Features Taken By Trees

Once part of Swedish indie-pop stars The Concretes, vocalist Victoria Bergsman is now going it alone under the guise of Taken By Trees. DIY investigates.

Victoria Bergsman is probably best known for her work as lead vocalist of The Concretes, and her guest spot on last year’s unlikely anthem, Peter, Bjorn and John’s ‘Young Folks’. She’s now going it alone, using the name Taken By Trees, and has just released a star-studded debut album, ‘Open Field’.

Why did you decide not to use your own name when releasing solo material?
I wanted to have a name that had something to do with nature. I think it is a beautiful phrase. I didn’t want to use my name for this music project, I wanted it to have its own name.

Is your album a radical departure from what people will know of you from The Concretes?
It is a more stripped sound, but my voice is still there of course.

Your album features a fair few famous friends - was this a conscious decision?
The people I’ve chosen for the album are chosen for their talent, and ‘cause I like them very much as people too.

Is it a bit scary going it alone after having been in a band for so long?
Very, but it is necessary. I can’t do it in any other way. I think it is important to try out things that feel a little scary to see that they are not so scary after all.

What do you hope people take from the album?
I hope it will inspire people to be more creative and get their imagination going.

You’ve said you don’t like touring much - will you be planning any live dates for the new project - or is it only meant to be on record?
Correct, I don’t enjoy touring. I am planning to do a few shows. A few at a time, to see how it feels before I book any more. I am trying to be more careful with myself these days, not pushing myself to do things I don’t wanna do.

What plans do you have for the second half of 2007?
Start to write more music, I would like to write music for a film, and do some shows.

Finally, what is your favourite tree?
At the moment, cedar.