‘SIOEN.’ (reads as Sioen dot) is a feast, it’s the start of a new era, it’s a new beginning. The album has a clear message and through its veins runs a “lust for life”.
“This album, probably for the first time, shows who I really am” (quid Sioen).
When he starts working on the album, some 2 years ago, Sioen decides to use everything that comes to mind. The result is 60 songs which he takes with him on a trip through Europe as he wanted to broaden his horizon and work with other songwriters..
It brings him to Hamburg, Berlin and Stockholm, to name a few of his stops on the journey. Together with these songwriters he goes through his songs and let them the choice of the song to work on. It’s the start of a new experience.
The different collaborations did have its effect on “SIOEN.” Each song has its own identity, this wasn’t the case in the past. Now, every song goes straight to the essence of what it wants to say.
One of the guidelines on this album ‘Don’t bore us. Where is the chorus?’ came from Peter Kvint, a Swedish producer and songwriter who made hits for Britney Spears, Heather Nova en Sheryl Crow. Sioen wrote one of the songs on the album with him and the two of them hit it off so well that Sioen asked him to also mix the album. It clearly made its mark on the result.
When he comes back to Ghent he involves Frederik Segers, maybe the best kept secret of Ghent, who gets the job of keeping the overview and making it into an album.
“I took my time for this album” says Frederik Sioen. “I may have about 10 versions of certain songs. It was a lengthy process but it never felt that way, probably because the start was always spontaneous. The production is very thorough and we took the time to do a good cleaning job.” Something new : only one of the songs on the album is solely written by Sioen. Something else that’s new : the piano, Sioen’s signature instrument, is still there but no more in the forefront. Not on the album and it won’t be on stage. Sioen has switched places. He took centre stage holding the microphone. He’s the man with the guitar. But for the those who wonder : no worries, there’ll still be a piano on stage….somewhere.
For the first time there was a big influence from outside and this could have gone the wrong way, but it didn’t and the result is still a “Sioen album”.
Sioen has the ability to combine “recognizable with sustainability” and this latest album is the best prove of that.
“SIOEN.” Is made by an artist that has found out what he does best and where others can give him a hand. That’s why there’s a “dot” behind the name : just Sioen, this is it!
Sioen. - Pre Listening Session New Album
TUE 17 JAN 12 | Stories
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