A way forward Press

ALBUM CREDITS

Joel Hagen | flute, whistle, saxophone, vocals
Markus Gustavsson | fiddle, vocals
Karla Peters | violin, vocals
Anders Bergsten | nyckelharpa, bass, vocals
Olivia Diercks | cello, vocals
Harald Nilsson | guitars, vocals
Tobias Hedlund | drums, percussion, organ, vocals

Audio Engineering by Anders Bergsten
Photography by Harald Nilsson
Design & Layout by Karla Peters
Illustration by Olivia Diercks
Recorded at Brewhouse Gothenburg, Sweden
Manufacturing by Copycats Media, Minnesota

Lily’s Polska
composed by Olivia Diercks
Kruspolskan
after Gotthard Sjöman, trad. Öland; after Anders Fredrik Andersson, trad. Småland
AmSwede Jam
composed by Harald Nilsson
Polska från Orsa
after Jonny Soling, trad. Dalarna
Nocturne
lyrics by Sofia Kunze; music by Tobias Hedlund
Real World
© Anaïs Mitchell; Shelly Bay Music o/b/o Treleven Music
Polska från Olskroken
composed by Harald Nilsson
K’s Polska
composed by Karla Peters
Duluth
composed by Joel Hagen

All songs arranged by Jaerv & The OK Factor

An international collaboration of nearly ten years has yielded four tours in Sweden, seven tours in the US, and an endless amount of coffee. Oh, and two albums of music, including their first studio album, A Way Forward, available worldwide on October 16.

The nine-track release from Swedish folk quintet, Jaerv, and American new-classical crossover duo, The OK Factor, includes six tracks of original music composed by the band members, two traditional sets of Swedish tunes, one cover of Anaïs Mitchell’s “Real World,” and a veritable symphony of instruments from strings to Swedish nyckelharpa, guitars (six-string, twelve-string, electric, bass), whistles, flutes, sax, and a menagerie of percussion. Not to mention, the signature sound of Jaerv in the baritone voice of Markus Gustavsson, 5-part vocals and a moment where all seven sing together. It’s clear that neither of the two bands keep all their feet rooted too firmly in “tradition” — they’d rather explore it, together.

The album’s opening sparkles with an ode to cellist Olivia Diercks’ daughter, Lily (“Lily’s Polska”), setting a tone for the album that paints a sonic portrait of pure love — for folk music, the music of the people, and the music that brings us back to our people. “Kruspolskan” is a set of two slängpolskas from southern Sweden, near where the members of Jaerv make their homes. The music drives forward with a playful intensity and lyrics in Swedish that herald a teasing warning: I won’t tell you again, either love me or I’ll find someone else. “AmSwede Jam” has history — it’s been waiting in the personal collection of Harald Nilsson’s compositions for the right moment: a pre-soundcheck impromptu jam session at the American Swedish Institute in 2023. A party from the first note, it feels like those sweet moments of greeting dear friends after a long time apart. “Polska från Orsa” drags us willingly back to the baroque period, a dramatic juxtaposition of intricate percussion and simplicity in form that brings a breath of fresh air between the pulsing orchestrations on either side.

The centerpiece of the album, “Nocturne” is almost startling in its mood, written by Swedish percussionist and composer, Tobias Hedlund with lyric support from Sofia Kunze. Speaking to the nature of our world today — divided, polarized, in conflict — “Nocturne”, led by Markus Gustavsson on vocals, invites us to find our way forward with love, grace, and gratitude, toward one another and ourselves (visit the band’s digital liner notes here for lyrics and translations).

An intentional choice for the album, the supergroup’s rendition of American singer-songwriter and musician Anaïs Mitchell’s “Real World” is a further nod to the album title; finding your way forward in the world is unique to all of us. For Jaerv & The OK Factor, it’s the feeling of instruments under fingers, energy in the same room, meals shared — bringing their full, real, human selves to the collaboration and leaving it all on the table.

Two original polskas push us forward toward the end, the first (“Polska från Olskroken”) a mirror of modern life and the endless traffic in Olskroken, a neighborhood in Gothenburg, Sweden. It leads right into “K’s Polska”, an exploration of writing a Swedish uneven polska by American violinist Karla Peters that feels more like a standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking the crashing waves of the wild Atlantic than the exercise that inspired it.

The album finishes with a tune that you can’t help but smile at. If you hear the bands play live, you’ll likely leave with this tune spinning around in your head, thinking about your next trip to Duluth, MN for the chicken and waffles at the top of the city’s spinning restaurant, Harbor 360 (“Duluth”).

A Way Forward was recorded in Gothenburg, Sweden, in June of 2026. A little nutty to get an album recorded, mixed, mastered, and manufactured in four months?

Absolutely.

But as you’ll hear, the music demanded it. Full of driving melodies, lush harmonies, and a sense of joy that won’t wait to be shared.

From the band:

The nearly ten years of collaboration between our two bands has seen tunes crafted in rehearsal spaces, living rooms, and sound checks, between cups of coffee and Swedish fika. This album is an homage to the new folk music tradition of composition, honoring what has come before and pushing it into the future, framing the old and new in ways that feel uniquely ours to share. 

There are endless perspectives and possibilities in the world of folk music. Even with an ocean between us, we are buoyed by the joy that comes from following our instruments and hearts and continually creating together: a way forward.