Tina Keeps Cool

Published:

New video and small UK tour in the offing

Tina Refsnes is pleased to unveil the beautiful new animated video for ‘Alaska’ on The 405 – taken from her debut album, No One Knows That You’re Lost (out now). 

Hailing from the Norwegian capital of Oslo, Tina Refsnes is a singer-songwriter concocting a potent mix of English new-folk and poignant Americana. Growing up in the small seaside town of Floro, (where an abundance of rain caused the salt from the sea spray to spread up to a mile from the coastline…) she always longed for the noise and life of a larger city. Despite this, her subconscious love for the open seascape and mountainous terrain followed her into her songwriting, where she cites elements of Neil Young, Laura Marling and Sufjan Stevens as influences in her work.

After Norway, she moved to Liverpool, studying and living there for four years. She loved the sprawling metropolis of urban possibilities, and spent all her time writing songs and playing music. But during her time there, she had a growing sensation of being unable to find the right expression for her writing, so she learned to take her time, saving up her songs so that one day she would be able to do it her way.

It wasn’t till years later, when Tina had moved back to Oslo that she found what she had been looking for in terms of her music. She heard an album recorded by producer Robbie Lackritz (Rilo Kiley, Feist, Bahamas, The Weather Station) which inspired her to take her songs and travel to Toronto, Canada to find him. Lackritz teamed her and long-time collaborater Eirik Stordrange up with Toronto musicians Don Kerr (Ron Sexsmith) and Mike O’Brien (Zeus) and over the course of three weeks, the four of them recorded ‘No One Knows That You’re Lost’ in a single room.

Always fascinated with space in a recording, her favourite listening experiences were always when you could hear also the person behind the performance – breaths, creaks in floor boards, an out of place thud from strumming your guitar slightly wrong. Therefore, when recording the album, she wanted the listener to get a physical sense of the distance between him/her and an awareness of where the performer was situated within the room.

There is certainly no rush with Tina. No One Knows That You’re Lost is a collection of songs saved up and finally captured here in just the right way. They are songs about small things. Sometimes serious, sometimes observing the world with humour and sometimes told from a distorted, off-key perspective. Songs like ‘Told’ and ‘Upside Down Clouds’ (featured on Lauren Laverne’s BBC 6 Music show) explore growth and discovery, while ‘Alaska’ longs for the familiar quietness of nature that she grew up with. Overall it is a record of optimism and tranquil beauty that is, only now, perfectly on time.

‘Alaska’ is out now. 

No One Knows That You’re Lost is available now.

+++

Tina will embark on a small UK tour this April. Dates are as follows:

Thursday 14 April
Tina Refsnes
with The Worry Dolls
The Old Stables, Wiltshire

Friday 15 April
Tina Refsnes
The Louisiana, Bristol

Saturday 16 April
Tina Refsnes
Trove Cafe, Manchester

Sunday 17 April
Tina Refsnes
Servant Jazz Quarters, London

More From Author

spot_img

Popular Posts

Latest Gig Reviews

Latest Music Reviews

spot_img

Band Of The Day