I’ve gotten several e-mails wondering how the whole 365 albums thing is coming along, and to this I have to to say, swimmingly. It’s been a revelation and a whole mess of fun. Currently, I’m putting together a list of all the albums I’ve listened to so far and the tracks that really grabbed me and as soon as that’s finished I’ll put it up. In the meantime I wanted to share with you a discovery I came upon yesterday that completely blew me away.

The band is Loney, Dear and it’s essentially a one-man project from Swedish multi-instrumentalist Emil Svanängen who — from the basement of his parents home — has crafted four albums of beautifully written songs.

The music is transcendent. It’s delicate, layered, melancholic, soulful and above all else surprising. Melodies, which seem simple at first, layer and rise to crescendos which never seem forced or anthemic. Emil’s falsetto feels as much like an instrument as it does a voice and it has the ability to reach into your heart and set it on fire.

This sounds like rock critic hyperbole, I know, but it’s not. This is — for lack of a better way to characterize it — pop/folk genius and it’s moved me in a way I haven’t been moved by a record in a long time.

Click the image below to be taken to a download page.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 8th, 2008 at 4:46 am and is filed under music.