The Owls Are Not What They Seem

by Sofia Talvik

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David E Schipper buy 7 miles wide... awesome song.

Melodious Thunk I helped shoot the music video for the garden :) Favorite track: The Garden.

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1.	Delusional 04:06	lyrics	buy track
Maybe I was really insane Maybe I was choosing my truth What if I was Disoriented and delusional Maybe you were really sad Maybe you were really scared What if you were lost on the way And delusional Maybe we were both so wrong Misjudging and mistaking Confused and fantasizing And delusional But it's important not to blame each other To remember the good times we shared Maybe then we can stop being Delusional Delusional Delusional
2.	The Garden 03:36	lyrics	buy track
Can you tell what the devil said When he turned down your prayer Can you feel what the mother felt when she let down her hair It's a garden of good and evil where we stay It's a highway of endless choices where we go about way Never turn down a call for help Always know what it's for You can leave your shoes by the road You don't need them no more And I don't know what you're looking for But it's not here anymore Your love is wasted in a thousand ways And you get wasted every single day It's a garden of good and evil where we stay It's a highway of endless choices where we go about way You can shut your eyes to the sun It will shine through your mind If you leave everything behind Everything's what you'll find And I don't know what you're looking for But it's not here anymore Your love is wasted in a thousand ways And you get wasted every single day It's a garden of good and evil where we stay It's a highway of endless choices where we go about way And I don't know what you're looking for But it's not here anymore Your love is wasted in a thousand ways And you get wasted every single day It's a garden of good and evil where we stay It's a highway of endless choices where we go about way Can you tell what the devil said When he turned down your prayer
3.	7 Miles Wide (free) 05:54	lyrics	download
The rift in our bed is seven miles wide though I see you as though you were here right beside I'm trying to reach out but it's just in my mind my body's too tense and too stiff to unwind The rift in our bed is seven miles deep the edges are sharp and the walls are so steep and if I could throw myself out like a dove could the peace that I offer ever substitute love So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay Punishing you is harder on me though it's double the torture that you don't even se that the rift in our bed is seven miles wide and I'm on the edge and have been for a while So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay I've nothing to cry for but I'm crying inside as the rift moves you farther away from my side I want to reach out but I'm just too darn proud will you build me a bridge and I will come around So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay I know you care I know you still want me here in the morning by your side when it's dawning And I will share all that I feel if you hold me till the morning baby we can carry each other one more day So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay Finally your breathing is heavy and deep you didn't bother and now you're asleep And I'm still awake with a rift in my heart but if I could speak now where would I start Maybe I'd say there's a rift in out bed or maybe the rift is just in my head I know if you'd tell me I'd know what to say and you'd hold me and make all the pain go away So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay So hold on for the night for the day hold on for the night will not stay
4.	The War 03:54	lyrics	buy track
The War I've been at so many crossroads that I've forgotten all the turns and I've spent all my money on ways to wipe out my concerns But the therapy in a tall glass of gin is not something that leaves you blissful within in the morning the daylight is broken just like the night before and we keep sending a mayday that never reaches the shore The more that you sleep the more tired you get I try to forgive but it's hard When you turn me over to the war turn me over to the war the therapy in a tall glass of gin is not something that leaves you blissful within I've seen so many faces with masks made out of clay so stiff and immobile just like the games they play The more that you sleep the more tired you get I try to forgive but it's hard to forget How good it would feel to be senseless and numb to not really care at all When you turn me over to the war turn me over to the war
5.	If I Had a Man 03:55	lyrics	buy track
"If I Had A Man" Sister if I had a man who wouldn't mind to let me down who'd always treat me like a clown what would you say Sister if I loved this man who'd never come to treat me right who'd always put me through this fright of losing him what would you do what would you say wouldn't you tell me to get rid of him straight away would you sit back and watch him break my heart well that's not what I do Sister if I took him back time after time and on and on no matter how he did me wrong What would you say what would you do what would you say wouldn't you tell me to get rid of him straight away would you sit back and watch him break my heart well that's not what I do that's not what I say Honey you shouldn't let him play with your heart this way why won't you listen when I tell you this Just hear me out honey be strong no one should hurt you like he does and you know it's wrong and it breaks my heart to watch him break your heart you know what to do sometimes it doesn't work out the way we planned sometimes we fail
6.	Glow 03:43	lyrics	buy track
"Glow" I live on memories of a feeling But my memory is so deceiving repeating promises I still believe in writing words for those who were leaving so long ago So long ago Trying hard to remember what I felt like those words that almost made you melt down those eyes that burned a hole right trough you those days when no one really knew you And the pain so sovereign The scraps and fragments I can recall the punches and needles are not enough at all To make my mind glow To make my mind glow To make my mind glow the way only fire bestows The street lamps are my friends when I'm escaping from myself and the world that they are shaping My inner fire turned into a lightbulb I shy the sun to tell myself that it's still shining bright my inner light Chorus I try to live a life that I remember play a part that turned into a memory I search for clues of greatness in my past life looking forward has never been my strong side In the past is all that lasts The scraps and fragments I can recall the punches and needles are not enough at all To make my mind glow the way I used to The scraps and fragments I try to grasp the words and their meanings are running right through my hands To make my mind glow what do I need to do
7.	Circle of Friends 03:20	lyrics	buy track
"Circle of friends" This day this day I'm outside in the rain this day this day I'm outside with the shame I'm outside a small circle of friends I'm outside and I ain't coming back in again I never was a part of it anyway I've always been a loner and a stray I'm outside a small circle of friends I'm outside and I ain't coming back in again I've been I've been trying to fit in norms and manners never were my thing I'm outside a small circle of friends I'm outside and I ain't coming back in again I never was a part of it anyway I've always been a loner and a stray I'm only part of you and me baby you're the only friend I need my companion my happiness This life this life I'm standing on the sides looking in on other people's lives Taking directions as I'm walking by Taking cover in the time I bide I'm outside a small circle of friends I'm outside and I ain't coming back in again I never was a part of it anyway I've always been a loner and a stray I'm outside a small circle of friends I'm outside and I ain't coming back in again
8.	To Watch the Bridges Burn 02:40	lyrics	buy track
"To Watch the Bridges Burn" I just wanna see you run I just wanna see you fly but I don't wanna be a part of it I bite my lips I bite my tongue I bury al the songs we sung cause I don't wanna be a part of it when You drive away I know I'll stay behind to watch the bridges burn You drive away you know I'll stay behind until the bridges burnt Those foolish eyes ain't fooling me I'm building cities you will see and you will never be a part of it The statues of me will stand tall my name be sung in every hall and you will never be a part of it when You drive away I know I'll stay behind to watch the bridges burn You drive away you know I'll stay behind until the bridges burnt behind until the bridges burnt behind until the bridges burnt I watch my darling drive away I watch my baby drive away I watch my baby go behind us all the bridges burn
9.	Everyone's Favourite Concubine 03:49	lyrics	buy track
I know you tried your best this time to be everyone's favorite concubine to please with all the strength you had till your soul shattered and you fell You fell into the dark You fell like a spark You fell into the dark You went out like a spark I know there's not much left of you but I collect the pieces that I knew to be a good and faithful friend till your soul shattered and you fell You fell into the dark You fell like a spark You fell into the dark You went out like a spark And my soul shatters When i think of all you went through and my heart's breaking but the night is falling and there's a war coming you can feel them running in the dark you can feel them running you can hear them coming through the dark You fell like a spark You fell into the dark You went out like a spark I know you tried your best this time
10.	Bitter Sweet Bliss 03:26	lyrics	buy track
I wake up to your sad and humdrum everyday the grey sky, the harbor the streets that seem to pray for life they'll never gain I walk down the old and worn-out avenue past the places I always will connect to you this used to be our town I thought that I could leave this place behind me never fully understood how hard it would be it fills me with a sort of bittersweet bliss but I can't regain the times I miss I wake up to your sad and humdrum everyday the one you left me the time you said you couldn't stay it's all that I've got left I thought that I could leave this place behind me never fully understood how hard it would be it fills me with a sort of bittersweet bliss but I can't regain the times I thought that I could leave this place behind me never fully understood how hard it would be it fills me with a sort of bittersweet bliss but I can't regain the one I miss
11.	Awfully Aware 03:28	lyrics	buy track
We are lying in your bed the wine is spinning in my head I want to kiss you one more time but my lips are sore and I'm awfully aware I shouldn't even be here I shouldn't even be here I want to taste it one more time the saltiness the smoke sublime your eyes are calling me to stay and the door's so far away But I'm awfully aware I shouldn't even be here I shouldn't even be here I should have stayed away from you I should have run when I first saw you I should have chosen another way And yet I'm standing here before you awfully aware I shouldn't even be here I shouldn't even be here The forest used to seem so dark now it seems magically enchanting I want to get lost in your thorns I want to hide behind your branches But I'm awfully aware I shouldn't even be here I shouldn't even be here It's like I can't control my mind and I can't control my body I keep ending up back here though I know it'll make me sorry And you'll never let me near I shouldn't even be here The dawn is breaking as I tangle myself out of your sheets I am shaking as the cold air hits my skin and I weep I shouldn't be here You shouldn't be here We shouldn't be here again
12.	Nothing Quite So Gentle 04:23	lyrics	buy track
If you're one step from the grave how will you know just what to say how will you tell the tricks that time will play If you are two steps from your life how will you ever recognize all of those crucial things that keep you alive And the lighthouse at the end of the road still shines for you still shines for you And the waves keep crashing into the rocks but I'll make do yeah, I'll make do 'cause I believe that they're still gentler than you are If you are three steps from your heart how can you tell right and wrong apart is there a rule to go by if you're unsure And the lighthouse at the end of the road still shines for you still shines for you And the waves keep crashing into the rocks but I'll make do yeah, I'll make do 'cause I believe that they're still gentler than you are If you are four steps from your skin how will you know what's down within down in that hollow shape that bears your name And the lighthouse at the end of the road still shines for you still shines for you And the waves keep crashing into the rocks but I'll make do yeah, I'll make do 'cause there is nothing quite so gentle as you are

about

2011 was a busy year for me. I worked hard to get an artist visa to the US, preparing for a tour that might go on for as long as two years. At the same time I wrote and recorded a new album. Now that I’ve landed in my tour in the US it’s also time for my new album to land. "The Owls Are Not What They Seem" is a collection of 12 new songs.

My musical journey started out in 2004 when I recorded Blue Moon and me and my musicians all gathered in a basement studio in Stockholm recording acoustically and almost all the instruments at the same time. After that I tried a more common way of recording in layers, adding instruments upon instruments. For my third album I hired a producer, Tobias Fröberg and for my fourth album Florida i experimented with a bigger soundscape with more drums than I had ever used before.

For "The Owls Are Not What They Seem" I went back to basics. After having done an acoustic solo tour for my album Florida Acoustic in 2010 I felt I was in my best element when I was playing and singing at the same time without the restrains of headphones and click-tracks. So I decided to make an ablum that was the essence of that me. Just something I could record in my bedroom without the pressure of a big production, time and opinions from others.

All the songs on "The Owls Are Not What They Seem" are recorded that way. Me - playing and singing at the same time, then sparsely adding other instruments to enhance and highlight where I thought it was needed. My goal was to keep it down and make an acoustic album with a live, organic feel to it. I had no interest in changing the world or inventing something new. I just wanted to make a beautiful acoustic album.

credits

released January 31, 2012

All songs written by Sofia Talvik. Vocals, guitar and piano by Sofia Talvik except track 12 piano by Martin Hederos. Bass by Janne Manninen except track 1&7, bass by Sofia Talvik. Cello by Christian Hörgren. Drums and percussion by Joakim Lundgren. Flute by Mattias Bååth. Trombone by Kristoffer Jonsson. Pedal steel guitar by Anders Pettersson. Violin on track 3&11, by Hanna Ekström. All additional instruments by Sofia Talvik. Additional vocals on track 3 by Pontus Borg. String arrangement on track 11 by Christian Hörgren.

Produced, mixed and edited by Sofia Talvik except track 7 mixed and edited by Hans Olsson Brookes.
Mastered by Linus Bille A/D Union; analogdigitalunion.com.
Cover photo: Jonas Westin and Sofia Talvik.
Picture editing and Graphic design: Sofia Talvik.

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about

Sofia Talvik Gothenburg, Sweden

Unmistakably Nordic in flavor, Sofia Talvik somehow still conforms to American interpretations of her own original music, a North Sea siren blending sparkle and melancholy, creating a special niche of folk music that has been described as neo-folk. She is a veteran performer with 8 original full length albums as well as numerous EPs, singles and tours behind her. ... more