Arin Aksberg: It Flows Between Us

Product Description

Genres: Neo-Classical, Post-Rock, Ambient, Minimalism
RIYL: Joep Beving, Nils Frahm, Harold Budd, Ólafur Arnalds, Sigur Rós, Brian Eno, Laraaji

Arin Aksberg lives north of the Arctic Circle in Alta, Norway. It’s a cold, beautiful & harsh place of 21,000 residents; living there invariably pulls at the emotions of longing, desire and survival. 23-year-old Arin dealt with a feeling of non-reality magnified by imposed isolation and a newborn child by submerging himself in the sublime and hallucinatory aspects of creating music. It Flows Between Us is the sound of duality — neo-classical piano-based tracks and compositional ambient pieces juxtapose with occasional post-rock tones that originate within ethereal spaces before venturing into the depths of darkness. The album captures the contemplative, sensitive, and melancholic introspective moods one might expect from an artist living where — for two months out of the year — the sun never rises above the horizon.

“I’ve had my ups and downs since I was 10 years old,” Arin remembers, “struggling with a sort of social anxiety and sense of isolation. The lockdown gave me time to sort out my thoughts. Music is a powerful way to let both thoughts and creativity flow and make place for fresh ideas. Here, virtuality and the digital life became a great distraction.”

While recording this album, Arin was also studying for university from home and caring for his young daughter. “Being on digital classes with other students for weeks, everything got more and more reliant on technology. Studying almost the entire day, I felt distant from reality and distant from being a parent while my daughter played on her own. You know, you’re trying to keep up in class while she wants me to come play with her. An awareness of not being 100% present with her really sticks to me to this day.”

“I was under the impression that the themes of the album were about technology: the digital world and how it can come in the way between parent and child. But I guess I missed the whole point of my own music. I realized just recently that the album is more about the fear of not becoming the parent you want to be. Perhaps fear is what’s flowing between us? The album title was originally a representation of the digital life flowing between parent and child, but the true meaning went over my head: the fear of not being able to be there when it’s needed.”

“Man, I probably seem like a dark person here,” Arin laughs. “Actually, I’m really looking forward to what’s coming. In this music I intuitively explore transcendent moments when we are our most basic selves. I don’t have any classical training, so my knowledge of musical theory is quite absent. That opens a lot of doors to me when it comes to creativity. I create by intuition, and it captures the complex and minuscule feelings of life.”

It Flows Between Us is sixty-one minutes of emotional, minimalist and poignant piano-led moments fueled by Arin’s contemplative sense of despair and desire for physical connection.

Projekt release: March 3 2023