Early mornings at work, I find myself listening to either white noise from my headphones or some combination of Lime.com’s Forest or Water Meditation rooms. The reason: I hear a lot of music and it is far easier for me to focus without the added pressure or distractions – the threat of my focus being pulled away from the task at hand is as frustrating as being torn away can be. It gives me a small level of comfort when I come across an artist like Icelandic neo-classical artist Ólafur Arnalds [MySpace], as I know that without words or drums, I can relax. Don’t mistake what I am saying here though, this is gorgeous, stirring music.

Arnalds’ upcoming release, Found Songs is now available for pre-order on vinyl and CD, so pick up a copy if you like what you hear “after the jump”

“Ólafur recorded a song a day for this release and put it up on his Twitter, with artwork contributions from fans via Flickr. Ólafur mixes classical elements like strings and piano with loops and beats. He’s toured with Sigur Rós, and among other things, recently scored the music for for ‘Dyad 1909′ by Wayne McGregor, a contemporary dance piece that premiered at the Sadler’s Wells Theater in London last month.”

Last 5 posts by Shawn M. Smith

• The Parting of The Ways by Shawn M. Smith - June 24th, 2011
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• A Final Goodbye from K. Sawyer Paul - June 24th, 2011
• Salty Makes His Final Appearance - June 24th, 2011
• Hope You've Had the Time... - June 21st, 2011