click, save as]
**To download mp3 from soundcloud player, click the arrow on its right side below “info.”
[MP3]: Oh Land – “Sun of a Gun” (Yuksek Remix)
[MP3]: Oh Land – “Sun of a Gun” (Ian Pooley Remix)
