Grand Alpaca is a Norwegian singer/songwriter delivering guitar driven music in his own elegant way. Surrounded by hazy atmospheres, Grand Alpaca’s honest to bone lyrics and heartfelt vocals gushes along like a Sirocco breeze – offering plenty of comfort for those in need of amenable pop tones. Hailing from the outermost west coast of Norway, his music is more reminiscent of a soothing Californian sunset than a weather heavy Norwegian fisherman-village.
On “Moving On,” Grand Alpaca delivers a straightforward breakup song with soulful piano and a direct baritone. We get that sense that, even though the song marks a sad occasion, there’s some forward progression already. In our interview, Grand Alpaca talks about his songwriting influences and his process.
Who are some of your musical influences?
I grew up listening a lot to the blues and pretty soon I was all about Eric Clapton. He is probably the main reason my interest for music really put everything else on hold growing up. Then In high school a friend of mine turned me into John Mayer and Ive been hooked on guitar driven pop music ever since. There’s so many great songwriters out there and so many awesome bands.
It’s really hard to name just a few, but if you put a gun to my face I guess I have to say that my main influences´ probably John Mayer, Coldplay, Jason Isbell, Dawes, Keane, Keith Urban and maybe even Band Of Horses. Im really all over the place.
Name a perfect song and tell us why you feel that way.
“Elephant” by Jason Isbell is one of my all time favorite songs. It’s really what a great song is all about. It keeps giving the more you listen in.
Explain the title of your album.
My album releases December 3rd and its called Staying Quiet Is An Easy Young Thing To Do. It’s an album about growing up and looking back at the younger me, wishing I had raised my voice more often and taken more chances.
Tell us about the first song you wrote.
I think the first real song I wrote was “Julia”, and that was my first single released from the album. I’ve written a lot of songs before that one, but that was the first song I thought could actually work out as something worth releasing. It’s about being trapped in an unhealthy relationship forcing you to be someone you’re not. I think a lot of guys and girls can relate to that!
Do you have any songwriting tips you can share?
Yes! Stop being so hard on your own writing. Just let the words flow and clean it up later if you need to. Always dare to explore, but sometimes less is more. It’s not about using the most chords. Just listen to “Gravity” by John Mayer. If you can play your song accompanied by just one instrument like a guitar or a piano, and it feels good, then it’s probably a keeper.