Klemens Hannigan is one of the founders of and driving forces behind the beloved Icelandic band, Hatari. Earlier this year, he brought out his debut solo album, Low Light, where he has embraced quite a different sound and aesthetic to his band’s signature style.

In his solo work there’s vulnerability, finesse and elegance that he and his Hatari compatriots have often actively shied away from with their focus on industrial, techno punk-rock.

Based in Reykjavik, Hannigan is also a fine artist and a carpenter, whose work has been exhibited in galleries and featured in his music videos.

On Low Light, Hannigan joined forces with Leifur Björns and legendary producer, Howie B, giving further expression to his artistic philosophy, first aired through a public manifesto in which he prompted readers to reflect on the essence of art and the role of the artist.

The manifesto challenged conventional norms, advocating for a blend of naivety and perfection, and emphasising the importance of risk-taking and self-discovery in art.

In our interview, Hannigan discusses his manifesto and its impact on his work, we consider the difference between his solo project and the music he makes with Hatari and Melody A.M. finds out how he manages to make the time for all his creative endeavours whilst also raising three young daughters with his wife, Ronja.

Check out our Best of Klemens Hannigan playlist on the Melody A.M. website for highlights from Hannigan's discography. Visit: www.melodyam.com/klemens

Hailing from Värmland, a county to the west of Sweden, singer-songwriter, Johanna Jansson - better known as Dotter - celebrates a whole decade in the music industry this year. And she does so with close to 110,000,000 streams under her belt (on Spotify alone!). A hit factory? Yep, you could say that.

Starting her professional music journey with more of an Indie and, at times, folk-acoustic flavour, Dotter’s sound has changed and added layers over the years. So much so that, by the time she entered Sweden’s Melodifestivalen contest for the second time (in 2020), the enormously pop-fuelled explosion of ‘Bulletproof’ not only showcased her as an electro-queen but also very nearly sent her to Eurovision as Sweden’s representative… but for two small problems:

‘Bulletproof’ lost out by 1 tiny point to The Mamas and, in any event, the pandemic brought about the cancellation of that year’s song contest. Mind you, the song still went to number one on Svensktoppen, the weekly Swedish chart on Sveriges Radio.

Returning to Mello the following year with the not-less amazing, ‘Little Tot’, really helped secure Dotter as one of Sweden’s leading pop powerhouses.

Johanna’s career as Dotter could be described as interlinked with the career of her fiancée, the writer and producer, Dino Medanhodzic. She has worked with Dino closely for the past ten years and it’s a collaboration that has really brought out the best in both artists and continues to give us massive hits.

In this interview with Johanna, we discuss her work with Dino, including this year’s return to Melodifestivalen with the beautiful ‘It’s Not Easy to Write A Love Song’ as well as newest single, ‘We’re In This Together’.

We also reflect on the hard work Johanna had to put in at the start of her career, in an endeavour to get signed as an artist and how she was able to bounce back brilliantly when, years later, as she was awaiting the birth of her and Dino’s first child, her record label dropped her.

Our conversation explores whether Johanna would consider releasing a full album in future and, she also answers the inevitable question: would she compete in Melodifestivalen for the 5th time?

Tove Styrke first burst onto the scene back in 2009, as a contestant on the Swedish television programme, Idol. Alongside Loreen, Tove is possibly one of the biggest alumni from that talent show in terms of international success. And what’s really interesting about the then-teenager Tove, who went on to sign a record deal and work on her debut album that same year, is that she wasn’t just a mouthpiece for a team of songwriters. Bringing her own song ideas to the studio, Tove wrote or co-wrote 7 out of the 11 tracks on it.

And, as we note in our chat, it’s remarkable that, for an album written and recorded 15 years ago, it has aged very well. It’s anthemic, quirky - in that mainstream sort of way - and, particularly on the Patrik Berger collaborations, gives you a Robyn-esque feel. Which makes sense when you consider that Tove was one of the first people Patrik played his synth ideas for Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own" to, when they were working on Tove’s debut. You’ll be able to hear more on that special studio moment in our interview.

Tove didn’t just ride the wave of her Idol fame but took control of her career and transformed herself into a powerhouse among what she refers to as the “Swedish pop girlies”. Earlier this year, Tove made her acting debut in the Swedish stage adaptation of David Bowie’s ‘Lazarus’, earning excellent reviews and adding yet another skill to her palate.

Our interview took place just as the run of the production was coming to an end: a useful point at which she could reflect on the impact of this experience on her other work and consider whether she’d like to take on more acting roles in the future.
In this conversation, we also talk about her creative process, her admiration for Ethel Cain, Chappell Roan and ionnalee, touring with the likes of Lorde and Katy Perry and the very Swedish phenomenon of the dans band.

Check out our Tove Styrke playlist at www.melodyam.com/tove - it's full of our favourite tracks from her discography.

For the finale of Season 2, Melody A.M. makes a return visit to Norway, with an episode dedicated to singer-songwriter, Vårin Strand, who releases her music under the name Vaarin.

Vaarin hails from Hokksund, a small town about an hour’s drive from Oslo, and she first started writing songs in her early teens. There was a lot of jazz and folk music playing in her home when she was growing up and, while this musical background fed into the sound of her debut album, which came out in 2018, over the years her music has moved much more into the realm of pop. Mind you, there is still a nod to her formative influences in everything she does. 

2023 was a big year for Vaarin with the release of her second long-player, The Identity of Belonging. The first single from the album, 'Dark Matter', with its percussive rhythm section and cinematic feel, called to mind the universe of Agnes Obel’s album, Citizen of Glass. The subsequent singles from the record each built on Vaarin's evolved approach and there was even some experimentation with her voice, as demonstrated on the ethereal, ghost-like crescendo of the song, 'Angel'. 

Joining forces with her close friend, MIIA - another impressive Norwegian singer-songwriter - 2023 also saw Vaarin release a duet called 'Skin of a Fool', which is up there among our favourite tracks of the year. In our interview, we talk about the rather poignant lyrics to that song and explore whether harshness towards oneself, a theme which the song looks at, is actually embedded in janteloven, the Nordic social attitude of disapproval towards expressions of individuality and personal success.

Vaarin tells Doron about the tough times that inspired the writing of her first record and how it helped her overcome that period in her life. She also gives Melody A.M. an insight into her work on her next album, which she started crafting earlier this year.

Towards the end of this episode, you’ll be able to hear an exclusive acoustic version of 'Dark Matter', which Vaarin has kindly shared with us.

On our website at www.melodyam.com/vaarin check out the recommended Vaarin playlist which includes highlights from the Norwegian singer-songwriter's discography.

Faroese artist, Heiðrik, released his debut album, An Invisible Gun, back in 2007. This was the year Patrick Wolf released The Magic Position and it’s striking how these two albums share a very similar Folktronic soundscape, which - listening to them with today’s ears - makes them come across as sibling records. Not unlike Patrick Wolf, Heiðrik's artistic talents span across many different genres and mediums. 

Musically, he collaborates with a variety of Nordic artists including Helena Brimheim, Sigmund and Leah Kampmann, and his releases straddle folk, jazz, country and electro-pop. Outside of creating music, you’ll find him directing music videos (he’s recently directed Brimheim’s excellent new music video, Literally Everything) and, rather impressively, he also spends his time making fine art. 

He’s been nominated for and won quite a lot of awards, including the ‘Best Male Singer' accolade at the Faroese Music Awards in 2017 as well as the 'Best Music Video' award for the single, Monster, in 2018​​. 

Sharing his time between the Faroe Islands and Denmark, this past year, Heiðrik released a tribute album to Björk, reinterpreting some of the Icelandic icon’s tracks and giving them a whole new apparel. He has also recently put out an album with Leah Kampmann - together they release music under the name Einangran - and this album, although released in the autumn, makes for a perfect soundtrack to winter hibernation. In addition, as part of his duo with Faroese buddy, Sigmund, which is called Koboykex, Heiðrik has recently released a country-style cover version of Kylie Minogue’s Padam Padam. 

In our interview, Heiðrik reflects on how he and the Faroe Islands have evolved since 2007 when his debut album came out; he talks about some of his artistic influences and also sheds some light on his ways of working. 

Very graciously, Heiðrik has also shared with Melody A.M. an exclusive live version of a beautiful unreleased track called Island Fever, which you can catch during our interview.

Over on the Heiðrik page on the Melody A.M. website there's a Heiðrik playlist with a selection of his best tracks. Head over to www.melodyam.com/heidrik.

Elias Kapari has been making music for over two decades - in the early days he had his own bands and he subsequently got involved in production and writing for other artists, working with some of the biggest names in the Swedish music industry including: Icona Pop, Molly Sandén, Linda Sundblad, Veronica Maggio, Oskar Linnros, Ana Diaz, Maja Francis, Cherrie, Victor Leksell, Charlotte Perrelli and previous Melody A.M. guest, Stefan Storm from The Sound of Arrows.  

One of the defining chapters of Elias’s career has been his collaborations with Swedish star, Miriam Bryant. Their work together has resulted in a slew of chart-topping mega hits, including ‘Passa Dig’,  Miriam’s duet with Viktor Leksell, 'tystnar i luren' and 'Ge upp igen’, a track she recorded with Yasin. These three songs elevated Miriam’s status in the Swedish music scene and to say they were radio hits would be a huge understatement - you couldn’t get away from them on Swedish radio for months after their release. 

In 2022 Elias and Miriam’s work together was recognised at the Swedish Grammys with the album, PS jag hatar dig, clinching the Album of the Year award and ‘tystnar i luren’ winning the award for Song of the Year.

​Elias’s reach is not limited to Sweden. He’s got a credit on the last Stormzy album after Stormzy heard a song called ‘Nu Till Livet’, which Elias co-created with Daniela Rathana on a Swedish television programme called Helt Lyriskt. Stormzy’s song, ‘My Presidents Are Black’, is built around the main melody from Elias and Daniela’s original. Elias has also worked with Danish success story, Christopher, the star of the Netflix hit film, “A Beautiful Life”, and he is also helping Christopher craft his next studio album. There is also a Kylie Minogue connection - sort-of-kind-of - but you’ll have to listen to the episode to find out more about that.

Earlier this year, the Swedish broadcaster SVT, brought an American TV format called SONGLAND onto Swedish screens and Elias was part of the expert panel on this brilliant show, which is essentially dedicated to the art of songwriting and production. His place on the panel is testament to Elias's esteemed position in the music industry. 

In our interview, we discuss his involvement in SONGLAND, his creative partnership with Miriam Bryant and his forthcoming solo project, allowing him to step from behind the mixing desk and onto the limelight with his own voice taking centre stage. 

On our website, at www.melodyam.com/elias you will find our Elias Kapari playlist with highlight moments from Elias’s career, to date.