Julia Rakel - indie fEElz (EP)

Julia Rakel (Foto made by Emma Karlsmark Elfstrand)

GLOBAL

Swedish musician and producer Julia Rakel is the latest addition to Stockholm indie label Rama Lama Records' (Melby, Steve Buscemi's Dreamy Eyes, Chez Ali etc.) roster.

Debut single PDFILWM was released in January and have since grabbed the attention from influential Swedish media as well as international blogs, calling it a "lo-fi gem". Follow-up single People (released om February 12), a cynical song about shallow acquaintances and the second look into Julia's peculiar bedroom pop that culminated in a six track EP on March 15.

Just like the debut single PDFILWM, People is the result of hours of music making in the lonesome bedroom. Julia works at the well-known Malmö studio Tambourine and her credits include sound design and music for the award-winning short film Plankton. With her expertise as a producer she's refined her stripped-down sketches to a daydreaming beautiful soundscape that develops with every listen. This, put together with Julia's individual vocals and often ironic lyrics, create a intimate and memorable sound that there will be plenty more of during the upcoming months. 

Julia Rakel's own words about the single: "The song came to life after a house party i attended a couple of months ago. The following day i wrote and recorded People. It’s quite the cynical one about the shallow acquaintances we collect during the years. Although none of us is particularly interested in what ”you’ve been up to recently” or ”how work is going”, we still insist on having these very forced and super boring conversations over and over again. There’s a reason why we never say ”hi” anymore." 

About the Debut EP indie fEElz: 

A six track creation that according to Julia is a try to deal with the very different kinds of relationships we have with each other and ourselves through "a lot of irony, drum machines and way too many choir parts". The tracks treat universal topics such as forced acquaintances, love, desperate attempts to be understood, how we feel about our egos and a sad celebration of friendships.