Danish singer-songwriter Soren Munk releases his debut solo album Purr Show on 25 March 2022 via Navarino Records. Soren also travels the world as a cameraman for Channel 4 News, and the album was written and recorded in between trips to cover some of the major global events of recent times, from the war in Mali to the Taliban resurgence in Afghanistan.
Soren also co-wrote the much-loved theme tune to the hit animated TV series Charlie and Lola – which is currently trending on TikTok with millions of views.
Despite the nature of his news work, the songwriting on Purr Show has a more private focus, dealing in intimate but ambiguous moments of love and loss. Melodic and intense, the album has elements of Dream Pop, Slowcore and classic songwriting, while the blend of electric guitars, analogue synths and vocals draws on the work of artists that combine restraint and power, such as Neil Young, Low, Big Star and Elliot Smith. Soren worked with Andy Ramsay from Stereolab to record the album, and Jimmie Robertson (Depeche Mode, Arctic Monkeys) during the mixing process.
“I wanted to create slow pop songs. Romantic and melodic but with an edge of strangeness that makes them harder to pin down. That’s the music I respond to – things that are assertive but fragile at the same time. Where every element counts.”
Soren drew together a strong line-up of musicians and collaborators, including guitarists Garo Nahoulakian (Emiliana Torrini, Gaz Coombes, Piney Gir) and Nick ‘Growler’ Fowler (Gaz Coombes, Luke Haines); a Danish rhythm section of drummer Nikolaj Bjerre (Lamb) and ,bassist Andreas Jensen (Dub Pistols); and pianist Tom Dyson (co-writer of the Charlie and Lola theme). Soren’s vocals are often combined on the songs with the soft alto of backing singer Emma Faulkner, creating a sense of something confidential, like snatches of pillow talk.
For interviews, CD review copies, images or further information contact Sean Newsham: sean@mutante.co.uk
Website (album stream and videos): sorenmunk.com
Instagram: @munksoren
BIO
Soren Munk grew up in Kenya, India and his native Denmark. He moved to London, drawn by a love of English alternative music, such as The Smiths, The Cure, Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine. An interest in filmmaking led him to a job as cameraman for Channel 4 news. He has covered some of the major global events of recent times: the invasion of Iraq, the unfolding story of Isis in Syria, and the recent Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. Alongside his work in news, he has pursued musical projects, playing in bands and composing TV music, including co-writing the much-loved theme tune to the hit animated children’s series Charlie and Lola.
Over the last couple of years, he has been writing and producing the songs for his debut album Purr Show (2022).
Artist: Soren Munk
Album: Purr Show
Tracklist:
- The Overseer
- 2 Seconds
- Longships
- Sheffield Building
- The Side of Your Face
- Nothing to Move
- Empire Waiter
- Gold Street
- Where the Courts are Floodlit
- You Can Park It
ABOUT THE SONGS
Offering blurred snapshots of private moments, the songwriting on Purr Show rides a line between romance and something more difficult to pin down. At times, the blend of voices feel confidential, like snatches of pillow talk.
“We were chasing an atmosphere, and trying to place the compositions in a particular kind of world – a sort of Twin Peaks blend of something intimate but uncanny at the same time”
The album opener, The Overseer, sets the tone for the rest of the record, with lush guitars and the sense of not being able to hold on to intimacy, drifting into an uncertain place where the chorus warns:
“This kiss is being lost, it’s being lost / You are the overseer of a fog.”
The video, combining footage filmed in Iceland and found super 8 films, creates a golden glow and a sense of moments recovered from a cardboard box in the attic.
On songs such as 2 Seconds, the album touches on the fear of reaching for someone – the distance that needs to be crossed: Your house is so far away, and the motorway is terrifying. The extended instrumental intro is based around a wistful piano motif, before the guitars drop in and the song builds to its chorus:
“My heart stops in 2 seconds / There’s no more to say.”
Written in an abandoned house in war-torn Mali, The Side of Your Face gets to the heart of the album’s themes. Looking back on a past moment of closeness, it puts the listener inside a private world that is almost claustrophobic:
“The side of your face, never saved a taste for my sheets…never saved a taste for my love.”
