Last summer, three friends got lost in a musical moment.
That moment featured musicians Myles Boisen, Martin Öhman, and Jill Rogers gathering together for a single studio session in Yrde, Sweden, to collaborate and see where their imagination would take them.
“The three of us had agreed to meet at Martin’s recording studio, [Skogen Studios], … but there was no plan, no agenda,” said Boisen, a guitarist, composer, improvisor, and recording engineer based in Oakland, California.
“We didn’t even know we were about to make a record. In a sense, we agreed to wander together, but that was really the extent of our preparation. Along the way, we challenged and revealed ourselves to each other in surprising ways, a real ‘getting-to-know-you’ thing.”
What resulted from that session is an experimental music album by the new U.S.-Sweden trio, Boisen | Öhman | Rogers.
Released on Mellanrum Records, Lost in the Woods, or Vilse i Skogen in Swedish, features three long-form improvisational tracks and one short vocal track.
“There was no discussion at all about what to play,” said Rogers, a musician, educator, and record label founder based in San Francisco.
“I was noodling around with … a song [that] my band, Ex-Juncos, had abandoned, and we were off! When that improvisation reached its end, we relaxed for a moment and started in again—no discussion or planning, just listening, playing, conversing.”
Sonically, Lost in the Woods provides a contemplative soundtrack for embarking on a journey of self-discovery and processing the emotions, changes, and challenges that accompany it.
“The woods and nature are a big part of our lives as Swedes,” said Öhman, a drummer, an electronics and multidisciplinary artist, and studio owner based in Yrde, Sweden.
“Roaming in the woods is something most Swedish kids do as a part of everyday life, especially in the more rural parts. Perhaps that’s what makes us a bit introverted, or in other, more positive words, thoughtful, or ‘eftertänksamma’ in Swedish. I think nature does that to you.”
To learn more, I did an email interview with the trio about their latest album.
The Stratton Setlist 