“Scania” - Soek
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
When a composer with a résumé like Grant Borland’s decides to drop the rulebook and make something just for the sake of art, you listen. No trailer deadlines. No sync briefs. Just a piano, some strings, and a heart full of Iceland.
Under the name Soek, Borland steps into new territory—and wow, what a debut. His first single, “Scania”, released June 3, 2025, is not your typical streaming bait. This is a cinematic, meditative, gorgeously restrained track that demands stillness. It’s the kind of music you don’t just hear—you absorb it.
“Scania” was born from a post-trip haze after Borland visited Iceland—and honestly, you can feel it. There’s this vast, glacial stillness that washes over the whole track. But instead of recreating Iceland with touristy clichés, Soek paints an emotional landscape: cold air, silent mountains, that weird inner quiet you feel staring into a fjord.
What’s wild is how little this track actually does—and yet how deeply it hits.
It opens with a fragmented vocal sample, sliced and reshaped into something that’s more texture than lyric. The vocal isn’t saying anything, but somehow it’s saying everything. It’s ghostly, rhythmic, and human—a sonic paradox.
Then come the synths, whispering in from the periphery. Not flashy. Not dominant. Just there—like breath on glass. Gradually they swell, not with volume, but with presence. A slow-opening filter lets more light in with every minute.
You don’t notice it building—until suddenly you realize you're feeling something and you’re not even sure when it started.
The turning point? Live strings, performed by Martin Kutnar and Session Strings Studio, and let me just say—it changes everything.
In an age where most composers just throw in a Kontakt library and call it a day, this feels like a love letter to the craft of performance. The vibrato, the bow changes, the slight imperfections—they make the song bleed emotion. It’s intimate and cinematic in equal measure.
You feel the difference between something programmed and something played. It's not just strings—it’s a heartbeat.
What makes “Scania” really special is what it represents for Borland himself. This is a guy used to working in the polished, high-stakes world of trailers and streaming media. Soek is him breaking loose. It’s less about drama, more about depth. Less “epic drop,” more emotional resonance.
“It’s a project of experimenting and blending classical music with minimal electronic textures—all while sharing cinematic sensibilities.”
This is Borland chasing the good ideas, not the client brief. And it shows.
Polished by Piotr Wieczorek—who’s worked with Hania Rani and Marius Nitzbon—the mastering on “Scania” feels less like engineering and more like alchemy. Every sound breathes. Every silence has weight. It’s that rare kind of mixing where you don’t notice it, because it’s doing everything right.
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
“Scania” isn’t trying to go viral. It’s not made for TikTok loops or gym playlists. It’s music for the moment between moments—the walk at dusk, the 2 a.m. stare at the ceiling, the drive home when you're not sure where you’re going.
It’s about feeling something quietly, and letting that feeling grow. Slowly. Organically. Honestly.
That kind of patience is rare.
That kind of music is rare.
“Don’t let good be the enemy of perfect.”
Borland didn’t chase perfection with “Scania.” He chased the feeling. The idea. He trusted the human touch. And ironically, in letting go of perfection, he made something pretty close to it.
If you’re into Max Richter, Olafur Arnalds, Hania Rani—or just need something that actually lets you feel for a few minutes—Scania is for you.
Reflect with it, not over it.
Let it breathe. Let you breathe.
This isn’t background noise.
This is emotional architecture.
Welcome to Soek. We’re listening.
“Scania” is available now on all major streaming platforms
Follow Soek - Instagram | Bandcamp | Youtube | Website
Listen to Soek and other similar artists on our Spotify Playlist ‘New Music Spotlight - Classical & Ambient’
