“Out of the Light into the Night”, Arno Carstens’ 7th studio album, has emerged gradually through staggered single releases, before coming together as a finished project.
The album connects Arno’s love of energised alt-pop production on one side of the spectrum, with his ability to craft anthemic acoustic-driven ballads on the other.
“Out of the Light into the Night” will be Arno’s first English solo album since 2014’s “Lightning Prevails” and includes the singles “Go Easy Love”, “Empire of the Night”, “Out of the Blue” and new single “Reason”.
We caught up with him.
Talk to me about your album - “Out of the Light into the Night”, when did you start working on it?
I started working on it about three years ago. We decided to release a song every three months, and while doing that I was working on the rest of the album’s songs while launching the singles. Rather than one album launch it felt like five launches for one album. That was really a good thing, it kept things feeling constantly fresh.
What was the inspiration behind this album?
My inspiration was my inquisitive drive to see what could be done by mixing my style with more progressive instrumentation and production styles, while keeping the singer songwriter element.
When you wanted to put this album together, did you have a clear idea of what you wanted the end product to be?
I did ’Die Aandblom13’ album with Fred Den Hartog (Heuwels Fantasties) and Dane Taylor (producers). It was a great success so I wanted to see what else we could do.
So, I kind of knew what direction the sound would be going towards. From there things developed and I eventually ended up working with four different producers, creating a much broader musical experience than initial thought.
In terms of the lyrical content, how would you describe it?
Writing good, interesting lyrics is my favourite thing to do. Nothing can surprise you more than yourself.
My lyrics are seldom direct and are mostly a vehicle for escapism through story telling but I think I’m becoming more poetic the older I get.
Still, end of the day, some of the songs are personal experiences and quite honest, but most are reflections of the times.
How would you describe the sound of this album?
Alternative Pop
What were some of the challenges when putting this body of work together?
It was done partially through lockdown so there were financial constraints and logistical hiccups, but we managed to put it all together.
You named it ’Out of the Light into the Night’, why?
Ahh, my flare for the dramatic. It sounds pretty gloomy, but It’s just me acknowledging changing times through the form of music.
We are the creatures of the night, been there for a while and surviving well.
This is your 7th solo album so what does it signify for you?
Seven is a good number. I don’t read much into it. It’s the end of one musical project and now I will be concentrating on taking the music to the people.
What do you hope people take away from this album?
If one person can find some kind of escape through this album, I’m happy. My mental space when I wrote this album was mostly filled with fun and a forward motion, so I hope the listener picks up on that.
Which track on this album is your favourite and why?
It constantly changes, but the song ’About a girl’ is a constant favourite. It has great romantic humour and a superb production by Charlie Hamilton.
When it comes to playing live, I tend to enjoy the upbeat songs like “Go Easy Lve”, “Out of the Blue” and “Broken More” so it really depends.