Originally published at kemptation.com on 30 October 2014. Words by Richard Kemp

Our Introducing… series digs out new, undiscovered musical talent that deserves to be heard and delivers them directly into your ears. This round, we speak with Amanda Bergman of highly lauded Swedish quintet Amason about borrowed languages, feeding the monkeys and the band’s forthcoming debut album, Sky City.

Name: Amason

Hailing from: Stockholm, Sweden

Genre: Indie Pop

Contact: Twitter | Soundcloud | Youtube | Facebook

Upcoming shows:

31st October – UPSTAIRS, Ace Hotle, Los Angeles, USA

1st November – Origami Vinyl, Los Angeles, USA

3rd November – The Echo, Los Angeles, USA

 

You’ve been championed by the likes of KEXP and NPR Music as ones to watch. Has this rise in popularity been gradual? When did things really get going for you?

I do know about these radio stations and I’m sure it is a good thing if you want to spread your music around to have them play your song, so I’m very happy they did – and thankful. But as far as making assumptions about rising popularity or sinking down the drain, I have no clue. I guess it’s hard to see that kind of stuff from the inside as well for that matter. I’m sure Google has a way of measuring stuff like this nowadays, but I’m just not that interested in keeping track of numbers. I’m no good with numbers. I like making records and playing shows with people I love and I guess the ultimate sign of success would be to do shows for which people show up! To me, that’s when it gets going.

 

The name ‘Amason’ is taken from the Swedish spelling of the mythological female warriors. Do these warriors feature in your music at all?

Actually, I think it’s taken from a Volvo car model that everybody drove around the country in the 60s… I think it was a loose way of referring to our common wish to make some music made for car driving, or biking or fast walking.

 

You sing in both Swedish and English. How do you decide which language to use for each song?

I guess it comes around naturally. I couldn’t tell you exactly why one song is in English and one is not, it’s all part of the confusion. I guess some sounds seem better in Swedish and some in English. It’s all just different frequencies. And, of course, it is easier to lovingly mistreat and stretch the Swedish language since I know it so well and it’s a deeper part of one’s personality. In English, you’re always the shy guest, standing in the corner with a plate full of buffet food.

 

Can you tell us anything about your upcoming record, Sky City? What can we expect to hear?

It’s a bunch of songs that are all made in a very vivid process; finding the idea, mostly through a drum beat, arranging it, recording it at once and then adding the singing and the lyrics wherever it’s needed. Lots of laughter and stupid ideas, not so much thinking. Very intuitive, I guess. Therefore, the songs are quite different from one another, and I think that people will like some of them and not necessarily like others. Or they hate or love everything. I have no idea about that. I love it because I loved the process, and I like the feeling of just giving it away, almost like feeding birds or animals at the zoo. Here’s a bucket of semi-old fruit; take whatever you want and leave the rest for another hungry monkey or bird.

How would you describe your songwriting process? Do you all write together or is it more a personal thing?

It’s a very co-creative thing in our band – although, it’s mostly me or Gustav who writes the lyrics and the vocals so that’s probably where the more personal approach is added.

 

The fact that you all come from other great bands has led many to call you a ‘Swedish supergroup’. How is the reception for your music in your native Sweden?

To my measures it’s already all we can ask for. I think that more and more people are becoming familiar with the band, and hopefully after releasing the album next year we may have a decent chance to play some more shows in Sweden. We’re not intentionally looking to become a big act in Sweden, it’s just that you need some numbers of listeners here to be able to make a living from doing live performances, which is of course what we humbly wish for.

 

Each member of Amason brings his/her own influence to the band. There’s jazz in there, some surf rock, pop, synth and plenty more. Where did your sound start and where do you think it’s heading?

It all started with us five being different people, with different backgrounds both musically and personally. And then we just put it all in the blender. As I mentioned before, our debut album was put together very much with the intention of just ‘trying things out’ and ‘doing something’. I suppose a natural transformation would be to spend more time writing songs together after doing lots of live shows where we can develop our sound as a band in a natural way. I think we all agree that we want more time for the next one, and then just see what it does to the music. We don’t know more than anyone else on this matter. And that’s what I like about it.