Juni Habel is a singer and songwriter from Norway who makes music she describes as “folk-like, melodious and playful.” Taking inspiration from the likes of Vashti Bunyan, Jessica Pratt and Joanna Newsom, Habel weaves songs that sound at once intricate and simple, drawing the listener into small yet beguiling worlds.
Last week, Juni Habel released her debut album, All Ears, a record that proved as much a journey of self-discovery as it did an artistic endeavour. Created at home using mostly Garageband and her own equipment, Habel started out writing songs just for herself, but as her technique improved so too did her excitement and happiness. Add to that extra time afforded by the pandemic, and the songs began to form an album, one that is suffused with the joy of its own creation. “All Ears [is] a collection of the first songs I wrote,” Habel describes. “It was a great and joyful discovery that I could make music.”
Perhaps the standout track is the closer, ‘Fortune’, a beautifully timeless folk song combines Habel’s voice and guitar with hummed backing vocals that warble and wane like voices from an antique radio set. It’s a poignant song but not a sad one, glowing with it’s own quiet energy despite its understated composition. As Habel writes in a Facebook post: “This music has opened big rooms in me while I’ve made it and I hope it can give something to you too.”
Photo by E Petersen