Nyctophobia - 2023 Danish Target label transviolet 10-track LP

NYCTOPHOBIA means fear of the dark and is the title of Rebekka Thornbech's fourth album, which will be released on November 25, 2022.

The record begins in a lush and dreamy sound universe on 'Beyond the pines', where you stand on the edge of darkness and can only imagine what world awaits on the other side of the deep forest. Then the record with 'Sway' moves on in a warm and melancholic look back at what was, but with a lurking certainty that the world you look back on no longer exists as anything but a washed-out memory in a golden glow. This is followed by the melancholic and dark pop ballad 'Hollow', which is about finally realizing that you have been trying to save a hollow relationship for far too long and that you now have to let go. On 'I can be rain', Rebekka Thornbech dives into grief and draws a thick line under the fact that women are not prettiest when they smile, but are beautiful in the violence of all their emotions. Rebekka Thornbech is rain and thunder, and the song goes directly into 'In the business for a new heart', where grief is redeemed in both anger and liberation. After this, the record sets the mood and becomes more bright and hopeful on 'Rainbows', where the lyrics revolve around awakening - now the rainbow hangs in the sky and promises renewal. 'New age lovers' describes the burgeoning desire for the new, where obligations are not at the center, but enjoyment fills everything. After this comes 'Higher' as the final liberation, where you really become aware of everything that has been left behind, and where Rebekka Thornbech pays tribute to the growing moments, when everything feels bigger and better and more beautiful than before. 'Hold me don't break' is a new love song that is not about forgetting in favor of something new, but about taking everything you have learned with you into the new relationship - with the dream of being able hold each other firmly without destroying either themselves or the other. The record closes with the title track 'Nyctophobia', which, as an epilogue, both melancholic and probing questions about what we have even learned as people who are constantly in breach and opportunities for renewal.

NYCTOPHOBIA is renewal. Rebekka Thornbech, on the other hand, is a well-established name on the Danish music scene, where with her music she manages to merge Americana culture with the Nordic musical traditions in a unique artistic expression - Nordic Country. On Rebekka Thornbech's new album, her songwriting revolves around the themes of darkness, uncertainty, breakup, renewal and rebirth. Where she previously moved within a classic understanding of country, folk and Americana, on the new album she explores a more melancholic and dreamy sound universe in a combination of Americana and pop. The record is a classic 'break-up record', where Rebekka Thornbech writes her way through a hard breakup with a boyfriend. At the same time, the record was created during a pandemic and in a world under pressure, where old worldviews and authorities crumbled, and where everything subsequently has to be rebuilt into something hopefully better than what was.

Rebekka Thornbech, who is based in Copenhagen, at the age of 36 has already released three albums, 'So be it' (2014), 'Wanderlust' (2016) and 'A year in a life' (2019) to great reviews and lots of airplay on especially P4 and P5. In addition, she has toured in Denmark in recent years with her two sisters and the rest of her band. Rebekka Thornbech's strong and present vocals, her sisters' beautiful harmonies and the catchy and relevant songs are a rarity and something to be experienced.

Tracklisting:

1. Beyond The Pines

2. Sway

3. Hollow

4. I Can Be Rain

5. In The Business For A New Heart

6. Rainbows

7. New Age Lovers

8. Higher

9. Hold Me Don't Break

10. Nyctophobia