Laurel Music was a Göteborg based solo project that developed into a duo and then a trio with additional live musicians on tour. Their only long player “This Night And The Next” is a hidden gem that is still loved by many pop lovers around the world. It was licensed to labels in The UK and Taiwan and several tours of The UK, Germany and Scandinavia were made.
It started with Tobias Isaksson from small town Varberg who had been writing songs since he was 15. In his 20’s he had moved to Göteborg and his singer/songwriter project had been figuring in several magazines such as Sound Affects and Sonic and he was well known by A&R’s in Stockholm. But when Labrador presented him with Douglas Heart’s singer Malin Dahlberg late in 2001 he was hooked. She liked his sense for melodies and once their correspondence started a close relationship was rapidly developed. The combination of his timeless qualities as a songwriter akin to Neil Young, Morrissey/Marr and Tim Hardin and her ethereal vocals inspired by soft emo pop like Geoff Farina, The Secret Stars and Ida made their musical collaboration quite rare. As they entered the studio to record their debut album, they realised they needed a full band to complete the sound. The drummer Max Sjöholm (Douglas Heart, Afraid Of Stairs) joined them as a permanent member.
A second album called “Cycles” was recorded but what happened to the songs remains a secret to the people involved. Laurel Music did a few live shows but as Tobias moved on to form the big group Irene, Malin pursued her solo carrier as We Are Soldiers We Have Guns and Max started drumming with Sambassadeur, Laurel Music became a legacy and a soft hearted memory. After the resolution of Irene Tobias moved to Stockholm and started a solo project called Azure Blue. Malin and Max are still in Göteborg playing with various bands.
