Sunwards

Artist and songwriter Lasse Passage is releasing his third record Sunwards - an album that came into being while travelling alone with an acoustic guitar in Mexico.

At first glance, Sunwards is a handful of charming and catchy pop-songs, but upon a closer listen a more complex emotional landscape emerges - backed up by elaborate arrangements and a detailed production. On his journey in Mexico, he reflects on leaving certain things behind in order to initiate new beginnings - in love as in life. All judiciously dosed with a dark humour and self-irony, making the somewhat universal topics personal, yet relatable.

“Traveling for me has always been an inspirational activity tied to my songwriting. Usually, when I set out I have no other fixed points than bringing my guitar and maybe a return date” - says Lasse Passage. It is easy to let oneself be seduced by the beautiful musical harmonies, soothing arrangements and Lasse’s delicate voice. But already in the opening track “Miles Away” we find sharp and unapologetic observations that keeps the listener awake. It is precisely this contrast, with its layers in both text and music, that give the record its own nerve and makes it an album that keeps growing on you.

Lasse Passage is a free spirited artist with a diverse musical output. He moved to The Netherlands in the early 2000s to study electroacoustic composition, and parallel with being an active figure in contemporary music in Norway, he has developed an intriguing career as a singer-songwriter with extensive touring in Europe the last few years.

Sunwards is perhaps Passage's most accessible and ambitious production to this date. It features a band from the top shelf of the Scandinavian jazz scene (Andreas Werliin, Jo Berger Myhre, Andreas Stensland Løwe, Kim Myhr, Anders Hostad Sørås, Espen Reinertsen and Eivind Lønning), and is mixed by Noah Georgeson, a Grammy winning producer, recording- and mixing engineer - known for his work with Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart, The Strokes and Norah Jones.

The first taste of Sunwards can be heard 19th of June with the release of his first single “Miles Away”, with the album being due for release on vinyl 28th of August 2020 on the Norwegian experimental label Sofa's new series ‘Sofa Songs’.