Swedish born Matilda Lindell blends nordic melancholy with American country-pop presenting a unique sound that can only be described as captivating, earnest and unforgettable.
With a talent for expressing emotions, accompanied with powerful vocals, Lindell brings incredible relatability to her songs through her velvet voice and raw lyrics. She hits that spot of affinity, inviting her audience to feel seen and understood.
Harnessing her love of music from a young age, she spent endless hours by the old piano, writing songs that she’d later record on a cassette tape that she kept next to her.
To her family’s enjoyment and, let’s be honest, occasional frustration, she became obsessive about her craft. She wasn’t afraid to show the world (which back then was her living room) who she was and go after every bit of what she wanted.
While in music college, her career as a freelance singer took off as she became one of Stockholm’s most celebrated singers, supporting major label and award winning artists, fronting several bands and a cappella groups. At age 26 she began touring the US as one of the principal singers in the tribute act “ABBA THE CONCERT”.
Her upcoming EP is a fascinating deep dive into ABBA, and includes interpretations of a selection of ABBA songs that have brought special meaning to her over the years.
“The familiar melodies are discovered in a new way” says Matilda. “The essence of the songs are there but I have created a new perspective and, I hope, a new emotional journey for the listener”. Strings are an important element in these new beautiful versions.
“I’m pretty sure you can see my Scandinavian style as I’m all for simple and functionality, but since I’ve traveled a lot, I’ve absorbed many cultures and styles so I’m probably a bit all over the place. Hopefully, I’m pulling it off :-)”
Here’s what she told us about all of the above.
Do you see yourself as more of a songwriter or a performer?
It’s like a weight comes off my shoulders when I write! Not sure why I don’t do it much more often, haha! Songwriting is like therapy, I get more clear and inspired. But performing and connecting with the audience is probably my absolute favorite part.
Tell us about your creative flow and process?
It is so different every time. Lately, I’ve been co-writing much more, and I like the “forced creativity” so to speak. You show up and you work, inspired or not! And it so often leads to something good. I am a busy woman and sometimes my art gets put aside even though all I want to do all day is sit by the piano.
So, it’s good to have both the accountability and a collaborator to bounce ideas back and forth with. Usually when I write by myself, I wait until the inspiration hits me. I start with sitting down by the piano and finding a melody and chords. I love melodies.
I hear them in my head, and I often start writing music with just “pretend lyrics” to see what melodies express the right mood or feeling, before I add the lyrics. Sometimes the song is done in one sitting, but often I have to go back and work on it, let it sink in.
Very often the lyrics are the part taking the longest for me partly because I really want to be clear and precise in what I am trying to convey, plus English is not my first language.
Tell us about your latest cover of ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” and how it came about.
For over a decade I’ve been touring the US as one of the lead singers of the tribute act “ABBA The Concert”. Their music has become very important and special to me and I wanted to create something personal from it. “Dancing Queen” is the song I’ve sung the most times in my life! So it was a natural choice to cover it.
I heard how it could have a different message behind the disco groove and I rearranged it to be a celebration to women and sisterhood. I sat down by the piano and found new chords to reflect our struggles and vulnerability and then resolving it in a hopeful chorus.
I wish that the listeners will get a sense of freedom and encouragement. The video features beautiful women of all generations dancing in their own unique way. I love that part of it!
How did you deal with not being able to perform for so long?
I miss performing live so much it’s crazy! But I’ve tried to make the most of it, keeping the connection with my fans through livestreams and conversations on both social media and with my mailing list have been more personal, vulnerable and real for sure. The livestreams have been fun, and we have gotten the chance to get to know each other in a new way.
Fortunately, I’m also a voice coach so I really pivoted at the start of the pandemic and have been building my voice coaching business more this past year. I’ve enjoyed it a lot and it has allowed me to make some money while I have not been able to perform.
What’s the future looking like for you?
Later this spring or early summer, the full EP will be released! It’s called “ABBA Uncovered”. Hopefully the summer will give some opportunities for live shows to celebrate the EP. I am also writing new original music that slowly comes together for the next release! Late summer or early fall the plan is to go out on tour again with ABBA The Concert and I am keeping my fingers crossed for it to happen!
