My name is Basko Believes (Johan Örjansson) and I’m from Falkenberg, a small coastal town in Sweden. I have always loved folk music and have been performing for a long while now, until recently only in Sweden.
My first Australian release is Melancholic Melodies, and I am coming to Australia for my first tour there in December this year.
Your debut album, Melancholic Melodies, is set to be released in Australia on the 1st of August. You’ve gone from being a hometown performer in Falkenberg to an international recording artist in a short space of time. Is this something you’ve aspired to for a long time?
Not at all! I guess I have been in a bubble here in Sweden. I never thought I would travel this much with my music as I have been doing the last year. I feel very blessed to get to travel this much and to do the thing I love the most.
You’ve gone from performing under your name to the moniker Basko Believes. Did you feel that you had reinvent yourself for an audience outside of your hometown?
It was just something that came very naturally for me. I had been doing music under my name Johan Örjansson for a lot of years and was kind of tired of the music I was coming up with and the way that it was presented. I needed a change and Basko Believes was the first step.
Tell us about your debut album. What inspired it?
This is a record with songs recorded over the last couple of years. I have already released some of the songs before under Johan Örjansson. With this release I wanted to mix everything with analogue equipment. This is whatinspired me to release these songs — bringing the songs to life in a new way or into what they where supposed to be — if you like.
You recorded music in your hometown and while obviously Melancholic Melodies is a step up in the production stakes how else does the album differ from your older work?
I think the writing is a lot better these days. I have learned not to over work things. The same goes for the music. Less is more.
Musicians who don’t speak English as their first language yet sing it isn’t a new phenomenon, but at what point did you decide to sing and write in English rather than your native tongue?
The very first song I wrote was in English. I haven’t written a single one in Swedish so far. I love writing in English and I feel comfortable doing so. I will probably end up making a Swedish record sometime. Maybe when I run out of words in English.
Can you give us a little background information on the Swedish music scene? What’s it like?
We have a lot of great musicians and bands in Sweden. There are a lot of artists that makes it outside Sweden and that is great. The music scene in Sweden is nice and people tend to go out and listen to more live music now than before.
You’re touring Australia in December. Is this your first time Down Under?
This will be my first time. I have wanted to go to Australia for a long time but never had the money or the time to go. Now getting the chance to both work and travel at the same time seems like a great deal. I am really looking forward to this trip a lot.
Aside from your upcoming Australian tour what else is on the cards for Basko Believes in the coming year?
I have a new record already recorded. I went down to Denton, Texas and recorded with a couple guys from Midlake that I met while touring Sweden with Israel Nash Gripka last year. The record will come out sometime next year. If everything goes as planned I am going to have a lot going on with this record next year.
Where we can see you play next, what releases do you have available and where can we get them?
I am doing a couple of shows here in Sweden this summer. My focus will be on mixing and getting my new record ready for next year. Then of course, I’m coming over to Australia in December! We’re announcing the dates in October I think.
You can buy my latest record now through http://www.aoarecords.com.au/shop/melancholic-melodies/ if you want to.
Watch The Yellow Fields here:
