James Fredholm Poetry and Music

“Growing up in vibrant music scene of Austin, Texas in the 1970’s was a defining moment for me. I got my first guitar at 14 and couldn’t put it down, it just felt right, it was in my blood.
Through those years I was a regular at the music clubs, so many known and unknown talents to absorb, including Stevie Ray Vaughn, Eric Johnson, Christopher Cross and the whole
alternative rock and country scenes."

James Fredholm went on to have quite a successful business career, mainly living in London and Zurich. But the “Road Not Taken” was always in the back of his mind. Over those years
he continued to write songs and poems, also to paint and draw. He was a consummate gear junkie and played in several cover bands. This double life reached an epiphany with the
onset of a proverbial midlife crisis.

In 2013 he founded Honeybee Records and set up a recording studio to support young, high potential artists around Zurich. This led to lots of collaborations and studio sessions. Out of
that he produced and released 10 For 14, a compilation of 10 new indie bands in 2014.

Poetry and songwriting were never far away. In 2015 he made the jump to get back on that road not taken. “The last two years have been very prolific and cathartic, working through
all these unexpressed feelings”. In the end he had more than enough material to publish Uncaged, his first poetry collection and Love Is The Answer, an album of original songs, both
of which were released earlier this year.

When asked about his musical influences, he says it spans five decades: from the Beatles, Hendrix, Dylan, Neil Young, James Taylor, through REM, Nirvana, U2, Oasis, Kings of Leon,
Radiohead, to Ed Sheeran, the Lumineers and Bon Ivor.

As a poet, his references include Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes, Rumi, Robert Frost, DylanThomas, Seamus Heaney and Philip Larkin.

His writing style is described as emotional and arrestingly honest, from the heart. He brings a unique perspective, which together with his 1968 J50 Gibson acoustic guitar and
harmonica delivers an intimate, edgy sweetness that gets easily under the skin.

He is focusing on the UK music market to start and will be on tour in seven cities in October. He is planning a second album to be recorded in early 2018.