Susanne Sundfør details an album drawn from Julian of Norwich

Susanne Sundfør has detailed her seventh studio album, Revelations Of Divine Love, out October 2 via Bella Union, recorded live in a Norwegian church with only organ and voice. Lead single "I It Am" is out now.

The album takes its words only from Grace Warrack's 1901 translation of 14th-century mystic Julian of Norwich's text of the same name, the earliest known book written in English by a woman. Sundfør first encountered Julian's writing while reading about medieval women whose voices had been erased from history.

The record was made with BBC Jazz Award-winning pianist and organist Kit Downes, who co-composed the score with Sundfør and selected the church whose organ became the record's second voice; the pair favored close-miked vocals and mostly single takes. "Traditionally, vocals accompanied by an organ are powerful and loud," Sundfør says. "I wanted the opposite, soft, whispered, as understated as possible. It's about authenticity, not perfection. It had to be playful and whimsical."

The album follows a stretch since 2023's blómi in which Sundfør became a mother of two and left city life for the Norwegian countryside, a period she calls the most transformative of her life.

Revelations Of Divine Love runs thirteen tracks, opening with "A Revelation of Love" and closing with "Love Was Our Lord's Meaning," with titles including "Hazelnut," "The Blessed Wounds" and "All Shall Be Well" drawn directly from Julian's text.

Revelations Of Divine Love arrives October 2 in the release calendar. The stripped-back approach marks a departure for an artist NME has filed under indie.