Axel Flóvent Shares “Indefinite” From Debut Album ‘You Stay by the Sea’
November 13, 2020 BY Nettwerk
Rising Icelandic singer-songwriter Axel Flóvent shares the latest single “Indefinite” from his upcoming full-length debut, You Stay By The Sea (out January 15 via Nettwerk Records).
Speaking with Apeiron Sound, Axel says, “I wrote ‘Indefinite’ about merely putting yourself into someone else’s shoes and how important it is to keep listening and learning no matter how defined your opinion is. I feel like we often think we need to protect our own, protect what we’ve learned, and protect what we’ve earned, and it can make us narrow-minded and unwilling to evolve if it goes against what we’ve lived with and learned in the past. I wrote this song about seeing the light that’s on the other side and doing the hard thing to fight your limited mind to get further.”
As if forming aural clouds from the natural elements around him, the music gathers acoustic guitar, piano, and warm electronics across the twelve songs that make up the album. “It’s just quiet,” Axel explains. “There are so many times where the silence is so still. In Reykjavík, we have a lot of emotional and mental space. My path to the studio and running trail is just by the ocean, so I’m always by the sea, hence the title. When I moved back in late 2018, I felt settled. I wasn’t looking for anything anymore. I finally appreciate home and see the beauty in it.” He needed to leave to reach this realization. Born and raised in the tiny Northern fishing village of Húsavík, Axel recorded his first EP Forest Fires, it was here where the songs were written under the influence of everything from Bon Iver to Bombay Bicycle Club, generating over 40 million streams on the title track. With its success, Axel left Húsavík and signed to a major record label in the Netherlands. At 19 years old, he moved into his first apartment and “felt so isolated.” He admits, “I was supposed to be in a music mecca, but I never left the apartment.” So, he traded Amsterdam for the British seaside town of Brighton where he recorded his Youthful Hearts EP. Living in Brighton gave Axel “the clarity to move to Iceland.” Axel returned to Iceland and chose to plant roots in Reykjavík.
Tapping into the D.I.Y. spirit of his earliest recordings, but with a sense of refinement and newfound wisdom, Axel carefully assembled the album with producer Ian Grimble (1975, Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Daughter, Bear’s Den, Mumford & Sons). He incorporated brass on nearly every tune, adding a robust organic energy to the tracks. Simultaneously, he chronicled his personal and musical growth. “The ultimate goal was to bind together my old way of writing songs with what I’ve learned and made it sound like one collective,” he elaborates. “Some of these ideas go back to my bedroom in Húsavík, but many of them are fresh and new. I pictured myself on a journey.”
Pre-order the album here: https://axelflovent.ffm.to/ysbts.
Track List:
01. Tonight
02. Driving Hours
03. Tourist
04. December Traffic
05. Haunted
06. Fall Asleep
07. Still Awake
08. Blood
09. Indefinite
10. How Can I
11. Fireworks
12. You Stay by the Sea
About Axel Flóvent:
Born and raised in the Northern fishing village of Húsavík, Axel recorded his first EP Forest Fires, it was here where the songs were written under the influence of everything from Bon Iver to Bombay Bicycle Club. It yielded an international phenomenon in the form of the title track, generating over 40 million streams. At 19 years old, he moved into his first apartment in Amsterdam and “felt so isolated.” He admits, “I was supposed to be in a music mecca, but I never left the apartment.” So, he traded Amsterdam for the seaside town of Brighton in the UK where he recorded the EP Youthful Hearts. Living in Brighton gave Axel “the clarity to move to Iceland.” Last year, Axel returned to Iceland, and chose to plant roots in the capital Reykjavík. Tapping into the DIY spirit of his earliest recordings, but with a sense of refinement and newfound wisdom, Axel recorded Tourist EP and forthcoming debut album with Ian Grimble (1975, Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Daughter, Bear’s Den, Mumford & Sons).
“There’s a purity, an assured honesty of Axel’s work which leaves a lasting impact.” – Clash
“[Axel Flóvent] recalling the likes of Damien Rice and Justin Vernon but with added melancholy” – The Line of Best Fit
“Flóvent has a naturally flawless vocal range, rising and falling dramatically alongside heavy piano chords and singular electric instrumentals” – EARMILK
“Flóvent’s vocals are full of raw emotion.” – Wild Honey Pie
“When Axel sings, he’s guiding you to that holy place of sanity. Improprieties are swept to one column of categories, to be dissected and rearranged. Love is what it is. Credibility for going onward is that challenge for survival and turning of the chapters” – Come Here Floyd
For Fans of The Paper Kites, Ásgeir, Bon Iver, Novo Amor, Gregory Alan Isakov, Dermot Kennedy.
