Søren (band)
Søren is an Italian dark folk/new wave collective formed in 2013 by Matteo Gagliardi that employs musicians from all over the world. In 2017 they released their debut album "Stargazing", quickly followed by a video single for the song Houses and a companion ep recorded live in 2018 titled "Stargazing Live!". In April 2020 they released "Bedtime Rituals", their second studio album, followed in November 2021 by Ultima Necat, their third and last work. Their name is a tribute to the danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. Style. Søren are often described as a cocktail of Dark Folk and  New Wave and are usually compared to other Neofolk acts from Rome like Spiritual Front, but with more new wave influences. Other reviewers compared them to acts like My Bloody Valentine, Daughter and The XX and described them as electro-folk. Their songs are often described as "dark ballads", and they use a mix of almost-whispered male and strong female vocals. Their second album "Bedtime Rituals" was compared to the gothic rock sound of The Sisters of Mercy, with epic and symphonic influences, almost fantasy-like. Collaborations. "Stargazing" and "Bedtime Rituals", Søren's first two albums, are very collaborative  works with more than ten musicians across the world working on them coming from different backgrounds and musical genres, from the singer-songwriter world of Joni Fuller and Mike Wyatt to the punk attitude of guitarist Matt LeFevers and the metal background of drummer Siros Vaziri. Album covers. The cover art of "Stargazing" was digitally painted by Daniele Piscitello, lead animator of the videogame The Wardrobe. The same cover was edited by filmmaker Antonio La Camera, also director of the Houses music video and award winner with his short "Flesh and Dust", to be used for "Stargazing Live!". "Bedtime Rituals , Søren second studio album, features a cover painted by Martyna Outstar" Zych, animator on The Witcher 3, lead designer of Cold Hearts and twitch streamer. Works on the cover was live-streamed on twitch and now it is featured on the band official YouTube channel.