Tjark

What's it about?

"even if we're gone tomorrow": with this enigmatic title, TJARK announces his debut album - and thus puts a period behind the first, exciting chapter of his young career. The 21-year-old newcomer has achieved remarkable milestones: songs streamed millions of times, his first EP, and already two live tours where he brought his touching music, a blend of indie-pop, folk, and urban sounds, to stages across Germany. Now TJARK is ready for the next stage. One in which he frees himself from the expectations of others, but also his own. One in which he leaves the big city behind and exchanges it for the tranquil village life in his old homeland. Instead of indulging in Hamburg's Kiez culture every evening, TJARK now enjoys the peace and idyll of the Brandenburg province again - and by taking this supposed step back, he has taken two steps forward. "In 2024, we played a lot of festivals and support shows. That's why I decided to move back home at the beginning of the year to have more peace, and that was a very important step. Most of the songs were written and produced here, many with good friends of mine, and this environment had a big influence on the album." Not only has TJARK shut out the turbulent hustle and bustle of the city from his creative oasis, but also the curious questions about new music that his fans pester him with. Instead, he withdrew almost completely for three months and zoomed out from his perspective. "For the first time in two years, I was able to properly distinguish between myself as a private person and TJARK as an artist. That was totally refreshing. I allowed myself to ask: No matter what I've released so far, what do I really want to do next? In what style do I want to produce, what topics do I want to write about, and how can I make even better songs?" The result of this intensive process is called "even if we're gone tomorrow". It bears a promising title, but is nevertheless not an over-intellectualized concept album, but one that was allowed to unfold completely freely and organically. This indeterminacy also characterizes the first single that TJARK sends ahead of his debut. "keinen namen" (no name) is about a situationship where everything is still open. There are no pet names yet, no obligations, no baggage, and, in accordance with the album title, no secure shared "tomorrow". Instead, TJARK revels completely in the moment and sings: "If someone asks me, I'll say / I don't have a name for you yet / And believe me, I expect nothing / I don't have a plan yet how I / ask you what's going on with us / because I don't have a name for you yet." The production sounds like gentle folk acoustics, yet TJARK manages to give the song a surging, stormy dynamic: "It's especially important to me that my music works live with my band, and I orient myself to that in the creation process. I want to go back to basics: making music with other people in a room, simultaneously and together. And that's exactly how we recorded 'keinen namen'." This creates a live feeling that makes the song an unfiltered, moving snapshot - one of many that TJARK has experienced in recent months and that will soon be united on "even if we're gone tomorrow".