Song-by-Song: ‘Not Even Air Can Come Between Us Now’ by Rikke

Rikke: “I love using my voice in non-traditional ways.” Photo: Helge Brekke

The Norwegian songwriter reveals all about her new album, crafted alone on a baby grand piano in her Oslo apartment

I write my songs alone on a baby grand piano in my Oslo apartment. Usually, the songs have been marinating in my subconscious for a while before they take shape. When they’re ready, inspiration comes rushing in, triggered by a coinciding emotional theme, and they spill out. At that point, I just have to run to a piano.

It’s then that the song starts to get fully formed, with lyrics, melody, structure and the basic chords. I tend to keep the chord progressions simple, rarely going beyond major and minor 7ths. The bass note is always crucial; I find I can hear in my head exactly what I want and trust my instinct to choose what will best support the melody. Over time, I’ve learned that the strongest ideas will stick, so I no longer feel the need to record every melodic thought on my phone, whereas lyrical ideas, which are coming to me all the time, I do need to write down. When a song is ready, it comes naturally, and then I play around with it. Nothing is set in stone, but this process has remained consistent across all the six albums that I’ve written.

For this new album, Not Even Air Can Come Between Us Now, I wanted it to have the dynamic arc of a movie – an evolving journey from start to finish. Once the foundations of the songs are in place, I start developing the arrangements. My approach is all about playfulness, flavour and allowing my band members to bring their own touches in a way that best serves the song. For this album we recorded everything live as a band in the studio, so the arrangements had to work right from the outset. I wanted to capture the raw energy of a live performance, minimising post-production to preserve the authenticity of the moment. The goal was for listeners to feel as if they were in the room with us, experiencing the song as it unfolds in real-time.

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ALWAYS A PART OF ME

This song is about gratitude for someone you once loved. I structured the verses to reinforce this theme by ending each one with the title phrase, “Always a part of me.” The AABA form allows for a natural lyrical conclusion at the end of each section. Bob Dylan’s Make You Feel My Love inspired me in this approach.

Rikke: “I’ve learned that the strongest ideas will stick, so I no longer feel the need to record every melodic thought on my phone.” Photo: Helge Brekke

Musically, I wanted the song to build in a way that reflects how gratitude grows over time. The first chorus is short and simple, while the second extends both in length and melodic development. Dynamically, the song starts gently and gradually swells. The fingerpicked guitar plays a key role, giving that dreamlike feeling that keeps the song moving forward, while allowing space for the vocals to remain calm and reflective.

HORSES IN THE MOONLIGHT

The rhythm and feeling of anticipation inspired this song. It came to me while riding! I sometimes ride racehorses, which can be tense because you never know exactly how things will go, but you do it anyway. That sense of exhilaration became the heartbeat of the song.

The galloping rhythm of the horse naturally translated into the beat, and I recalled an old CR-68 drum machine I owned that had a similar pattern. We built the arrangement around that. The first two phrases of the chorus came first and, from there, I focused on capturing the feeling of riding out into the winter night using that imagery as a metaphor for taking a leap into the unknown. I love songs with double meanings, and this one embodies that spirit.

WHAT DOES IT MATTER

I wanted to keep this song’s structure simple so the lyrics could stand out. However, I also knew that if the arrangement was too plain, the message might not land, so I introduced a pre-chorus with a staccato, attention-grabbing rhythm. The sharp musical stabs mirror the lyrics, “Hey you! Only you do…” making it feel like the song itself is shouting at the listener. As with many of my songs, I like to end with a short, direct verse that wraps everything up thematically.

WE COLLIDE

This song captures the frustration of constant miscommunication, when no matter how hard you try, you just can’t understand each other. I wanted the music to reflect that tension as well as the eventual sense of release when you accept that some things just won’t ever change.

Since the hook consists of just two words, “We collide,” I experimented vocally, improvising variations on the phrase. The up-and-down melodic sequencing mirrors the feeling of colliding, making the music reinforce the song’s meaning.

THOSE WHO NEVER WERE

The lyrics came first on this one, and the original version was more up-tempo. But something felt off – it lacked the emotional depth that I felt the song needed. Switching to a bossa nova rhythm from the CR-68 drum machine gave it the right atmosphere. We slowed the tempo and removed a bridge that was in a minor key, replacing it with a long, instrumental section toward the end. The final version was recorded in one take with just piano and lead vocals over the bossa beat. We originally thought we were laying down a demo, but the raw emotion in that first take made us want to keep it.

I love using my voice in non-traditional ways, so we recorded layers of humming, processed them, and wove them into the synthy, atmospheric arrangement, almost like a modern Mellotron effect.

Rikke: “I love songs with double meanings.” Photo: Helge Brekke

CIRCLES

I wanted this song’s structure to feel like a continuous loop, where any section could serve as the starting point. Although I wasn’t sure how to execute that digitally, the song naturally achieves this when played live.

The verses flow freely, without a set time signature, until the last bar before the chorus, where it shifts into 4/4 mid-measure. This mirrors the song’s theme; circling around an issue, knowing something isn’t right, but avoiding confrontation. The music builds gradually, culminating in an emotional climax, before looping back to where it began.

DEPENDENT ON YOU

I wrote this song while walking outside in the sun. The steady, forward-moving rhythm reflects that, but with occasional “skipping” moments in the melody, much like how we walk when we’re happier and excited, like when you’ve figured something out for instance.

I love when chord changes subtly shift the pulse, adding unexpected 2/4 bars into a 4/4 structure. There are a few moments like that in this song, though I feel they flow naturally enough for the listener not to consciously notice them.

HIGH HORSE (BE GONE)

This one was fun! I originally wrote the lyrics first while humming a melody, but something about the structure felt too plain and ordinary. It wasn’t clicking, then I remembered a rhythmic bridge from a previous song called Unfollow on my last album The Art of Letting Go. It hadn’t worked for that song to be honest, but when I merged it with High Horse, everything fell into place.

FLOWERS

This song started as a challenge: pick an object, then write a song about it in one go, and only use my voice as an instrument. Surprisingly, it worked! The core of Flowers – melody and most lyrics – was written in exactly 3 minutes and 23 seconds. I later refined some of the words to add deeper meaning. We wanted the arrangement to feel like a growing garden, incorporating classical elements alongside more expected instrumentation.

NEW BEGINNINGS

Inspired by the Swedish band Amason, I wanted this track to have a driving beat that conveys excitement and forward motion. The rhythm pushes the vocal along, letting it float effortlessly on top.

It’s also in my favourite key, Bb major, which is comfortable to sing in and allows the vocals to feel natural and unforced. Sometimes, you just want the audience to drift along while deeper lyrical meanings sneak in underneath it all.

This album was a journey for me and I’m so excited to share it with you. Thanks for listening!

Not Even Air Can Come Between Us Now by Rikke is out now and you can listen to it here. to find out more about Rikke’s music, head over to rikkenormann.com

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