‘Sometimes the clearest picture of a relationship only really comes into focus after it’s over. On Unblurred Brynja Rán takes those complex feelings and turns them into a really evocative set of indie driven songs.”
Following on from her EP *Seven* which went over 1m streams, Icelandic artist Brynja Rán is now releasing her long awaited debut album *Unblurred* on 25th October. The ten-track record is a significant step in her evolution and brings together a series of songs that deal with relationships, attraction, the uncertainty of things and the emotions that remain when things don’t quite work out. Four singles have already been released in the run up to the album and now the full project is available to hear.
One of the key tracks is “Unblurred Lines’ which is the third track on the album and the focus single. It’s about the end of a relationship and the idea is that the lines which were previously blurred have now become very clear. The chorus is the vehicle for the song’s central message which is that what was once ambiguous is now impossible to ignore. It’s a rather interesting take on a very familiar subject as the focus isn’t just on the heartbreak, it’s on the moment of realisation that you’re on opposite sides. It’s a very expansive track with a full indie/indie rock arrangement in the sense that it brings in acoustic and electric guitars, synths, bass guitar, drums and a host of other instruments. It has the indie/indie rock feel which provides a very full musical context for the emotional content of the song without in any way detracting from the melodic quality at the heart of it. The titles across the album point to a range of different angles on relationships and the various feelings that can be involved. “Cowboy Wannabe”, “Deja Vu”, “Adore”, “Cherry” and “Make Me Feel” are up against “Until”, “Still Stuck Waiting”, “Don’t You Leave” and “What Else” which are more reflective in tone. It’s a very varied track listing in terms of the subject matter, moving between the desire to be attracted to someone, the desire to be emotionally attached to someone, the uncertainty that can be involved and the difficulty of actually letting go. It’s not one particular moment or one particular feeling that the record is about. Unblurred is really a collection of different perspectives on these things. Each track has a chance to contribute to the overall emotional portrait of the record.
Brynja’s musical background is certainly an interesting one having developed her singing and playing from a very early age and drawing inspiration from Amy Winehouse, Lana Del Rey and Billie Eilish. Her previous work has been in the realms of soul, funk, jazz and R&B and Unblurred is very much an indie/indie rock record. It was produced by Bjarki Ómarsson and mastered by Grammy nominated engineer Glenn Schick. The release is also coming at a very exciting time for Brynja Rán as a live act. She’s already played in the UK, Iceland and Slovakia and is now due to play at Iceland Airwaves which will be another great opportunity to get her music out to a fresh audience. *Seven* has already established an audience and the four advance singles have built up the anticipation so Unblurred is a massive next step. Unblurred is an album about the complicated emotions of relationships and the process of working through them. “Unblurred Lines” is a perfect example of that in practice, taking the moment of realisation of separation and making it into a very expressive indie rock song. It’s a ten track collection which gives you a lot more space to get into Brynja Rán’s songwriting, her musical influences and her emerging artistic identity. A very promising debut as a full album artist.
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