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We never know where life will take us. The path forever twists and turns in unexpected directions. Singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Ben Cramer a.k.a. Old Sea Brigade, never imagined he would be living almost 5,000 miles away from his native Georgia in Sweden as a husband and father. However, that?s where he is now!

Moreover, he?s sharing the story of this unpredictable journey on his 2024 EP series If I Only Knew (Parts 1 & 2) (released via Nettwerk Music Group).

A season of change informs the seven tracks on Part 1.

?Five years ago, my life looked so different,? he observes. ?I didn?t even know where Gothenburg was on the map. If you told me I?d be living in Sweden with a family of my own, I wouldn?t have believed you. So, the title, If I Only Knew, is fitting. This record was made after getting married and becoming a dad. It was a lot to process. It?s amazing, though. I always just let whatever?s happening reflect in the songs.?

Such reflections have defined the music of Old Sea Brigade since 2016. Listeners have followed along as Ben effectively journaled his life aloud across projects such as Old Sea Brigade EP (2016), Ode To A Friend (2019), All The Ways You Sing in the Dark EP (2020) with Luke Sital-Singh, Motivational Speaking (2021), and 5AM In Paradise (2022). His catalogue has quietly generated hundreds of millions of streams anchored by Love Brought Weight, Tidal Wave, Hope and Call Me When You Land (with Luke Sital-Singh). Beyond inciting the applause of Boston Globe, Brooklyn Vegan, Consequence, No Depression, Uncut, Under The Radar, and more, he made his national television debut with a stunning appearance on CBS Mornings Saturday Sessions.

For If I Only Knew, he re-teamed with some of his closest creative confidants co-producers Jeremy Griffith and Owen Lewis. Over the course of three weeks, they recorded the project in Sweden for the first time.

?We made some great memories together, and we really defined the sound in my studio,? Ben smiles. ?They challenge me in all of the right ways. We talked a lot about the differences of working in Sweden versus Nashville. Society seems less stressed in Europe. The Swedes have a saying, ?Don?t be too happy or too sad. Keep everything down the middle? ? which is what we tried to do.?

He initially teased this era with Polygraph. Right out of the gate, it resonated with listeners. On its heels, the single Heaven In The Right Light layers dreamy piano and lightly strummed guitar over an airy backbeat. Ben?s delicate delivery echoes on the hook, ?Heaven in the right light, so strange, wonder what you might find.?

?I was listening to a lot of José González, and I wanted to write a soft number,? he says. ?We made a loop out of different drumbeats. Jeremy suggested a key change, and we pulled it off.?

On Rest Assured, loose guitar gives way to swooning strings in the wake of a lush and lovestruck refrain, ?Rest assured that I?m on your side. The rest is yours, and you?re all mine.?

?It?s a no-frills, very intentional song about love ? as if there aren?t enough,? he laughs.

Synths murmur through a haze on If You Had To Ask, while a lilting piano crescendo carries the song towards a sonic exhale. Then, there?s Real Life. Acoustic guitar brushes up against a glitchy beat, and a moment of acceptance crystallises on the chorus, ?I guess it?s real life. If it worries you, leave it alone.?

?The lyrics were really stream-of-conscious,? he says. ?The message is just let go and trust the process. Focus on what you can control and do your best. I?m a firm believer everything will work itself out, and the song reflects this narrative.?

The finale, The Tourist, revolves around stark acoustic guitar, grainy beat-craft, bright flute, cinematic strings, and his so-grizzled-it?s-beautiful timbre. It ends on a gentle realisation, ?The days of being strangers now are gone.?

?It was inspired by feeling like a tourist when I got to Sweden,? he says. ?It?s not a bad thing, but most of the time, I do feel like a tourist.?

Ultimately, Old Sea Brigade?s music is just as endearing as his life is.

?Old Sea Brigade has been my creative outlet for so many of my formative years as an adult,? he concludes. ?The catalogue is there to document how I felt in all of these changes and normal events that followed me around for the last eight years. I?m incredibly grateful for this life. I wouldn?t have met my wife if it wasn?t for Old Sea Brigade. It?s the reason I came to Sweden. It?s the reason I?m a dad. It?s the reason I?ve met so many of my friends. These relationships are just as important as the music is.?

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From “Two sausage and chips please, mushy peas with one of those, ta”, to “Meg! Meg! Don’t hit her too hard”. It’s been a thoroughly unconventional trip. Once Meg White had donned those boxing gloves Night & Day Café’s most unique upbringing felt complete.

An initial chip shop - stage - piano combo quickly gave rise to a traditional Amsterdam style ‘brown bar’ and artistic hub; the venue’s journey mirroring, and in no small part contributed to, Manchester’s move away from its baggy era heritage cum baggage.

Like a younger brother who could play guitar much better than you, but had no mates to play to, Night & Day grew out of a barren musical spell in Manchester back in 1991. When the city offered little else except a chrome mating hell, or a look back nostalgiafest. The homely feel and startling quality of the acts brought into the city by the venue made Night & Day the focus of the areas more discerning crowds of the area thereafter.

So much so that the last 20 years have read like a who’s who of Manchester’s continuing creative legacy…

Guy Garvey practically used it as an office, Johnny from I A Kloot worked there, Johnny Marr, Delphic and The Courteeners rehearsed there, Badly Drawn Boy wrote songs there and Mark E Smith’s been known to behave very strangely indeed there.

The walls have withstood the barrage from over 26,000 bands from all over the world. Some of the many, many stand outs have to be a naked Damo Suzuki, The Dirtbombs having to stop and towel down after one song, Meg White vs The Bar Staff, Keanu Reaves popping in to watch some bands, buy a t-shirt and get mobbed, and The Kaiser Chiefs first incarnation getting chucked offstage early.
But, let us not look back to deeply.

Certainly, preaching to the converted has never been the venue’s style or raison d’etre and currently, there are signs of another resurgence in the city’s musical fortunes. Young upstarts such Money can be found regularly hanging around causing botheration and a certain singular Liam Frey can be oft found planning his next lyrical barrage in the labyrinth of corridors downstairs.

Here’s to another 20 years!

26 Oldham Street,

Manchester,

Greater Manchester,

England,

M1 1JN.

0161 236 1822