SPOP: RYMDPOJKEN TALKS LJUSEN FÖLJER DIG HEM
"Tried to write a Christmas song for years"
Daniel John
While there are those who start listening to Christmas songs like way too early, Christmas songs can still be said to encompass a fairly short window of relevance. How do you, as an artist, look at that?
Of course it would be fantastic to make a song that people come back to every Christmas, but I also know how difficult it is with new Christmas music. Most people, including me, want to listen to what they listened to as children. I’m just happy to have my own Christmas song that will always exist. To have gotten that released. That’s enough for me.
Rymdpojken is a somewhat younger project than your overall artistry, you as an artist have quite a few Christmases behind you. Have there been previous attempts to write a Christmas song before this?
I’ve tried to write a Christmas song for many years but haven’t succeeded, it has been more difficult than I thought. Some songs I wrote became too Christmas-y and playful, and I didn’t feel that I could connect with that, some songs became too little Christmas, and then it wasn’t really a Christmas song. So, I wanted to find a nice blend of the two, which I think I did in 'Ljusen följer dig hem'.
So what is 'Ljusen Följer Dig Hem' about, what kind of Christmas song did it become?
Apart from Christmas, 'Ljusen Följer Dig Hem' is about how we light up our lights together in the winter darkness, so that no one should feel alone.
Many are drawn to Christmas-music precisely because it’s like a warm blanket, and your songs always have always had that, be it for the low or high moments in life you're always going straight for the heart. So you do make a good combo?
Thank you, so much, for those incredibly kind words. It makes me so happy to hear that. Yes, this song really reflects my feeling of Christmas. For example, walking outside on an ice-cold winter evening and looking into all the warm, illuminated windows. Those are the kinds of things I can really appreciate.
You’ve become very influential within the Swedish pop sound. It’s very clear when you’ve been involved in a song. What does it look like when you're writing for yourself compared to when you're writing for other artists?
Whether or not I’m writing music for myself or with and for others, I always invest an extreme amount of emotion and time. I’m more picky when I write for myself, because then every word and every melody has to feel right specifically for me. When writing for and with other artists, it’s absolutely that artist’s feelings and ambitions that are most important. I am so happy to be able to do both today.
If you were to look out over the Christmas-sky and find some real shiny stars to collaborate with next, who would you like to make songs with?
In Sweden, a dream would have been to work with either Håkan Hellström, Thomas Stenström or Veronica Maggio. Abroad, my idols Coldplay are the dream...
About seven years ago, we talked about an English project called Polarsea, which didn't really take off the same way. Could that happen again, but perhaps as Spaceboy?
(Laughs) Spaceboy is a given artist name if I ever release something in English again in the future. I wrote some things in English before but stopped doing it a few years ago and focused fully on Swedish songs, but I’ve actually started writing more in English again, so I hope to be able to release an English song in the future as well, but then only as a songwriter.
How into Christmas music are you now, after having sat in the studio and tinkered with your own. Are you going into “flight mode” after this release, switching Christmas off a little?
I’m actually excited about Christmas music... Coldplay’s 'Christmas Lights' is my favorite, so I’m going to play that song at full volume, today!
