Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Thomas Charlie Pedersen of the Danish indie/alt. rock band Vinyl Floor, recently dropped his second solo album, Daylight Savings Hour.
Based in the Nørrebro area of Copenhagen, Pedersen recorded the album totally DIY-style in his apartment together with his brother drummer Daniel Pedersen. Daniel is also Vinyl Floor’s drummer.
On his latest effort, Pendersen continues the acoustic and minimalistic stylings of his debut album solo effort, Second Hand War, that dropped in 2016.
“Unlike the first album – which was quite introvert and personal – the new album sees me writing mostly about other people,” Pedersen says.
Not surprisingly, his songs focus mostly “on the lyrics and melody and a few lyrical wordplays thrown in for good measure.” He writes and sings about the commitments of love, relationships and growing older, and about “illusionists, otherworldly interference, melancholia, and women in trouble.”
“We utilized strings, vocal harmonies, and alternate guitar tunings,” says Pedersen. “We experimented with noise and reversed sounds during the recording sessions.”
Such is the case, however, the themes and moods of the two recordings differ in noticeable ways.
Gripping melodies and bittersweet melancholia color many of Pedersen’s songs, including tracks such as the emotional “Moveables,” and the acoustic tenderness of the opening track, “To A First Love” and the provocative “Blood World.”
One of the standout love songs on the 14-track album is “Stay True.” The song features Pedersen’s songwriting and vocal skills alongside bright acoustic strings and synth keys.
His vocal abilities include matching harmonies with his acoustic guitar-playing, especially on tracks like the heartbreaking “Faithful Mistress.” This is true as well on the lovely standout track, “Must Be The World.” The folk-rock instrumentation is set as the backdrop for Pedersen’s vocal harmonies and story-telling.
The title song is a reference to the tradition of daylight savings time and a metaphor for desiring light in an increasingly dark world.
On the track, “The Merriweather Pull” – which follows the touching opening track – feels vibrant and yet melancholy, where the sweet harmonies of his vocals overshadow a theme that includes calling out for help from Superman/Clark Kent himself.
The irony of “The World is Not Your Oyster” should not be lost on the listener because the 70’s A.M. soft rock feel and finger-picking (similar with “Moveables”) can disguise the true message of the song, which is about being respectful and grateful for the world because it is the oyster of future generations – on loan (and boy did we fu*k it up).
Then there’s the fun and interesting instrumental, “The Witty Moniker,” which is just like a shot of guitar adrenalin.
During the recording sessions for his debut solo album, Pedersen purposefully left out songs that were, he says, “more extroverted.” His plan was to create something of an artistic statement that was easy to grasp: first album, many of the songs are more “personal and introverted.”
Because human nature, and relationships, and finding our place in the world can be difficult and painful, songwriters do often end up – sometimes without fully realizing it – writing and creating words and compositions that express, in various ways, the human condition wherein the ying and yang of isolating, or opposingly, of socializing, are perpetual struggles.
Therefore, it is a simple, and concise and relatable, concept. By dividing up a bunch of songs into those two themes gives the pair of Pedersen’s solo albums worthy of listening to, not just for indie lo-fi DIY acoustic fans, but for other songwriters as well. (It’s always smart to study solid songwriters if you are an aspiring songwriter).
Pedersen played all of the instruments himself while his brother Daniel contributed some guitar overdubs, arranged strings and added vocal harmonies.
Running time:37 mins
