FIRST AID KIT is comprised of Swedish sisters Klara
(16) and Johanna Söderberg (19) who call Enskede,
a district of Stockholm, home. The duo have been steadily
inspiring teenage and adult hearts alike since the April
2008 Swedish release of their Drunken Trees EP on The
Knife owned, Rabid label. Upon conquering local clubs
with their wise-beyond-their-years, country tinged pop,
Wichita Recordings signed the young sisters to a worldwide
deal in the Fall of 2008. This union resulted in a broader
release for the EP, steady UK/European touring, festival
appearances and ultimately the completion of their debut
album, The Big Black & The Blue. Spring
brings the release to North America on May 25th.
The album was released abroad this January and is not
going unnoticed:
“A masterpiece” 5/5 – Sunday
Telegraph
“The Big Black and the Blue is a sparkling
jewel that belies the tender year of its creators”
4.5/5 – The Sun
FIRST AID KIT soaked up everything from Buffy Sainte-Marie
to Bright Eyes in their formative years, which shaped
their way with song writing, arrangements and even the
use of a second language. Upon the re-release of their
EP in 2009, the girls took to the Swedish woods where
they filmed a series of covers including the infamous
YouTube phenomenon of Fleet Foxes’ “Tiger
Mountain Peasant Song” (currently at over a million
views). Shot simply and surrounded by glorious forest
and sky, the power of the sisters’ natural talents
shone. Their deep love for the celebration of music
could be felt in the quiet joy of performing their favorite
songs together.
FIRST AID KIT is now unveiling a remarkable debut album
to call their own on which the sisters shared vocal
duties; Klara mined guitar with Johanna performing keys
and auto harp. The Big Black & the Blue was recorded
intermittently throughout 2008 -2009 with the help of
their father, Benkt Soderberg, at their home studio
Cellar Door. The collected work transports the listener
via shimmering, almost telekinetic harmonies and thoughtful
lyrical imagery. The songs on The Big Black &
the Blue seep under the skin and claw at you. Surface
playfulness is deceiving as the tracks take on a darker
hue in moments, creating a surefooted yet interesting
balance. By the first strokes of the acoustic fused
opener, “In the Morning,” we enter the warm
and spell binding nature that is First Aid Kit’s
world. Transitioning to the mesmeric “Hard Believer,”
where a real-life argument about religion provoked the
rousingly urgent line: “And it’s one life
/ and it’s this life / and it’s beautiful,”
then resting in the jauntiness of “Sailor Song,”
which is underpinned by a driving Autoharp and a classic
lost-love motif. Yet another album highlight “I
Met Up With the King” borrows a line from Gram
Parsons to marvelous effect and “Heavy Storm”
soothes with its loosely swing. FIRST AID KIT penned
all of the material for the album in addition to lovingly
designing the sepia-toned artwork.
Pure of heart and entwining relentless imagination and
talent, FIRST AID KIT is poised to stir some souls on
their forthcoming adventure to the US. Won’t you
join them?
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