NUVA Interview: Behind The Groove with upcoming Swedish Soul Band

It took only seconds of the ear-warming four-minute single ‘Squid on My Block’ to make me want to know who NUVA really are. But that’s where things get confusing. A quick search on streaming platforms reveals a mix of albums and artists under the same name.

So I did what we do best. I went straight to the source to uncover the truth behind the band and reveal why NUVA are one to keep firmly on your radar.

NUVA consists of Jonathan Persson on bass, Oskar Valastig on keys, Oscar Celiz on EDI and production, and Wilhelm Linneby on drums.

SSoul – Hi guys, when do you personally see NUVA as “starting”? Was there a moment where the project properly took shape?

Wilhelm – (drums)
We don’t have an official date for when we started. I have always loved writing and creating music with others, so I brought together two of my close friends, Jonathan Persson and Linus Crawford, and we began writing songs together.

I’ve always wanted to start a neo-soul band and had a few song ideas from earlier on. From there, we started developing those ideas together and creating new music as a group. I think this was in like 2023, so from there on, we have created music together and written our debut EP, set to be released in 2026.

SSoul – How did the name NUVA come about, and has its meaning changed as the band evolved?

Choosing the name was probably the hardest part of it all. We had a long list of ideas, but couldn’t decide what to call ourselves. Then Jonathan (Bass) came up with the name NUVA, and we all felt it had a nice ring to it.

It actually refers to a creature from Swedish folklore, though it has nothing to do with our music; we simply liked the sound of it.

Jonathan adds: I don’t remember where I heard it. There are several names for this creature, and where I’m from, it’s called “skogsrå”. But NUVA is from further south parts of Sweden, Småland, I think. I thought since we met down here in the far south, ‘nuva’ would be fitting.

SSoul – The single ‘Tools’ is a full-length single of jazzy classical goodness. What musical backgrounds do the core members come from, and how do those differences shape music like this?

Yeah, Tools is really a mix of everything we are interested in musically at the moment. When writing songs, Jonathan and Wilhelm are influenced by neo-soul and jazz artists like D’angelo, Robert Glasper and Moonchild – contemporary jazz with R&B/hip-hop connotations. At the same time, we don’t shy away from other influences, such as the Moses Yoofee Trio and Alfa Mist, which take a more European approach to that contemporary fusion of jazz and other genres.

We all come from quite different musical backgrounds. Wilhelm has been playing a lot of gospel, Jonathan is more soul and hip-hop leaning, and Linus is all over the place musically. When writing our music, we make sure that there is space for all of our individual musicianship, which, in the case of Tools, resulted in a kind of diverse musical collage. Right now, we write all our music in this way because we find it the most interesting and fun.

SSoul – You mentioned a lineup change before Christmas. What shifted (if you are ok answering this), musically or practically, when you became four instead of three?

In December, we parted ways with our good friend Linus Crawford on keys, as we had different musical goals. There’s no bad blood at all. We’re still close friends.

Through other projects, we’d already worked with pianist Oskar Valastig and knew he was deeply into this sound, so bringing him in felt natural. Around the same time, producer and multi-instrumentalist Oscar Celiz joined. Both are incredibly skilled and fully aligned with where we want to take NUVA.

The change meant taking a short step back to reset, but it’s also strengthened the band. With two more singles coming before the full EP, we’re now writing new material that reflects all four of us and building a long-term vision together.

SSoul – Stina’s vocals on ‘Squid on My Block’ really connected with this listener! What made her voice right for this song?

We’ve received really great feedback on that song, and we’re genuinely happy that people are connecting with it. From the very beginning, we have intended to collaborate with a range of musicians such as singers, rappers, horn players and producers to bring different perspectives to the music. We’ve always seen NUVA as fluid on different levels. Both within the core group and as a world to let other musicians step inside and create.

Stina was the first musician we reached out to. She’s a jazz-trained vocalist based in Malmö, and honestly, there was never any doubt about starting with her. Her musicality, phrasing, and tone felt like a perfect match for the sound we were building. On top of that, she is incredibly easy to work with in the studio, professional, intuitive, and not afraid to experiment.

She also happens to be a very close friend of ours, which made the whole process feel natural and inspiring rather than forced.

You’ll definitely be hearing more from her on future releases.

SSoul – The artwork on the singles is so intriguing and feels like it’s in the realm of Lovecraft’s short story “The Call of Cthulhu” and yet looks like pieces from one whole image. Is there a story behind them?

Sure! The Call of Cthulhu thing didn’t occur to us before, of course. It kind of looks like it has a brightly coloured cosmic horror thing going on. There isn’t really a story to it. The different parts of the cover represent different aspects of the songs. The squid is self-evident, but the whole artwork is mainly a representation of the EP as a whole. We thought it would be fun to let listeners project whatever meaning they find in the music on the cover art themselves.

We still have two more tracks to release, and once the final one is out, you’ll get to see and hear the full vision come together.

The artwork was created by the amazing artist Viktor Edsjö. He’s not only incredibly talented but also such a great person to work with.

He has done some crazy good stuff. You should check him out!

SSoul – Are there any artists or scenes that helped unlock the direction you’re in now?

Not really apart from the inspirations we mentioned earlier. We started to crave writing our own material, shaping our own sound, and expressing something that feels personal to us, which, of course have been enabled by our immediate musical surroundings in different ways. Mainly, through us as musicians being part of them. Everything from doing cover gigs, playing in the gospel scene and getting to know and playing with people in the jazz scene in and around Malmö has given us really meaningful inspiration and opportunities. Of which we are truly grateful!

SSoul – Are there Swedish or Nordic artists who made you feel that this kind of music could exist here?

We never really doubted that this kind of music couldn’t exist here. Sweden lives and breathes music in a lot of ways. Almost every genre you can think of exists here, and the level of musicianship and songwriting is incredibly high.

We haven’t drawn direct inspiration from any specific Swedish acts, but just to name a few we really respect, FLOATS, Dina Ögon and Broder John are doing some seriously great things. There’s such a strong creative scene here, and it definitely fuels you whether you realise it or not.

Adam Sass from FLOATS plays trumpet on our EP, which we’re super excited about. It’s a small world, and it’s amazing to be able to collaborate with musicians you genuinely admire.

SSoul – What does 2026 look like for NUVA in terms of releases or live shows?

2026 is shaping up to be a productive year. We don’t have any live shows booked just yet, as we’re in a transition phase with new members. Right now, we’re focused on locking in as a band and writing new material.

We’ll definitely hit the stage this year, but our main energy is going into crafting fresh songs. And trust us… 2026 is bringing some seriously wild tracks your way. We can’t wait for you to hear them.

Thank you, guys, so much! We’re staying tuned!

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Photographer: Samuel Steen