Trentemøller to Release New Album 'Dreamweaver,' Shares 'A Different Light'

Copenhagen’s Anders Trentemøller has announced his new album, Dreamweaver, set for release on September 13 via his own In My Room label.

Accompanying the news, Trentemøller has also shared the album’s lead single and leadoff track “A Different Light.” Evoking a musical companion to a lunar eclipse as it tracks across the sky, the track contains many of Trentemøller’s trademarks — rich dichotomies, musical shadowplay, Nordic frigidity, and warm analogue waves — while also representing an obvious artistic leap for the artist, a slightly more psychedelic iteration of the dark wave and dreampop he excels at. 
 
An annular, arpeggiated, nylon-string guitar leads “A Different Light” before it’s joined by Icelandic singer Disa’s wistful, meditative vocals, both snaking together until a climactic midway point — the aforementioned eclipse’s penumbra. Here, the guitar gives way to a synth lead that re-echoes its melody, until both emerge in tandem, like kites tethered to the same anchor. “I wanted something human and timeless to carry the song and vocal melody,” says Trentemøller. “The acoustic guitar gave me the exact sense of fragility and presence that I thought the song deserves. At the same time, I wanted to play with both acoustic and electronic; to get the guitar to weave in and out of the synth role that is introduced in the middle of the track. I feel the interplay between these two worlds gave the song an extra dimension.”

It’s also an exceedingly immersive experience on headphones, primed to release any dormant hallucinations you may be harboring. Trentemøller explains, “The song considers themes of longing, healing, and the need for personal transformation. It’s also about confusion and unresolved feelings that happen during any metamorphosis. I try to reflect on the transient nature of dreams, loss, and love. At the same time I recognize, and even embrace that this is part of being a human.”
 
Perhaps belied by the relatively economical sonic palette of “A Different Light,” make no mistake, Dreamweaver is an absolutely lush endeavor. Repeated listens promise new rewards; from geysers of white noise propelling songs further forward, to jarring otic dissonance playing against honeyed vocals, and jangling guitar bends blanketed in tidepools of reverb. With Disa along for the ride again after featuring on two singles in 2022 (“Into The Silence,” and a cover of The Raveonettes “Cops On Our Tail”) her contributions sit in the balance between vocal performance and instrumentation. Dreamweaver is a production tour de force, even by Trentemøller standards, that gives the impression no idea was left unexplored.

Dreamweaver Tracklist:

1. A Different Light
2. Nightfall
3. Dreamweavers
4. I Give My Tears
5. Behind My Eyes
6. Hollow
7. Empty Beaches
8. In A Storm
9. Winter’s Ghost
10. Closure

Photo Credit: Sofie Nørregaard