Between confessions curled in neon nostalgia and mischief masked as melody, the Swedish sibling duo Laptop Singers return with Still Friends — an album carved from collaboration, emotional clarity, and the quiet anarchy of pop experimentation. In this interview, they crack open the creative process behind their new LP, reflect on songwriting as a means of immortalising regret, and share how they balance acoustic honesty with digital sharpness. From Gothenburg’s bleak winters to the warmer tones of Nashville and Paris, their reflections stretch across climates and continents, all while keeping the emotional temperature rooted in human connection. Whether they’re talking about the stoic charm of French pop or the thrill of letting go of perfection, Laptop Singers prove that sometimes the truest art comes from embracing contradiction.
Welcome to A&R Factory, Laptop Singers — it’s a pleasure to have you back with us. Let’s dig into the music, the mischief, and the talent behind your new LP, Still Friends. The single, That’s the stupid things I do when I’m drunk, is a phenomenal exhibition of your ability to meld confession with celebration. How much of your songwriting is drawn from real events, and how do you decide which memories are worth immortalising in a track?
— Thank you very much, A&R Factory! This first single from our new album “Still Friends” tells a classical story about ”walking alone in the dark” while regretting your old mistakes, which always works in pop songs! We do believe that the best songs are the ones which are inspired from one’s own experiences, but maybe not in an entirely literally way. So in short: we pick up feelings and emotions from real life and turn them into fine art — just like Shakespeare (ha ha)!
The new album pulls collaborators from all corners — from the Swedish west coast to Nashville and Real World Studios — how did working with such a wide range of musicians shape the emotional or sonic terrain of Still Friends?
— Our base is in Gothenburg in Sweden, and while the core of the band is us two brothers, we have an urge to stretch out to look for other talented people to help out with both vocal and musical contributions. We love to collaborate with other musicians, especially with great vocalists. Whenever we come across a great singer, we really like to let him or her interpret our songs and make their mark on the material. Together with our friends we built the temple that now is ”Still friends”!
You’ve said you love combining classic songwriting with modern tech — how do you make sure the heart of the song isn’t lost in the perfectionism of production?
— We never strive for perfection in our art. We strive for emotions and feelings, whatever instruments and which technique we use. The lyrics and the vocals should always work together with the music. Therefore, we always try to maintain elements which are ”human” in our productions and mixes, for example acoustic guitars, live drums and so on, since this often creates a nice counterbalance to the precise and clean operation of the computers. So we rely on a mix between real instruments and modern computer technology.
There’s a thread of contradiction running through your work — you’re reflective and playful, digital and nostalgic, political and romantic. Is this duality something you aim to expose deliberately, or is it just how you process the world?
— As older you get, you come to realize that everything has two (or three) sides. You also realize that when you create music, you should never be too ”clever” or set up any rules or restrictions. You should simply just let the creative process have its way and see how it manifests itself through the music. And if the music is contradictory, it’s because that’s how we see the world.
You recorded in the rain-soaked autumns and snowy winters of Gothenburg, and also worked with artists from sun-drenched scenes like Nashville and Paris — do the environments where you write and record influence your creativity?
— We’re used to the changes of the seasons here in Gothenburg, that’s for sure! Still, we are probably not that inspired by nature anyway… If we lived in for example the West Indies, we would problably not be that inspired by things like beaches or the sun. We are inspired by music, movies, books and art — not the nature or the shifting of the seasons.
The reference to “philosophers and prophets” in your press release is something we’d love to explore— how much do your academic or personal philosophies find their way into the lyrics?
— We are old enough to have lived through lots of changes in this world, and to see patterns and causes for changes and development — that’s a philosophy as good as any. Still, we have no strict academic attitude here — hey, this is pop music
French pop seems to have played a big role in shaping the new release — what did artists like Alice et Moi and Zélie offer as influential muses?
— We love French music! There are so many great singers, musicians and producers in France, and there is so much interesting music coming from the French music community. French music is quite different from music from England and the US, for example — it’s often more honest and straightforward, and always strictly non-ironic. The French pop artists have a new, fresh and European way of creating art.
The album is called Still Friends — in an era of digital detachment and superficial connections, what does friendship mean to you as artists, and how does that value manifest in the music?
— Friendship in the sense of collaboration and exchange of ideas in music is absolutely essential. The feeling you get when a musical friend and contributor makes something to your song that you could or would not manage yourself is phenomenal. That’s how real musical progress is made. And all the people who helped us to create ”Still Friends” are very dear to us — creating music together is a great way of keeping friendships alive!
Listen to Laptop Singers on Spotify and discover more about the artist via their official website.
Interview by Amelia Vandergast