Misplaced by boerd

Swedish producer Bård Ericson (aka boerd) returns to Anjunadeep, masterfully melding the organic and electronic in his nuanced new album ‘Misplaced’.

Written between the remote woods of Northern Sweden, a studio in Stockholm Old Town, and Ericson’s own apartment over the course of two years, the multi-instrumentalist postulates ‘Misplaced’ to be his most ambitious and fulfilling project yet:

“Within this record I tried to craft sounds that balance beauty and sadness. For me, with all forms of good art, the most interesting thing is that it can take you to a place that is confusing, mysterious and maybe even scary. It makes me feel vulnerable in a good way. That vulnerability makes me feel alive and connected - to the world and all the people in it. I believe that everything and everyone is partly broken, and there’s a certain beauty to that which I try to capture in my music.”

Carefully treading this line of unpredictability and familiarity, Ericson realises his unique style in the coalescence of electronic production and real instrumentation. The latter of which has now taken a more prominent role in his songwriting:

“Most of the songs are built around my own recordings of piano, guitars, cello, voices, percussion and ambient sounds - I seem to use less and less pure electronic sounds like synthesizers and drum machines… I’ve come to explore more organic and melancholic sounds.”

Ericson’s increased desire to involve instrumentation comes as no surprise. A regular member of the Royal Swedish Opera, Swedish Radio Symphony, and Stockholm Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the producer has also proven himself as an accomplished double bass player for numerous ensembles touring around the world:

“I’m heavily influenced by classical music. I studied it for 5 years at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, and since 2015 I’ve been working full time playing classical music. It’s weird that I have two completely different musical careers going on at the same time, but I’ve been doing both since I was around 14 years old.”

This deep immersion in the classical world shines through in his latest LP, from the Puccini opera-inspired chords of ‘Mud’, to the cello arrangement of ‘Silver.’

Concluding a year that has seen him accrue over 6.4M streams, boerd’s ‘Misplaced’ is the culmination of decades spent honing his craft and drawing inspiration from his native homeland:

“This is a collection of songs that I've been working on for the last 2 years. Most of them were created in my family's summer house in the woods of northern Sweden. I like to think that the stillness, melancholy and beauty of that landscape is somehow reflected in these 10 songs, at least that's what they represent for me.”

Very much a one man band as he is a gifted producer, boerd will take his album to the stage on January 23rd in London, where he’ll be playing his second headline live show in the capital. December 13th will see boerd release a striking live rendition of ‘Before We Drown’, recorded at PERC. Studios in Stockholm with a 4-piece band including friend and collaborator Stella Explorer.

Bård Ericson is a musician and producer from Stockholm, Sweden.

Instagram: @boerddd

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