Neu Alice Boman

: Alice Boman

Based: Malmö, Sweden 

Listen: The ‘Skisser’ EP

Similar to: The OST to the light at the end of the tunnel.

Last year’s ‘Skisser’ EP caused quite the ruckus last year upon its release (well, as much as a collection of lo-fi pop ballads can), and made Sweden’s Alice Boman a bona-fide bloghold name. Fast-forward a handful of months, and news of Boman’s follow-up entitled ‘EP II’ swiftly arrives. Recorded in the middle of a forest inside a wood cabin (a fact which’ll probably make you go “oh, that explains it”), Boman’s opening her emotional floodgates.

Leading the brigade of her sophomore release is ‘What’, a track with an illuminating Medieval bent, sort of like the sunlight cracking though stained-glass windows. The bass is ever-so-subtle, but therein lies its power. A gentle throb here from Boman’s left-hand and a dulcet tinkle there from her right, and the piano becomes a majestic entity, capable of conjuring so much more than mere emotion. In her sparse approach to composition, predominantly using piano, with scant percussion and the occasional flare-up of clarion brass, Boman crafts excellence.

She’s set to release her debut LP soon. Well, sorta. ‘Skisser’ and ‘EP II’ are to be packaged together for an ‘album’ this coming June, in a similar vein to Samaris’ first record. It’s a good chance for those only just stumbling across her restrained elegance to pick up both releases, and although it’s not technically an album, it provides a meaty slab of noise from Boman that’ll take a considerable while to fully digest – by which time, there may be a full-length proper on the way.

Catch Alice Boman playing Brighton’s The Great Escape tonight (8th May), 11.30pm at the Dome Studio Theatre.