Whose Rules Premiere New Single 'Somber'

Norwegian producer, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Marius Elfstedt today released his newest single "Somber."

The track was premiered by Under the Radar who wrote ""Somber" is a characteristically ambitious effort from Elfstedt, beginning on a dizzying crescendo of looped samples, booming production, and layers of distorted electronics, only to instantly shift into an intimate acoustic-led verse.

From there, Elfstedt packs the track with loads of chilled beats, lushly layered melodies, and subtly catchy hooks, culminating in a gloriously glitchy climax. "Somber" shows off Elfstedt's talent on as both a songwriter and producer, balancing impressively layered and foward-thinking alt pop with an instinct for instantly catchy melodicism."

Marius had this to say about the track, "Somber is based on a super old demo I made many years ago (there's a video of it on my TikTok if you're curious). I tried quite a few times to finish it for one project or another, but never got it where I wanted it. But I kept going back to it. Finally after making a couple of tracks for this LP I found a way to get it done."

"Somber" follows Marius' latest single "Slow Down" which both arrive as part of a forthcoming project born out of the solitude found within the walls of the COVID pandemic living in Hasler, Norway. Marius Elfstedt found solace as the world shut down inside of his studio in the middle of the Scandinavian wilderness.

Wooden, log walls, haplessly strewn posters, old second-hand couches, and a teeming collection of guitars and synths created an escape for creation. Of the track, Elfstedt said "I often feel like time is moving too fast so I made this song to help joyful moments last longer."

Marius Elfstedt grew up on a flower farm in a rural area roughly an hour outside of Oslo. Four years ago, while exploring his family's farm, he came upon an abandoned cabin and re-purposed it into a recording studio to make music with his friends and other artists alike.

Parallel to his work as an artist is what he does behind the scenes for artists such as Dev Lemons, Tigerstate, Selmer, Ralph Castelli and Elah Hale, Whose Rules released a self titled EP in 2020, followed by a handful of collaborative released with Dev Lemons (Guessing Games and Don't You See the Time).