With it time is suspended. Agnes Obel has this incredible gift of immersing us in her dreamlike universe, her soft, graceful, aerial music. This is still the case in “Myopia”, a new album by the 40-year-old Danish singer and musician, which comes out this Friday. Like his previous records, including “Aventine”, awarded with a “Parisian” star in 2013, this fourth recording is an enchanting journey into imaginary lands thanks to its crystal-clear voice enveloped by piano, violin, magical melodies. A work of goldsmith.
"Yes, there is a lot of rigor in what I do," she says, mechanically twisting one of her blonde curls around her finger. In everyday life, much less. I'm really in the moon. I forget things everywhere (laughs). I establish a form of routine in which I put creation. Without it you cannot develop and create something interesting. Music is my biggest hobby "
A necessary solitude
Also, Agnes Obel likes to take her time to compose. For this sensitive soul, music is a workshop of introspection. "In" Myopia "I talk about my mind, how it can play tricks on me. I feel like a lot of the problems I have in life come from there. The mind is never a neutral canvas on which we base our experiences. My mind can be my best friend but also my worst enemy. "
Agnes Obel holds dear to her freedom, to her independence. Her fourth album was fashioned in a small studio on the outskirts of Berlin, where she currently lives. Very often, she isolates herself in this bubble. Like an ascetic. “I believe that by working alone you can reach another level. At least, I can do it. I like to sing intuitively while no one is watching me. Of course I miss not having people around me because I am someone very sociable, I like to surround myself. But this solitude is necessary. It is in her studio that she feels best. “Even if I really start to love going on stage. "
Behind her apparent calm, Agnes Obel hides a multitude of doubts: the fear of the big blunder on stage, the anxiety at the idea of missing a song. This apprehension can arise at night. “Sometimes I have trouble falling asleep because I'm afraid of falling asleep. It is absolutely ridiculous. However, the artist takes life with philosophy. "I like to wonder, ask myself why I do certain things. I like to question my free will not to live like a puppet. I think doubting, up to a point, is something healthy. The Danish woman puts music into perspective. Behind her piano, she frees herself. For her, composing is a form of self-mockery. A way of laughing at his "little neuroses".
His voice, the representation of his mind
Since her first album, she has never stopped experimenting with her voice. “It is the best representation of my mind. It allows me to recreate memory because we are all today the production of our memories. "
On February 24, Agnes Obel will begin a European tour in 15 countries in Oslo (Norway). She will spend in particular three months in France, with a singular public. "He is most special to me because he has been there since my first record. I have a feeling that people here are very warm, intuitive. I am very grateful to them. "
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The connection is even very well established between the singer and the Hexagon. “My companion and I talk a lot about settling in another country. We have been in Berlin for a long time. We have not yet decided where but it could be in France or Japan. "
EDITOR'S NOTE: 4.5 / 5
"Myopia" by Agnes Obel, Deutsche Grammophon. Released on February 21, 15.99 euros. In concert on March 19 in Nantes, on March 20 at the Seine Musicale in Paris (full), and on March 25 in Anglet…. Additional date June 30 at the Days Off Festival at the Philharmonie.
