It's my great pleasure to present Formoe, an outstanding solo artist from Norway who designs detailed tunes at the intersection of New Age and pop music. Formoe composes music that is as melodious as it is mood-enhancing, fusing atmospheric melodies with capturing the feelings of the pop sound. He has over 7,2k monthly listeners on Spotify, and his atmospheric brand of pop only continues to resonate and gets stronger each month.
Formoe's songs align listeners across serene but contemplative soundscapes, where melody is the core of each tune. Whether working on his own or with others, it is this passion for melody and mood that makes Formoe something to watch in this era.
He is at it again, churning out yet another intriguing piece of stimulating music in his most recent single, "Fugio." Much like his previous releases, "Fugio" captivates listeners with an easily striking soundscape that is exposed through layers of instrumentation and subtle production decisions. It kicks off with heavy footsteps crunching in time on a sort of natural surface, plopping the listener right into the scene. From there, the vocals come in, processed with auto-tune to make them otherworldly. The higher pitch adds that unnatural texture that perfectly completes the unfolding surround sound. The blending of strings, percussion, and guitar provides a flowing combination of spaces of varying moods as the artist manipulates volume and effect processing to shape the listener's perception of the surrounding ambiance at each moment.
It's a real melting pot culturally, with Formoe drawing from various cultural influences, which run through to a Swahili vocal sample, making something that so many can connect with. The track never loses interest or energy during its four-minute duration. Running through the strings in little swirls, the keys tinkle with crystalline delicateness. Layer after layer of electronic ambient sounds and modulated percussion stretches the aural imagery light-years beyond the grasp of day-to-day reality. At other times, a sparse and delicate quality comes forward as individual strands of sound are cast to the front of the mix—calm key accents and shimmering textures glisten in the foreground.
It's easy to envision "Fugio" as part of a sci-fi or fantasy film soundtrack. The music video for the single serves to further bring the song to life. Formoe worked with Egyptian animators Youssef Abdelfadel and Sohila Medhat to give life to a touching tale of civilians fighting against their oppressors.
Formoe blew me away with this release; not only did he illustrate increasing levels of production polish, but also he showed that he has an astonishing talent for using melody, ambiance, and delicately applied touches to create immersive experiences. Streaming "Fugio" gives you a clear idea of how masterful Formoe is when creating his soundscapes. His brilliant musical mind will likely continue to weave new, very captivating sonic landscapes awaiting discovery.