“With You” is a gripping track released today from thirdcurl, the project of multi-instrumentalist Gabriel Bødker Johnson, featured last month with the track “ordinary life.” “With You” sports a dark, synth-tinged turn just prior to the one-minute mark that fully impresses, showing the artist’s atmospheric chops early on. This follows a broodingly entrancing series of verses, aesthetically reminiscent of Damon Albarn’s atmospheric works, with an additional tinge of post-punk. The churning guitars and prickly synths thereafter combine with melodic vocals to also resemble Yves Tumor. “With You” is an engrossing success from thirdcurl and collaborator Casper Iskov.
At age 14, Gabriel Bødker Johnson (thirdcurl) met Casper Iskov, at the time a local musical myth. Casper was known to have started recording music at age 12, and was a multi-instrumentalist and self-producer early on. At that time, Gabriel was beginning to hone his skills with DJ equipment and FL Studio. A YouTube announcement from Pioner regarding new DJ equipment piqued Gabriel’s interest, showing off the effects while playing a Daft Punk truck, remixed by deadmau5. What followed was an obsession with deadmau5, a hugely pivotal influence for Gabriel. Deadmau5 hosted a live stream some nights sharing his process, a stream that Gabriel watched every night when available.
“One of the first songs I made myself was a song called ‘with you’ in 2011,” Gabriel says. “It was a complete copy of a traditional deadmau5 track. I put it on youtube because I was simply so proud to have made my own electronic track.” Fast forward to 2019, and the track has a new life, after Casper reached out to Gabriel. Casper loved the track’s early mix, and contributed lyrics to this new iteration. Thus, “With You” marks the first collaboration between thirdcurl (Gabriel” and Casper.
“Casper & I moved in together in an old house outside of Copenhagen together with Emil Klitsgaard, who helped me do the cover for the track, and Andreas Frandsen whom plays bass with me on stage,” Gabriel says. “During this time Casper & I sat down and finally managed to finish the track in 2018. 7 years it took to finish ‘with you’. We’re very proud of the track, as it features the same lyrics he wrote back then and because it still features the main elements of what I’d made so many years ago. But above all ‘with you’ played a part of us becoming friends.”
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“With You” and other memorable tracks from this month can also be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Best of November 2019’ Spotify playlist.
