"A Modern Act" - Andrew Collberg (LP)

Out Now - October 14th - 2022 on Papercup Records // 12" LP // Digital

With a nonchalance that comes eerily natural, every song on A Modern Act cuts right to the chase of the human condition. Or rather conditions, plural, as each song describes a certain “modern” person, situation or relationship. Ultra specific and universal at the same time, that is the beauty of this patchwork of blatant depictions.

The honest and simple piano ballads bookending the first and last song, serve as a demure bracket for the colorful stories told within. Cheerful and dark, Long Blonde Hair will evidently evoke memories of bleached-haired stars we all know and lovingly despise. Indoor Miners will have us enjoyingly waltz slowly to our own downswing. The entrancing combo of indie-folk and bombastic, tied up in repetitive arrangements, makes Hollywood Diamonds sound exactly like what it is: a sharp critique of an exploitative industry by an outsider. As usual Collberg leaves it up to your imagination to fill in the blanks, but the lining is laid. 

A Modern Act is a collection of autobiographical vignettes and mini stories all jokingly swimming in personal bias. Written in a sort of stream of consciousness, Collberg created his own little society. While not always flattering, still illuminating the glitter or gloom where it falls. Unlike for his former work, this time Collberg had all the lyrics ready to go, before working on the music. A Modern Act came to life in January of 2021 and was recorded and produced alongside Miccel Mohr (History of Sugar, Soho Rezanejad) in Copenhagen, Denmark in the following months with the help of Daily Toliver (Molly Burch) on guitar for the title track “A Modern Act”.