ARNALDS, OLAFUR — Found Songs

"In April 2009, Iceland's neo-classical export Ólafur Arnalds created the 7-song series Found Songs -- recording a song a day for 7 days and instantly making each track available via Twitter. With artwork contributions from fans via Flickr, this modern release awakens memories of a tradition that seemed lost in the digital age we live in. Born in 1987, Ólafur hails from the suburban Icelandic town, Mosfellsbær, just a few kilometres outside of Reykjavík. He has immersed himself completely in a world of delicate symphonic compositions generating near weightless orchestral pieces. Arnalds explores the crossover from classical to pop by mixing chamber strings and piano with discreet electronics which makes him a perfect fit for cinematic pop label Erased Tapes. This young artist has been steadily gaining recognition worldwide since his 2007 debut Eulogy for Evolution (ERATP 004CD). The 2008 follow-up EP Variations of Static earned Ólafur acclaim from both the contemporary and classical field -- transcending a traditional divide by uniting their ideals. After filling London's world-famous Barbican Hall, fellow Icelanders Sigur Rós invited Ólafur to open some of their European shows, playing to an audience of over 5,000 per night. In anticipation of another full-length release, Ólafur conceived Found Songs as a way to collate several lost-and-found musical sketches and ideas in a "very challenging, but fun" series. The experiment offers its listeners an intimate insight into Ólafur Arnalds' creative world. The songs are different from Arnalds' previous output -- comprised mostly of shorter piano suites and electronics-embellished, string-led ruminations -- and so far, more than 70,000 people downloaded the Found Songs series via foundsongs.erasedtapes.com. Each track inspired a wealth of artwork from his fans -- submitted via Flickr. Hosting this project on their official web site, Erased Tapes Records watched the collaboration between Arnalds and his online audience flourish, and found it fitting to combine the music and artwork into one complete work. This is a limited edition, re-mastered physical release, available on CD and in a 10" vinyl." [label info]

www.erasedtapes.com