... a volcano of songs erupted and by chance one of the demos caught the ear of DJ Koze. The release of ”Purple Drank” on Koze’s Pampa Records in 2010 couldn’t have been better timed: The same year Axel graduated with a Master of Fine Arts from Gothenburg University, with empty pockets and big dj dreams. Around that time he also moved his studio equipment into a basement on Barnhusgatan (“Orphanage Street”) in Stockholm, together with Petter Nordqvist and Kornél Kovács – the beginning of Studio Barnhus.

Today Studio Barnhus is arguably the most important label for independent dance music in
Scandinavia, with over 100 releases from a broad spectrum of artists like Bella Boo, Sofia
Kourtesis, Jimi Tenor and of course the trio themselves. Axel does A&R and creative direction
work for the label – he also released his celebrated debut album ”Family Vacation” through Studio Barnhus in 2013. Since then, he’s kept a steady flow of releases on other lauded labels like the aforementioned Pampa and Tokyo powerhouse Mule Musiq, garnering nominations for Grammis and P3 Guld (the two most prestigious Swedish pop awards), as well as being named composer of the year by the Swedish songwriters guild. 2022 will see Axel returning to Studio Barnhus and the album format with ”LUZ” and ”Quest for fire”, by far Axel’s most ambitious project to date with guests like Off The Meds
vocalist Kamohelo, saxophonist Kristian Harborg and Baba Stiltz. Axel’s collaborative work has
always been a part of his success. He’s one third of Man Tear - a project with Petter Nordqvist
and Johan Jan Jonasson released by James Murphy’s DFA. He’s half of Talaboman with John
Talabot, adding releases on techno institutions R&S and Cocoon to his catalog. Their 2017
album, The Night Land, came with much fanfare – the duo has two EPs scheduled for 2022, to
be released on their newly formed Night Land Records imprint.

Axel's relentless work ethic shines through as he balances a busy release schedule a...