A few months ago, El Perro Del Mar released her fifth dazzling studio album Pale Fire. In fact, I wrote about the title track, and its effortless beauty and detailed construction. I Carry the Fire is another stunning work designed around varying levels of a sound experience. Sarah Assbring‘s delicate vocals, a stirring bass guitar riff, an ethereal choir – the result puts the listener directly at the center, spinning, attempting to find the source.
One slip with the ice on the ground No need for nothing else No sleep with my eyes on the ground There was enough to believe in.”
The track has left me wondering of the album’s inspiration. After all, the Swede has been nominated for Best Album, Best Pop and Best Producer for the Swedish Grammys in February. Her work has evolved quite rapidly, and her nomination for Best Producer is clearly a result of her drive. I can’t help but wonder if she took any inspiration from Vladimir Nabokov‘s novel Pale Fire. As a bibliophile, I can only hope that Assbring took some vision from the author, if not some poetic flare. I’ll leave you with this excerpt from Nabokov’s Pale Fire and let you be the judge.
All colors made me happy: even gray.
My eyes were such that literally they
Took photographs. Whenever I’d permit,
Or, with a silent shiver, order it”
