Lindstrøm

Lindstrøm — the recording moniker of Norwegian producer Hans-Peter Lindstrøm — announces Everyone Else is a Stranger, his new album out July 14th on Smalltown Supersound, and presents its sprawling lead single, “Syreen.” Everyone Else is a Stranger lifts its title from John Cassavetes’ original manuscript for his 1984 film Love Streams, with Lindstrøm explaining: “When I read about it in Cassavetes’ biography, it felt like such a great title — and it felt so good to put it back out in the world again.” As Lindstrøm’s sixth studio album and first since 2019’s On A Clear Day I Can See You Forever, Everyone Else is a Stranger gathers Lindstøm’s different musical paths, stretching four tracks of his signature chord-stacking disco epics and freeform cosmic voyages across nearly 40 minutes. “Syreen” is Everyone Else is a Stranger’s opener, a mesmerizing first glimpse with twinkling synths that are guaranteed to entrance.

“I stumbled upon ‘Syreen’ when working on a new uptempo track for my liveset. It means lilac in Norwegian, a flower that symbolizes love & new beginnings,” comments Lindstrøm. “Nothing is more welcoming than the spring after a cold winter. Enjoy ‘Syreen,’ the spring and life itself!”

Where Lindstrøm’s previous albums have a slower and more mellow feel, Everyone Else is a Stranger sees Lindstrøm take on a much more rhythm-oriented and uptempo approach, featuring tracks that fit perfectly with his revered live sets. It contains the unexpected twists and turns that have become trademark Lindstøm, sequenced in a way that begins rather accessible before arriving at a much stranger destination. Each track was run through tape and all kinds of colorful spring-reverbs and delays, giving the recorded element the right texture before being mixed down to its finished version. “It’s a tedious way of working, but I need to work slowly to get a connection with the music I’m writing and recording,” he says.

Lindstrøm has historically used instruments and outboard gear from his long-standing city center studio in creating his music, but with Everyone Else is a Stranger, he’s moved to a new space overlooking one of the main rivers in Oslo and brought an expanded instrumental palette into the fold. With the addition of drum-machines, live hi-hats, cymbals, triangles, tambourines, congas, timbales and flutes, the album also includes recordings of Lindstrøm playing a cheap Chinese cello and violin for the first time. “Most of these instruments I’ve now sold since the making of the album, so it’s probably the last time I’ll be using these instruments in a context like this,” he says. Alongside the old Solina String-Ensemble he has used on essentially every song since his debut, these varied textures combine in interesting layers contrasting the synthesized sounds.

Named “the king of space disco” by The New Yorker, Lindstrøm has always made a virtue of his obsessive work ethic, turning his studio into a factory floor for churning out infectious tracks. He has collaborated with the likes of Todd Terje, Prins Thomas and Todd Rundgren, and has remixed a slew of acts including LCD Soundsystem, Lana Del Rey, Haim, Flume and more.