News SOHN: ‘I Never Really Feel The Need To Project Happiness’

When London via Vienna songwriter SOHN asserts “I’m not really constructing anything,” he’s quite frankly fibbing. There’s a reason why, amongst an influx of new acts at the tail-end of 2012, he’s one of the few still standing, becoming even more intriguing rather than folding up and taking refuge. A song like ‘The Wheel’ gaining 300 thousand plays online might act as another factor, but there’s more to it than mere happenstance.

Mentally and physically bruised from the recent SXSW in Texas, SOHN’s returned from performing five shows straight. But these were some of the first dates he’s ever played. With that hideaway mentality - considering he’s been chased to play shows for eight months or so - comes added expectation, but with said retreat from the spotlight, he’s managed to hone in his live set, and apparently it’s gone down a storm.

“You shouldn’t really plan for live when you’re writing. The possibilities should be endless. Do the music, whatever comes,” he says. “But Albin, the band’s synth genius - he’s been involved all along. So it’s always been a conversation.” If you’ve caught any footage of SOHN’s initial shows, you’ll have noticed his ‘experienced’ backing band. “That’s a nice way of putting it,” he jokes. One’s a live bass player and the other - Albin - decks the stage with four synths. Sometimes it looks like he’s playing all of them at once.

What emerges is a “wall of synth.” But on record, the intention’s been to apply less, rather than more. “Somehow by leaving more space you allow the listener to get involved,” he states, “and somehow it gets you much closer to what’s going on.” This songwriting technique is less conscious than it is pure default. SOHN says he has this habit of “not following things through.” But with impatience breeds immediacy.

Subject matter isn’t always distinct or easy to pick out from SOHN’s tracks. “A lot of the time it’s conversations with myself,” he states. ‘Bloodflows’, we’re told, is about a lyric hitting you right in the gut; a line or snippet of song that draws up a personal experience. But the song keeps playing. “It’s masochistic music listening,” he explains. While these tracks aren’t necessarily dealing with dark and grizzly emotions, they’re not joyous beings. “I never really feel the need to project happiness. Happiness comes out in your regular life,” he says. “It’s funny, half the time you don’t know what you’re writing about until it’s already written.”

Happy accidents - audible doodles, then - have had their way on a number of listeners. But SOHN’s trying to keep his cool. He’s yet to announce a London show because “there has to be a really good reason,” and he’s only just penned a deal with a record label, 4AD. All this rejection seems to have benefited this project. Like a plot twist that only reveals itself at the very end, it’s the suspense that hangs. Intrigue is the most flattering form of attention.

Taken from the May 2013 issue of DIY, available now. For more details click here.