Arrested by Song #1

I'd like to write occasionally about the moments when a song just grabs you, takes hold and refuses to let go. So this is my new occasional feature called 'Arrested by Song'.

Today I was possessed by 'The Meter Marks OK' by Loney, Dear (the intriguing stage name of sweet-voiced Scandinavian Emil Svanangen. I first encountered him in 2009 at End of the Road Festival in Dorset, a beautifully green and polite festival with a perfect amount of attendees. Not having heard of him, and amused by the regular confusion of the word 'Loney' for the word 'Lonely', my father and I stumbled toward the main stage in the mid-afternoon sun, hoping for a pleasant surprise at best. His set was low-key, subtle and charming and his onstage banter was handsomely bizarre (there was a lengthy reference to the festival reminding him of a 'child balloon party', whatever the chuff that is - can any Swedes help me out?). This song, towards the end of the set, was the highlight, although it has taken nearly two years for it to sink in.

The video below begins, as the performance I saw did, with him teaching the audience an airy, playful singalong which errs just on the wrong side of being difficult to remember if you haven't heard the song before. He got most of the audience humming along at least, include me and my dad, but it wasn't a loud, energetic howling along like the singalong of so many rock shows. It was a beautiful chorus of charm and contentment. I am slightly ashamed to say that I forgot his set quickly because I soon witnessed the insanity of Bob Log III on the same stage, but today rediscovered the beauty of the song.

I got the album, 'Loney, Noir' last night on a whim, having seen a video in the related videos on youtube which reminded me of that set way back when (well, 2009). I recalled there being a singalong with a sweet, fragile but confident voice but couldn't remember the melody. I enjoyed the album greatly from the off, and was just about to give up hope that I would find that moment on record when it suddenly kicked in, about 2/3 of the way through the track. I listened to it on the train on the way to work this morning a great number of times because I was sat outside Waterloo for nearly half an hour. I was enjoying the song so much I didn't even sigh in despair. Give it a listen and, if you like it, buy the album. It's one of the best Scandinavian albums of the last five years and has genuine beauty.