At this stage of always-connected, Internet-everything existence, it’s increasingly unusual to come across an artist who turns up few worthwhile search results when you plug the name into Google. However, that’s exactly the case with Molly Nilsson.
Try Googling her name, and you will be presented with a list mainly consisting of blogs posting their personal opinions about her MP3s. The result it turns out is one labeled “Dark Skies Association,” Nilsson’s record label that she founded herself to maintain artistic control over her music. It is on the label’s website that curious listeners will find most of the valuable information regarding her past and future.
After scouring the places I usually search for artist biographies and news updates, I finally found what I was looking for: Nilsson, a Swedish native who now lives in Berlin and has released three albums, as well as a handful of EPs prior to the release of “History,” though to little fanfare.
Her profile reached a peak when lo-fi 80s revivalist John Maus covered her song “Hey Moon” on his own album in July. She returned to relative obscurity until just after the release of “History,” when the popular music site GorillavsBear.net drew attention to her album in a post.
It is fitting that Maus found a cover of Nilsson’s song appropriate for his album, as Nilsson tends to operate within similar sonic boundaries. The songs of “History” are steeped in 80s nostalgia, with a cleverly futuristic angle.
Retro synthesizers form the shapes of the music, with electronically programmed drums providing a solid foundation underneath the shimmering keys, which, by the way, are the most shimmery on the brief track “Intermezzo: The Party.”
“History” is most definitely an exercise in 80s pop experimentation. All the songs feature catchy hooks that worm their way into your subconscious with dance-inducing beats that wouldn’t sound out of place in a DJ set. Notable is “City of Atlantis,” an out-and-out cosmic club jam.
A version of this article appeared in the Jan 17 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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