Alice Boman - The Space Between

 

New album release by Swedish songstress Alice Boman The Space Between, out via Play It Again Sam on October 21st

Boman burst onto the scene in late 2019 with her debut album Dream On, which was greeted with ecstatic reviews and positive feedback the album was a sumptuous mix of hypnotic dream pop songs.

A lot has happened since that album was released, a global pandemic has led to introspection for many people especially creative artists.

This new work is indicative of those months many people who spent that time in solitude and the fear of loneliness that gripped many leading to a real appreciation of mental wellbeing for all people.

This introversion is not a change of style for Boman more an embracing of that which she is good at; her smooth lyrics envelope around the warm melodies she has created here with producer Patrik Berger (Robyn, Lana del Ray). There is a deliberate tone set within The Space Between with ruminations on intimacy and angst, as Boman states, 'Writing is still a way for me to understand myself. As an overthinker, there's this constant motion in my head, so it helps to sit down and write about it to actually understand what I feel or think. Or just to find stillness'

From the outset with opener, 'Honey' there is an earnestness and wistfulness throughout with haunting melody but there is a richness running throughout none more so than on single 'Feels Like A Dream' which features Perfume Genius a song where the marriage of two vocals is reminiscent of Kate Bush at the height of her powers. Unsurprisingly, this was a collaboration brought about by an instagram DM and recorded over the distance, to put how the world has changed into context.

There is a steeliness to Boman's vocals, displaying a softness but a determined nature to be heard by her lyrics, the words which are deeply personal as she comes to grips with settling into a relationship.

This mixture of fear but tenderness is a constant theme that runs throughout an album that is both comforting and spiritual, a treat for those returning to Boman and those who are finding her for the first time. 

The Space Between is out now from Play it Again Sam on all platforms