The Turning of the Tide aims to capture the unstoppable moment when the currents of the sea draw back and all directions in life shift. Crafted by Swedish-Norwegian classical pianist and contemporary songwriter Lotta Karlsson, she embarks upon vivid genre-crossing soundscapes with folk-like traditions transcending into an almost cinematic journey filled with beautiful acoustic tones, electronic rhythms, and Nordic melismas that speak to the deeper aspects of life. Experience "The Turning of the Tide," a musical journey capturing the powerful moments when life takes a new direction with raw emotions and memories left behind as the currents of the sea draw back.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Kamil) Hey The Turning of the Tide, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Hi Kamil! Great to talk to you too!
Well, it was definitely the evenings growing up, lying in my bed and hearing my father play the piano downstairs. He was neither a trained musician, nor did he play very well, but still the magic of the music soaring up through the ceiling, silvery notes floating in the air, mesmerized me. It was a world like no other, and I knew I had to be part of it somehow.
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Wow, good question! So many great artists I love and respect out there. First of all, I love collaborating with people with quite different backgrounds than me, who are from different musical styles and experiences. I find it gives new perspectives, can take things into unexpected directions, and often makes the sum greater than the parts.
A dream though? Oo, I don’t know. There are too many of them out there! Right now I am obsessed with certain ways to treat instruments and production by Serptentwithfeet. I would also love a session with Swedish artist Jonathan Johansson, I am crazy about his percussions and synths. As for acoustic musicians and ensembles, there are some experimental string quartets that also inspire me a lot, such as the Kronos quartet, or Swedish Fleshquartet.
Any kind of symphony orchestra would also be high on the list, haha!
Your latest song is 'More than Bread Alone'. Can you tell us more about the making of it and if there were any unusual things happening during the process?
I remember that the whole song was sort of born out of the first two chords - they captured an emotional experience that I seemed to be wading in at the time.
I was having trouble justifying to myself my need to do music, when there were so much more important things I could be doing - saving lives, making a change politically, “contributing”, as I felt. I also felt that as soon as I tried to do something else than music, my body simply wouldn’t take it, and I would become ill, and so I felt I was not as a good human being, or something, since I didn’t seem to be able to to fit into whatever the norm of society would be, or what I felt was expected. So you could say it was a way of reminding myself that we need more than that as well, we need something to live for, not only to survive.
What are you focussing on right now?
There are many different projects and productions going on, but artistically I think it is about finding out even more how far I can go in certain directions. Once thing I am experimenting with is to see how minimalistic I can go, since many of my productions and songs are quite full and intense. I want to see how naked other songs can become for the album that will be released next year.
What are you most proud of?
Intense question!
I think every artist, musician, actor, etc should be proud of themselves for throwing themselves out into the ocean of uncertainty that is the life we choose, and for putting our hearts out on the line. I know it’s been tough for me to trust the process in past years, and I am so happy for having gone through with it. I think in the end it is not so important what my “big” moments are, what achievements I might have, or even what hard times I might have gotten through. I’d say what I look back at, and am proud of, is rather the part big luck and fortune, part persistency and choices, that have brought me somewhere where I feel greater happiness and contentment than yesterday.
What is the biggest challenge of being an artist?
I think there is not one answer here, it is different for everyone, and it is also different in different periods and stages. I think maybe though I would cite, that for me, it’s often been living with the uncertainty and insecurity that the future holds. In many ways it might seem tempting with a regular, steady job and life, where I would know how next week, next month, next couple of years would look, but it just has never worked for me. In the end, it might have been better to embrace that uncertainty, and the possibilities that come with it.
How do you structure your day?
Haha, this sort of relates to the previous question as well… Since my life as an artist is so different from week to week, doing different projects, being on tour in different places, being at home, in studio, I find it hard to have any overarching structure at all. But I do try to be active in the morning, I find that exercise helps me focus and makes me creative. Apart from that it is my to do list, where I write both what I need to do but especially what I NEED to do - i.e. what I need for my own creative need. Then I try to balance them. Luckily, I don’t find it difficult to find motivation at the moment, I just find it hard to sometimes find time for everything I want to do.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of music?
I love all types of art, and love going to different performances. Everything that expands my mind and gives me new perspectives.
I also have a need of using my body, and preferably quite tough workouts where I push myself. I find I have a quite active, natural tendency towards anxiety, and to really take it all out physically is one of the best things I know to stabilise me over time.
I guess wouldn’t be a scandinavian if I didn’t say being in nature as well. Maybe not so much all the time, but I HAVE to live somewhere close to water. In summer there is hardly a day without me going into the lake or the ocean, and I often continue swimming a few times per month in winter as well. I think that is as close as I come to being religious, there is something so connective and immersive for me to be carried by the water.
Do you sing in the shower? What songs?
I don’t actually! But I DO sing when I do the dishes, or when I clean my home! And then it is eeeeverything. Often things I listened to when I was young though, or some Swedish folk music. Or opera. Or hits. Or musicals. Or… The list can go on…
What are your plans for the future?
In the recent future of course, there is the release of my debut EP this fall. Then my first album next year! And tours this summer.
But for the more distant future, I just hope that I can continue to be so fortunate as to make a living from arts and music, to continue having exciting collaborations, new meetings, learning and to growing. Then I would feel blessed.