Description
Sawdust & Rust was born after a chance meeting in Greenland in 2015 between Swedish singer-songwriter Patrick Rydman and Faroese singer-songwriter Benjamin Petersen, who goes under the artist name Son of Fortune. Most of the debut album was recorded in Benjamin’s studio Bunkarin (the Bunker), in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands. Melodic and accessible, this is poetic, catchy songwriting with lots of rootsy, folky elements and a touch of good old Nordic melancholy thrown into the mix, while never forgetting the importance of a memorable chorus. Welcome to a world where creation and decay walk hand in hand… Welcome to Sawdust & Rust!
Tracklist:
1. Caroline
2. Room Enough
3. Tumbling Dice
4. The Shade Of Your Skin
5. Hurricane
6. Small Shell From The Sea
7. Out On A Limb
8. Mellow
9. Leaving A Memory
10. Forgetting You
Released on the following formats:
LP and CD. See purchase buttons below.
Digitally as stream and download. See the player below, where you can listen to snippets of the tracks.
What the critics say:
NORDIC MUSIC REVIEW (UK):
“We’re stumbling towards our main annual break of the year, and inevitably the final week has become a complex mad rush of holiday packing, ‘real’ work responsibilities and organisation for our Nordic Music Live series in September / October. So apologies for the lack of posts this week, but I think the first track we’re featuring is such a beautifully written song that I like to think we’ll be forgiven pretty quickly. ‘Sawdust & Rust’ is collaboration of Swedish singer-songwriter Patrick Rydman and Faroese singer-songwriter Benjamin Petersen, and over a period of 3 years they’ve worked sometimes a Faroese studio and sometimes virtually to create and release an album entitled ‘Leaving a Memory’. The album is an interesting fusion of styles, embedded in a traditional folk storytelling tradition, with influences from blues to Americana, and the common factor being easily listening melodies and thoughtful ‘real life’ inspired lyrics. But the track that we want to particularly feature is the lovely ‘The Shade of Your Skin’, a gorgeously constructed song which opens with just an acoustic guitar, and then layers on strings and the most lovely vocal melody. In the midst of it there are the subtlest glimpses of melancholy which remind me strangely of ‘A Lady of a Certain Age’ by The Divine Comedy, I think maybe that’s because central to the song is the story, and possibly the way the instrumentation develops the track. Anyway, it’s such a beautiful song. Please try and give the whole album ‘Leaving a Memory’ a listen too, I particularly like the title track. It was released a couple of months back and is available on all good streaming services – if there’s such a thing as a ‘good streaming service’. ”
STRUTTERZINE (NL):
“The band Sawdust & Rust was born after a chance meeting in Greenland in 2015 between Swedish singer-songwriter Patrick Rydman and Faroese singer-songwriter Benjamin Petersen, who goes under the artist name Son of Fortune. Most of the debut album Leaving a memory was recorded in Benjamin’s studio Bunkarin (the Bunker), in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands. The included music is much more melodic and accessible than I would have thought when reading this was recorded in a very cold place. The result is like a summer breeze, because what we get to hear is melodic, catchy and memorable chorus driven pop/rock from the start of the record. The voice of Patrick is slightly darker and more akin to a Neil Finn, Stan Meissner and even George Harrison, while the music is more anthem like pop/rock and sounding very American actually, AOR/Westcoast influences pass by quite a lot, especially during the highlights Caroline, the lovely Tumbling dice (reminds me of classic early 80s Michael Zee and Jimmy Davis) and the beautiful acoustic tinged The shade of your skin that sounds dangerously close to Crowded House. A pleasure and a really big surprise, that’s basically what we have here and I would recommend it to anyone to check out this record.”
BLUEPRINT FANZINE (D):
“In 2015, a singer / songwriter from Sweden (Patrick Rydman) and a Faroese singer / songwriter (Benjamin Petersen) meet in Greenland… And this accidental meeting was probably wanted from higher place, because the collaboration proves to be very favorable. The two gentlemen play folk with many old-fashioned influences (Irish folk, Americana, folk pop, but also jazz and many more) and mix it with a fitting dose of melancholy, often associated with the Scandinavian countries. “Leaving a memory” by Sawdust & Rust does not scream loudly “Yeah, we’ve just reinvented music!”, but the duo convinces with excellently played folk (-pop) and wins the heart of the listener with the quiet numbers. Although you could drown in releases from this genre, Sawdust & Rust stand out from the crowd, not only by their particular genesis, but also by the quality of their songwriting and their voices. The two, who met by chance, leave nothing to chance on this album, but understand their craft and show their skills.”
ZERO MUSIC MAGAZINE (SE)
”It’s a varied record where rock, pop, folk, melancholy ballads and acoustic guitars meet trumpets, synths, electric instruments and damn fine vocals from Rydman’s sensitive voice. I mean, how bloody beautifully doesn’t he sing on soft, sad songs like ”The Shade of Your Skin” and album opener ”Caroline”? The pictures on the cover of Leaving a Memory convey a feeling of cold autumn by the sea or even frozen winter, and here I sit, listening in the summer heat. This album is very good while the sun is shining, but I am convinced that it will be even better in the fall when the wind strips the trees of their golden leaves and you light a bunch of tealights for lack of a real fireplace. Because in the music, vocals and lyrics of Sawdust & Rust you’ll find the same warmth, intimacy and melancholy that you feel when summer is dying and darkness lies down in the world outside your window. But, as I said, Leaving a Memory is not a one-sided story. Here is the rocky ”Room Enough” and the souly ”Tumbling Dice” (not a cover of the Stones-tune with the same title) as well as pleasantly groovy, soft-poppy pieces like ”Out on a Limb” and ”Small Shell from the Sea” that Linda Dahl and Rydman has co-written and is also recorded in another lovely version on Meadow Creek’s fine debut album. Another interesting song worth mentioning is the evocative title track where Elin-Louise Ahlberg shares the vocals with Rydman.”
ANDERS LUNDQVIST (independent writer, Sweden):
”Sawdust & Rust just released a gem of an album, “Leaving a Memory”.
Melancholy soft rock with more than a touch of Americana. Great songwriting and vocals, dynamic production, nuanced playing and a way with words that makes you listen to the storytelling.
If you like artists like James Taylor and Jackson Browne, give it a spin! And if you like what you hear on Spotify, this is one of the albums that sound even better (yes, warmer) on vinyl. And I am speaking from experience.”
POP MAGAZINE HEAVEN (NL):
“Swedish /Faroese Sawdust and Rust sound less rustic then its name would suggest. The songs on Leaving a memory are exceptionally beautiful. That’s why this new Arctic folk-pop project from the singer-songwriters Patrick Rydman and Benjamin Petersen is a very nice one.”
