Axel started releasing electronic music on Soundcloud back at 2010. Just a year after his first release, Axel was notified as a "Sounclouder of the Day" with his concept album "Waste Land" inspired by poet T.S. Eliot. During that time Axel also started studying musicology at the University of Helsinki, where he got interested in sound design and electroacoustic music. From 2011 onward, he released couple EP's where he further developed his skills as a music producer as well as a composer.
In 2014 Axel experimented with some eastern vibes and samples from India, which lead to the smash hit Bad Karma. After Bad Karma Axel released a couple of singles and continued his endeavors with Mr. Eliot, releasing his musical interpretation of the poem "The Hollow Men".
His single releases "Done & Reincarnation" in 2016 were the beginning of a new era, which led the way to even more diverse style. With songs ranging genres like Future Bass, Future Garage, World Bass, Eastern Impacts, Tribal, and even Tropical sounds.
The year 2017 began with his first music video release, Bad Karma. Single "Need You" was released on Valentine's Day and reached high-end playlists like Chillout Lounge (500k+ followers). Followed by double single release Your Voice / Like a Lullaby in April and a vocal song Fighter made with a Brit singer-songwriter Richard Walters in May - the song got previewed on BBC.
In early July, Axel continued his musical endeavor collaborating a song Free with an upcoming Finnish artist Ronja. Free got good traction on its first week of the release, by being added on 6 different New Music Friday playlists on Spotify (Finland, Sweden, Norway, Turkey, Italy & Iceland).
In 2018 Axel continued his eastern influenced style and released the Two Worlds EP. A few months later, it was followed by an eastern influenced single Piya Mora. On November 30th it was the time for an Audiovisual EP based on the Two Two worlds EP. the 30-minute long visual journey to human condition was released on Youtube and have received an amazing response from the crowd.
Moving on to developing his live performance build around multiple instruments such as keytar, drum pad, and a midi mallet Axel made his US debut by touring with Beats Antique at the beginning of 2019. Followed by his first overseas festival performance at Envision festival held in Costa Rica.
II
Axel Thesleff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In death's dream kingdom
These do not appear:
There, the eyes are
Sunlight on a broken column
There, is a tree swinging
And voices are
In the wind's singing
Than a fading star.
Let me be no nearer
In death's dream kingdom
Let me also wear
Such deliberate disguises
Rat's coat, crowskin, crossed staves
In a field
Behaving as the wind behaves
No nearer—
Not that final meeting
In the twilight kingdom
The above lines are from "II" by Axel Thesleff. The lines carry a lot of emotion, and they are quite deep. The singer is talking about not wanting to meet someone's eyes in their dreams, in a place where death reigns supreme. This dream kingdom is a place where the singer does not want to be, as it is filled with broken columns, trees swinging in the wind, and distant voices singing more solemnly than a fading star.
The singer then goes on to say that they do not want to be any closer to this dream kingdom. They want to wear deliberate disguises, like a rat's coat, a crowskin, or crossed staves, while behaving as the wind behaves in a field. They do not want to have a final meeting in this twilight kingdom.
The lyrics are quite symbolic and metaphorical- they illustrate one's fear of death and the desire to escape from it. It is a reflection of the fear of what comes after death and the uncertainty surrounding it. It also showcases the singer's wish to embrace life while they can and not to dwell on thoughts of death.
Line by Line Meaning
Eyes I dare not meet in dreams
I am scared to come across those eyes even in my dreams
In death's dream kingdom
This is a realm of dreams where the souls of the dead reside
These do not appear:
In this place, these things don't exist
There, the eyes are
In this dream kingdom, the eyes have a different form
Sunlight on a broken column
They resemble sunlight falling on a broken column
There, is a tree swinging
In this realm, there is a tree that swings
And voices are
Here, people speak with one another
In the wind's singing
Their voices blend with the singing of the winds
More distant and more solemn
The voices are so solemn and faint that they sound farther than a fading star
Than a fading star.
Their voices are even fainter than a star losing its light
Let me be no nearer
I don't want to be any closer
In death's dream kingdom
This is still in the dream realm of the souls of the dead
Let me also wear
May I also dress myself up
Such deliberate disguises
I want to deceive others with my appearance
Rat's coat, crowskin, crossed staves
I shall use unusual clothing such as a rat's coat, crowskin, and crossed staves
In a field
In a wide-open space
Behaving as the wind behaves
I'll move like the wind moves
No nearer—
But still, I refuse to be any closer
Not that final meeting
I want to avoid that last encounter
In the twilight kingdom
This refers to the final stage of death, which is the moment the soul departs to the afterlife
Contributed by Christopher W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@AxayPatel008
Eyes I dare not meet in dreams
In death’s dream kingdom
These do not appear:
There, the eyes are
Sunlight on a broken column
There, is a tree swinging
And voices are
In the wind’s singing
More distant and more solemn
Than a fading star.
Let me be no nearer
In death’s dream kingdom
Let me also wear
Such deliberate disguises
Rat’s coat, crowskin, crossed staves
In a field
Behaving as the wind behaves
No nearer-
Not that final meeting
In the twilight kingdom
@rajlmamak96
I’m coming back 4 years after first listening to this. And you sir are a genius
@rishikumargupta5840
People in the comments don't say this but I've been listening to axel's whole music library on repeat while working and I have never been this productive.
@Nergieful
this guy is a genius.
@fritzamason5039
the beats in this and bad karma - i just noticed are very organic to help me keep time with my morning stretching - active vs passive motion - you do good work - We are the Hollow Men - David Cambria
@isabelschneider9348
After 4 minutes, is absolutly Grate!
@saajidluenzo
you filled my soul with magic !
@PsychoBawa
Amazing brother that vibes✌💕🌲👑💚
@DayNnite1243
Electronic power being loaded by Axel Thesleff.
@KaKiwiKa
That feeling when your stress sail away...
@cuperes6275
i love you Axel Thesleff