Spindle Radar: GERD Gets Candid About Her Ethereal New Single ‘Truth To Be Told’

Hailing from Sweden, GERD first entered the music scene in 2021 with her debut single, ‘Lies For A Liar.’ With her melancholic yet whimsical pop sound, the breakout talent has carved out a unique lane in the music sphere, amassing international attention for her euphoric, versatile live performances and immersive singles.

Now signed to EMI Sweden, GERD is continuing her upward trajectory with her upcoming albumMore Water Than Anything, which features her latest single ‘Truth To Be Told.’ Backed by a dreamy and moody production, the track proves that GERD is a true indie-pop mainstay that deserves to be on your radar. Check out our full interview with the rising talent below.

Do you think the culture from your hometown, Karlstad, Sweden, has influenced the musical elements of your songwriting, like mood, melody or instrumentation?

I grew up surrounded by music, theatre, and choir singing, and I’ve always loved spending time outdoors in the forest. I think that has definitely influenced my songwriting. I’m drawn to dramatic atmospheres and creating songs that feel like stepping into a whole soundscape or world. I also grew up loving fairy tales, especially the stories of Astrid Lindgren and the Harry Potter series, which probably shaped my imagination and sense of storytelling in music.

Do you find songwriting to be like storytelling, therapy, or something else entirely?

For me, it’s less about storytelling in a traditional sense and more about staying inside a feeling long enough to understand it. A lot of the time, I write in moments where something is still happening, not after. It’s not really about processing or explaining it, more about not avoiding it. Just letting it exist without trying to fix it. So it becomes something very physical. Not just thoughts, but something that sits in the body. And writing is a way of staying with that, instead of moving past it too quickly. A way of processing, I guess. 

Which artists or bands had the biggest influence on your sound while you were growing up? 

I listened to a lot of different things growing up, everything from Pavarotti to Queen and ABBA, and Kate Bush has always been a favourite of mine. But I was always drawn to artists who created strong emotional worlds. Music that felt immersive and slightly dramatic, where the sound and the feeling were just as important as the lyrics. I think that stayed with me, the idea that a song can feel like a space you enter, not just something structured.

How much of your personal experience finds its way into your lyrics, and do you ever feel vulnerable sharing those with listeners?

It’s very personal, but not always in a literal way. I don’t necessarily always write about exact situations, but the emotions are real. I think the vulnerability comes from trying not to filter it too much. Letting things be messy or unresolved. A lot of the songs are written in moments where I don’t fully understand what I’m feeling yet. But at the same time, once it’s out, it doesn’t feel like it only belongs to just me anymore. It becomes something people can step into in their own way. It’s one of my favourite things about writing music, one day I’m alone by the piano, another there are so many of us relating to the same thing, and there is so much strength in that. 

Congratulations on the release of your newest single, ‘Truth To Be Told’! Can you walk us through the creative process and the meaning behind this track?

Truth To Be Told came from a place of frustration, I think. That feeling of trying to fit into something that doesn’t really feel true, and slowly realising you can’t keep doing that. There’s a kind of tension in it between wanting to be understood and wanting to break out of expectations. It’s a bit of a turning point in that sense. In the session, we also started playing around with key changes as a creative tool. It became a way of slowly lifting the song, almost like moving up from beneath the surface. With each shift, something opens up a little more, like you’re getting closer to something that’s been there the whole time, some kind of truth. 

Your songs often feel very atmospheric and emotional. Where do you usually find ideas or inspiration when you start writing a new track?

I usually find inspiration in very small, everyday things, like the weather, or little moments from my own life that I keep thinking about. I think I process a lot through music. I also want to be able to feel something when I listen back to my own songs, like I’ve saved a small memory inside them. Something that really belonged to that time, to that part of myself. Often it starts with a thought or a feeling that finds a small melody, and then slowly grows into something more physical, almost like it has a body of itself. And when I come back to the song later, I want to be able to step back into that feeling.  Sometimes that can be a bit intense, especially when I perform live, because I have to go through those moments again. It kind of bites back a little. But I also love playing live, there’s something about sharing that feeling with other people that makes it worth it.

You’ve said you take influence for your music from Swedish Mythology, are there any tales that feel particularly inspiring?

It’s less about specific stories and more about the feeling of them. The way those stories describe something that isn’t fully visible or explainable, it’s something that exists just outside of what we can understand, but still affects us with a presence. I think that’s similar to how emotions work. They don’t always make sense, but they’re still very real. Most of the songs were written in the forest by the lake, and that made nature very present in the music. It made me realise how we’re mostly made of water, and yet we carry all these complex thoughts and emotions. That contrast felt almost surreal to me, and it became a big part of how I understand the album,  something very physical and very simple, but at the same time full of things that are hard to explain. That’s also where the title of the album More Water Than Anything comes from.

How has your relationship with music changed from when you first started writing songs to where you are in your career now?

I think before, I was always trying to find the perfect balance. Make everything sit right. Now I’m a bit tired of that. I’m more interested in finding something raw again, something a bit ugly, something that feels human. I’ve also been drawn back to more organic elements, mixed with the slightly off electronic parts. Letting things be a bit uneven, a bit imperfect.

Looking ahead, what kind of artist do you hope to become in the next few years, both creatively and personally?

I want to keep moving closer to something that feels honest, even if it’s uncomfortable. Creatively, I’m interested in going further into that space where things aren’t fully defined yet. Letting the music stay open and alive, rather than trying to control it or box it in too much. Personally, I think it’s about trusting my creativity more. Not stepping away from things too quickly, but staying with them long enough to dare to let them be, to embrace some ugliness. 

Make sure to check out GERD’s latest single, ‘Truth to be Told’ here or below.