“I Swam” by Alexander Carson

Alexander Carson’s music puts vulnerability at the forefront – their neoclassical, downtempo music is intended to help the listener to slow down and connect with their feelings away from the rush of present day life, an aim they certainly accomplished with their albums ‘Ellipsism’ and ‘Tombland’.

Their forthcoming third album, ‘The Idiot’, pushes forward that project in intriguing and eclectic ways, as shown by the album’s newly released lead single, “I Swam”.

The song has a fundamentally tranquil nature reminiscent of inspirations Rufus Wainwright and Andrew Bird, Carson’s warm and soothing voice at the forefront and backed by delicately arranged instrumentals. The song’s peacefulness encourages the listener to look deeper and find the hidden layers within something seemingly simple, a fitting summary of Carson’s creative work.

On the song, they say, “This concept of sounding simple, yet technically virtuosic is inspired by French composer Erik Satie, and in particular, his Gymnopedies (based on the naked Greek dances from the island of Knossos) and this underlines the basis of “I Swam” as the song is built on only two chords. Yet that basic framework allows so many delicate melodies to fall onto each other like waves overlapping on the vast open coast of Holkham beach near where I live.”