This week I discovered Sonnfjord. A Belgian band of five led by singer Maria Laetitia Mattern with strong folk sounds and fluid pop beats. They introduced their first EP “Up the Wooden Hills” at Ancienne Belgique and boy, it was good.
The melodies are intoxicating and ML’s voice is sweet and pure. She’s all kinds of lovely. It’s like your beautiful prom queen in an eerie white dress. Plus she knows how to sing. Her sensitivity is written all accross Sonnfjord’s songs, which were composed by ML and arranged by her brother Aurelio (keyboards) and Francois Moffarts (bass and vocals). The groups is completed by Jerome Van den Bril (guitar) and Fabio Zamagni (drums), whom you may know from Lucy Lucy and Noa Moon.
Sonnfjord. A strong reminiscence of The Do, Julia Stone or Nouvelle Vague. I suspect that time will bring ML some nuances of depth and darkness that could counterbalance the “loveliness” and make of Sonnfjord a truly chills-giving crowd.
After the show, I asked Maria Laetizia a couple of questions.
A: WHY “SONNFJORD”?
ML : When I was in Finland for an erasmus exchange, I found the scandinavian universe to be very inspiring.
A: WHAT ARE YOUR CONSCIOUS MUSIC SOURCES OF INSPIRATION?
ML : Folk, definitely. Cat Stevens, Bob Dylan, Neil Young. And more and more, some electro sounds, like the ones you hear in “Fever”, the last song we recorded.
A: IF YOU COULD STEAL SOMEONE’S IDENTITY (BECAUSE THEY’RE SO AWESOME) WHO WOULD IT BE?
ML : Can it be boys? (we laugh, I nod) The guys from The Villagers, the Dublin indie folk band.
A: WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE BELGIAN BAND AT THE MOMENT?
ML : Girls in Hawai. The indie pop band from my town, Braine l’Alleud.
A: SO…BRUSSELPROUTS: HOW DO YOU EAT YOURS?
ML: To me, brusselsprouts are like coffee. Things you hate as a child and come to love as an adult. I used to hate them. Now, I can eat them cold in the morning…
Guys, I really do recommend you check out this band. They’ll be playing on 13 May at the Nationa(a)l Pop-Up Store. But stay tuned on their Facebook for fresher news.
And in the meantime, listen to their EP here:
Anita
