Photo: KK Perales
Pale Gold is the new single from Brudini and the imaginary Spaghetti Western soundtrack makes its debut on RockShot Mag today.
The song, from his forthcoming debut album From Darkness, Light, is officially released on 18th September.
The musician, who was once an owner of Soho’s tiny literary-bohemian bastion The Society Club tells us exclusively: “The song is about no longer identifying with what’s happening around you, and making a decision to move on.”
“Written five years ago, it ended up having plenty of parallels to my own life where I saw The Society Club prosper and go bankrupt, a long term relationship ended, I decided to leave my professional career, and I am ultimately abandoning London in order to be closer to my three-year-old daughter, at a time when Circus Boris seems hellbent on abandoning the EU.”
The song, which could be described as Frank Sinatra’s obscure leftfield cousin darkly crooning over a soundtrack that’s equal parts Spaghetti Western, Balkan, and Sicilian mafia funeral, follows Brudini’s recent singles Reflections and Emotional Outlaw.
The musician grew up amidst the mountains and fjords of Bergen on Norway’s southwest coast, with a Norwegian father and a Thai mother. A sense of not quite fitting in led him to travel to Tokyo, Paris, New York, and eventually London and the high-stakes world of city traders.
By contrast, his evenings were increasingly spent in Soho, where a chance encounter with Babette Kulik eventually lead him to become part-owner of The Society Club. As part of this scene of creatives, Brudini began to conjure his music – singing in underground venues in Soho and Hackney armed with guitars, piano and analogue synthesizers, flanked by a rhythm section of local jazz musicians, and drawing praise from NYC punk legend Danny Fields in the process.
Photo: KK Perales
The theatrical qualities of his performances gradually found him a home within London´s experimental dark cabaret scene, and collaborations with a wide range of other artists, including Lulu Gainsbourg and Californian beatnik writer Chip Martin followed. As Brudini’s reputation grew, he was able to make appearances at Tate Britain and a sold-out Soho alt-cabaret with LGBTQ-pioneer Lanah P and Erasure singer Andy Bell.
And, as his live reputation grew, he began working on From Darkness, Light, which is due for release in November.
Self-produced, the album was mostly recorded in Brudini´s bedroom in Dalston, a cramped space with guitars, analogue synths, vintage condenser microphones, and a creaky old piano. Drums and double bass were recorded in a tiny basement studio in Stoke Newington Road. Mixing was done in New York by Grammy-winner Jeremy Loucas and Brudini at analogue boutique studio Sear Sound, whose legacy artists include Velvet Underground and John Lennon.
“The album is a journey, emotionally and spiritually. In parallel with the five years of its creation, so many things happened in my own life,” explains Brudini. “I became a father, the Society Club prospered and went bankrupt, a long term relationship ended, I decided to leave behind my career as a financial trader. For a musician, I guess my story is unusual. But it also shaped my artistic voice.”
Upcoming Brudini gigs
19th September: George Tavern, London (Pale Gold release show) Tickets
22nd September: SLIPOFF (South London Festival of the Spoken Word) with Chip Martin Tickets
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