︎︎︎Kee Avil
M. Bates ︎︎︎
ERIKA ANGELL
The Montréal-based Swedish vocalist and composer Erika Angell defies categorization. Across sixteen independently produced albums and innumerable collaborations, Angell has been a poetic and audacious force in genre-defying music. Her voice has been described as “a guiding presence” (Exclaim) that “splits the difference between the divine and demonic, skillfully unhinged” (Under The Radar) and “sits alongside the greatest indie female artists who are not afraid of anything” (Le Devoir).
ERIKA ANGELL
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The Montréal-based Swedish vocalist and composer Erika Angell defies categorization. Across sixteen independently produced albums and innumerable collaborations, Angell has been a poetic and audacious force in genre-defying music. Her voice has been described as “a guiding presence” (Exclaim) that “splits the difference between the divine and demonic, skillfully unhinged” (Under The Radar) and “sits alongside the greatest indie female artists who are not afraid of anything” (Le Devoir).
Raised on an island on the west coast of Sweden, her musical trajectory began in earnest when she moved to Stockholm in 2004 and became a member of noted collective label and venue Fylkingen (the oldest organization in Europe for experimental music and art, founded in 1933). Relocating to Montréal in 2012, her career now spans two decades, characterized by a fearless pursuit of originality, an inexhaustible desire to traverse genres, and a dedication to artistic collaboration.
Angell melds musical territories from classical, folk, rock and pop to jazz, electronic, free-improvised and avant-garde. She is known foremost for her unconventional artistry with the celebrated and Polaris-nominated avant-rock band Thus Owls, which she has co-led with her husband Simon Angell since 2007. Earlier ensembles include the Swedish vocal-bass duo Josef & Erika and the electronic noise group The Moth.
She has toured the world extensively in support of these and other projects, counting Daníel Bjarnason (Ben Frost, Sigur Rós), Liam O’Neill (SUUNS), Karl Lemieux (Goodspeed You! Black Emperor), Lisen Rylander Löve (Midaircondo) and Anders Jormin (ECM) amongst her many collaborators. Her distinctive and virtuosic voice has graced recordings and live performances with a wide spectrum of artists, including Loney Dear, Patrick Watson, Leonard Cohen, Kim Myhr, Arve Henriksen, Land Of Kush, Wildbirds and Peacedrums, La Force and The Besnard Lakes to name just a few.
More recently Angell co-founded the New Music trio Beatings Are In The Body with Róisín Adams and Peggy Lee, and completed a debut solo album of unfettered vocal exploration and expressionist avant-electronic composition slated for release on Constellation in early 2024.
See also:
Instagram
Website
Youtube
Videos
Erika Angell, Dress of Stillness
Thus Owls, Bleeding
Thus Owls, I forget what I remembered
Thus Owls, Devils in the Dark -Live
Thus Owls, Who would hold you
Thus Owls, Live at Centre Phi
Josef & Erika, Flood Covers My Ankles
The Moth
Discography
Solo
Constellation Records
As composer (groups)
Thus Owls
Beatings Are In The Body
Josef & Erika
The Moth
Press:
Le Canal Auditif, Erika Angell (2023)
CBC, Thus Owls (2023)
La Presse, Thus Owls (2022)
Exlaim, Thus Owls (2018)
Canal Auditif, Thus Owls (2018)
Wall Street Journal, Thus Owls (2014)
Clash Magazine, Thus Owls (2014)
Press Quotes:
”Strong voice and mystery”- Bob Boilen, NPR’s All Songs Considered
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”Erika’s voice sits alongside the greatest female artists, those who are not afraid of anything, PJ Harvey, Kate Bush, Patti Smith” - Le Devoir
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"... proving that the harder it is to categorize music, the better it usually is. There's no point in trying to decide if [Thus Owl’s] Who Would Hold You If the Sky Betrayed Us? is jazz or rock. It's both of these things, and much more." - Exclaim!