Stian Borgen - Kites (2024) Hi Res

There is something cheerful, playful and at the same time a little melancholic about kites. Some people stand back on the ground and admire or envy. Others fly up there with them. Life contains both. And if you fly up there, you are at the mercy of the wind and the one who holds you steady and is your ground contact. There are so many truths out there. CAPs Lock, exclamation mark, only good, only bad, only one belief, only wrong, only right. The world I know is full of nuances that don't appear on TV.

"Kites" is an album filled with question marks and wonder about identity, love, relationship, religion, power and society, and perhaps a comment on an increasingly polarized world. Some of the songs do have some naive youthful loudness, but at least they raise their hand first(!)

This is Stian Borgen's debut album as a solo artist where he writes, produces, arranges and works with great musicians in the band and string department. The music is located in a landscape inspired by, among others, Ryan Adams, Nick Drake, Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney.

"Kites" was written over a period of fifteen years, and Borgen describes it as a kind of time stamp of life so far. Since his childhood, he has been interested in roots music, which resulted in his eager picking of blues and folk expressions growing up. After many years of touring blues clubs and festivals, the roots are now expressed in a slightly different form.

"Kites" is cheerful, playful and a little melancholic. It stands below and admires and envies... And sometimes it flies high up there. The album alternates between a sore expression led by strings and acoustic instruments, and more groove-based songs with a full band and a more powerful authority. Percussive drive, organic instruments and melodic parts that give room to digest the lyrics are powerful ingredients in this album.

That Stian hits a timeless nerve became clear when the first track from the album, "The Painter", received an immediate response. The American music magazine Melomani described the song as "a sonic experience that lingers, inviting listeners to reflect on their own journey of self-discovery and the masks they wear", while British York Calling states that the song is "an absolutely blinding track, adding a traditional folk quality into the singer-songwriter vibes".