Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with Soldier Blue
General description
Soldier Blue is a folk-pop singer-songwriter from Milan, currently based in Copenhagen. He’s published four EPs. Brand New Step (2014) and Over You (2017) were a two-part project on Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s Little Prince. The subsequent EP, ROZA (2020), was based on an original fairytale in eight chapters. Finally, the new record, Ethical Love (2025), is a five-song EP that blends thoughtful song-writing with literary sources from Catullus to Shakespeare.
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
When I was little, we used to go to Sicily each summer for the holidays. The drive from Milan took 24 hours. My siblings and I called this the “great journey.” During the great journey, my father would play entire albums back-to-back: Fabrizio De André, De Gregori, Bob Dylan, Alanis Morissette… We used to sing along in the back seats, or just listen absent-mindedly, and that’s how my love for song-writing must have come about.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
I’ve always maintained that the purest motive for doing something, whether it’s music or something else, is because you don’t see that something (yet) in the world. I started making music because there were specific rhythmic patterns, lyrical turns of phrase, or melodic escamotages that I liked in individual songs or artists, but I wanted to hear combined in a certain way. For instance, I am a big fan of maj7 chords and ¾ beats; I also like “witty,” self-conscious lyrics that feel bitter-sweet. You put those ingredients together and you get most of my songs. So again, it’s about wanting to hear myself a certain kind of music – if I find out that doesn’t exist, then “I guess it must be up to me” (Bob Dylan).
What’s the story behind your current music project?
We’ve just released a new EP entitled “Ethical Love.” It’s a collection of love songs – of course – connected by the theme of searching for a love that feels “right.” Not only in the sentimental sense, of feeling that this is the right person for you; but in the ethical sense, of feeling that there is balanced mutuality in the relationship: neither you nor I are putting each other on any pedestal, we don’t use each other as a hook for projections, and so on. We respect and see each other. Beyond the phantasy, a love that is real in that sense.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
It’s tricky to describe, because when I say “folk,” people imagine Irish music or bluegrass. But my music is neither. The songs are often acoustic but contain a lot of electronic sounds too, and even some “trappy” elements at times, so it’s not as traditionally-sounding as that. That’s why I say “folk-pop,” but that usually doesn’t clarify much. Perhaps the easiest is just to point to our inspirations: I’ve always made music with a certain pantheon of artists in my mind – Damien Rice, David Gray, Jeff Buckley, the Swell Season… I am a son of that 90s intimist vibe and aesthetic, but also with that venomous lyrical Dylan which kills any cheap romanticism.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
A personal breakthrough was folk “pedals.” Keeping the same note constant while the rest varies, whether on the low or the high end. It creates an effect that is so moving to me.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
I’m your average Logic Pro guy. I used to write on the guitar only, but now I like to write into the DAW. Changing sounds around has that “defamiliarizing” effect that allows you to trick yourself and achieve some degree of naivety again. I don’t mind keeping some of the “toyish” synths that I use in the preprod into the final record – I like toyish sounds.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
My absolute favourite artist at the moment is Leif Vollebekk. I’ve seen him live twice, in Brussels and Antwerp, and I don’t think there’s a better live performer around right now.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
Oh, music has been all about personal experiences. In Jungian psychology, we talk about “anima” to refer to the feeling-states that a man is consciously disconnected from and thus haunted by. All of my songs have been attempts to establish a relation to my anima.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
I’ve had many friends tell me that the main emotion they get from my music is some sort of longing, yearning, as if the one who is singing had been abandoned and was weeping for it. I think of it as a response to some original detachment – I guess the separation from the mother, you could say? I like the definition that Dargen D’Amico gives: “Tratto solo del tratto di musica che mi compete / Che poi è il suono del pianto post partum delle comete” (I only deal with the bit of music that concerns me / Which is the comets’ postpartum cry).
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
That you transform. You’re not stuck with anything forever; music changes with you.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
I’m more of a studio creature than a live performer, but if I had to choose, then I guess some little-known pub in rural Ireland? “Homey” venues like that are my favourite.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Leif. Or Alanis.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music?
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soldier_blue_official/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-it/artist/6FKbKocvk74WHIUDHJJrCM
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
I have a weird project in mind, called “Toy Songs,” that goes back to the idea of using toyish sounds and publishing the “bottom of the barrel” in my PC’s hard drive – all the unfinished preproductions, the most experimental stuff too. But more on that later…
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
I have many friends who complain that we over-produce songs. That’s definitely true sometimes, and a song like “Mother,” which is just guitar, two voices, and viola, is perhaps the best we’ve ever put out. But at the same time, it’s important to experiment, and you can’t do every song guitar and voice, or they’ll all sound the same… so I guess, I wish listeners knew that we are always trying to hit that sweet spot – neither smothering a song with too many layers, nor putting out something that sounds like a “lazy” demo.
If you want here you can add a representative Youtube video to insert below the interview 🙂
Here is a videoclip from our very first EP:
