As an avid listener of R&B and Soul music, I’ve found that over the last couple of years the sudden swoop of electro-pop has taken over and left the genre to slowly but surely come to an end. On a quest to reignite my hope, I stumbled across London-based Scandinavian R&B, Soul and Jazz singer Marie Dahlstrøm.
Turning music from a hobby into a strong passion, the singer made the decision to leave her hometown in Roskilde County, Denmark to travel to London in pursuit of a career in music.
Admittedly, it was Marie’s name that drew me to her music expecting to hear something along the likes of Björk. With that assumption in mind, my view on the singer was immediately changed the minute I pressed play to listen to her single “What Did You Say,” her soothing vocals vocals accompanied only by the keys of the piano leading me on a search to find out more about her soulful sound.
http://youtu.be/f_Nma80R6Ug
Taking to music first as a hobby, Marie Dahlstrom was always surrounded by music with the help of her parents playing Soul music, in particular the sounds of ’80s contemporary R&B duo Womack & Womack’s in their family home. Pursuing her hobby she attended the Sankt Annæ Gymnasium – a prestigious music school in Denmark – and from there on, music became her passion.
Developing her skills and love for music, Marie discovered that Soul music in particular made a big impact on her life and wanted to create some material of her own. The style of music wasn’t too well received in her hometown, leading to her decision to move to London to pursue a career in music in 2010.
Residing in East London, the singer started off her pursuit performing as part of a band for a residency at Charlie Wrights International in Hoxton. The success of the band at the residency led to Jazz FM picking up the singer to perform at their Discovery Show later on in that year. Moving more towards solo performances, the singer gained a residency at Native Tongue in Barbican throughout the majority of 2011, leading to the release of her first EP, Feelings.
http://youtu.be/FHEAy9TdTeM
Released in November of that year, the six-track project was written, composed and produced in her own home. Dahlstrøm used the project to reflect on her time spent in London so far – using the sounds of Jazz, R&B and Soul to tell her story. Armed with a tender voice, simple lyrics and sensual harmonies, Feelings EP works as an intimate project providing what the singer describes as, “Soul with a Scandinavian touch.”
Dahlstrøm recently finished studying vocal performance and music production at the London Centre of Contemporary Music and is in the midst of releasing some of her new material throughout 2012, that I can only wait (im)patiently to get my ears around. Dip in.
Download: Marie Dahlstrøm – Feelings EP – iTunes UK / iTunes US
Marie Dahlstrøm online: mariedahlstrom.com / Twitter / Facebook / Soundcloud
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