Christian Alvestam – Self 2.0

Sweden’s Gunnar Christian Älvestam is well known as the former vocalist for the Swedish melodic death metal band Scar Symmetry. He has also participated as a vocalist, guitarist, bassist and drummer in several bands from Sweden. He currently plays in several bands, including Solution .45 and Miseration, and has made several guest appearances for other music bands. He is an amazing clean singer also known for his fantastic growls. Christian Älvestam recently released a solo project called Self 2.0 that he has written and produced completely by himself, where he shows a more pop – oriented sound inspired by the 80’s, singing only with clean vocals. You can find Self 2.0 as a digital-only release through Pivotal Rockordings.

Musically his new personal effort is way different than his past work and shouldn’t be ignored if you are in this kind of music. I have always admired many pop singers and bands and I was surprised when I heard the record for the first time. Self 2.0 is referred as rock – progressive rock but when you hear it, you immediately catch the 80’s pop feeling that the record has. It contains five excellent tracks full of great melodies, where Christian Älvestam sings with his wonderful clean voice capturing the sound that he always was a big fan of, as he has mentioned.

‘Once Adreamed’ is the first track, a groovy song where you can even hear some impressive saxophone parts, opening this magnificent EP with the best possible way. It continues in the same way with the first song, and you could say that it is quite equable yet interesting. ‘Time to Let Go’ is more like a ballad with a beautiful guitar solo and imaginary singing. This enchanting and quite atmospheric sound flows throughout the EP for almost half an hour. ‘Origins’ follows the same mood with ‘Time to Let Go’, with these soft sound melodies and some saxophone, while Christian Älvestam with his seductive voice unfolds a wonderful journey in front of you. At times I found myself lost in the music or even forgot what I was thinking of at that time. Same goes for the track ‘The Unforsaken’, which starts with some brilliant keyboards and an emotional guitar solo which also takes place after the chorus and at the end of the song. ‘En Knippa Ljung’ is the last and biggest track of ‘Self 2.0’ closing an impressive work full of emotional music.

The only thing that i found bad about ‘Self 2.0’ is that it should last longer and maybe the cover artwork that i found very simple, at least that’s my opinion. If you are a fan of this kind of music or seeking something that will make you forget your worries even for a while, you should definitely check it out.