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.
IV
Axel Thesleff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There are no eyes here
In this valley of dying stars
In this hollow valley
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
In this last of meeting places
We grope together
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river
Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual star
Multifoliate rose
Of death′s twilight kingdom
The hope only
Of empty men
The hope only
Of empty men
Axel Thesleff's song IV is an instrumental track featuring sampled and manipulated choir vocals, that creates an eerie and mystical atmosphere. The lyrics of the song, borrowed from the poem "The Hollow Men" by T.S. Eliot, emphasize the sense of loss and despair that characterizes the modern condition. The first stanza describes a desolate and dark landscape where there are no eyes, symbolizing the inability to see and understand the world around us. The valley of dying stars represents the decay of our society and its values, while the broken jaw of our lost kingdoms evokes the failure of our political and social systems.
The second stanza presents a group of people gathered in a meeting place, but their communication is impaired by a lack of understanding and connection. The tumid river is a metaphor for the unstoppable and overwhelming force of time, which leads us to a state of blindness and emptiness. The perpetual star and multifoliate rose represent the hope of a spiritual rebirth and transcendence, but this hope is limited to "empty men" who, devoid of meaning and purpose, desperately seek a way out.
Overall, "IV" is a haunting and introspective piece that challenges the listener to reflect on the state of humanity and the possibility of redemption.
Line by Line Meaning
The eyes are not here
No one is watching or paying attention.
There are no eyes here
No one is observing or monitoring.
In this valley of dying stars
This place is full of fading and decaying celebrities.
In this hollow valley
This deserted area has no substance or value.
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
This shattered area represents our broken and failed societies.
In this last of meeting places
This is our final gathering spot.
We grope together
We search blindly for each other.
And avoid speech
We refrain from communicating.
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river
We are all at this stagnant riverbank.
Sightless, unless
We cannot see unless.
The eyes reappear
We have a visual confirmation.
As the perpetual star
As the eternal light.
Multifoliate rose
Rose with many leaves.
Of death's twilight kingdom
In the land of death and darkness.
The hope only
The only prospect.
Of empty men
For those who lack purpose or direction.
Writer(s): Axel Thesleff
Contributed by Jacob C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
quarnet
The eyes are not here
There are no eyes here
In this valley of dying stars
In this hollow valley
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
In this last of meeting places
We grope together
And avoid speech
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river
Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual star
Multifoliate rose
Of death’s twilight kingdom
The hope only
Of empty men.
TBirdThe18th
4 in... Still epic. Loving the album and can listen to it all day 🧠💥
Austin
The music is perfectly Eliot's objective correlative. I've been listening to your music a few years now. This is my favorite album. I struggled connecting feelings to Ts Elliott's Hollow Men I got a message but my emotions are too pacified. your music paired with his words really open me to receiving a feeling as a message.
You did a great thing here!
quarnet
The eyes are not here
There are no eyes here
In this valley of dying stars
In this hollow valley
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
In this last of meeting places
We grope together
And avoid speech
Gathered on this beach of the tumid river
Sightless, unless
The eyes reappear
As the perpetual star
Multifoliate rose
Of death’s twilight kingdom
The hope only
Of empty men.
ItzRezxan
Used to listen to this back in the days, got back to it after long time.
shymickey6
Is this New Age music? I don't know, but this guy is the next Enigma. I believe it. Huge producer in my opinion.
mghell34
Your music is amazing. I mean , I like almost every track with your name on it! Wish you could make more faster and sooner ! :D Started from Bad Karma and addicted since then!
btw - this specific album is amazing ! gives me the chills with just baseline and a few vocals. wow!
LykeKyfd
:') Nostalgia
AeroAngel
This is beautiful and incredible!! <3 Love this <3
Lee Jack
Great music , Axel. Greetings from Romania.
Adit Dave
tbh I like the way choose indian vocals and put the life in your music and I really like all the tracks and hope u get fame quickly and become a sensation