Simplicity can be deceptive. Broken Twin’s music may be largely made up of piano, strings and Majke Voss Romme’s haunting vocals, but the debut album May is a work of depth and beauty, “I was looking for a title that was simple, and not giving too much away, reflecting the songs,” says the Danish auteur.
Though compromising just 10 songs, May is compiled from more than three years of intensive song writing and based on over 200 sketches recorded on laptops and phones. “I’m very compulsive when I’m working on songs,” says Majke. “Mostly I begin by improvising on piano or guitar, singing random words. It sounds like English but it’s not. I’m writing and recording all the time at the moment.”
May is very much one artist’s labour, an intensely personal album that adheres to a singular vision. “I wanted to get back to basics, seeking a sound that was warm and lo-fi; minimal and spacious and focused on the songs,” says Majke. “I’m a new artist – I need to be sure about what I want to do before I can let anybody else in. It’s a very personal record.”
May is officially released today via ANTI- Records. Majke gave us a track by track run down on the album.
The Aching
“When I first went into the studio to record this album, most songs weren’t finished. I realized I needed more time alone with them, and so I went back to my bedroom. Some recordings I had to get rid of to let the songs fully blossom – other bits I kept as a starting point. The process of the record’s been a bit like that – going back and forth between sessions and bedrooms. On this song there are two pianos playing together – one from the first studio session, one from my apartment. They’re not completely in tune with each other. I like that.”
Glimpse of a Time
“This was the last track I recorded for the album and the first single. I had the pleasure of doing a video for it with Jonas Bang – a good friend of mine. We filmed it in an old, beautiful building. Apparently, back in the days, this was where the king stayed over when he was out swan hunting. This was where he brought his mistresses.”
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Roam
“I started recording this track in my parents’ house with a good friend of mine. It goes way back. Of course some things changed, stuff was added and stuff removed since then, but the essence and build-up remained the same. It holds some of the oldest recordings on the album.”
Sun Has Gone
“I lived alone when I was working on the album and one morning when I was playing around on my piano the melody and chords for this song flew by. It came quite easily compared to some of the other songs. I got my piano from my uncle, who got it from an old lady from my hometown that he used to visit as a child. I love old pianos – they always seem to have a story.”
River Raining
“This song was recorded live – I played and looped the guitar, while violinist Nils Gröndahl manipulated the sounds with his pedals. The pedal sounds are really random, but that’s something I really like now.”
Soon After This
“I spent a lot of time with the lyrics for this one. In the chorus there’s only this one line that is repeated, but the verses took me a long time to finish. I’m compulsive when I’m writing, but I want it to feel and sound right and often I have to work hard to get there. Sometimes it takes me forever to find that missing word. But when it comes – when everything starts falling into place – those small moments make it worth the sweating and swearing.”
Out of Air
“This is a remake of the version that was on my debut EP. It’s the first song I put out. I remember Emilie (that I played with at the time) and I getting a bit soppy when we bounced it the first time back then. It wasn’t so much because of the song – it just felt so strange to have finished something that was actually going to be shared with other people. Good strange that is.”
In Dreams
“This is a one take – a live recording played by Nils Gröndahl [violinist] and I. Nils is looping my piano and his violin through his pedal board. I’m singing in a bullet microphone (that is originally used for harmonicas). I love the way Nils plays the violin. Sometimes it sounds to me like he’s trying to rip it apart.”
If Pilots Go To Heaven
“I did the vocals in the end of this song as an assignment for school. I was working on the album, while I was studying, and I had to arrange some choir. I’ve never really approached music or arrangements in a very technical way, so I just took this song and started singing really high and loud, layering as many voices as I could. Later on I wanted to replace the voices with strings, but I ended up keeping them as they were. I’m happy I did that now.”
No Darkness
“When I did this album I had a lot of great musicians and friends recording with me. In this song for instance Jeppe Skovbakke is playing the bass, Davide Rossi the strings, Rolf Hansen the guitar. A whole lot of other people have been involved in the process – listening, commenting, playing, recording, mixing, waiting, caring and helping me in all kinds of ways. I couldn’t have done it without those people.”
