Acousticmaddie is a soundartist and songwriter from sweden. She creates new worlds and stories that sometimes hit you really hard because they bluntly take you to a place where you find yourself seeing the dark parts of the world. Acousticmaddie enjoys writing songs on the guitar, ukulele, keyboard, or whatever weird instruments she finds in the attic. She looks at music and musicianship as art and with that she believes that art is not supposed to be nice it supposed to make you feel something.
Q: How easily do songs tend to come to you?
Ans : Oh It’s kind of as if they hit me in the face while doing something else and then they kind of scream to be written.Could be any time and any place. For that reason I always carry a notebook and if I can’t carry a guitar or ukulele you would absolutely find a harmonica in my pocket for such occasions.
Q: What’s your motto or the advice you live by?
Ans: Be nice and stay humble, you don’t know if the next one to have a break is the janitor or the intern.
Q: For our readers who have never heard your music, explain your sound in 5 words?
Ans: Stories that touches your heart.
Q: If you could perform with anyone, in the future, who would it have to be?
Ans: Tom Waits no doubt he is the most inspiring artist I know.
Q: Which instruments do you play?
Ans: guitar, ukulele, keyboard, and some harmonica. Also learning bass guitar.
Q: Which famous musicians do you admire? Why?
Ans: I love Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen and Swedish Jan Johansson.
As Waits and Cohen are their own fantastic storytellers Jan Johansson makes amazing minimalistic instrumental pieces.
Q: Do you get nervous before a performance or a competition?
Ans: Yes … In fact it is horrible becourse before bigger events I usually throw up. Orwell it works well playing the guitar etcetera behind someone, but well I like the spotlight to be on someone else. I have heard that is a pretty common feeling among songwriters. But I like to see my singers grow. I like to be the one that make them sound great. Also the creational phase is the most inspiring in songwriting. I like to see beyond the stage and whats last when you get home. Songwriting is so much more than those minutes on stage, but yes I get nervous.
Q: How often and for how long do you practice?
Ans: At least 1 hour every day. Or I compose something everyday. Even though some days it’s just crap its a way to never stand still and be able to find the perfect story.
Q: What do you practice – exercises, new tunes, hard tunes, etc.?
Ans: I do scales, I do melodic exercises but I also write a song a day. Sometimes I just play freely and let the music take over my soul and see what needs to come out.
Q: How do you balance your music with other obligations – mate, children, job?
Ans: Haha I don’t … it does not work that way. Making music is like poison,once you took a zip you got to continue drinking it. Yes it’s an obsession and the video included here, with the song called “Selma” came up because I do organise jam sessions at work and Gustaf (the singer) was on one of them.
